 works well, dynamic range limited |
| Review Date: March 9, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Richard E. Bach, dumont nj |
high frequencies limited when using the dock output or headphone output of an ipod. "s" and hi-hats can at times sound like drowned out like "th" or just white noise.
Sirius works terrific, no problems at all when hooked up to this. |
Easy Install, Much better sound than the wireless options
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| Review Date: March 7, 2010 |
| Reviewer: TomT, |
Super easy install for me, as I already have an older
after market Pioneer, so just had to loosen a couple wire nuts.
Some static on both frequencies, but overall pretty good when driving.
When you pause your iPod is when you can hear the noise.
However, I would attribute this to the normal FM reception.
It does seem to hurt the AM radio, even when off.
I don't listen a lot, but i do like to listen to news, sports,
and weather once in awhile. So why I took away 1 star.
Be sure NOT to turn you iPod up to loud, otherwise it will distort.
I limited the max volume, so that doesn't happen.
Without buying a new stereo, this is the best option for
my older car. |
Easy to install, good sound, problems with other stations, bright light.
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| Review Date: March 6, 2010 |
| Reviewer: glitch, Ohio, USA |
I've been using this with my GM "monsoon sound" radio and 30gb zune for about 5 months now. Originally, I had set this up with just a headphone jack coming out of the dash, but this severely limits reception of AM stations (700 WLW was fine, but 550 KRC was impossible to pick up in some garages or close to power lines). Other FM stations are fine, so this is more indicative of the build quality and interference than problems with actual modulator performance. Indeed, some other modulators completely barge into all other stations FM or AM so this isn't really a problem.
So I glued the little switch and jack dealie into the car to turn the modulator on and off, which is where I run into the first real problem with this device: the backlit switch is a SEARINGLY BRIGHT green which is very distracting at night (I rarely drive during the day, unfortunately). Even this problem is easily corrected with a piece of black tape. If you take some care while cutting the tape, you can not cover the edges of the rocker so it will still work as an indicator.
Overall this device is very easy to install and use, you may need to pick up an antenna jack adapter. Other than that, this kit includes everything you need for a quick and easy install. Connect it to your radio's power so you will not kill your battery, and if you don't know which end of the soldering iron to use, have a professional put it in.
Also, some other people have been complaining of distortion, and the solution is simple: turn your music player device's volume down, and your radio's volume up. If you complain that your radio will not go loud enough, then you are probably better off getting a cheap (<$200) aftermarket radio that has an auxillary input on the front panel.
edit:
inspired by writing this review, I peeled off the black tape and looked at the light again. I wouldn't say it is obnoxiously bright during the day, although certainly distracting at night. A better solution than tape would be to solder in a current-limiting resistor (an easy fix, but I don't want to disassemble my dashboard again) |
Good product
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| Review Date: March 6, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Chris, NM |
| I got this as a gift for someone that needed a way to connect his Zune to the factory stereo in his truck. He was able to install it with no problem, and it works great. |
Works Mostly as Advertised
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| Review Date: February 24, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Alexius, |
Works pretty much as advertised: far better than wireless FM, not as good as an auxiliary port.
Basically, if your car's head unit (radio/CD player) doesn't come with a built-in external auxiliary port, you have four options to connect your MP3 player: (1) FM wireless, (2) FM wired, (3) aux port (if available), or, (4) a new radio.
Option (1) is useless; as to option (2), the Scosche FM modulator is probably the cheapest one you can find. There are some better FM modulators (eg, with 8 programmable freqs), but they are quite a bit more expensive. Options (3) or (4), which are also more expensive, offer much better quality. If sound quality is important to you and you're willing to spend the extra cash, look into hooking up through the aux port (if your car has it) or replacing the HU (these days, fairly decent radio/CD/MP3 players are not very expensive).
If you go for this FM modulator, there are a few things you should be aware of.
First, the device consists of the modulator itself and a (very) cheap plastic switch housing, containing the switch which turns the device on and a 3.5 mm female jack for audio input. The housing connects to the modulator via a Molex connector (for the switch) and two RCA jacks (for the audio input). The wires connecting the switch housing to the modulator are insulated, but unsightly and you definitely do not want them exposed. (You connect the MP3 player via the provided 3.5 mm male-to-male cable.) If you listen to the radio, you will likely need access to the switch, because reception of AM and some FM stations can be severely degraded with the modulator on.
Second, mine came with absolutely no instructions or diagrams, and Scosche provides no support on their web site. If you want to do the installation yourself, you're on your own. It's not too difficult -- if you know what you're doing. Basically, you take out the head unit, splice the red wire into an available +12V line (eg, cig lighter), and the black wire into a good ground. Connect the modulator's antenna jacks in-between the antenna and the car radio (here, depending on your car, you might require an antenna jack adaptor). Find a good location for the switch housing, attach the modulator securely, connect the switch and the RCA jacks, choose one of the two FM freqs available, put everything back, and you're good to go.
Third, the switch housing is poorly designed and made out of very cheap plastic. Its back is open (picture it as a cube with one side missing), and the housing itself is too short relative to the depth of the switch and connectors. That severely limits the choice of location for mounting the switch housing, if you don't want to have exposed cables. The housing is mounted by means of a piece of double-sided adhesive tape (provided).
Overall, installation is not too difficult, and, if you can do it yourself, it's worth it. If you have to pay for the installation, consider first an aux port or a new radio/CD player, which provide better sound quality.
Some reviewers complain of humming and/or background noise. I'd be inclined to blame that on a bad installation -- if installed with a good solid ground, this shouldn't be a problem.
Another complaint is that sound volume is too low. In a sense, that's not really the modulator's fault -- it's a basic mismatch between the electrical characteristics of the modulator's audio input and an MP3 player's output; and that's because the latter is designed to drive headphones, not to provide a line-level audio signal, while the former expects a line-level signal. (Test the modulator with any device, such as CD or DVD player, which provides line-level output, and you'll find that the volume level is within normal limits.) You'll have the same problem (volume too low) with any device not designed specifically to handle a headphone signal as audio input.
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