So my wife and I just got home from picking up her new 2010 MINI S and were looking forward to hooking up the iPod and putting the HK sound system through its paces.

Unfortunately, once the iPod was hooked up and playing, it had a muffled, echoey sound. Not unlike listening to music in a cave while wearing earmuffs. I did the obligatory wire wiggling, tried a different iPod, even used a patch cable to connect directly to the AUX input. All produced the same results.

Needless to say my wife (and I) are pretty bummed to find this annoying flaw in a car she's owned for less then three hours. Has anyone else encountered this and know of a fix. Thanks!

 

There are a few adjustments that may be out of wack. Such as:

1. Aux input voulme
2. bass and treble controls
3. front rear fader controls

With the iPod "disconnected" select the AUX input you should see a VOL-AUX on the screen press the button below it and you can now adjust the AUX input volume using the rotating button. Set it to midway between + and - , then press the rotating button in to accept.

Now for the bass and treble controls. THese controls can be set for each in put I.E. tuner, cd, USB, AUX. When the the iPod is connected i beleive it uses the USB settings.

So connect the iPod and get it playing and then select the note button (the one with the musical note on it) and adjust the base treble controls. Faders are not set for each input they are used for all inputs.

Check this stuff out and let us know if that helps the sound.

 

On top of those suggestions, check to make sure that the iPod's internal EQ is off. It drains battery quicker and could possibly have a negative effect like what you describe

 

Thanks for the suggestions, but still no luck. She's got an appointment to take it in next week. Hopefully the service department can figure it out.

 

I came from a VW and I must say I think the base MC stereo isn't that great either. However, I've had my car for a week and I am actually getting used to it. Its not that it sounds BAD, just different than the Jetta. I adjusted the aux/usb input level to 4, treble to 3, bass/fade/balance to 0 and its not so bad anymore. I have found I just need to NOT be afraid to use the volume. And it seems like the MINI is more sensitive to poorly recorded songs on the iPod. The CD player sounds fine. But I have stuff on my iPod that is recorded low and kind of distorted. The Jetta (aux in only, no USB) would hide those imperfections better.

But, as I said, its not so bad anymore. Let us know what the dealer says! Since I've only had mine for a week I am going to compile a list of things I want to dealer to look at and go at the 1 month point maybe. I have a feeling the stereo is just "factory spec" for MINI.

 

I had the same problem and discovered the USB part of the connection was not fully plugged in despite me thinking it was after jiggling it a few times. My suggestion, as dumb as it may seem, is to make sure both the aux plug and the usb plug are fully inserted into their respective slots (check and double check). Hope it's that simple.

 

The auxillary volume level makes a huge difference in sound for your ipod. Make sure it is not turned all the way up. Have it at about 50%, and then try it. That worked for me!

 

Wife took her car in this morning. Service manager had a listen and initially thought the volume on the iPod was to blame. After several minutes of fiddling he realized the problem was more involved. Most recent update from them is that they may have to replace the entire head unit.

Nice convertible 328i loaner in the meantime, though.

 

Too bad for the OP on the poor audio quality.

If you don't have the USB/Ipod interface I would absolutely recommend the following cable for your AUX-in

http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...seq=1&format=2

It sounds worlds better than a 3.5 - 3.5 connection.

In fact I strongly recommend monoprice.com for ALL your cable needs - especially if you need an HDMI cable. I feel bad for anyone who purchases an HDMI cable at best buy!

 

+1 for monoprice for cables!

 

Already a big fan of Monoprice. I'm tempted to buy a whole mess of $0.99 HDMI cables, set up a stand next to Best Buy and sell them for $50 a pop. People would be amazed by the great deal they were getting. Half off! :D