There's so much talk here about swapping channels, replacing speakers, adding amps etc. But I'm wondering if the quality of the sound in the car can be improved by improving the quality of the signal going into the Aux port? I guess I'm asking if music sounds better if fed from an Iphone or other mp3 player that has a built in equalizer?

 

The aux port is the worst way to go about trying to improve upon sound quality especially with an mp3 player . Garbage in garbage out. If you want to intergate an I pod the best way imo is the mini ipod interface.

 

I would start with sound dampening material then apply closed cell foam and mass loaded vinyl this will get rid of road noise most effectively and if the sound isn't to your liking still then go for the head unit speakers amps etc. It will cost but you gotta pay to play my good man.

 

It's not a dumb question at all.

First, yes, using higher bit rate music is a good thing. Second, no, in general I would NOT recommend using the eq in an mp3 player or iPhone. There are all sorts of potential problems there.

With the stock audio you are not going to notice much improvement with higher bit rate music because it's a weak-link-in-the-chain scenario. Unless your mp3's are really crappy, the rest of the system is the weak link, and the improvement would be masked.

An easy test is to play the same song on commercially purchased CD and then on mp3 via the AUX. This is something we have to recommend to folks with the Soundstage, because the difference is dramatic on that system (you can see reports of that on this forum). With the stock system, not so much. Your efforts would be better spend elsewhere to start.

Hope that helps.

 

When using an iPhone or other portable player, try not to use the headphone amp and look for a legitimate line level output. Headphone amp outs can be less than ideal because of level and distortion specs when reamplifying. In the case of iPhone/iPod, look into dock connector to stereo mini from Fiio and a barrel adapter. A little cleaner sound and no gain-staging required with the player volume.

 

Anyone have a link to the Fiio dock connector and barrel cable?

 

http://www.fiio.com.cn/products/inde...nuID=105026015

You only need the barrel if you have a cable with a male connector permanently attached like I do. If you have a female stereo mini aux jack, all you need is the cable in the link or one of the others like it. You can buy them on Amazon.