Hi Guys,

New to the forum, just bought a XJR but want to use my iPod. I have looked and found that there are connections you can add to the back of the radio head unit that allow for a cable to come off and you can add your iPod there. This saves changing the radio etc. Only problem is that it is not clear which cable will work with my car. Anyone done this before that can help?

Thanks

Steve

 

do you have the standard or premium stereo?

 

Want a really easy and effective solution?
Go buy a cassette adaptor. I use it and it works well.

 

HI, Thanks, I don't know how to tell the difference, I am going to the Jag dealer today to brief him on work for a service and will ask when I am there.

Regards

 

If I can find one here in South Africa I will certainly consider it, I would prefer the iPod to be fixed out of sight though otherwise i have a lot of cables in that area. Thanks for the advice.

 

Premium has tweeters in the a-pillars, and an amp in the boot, standard has tweeters in the doors only, and no seperate amp.

Have a read through this, it's probably what you're after
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...ar-xk8-115475/

The other option is to make your own. I made my own aux input cable by hacking together an ai-net cable, an old ai-net cd stacker and some female rca plugs. You could do the same with an ipod cable, you'll just need to do a bit more research on which pins go to which. If you do it right, you should be able to get it to charge your ipod too...
If that all sounds too hard, just spend the money on the one in the thread above

 

Hi Grandell, thanks for the info. I have looked on the web at the cassette things, both look interesting. I am quite keen though to try and get it wired into the cubby out of the way. Maybe even find a way to stream from my iPhone or whatever. I can do that in the house on my telly so…. I should be so good at working that out! I prefer hard wired options as they give less problems in sound quality. I was impressed with the guy, DaveC I think it was, that made his own little docking thing in his ashtray. You wired something up yourself so that is pretty impressive, I'll get some time and try that weekend after next. I need to see how to get behind the unit so will look into that. I am doing the same for my daughters Ford Fiesta, she wants an iPod connected to that and it is the triple deck ford unit, does not take an iPod so working on the same issues. I see that you can get adapters so I will work out which unit I have and see if I can get those and take it from there. Thanks a ton for taking the time to point me in the right direction. Steve

 

The easiest way to hack into the ainet cable is at the cd stacker, but then you have to run a cable through the car. That's not really that difficult though, and will work no matter which version of the stereo you have.
The harder way is connecting the cable behind the headunit, like I have done.
Your car is a 98 model, so this should work whether you have the standard or premium stereo, you just have to take your time when pulling everything apart, as there are a few plastic clips etc that like to break when you do it.

 

I have a 98 XJR myself, my question is, why do you want to try to integrate an I pod ( which didn't come out until 3 or 4 years after your car was built ) into a car that is at least 16 years old ? Any gain in technology and improved quality would surely be lost by the older systems design parameters. you may be better off using the I pods head phones. Don't get me wrong, I am not against modifying anything, but trying to integrate newer tech to an older system does not make any sense. you end up with the worst of both. Surely it would be better to install a complete new sound system that was designed to work with the latest technology, amps, speakers, head unit, wiring etc , otherwise its a bit like trying to make an electric violin work in an orchestra, it works some times but mostly does not.

 

That's very well put Andrew - it's exactly what I ended up doing - a crash course in I.C.E!

 

Nobody adds an ipod for sound quality, you do it because an ipod makes cd's obsolete. by hacking into the ainet cable you can bypass the bespoke Jaguar stereo comms and get the audio you want.

If you have access to some old audio gear, a soldering iron and some heat shrink, I'd be happy to walk you through the process of either making your own cable, or intersecting the wires at the cd stacker.

Unfortunately I'm awful at taking pictures of the work I have done So I can't post up a proper guide. Sorry

 

Please don't get me wrong, I am not trying to start an argument, but if the only reason to want to try and make an I pod work with the original radio/cassette/CD combo why not spend 10 £/$/ euros .... what ever currency is native to you on a cassette/ Ipod adaptor ? It plugs in / pulls out with no modifications in seconds! But apparently the sound quality is only 80-90 per cent, so if it is only for convenience that should be more than acceptable.
Now if you have the technology to download tunes to an I pod, then you surely have the tech to burn a CD ? How long do it take to burn a CD ? How much are blank CD s ? How many times a year do you change your favourite top 100 or more favourite tunes ? You do the math, because I cannot know your wants or budget, but if only for convenience as apposed to sound quality it dont make sense to me. Now if your desires are better sound quality and more up to date technology such as Sat Nav / Reversing camera etc... then a total new system would be the better bet. Just my 2bobs worth and hopefully I did not offend anybody.

 

No arguments here, apologies if I came across as such

100 songs is nothing once you make the move to ipod (or any other mp3 player), and once you get used to it, it's hard to go back.
Personally I hate the look of cassette adapters, and using the tape is never going to be as good as feeding into the cd channel, although you're correct, there won't be a huge difference in quality.
The main advantage is that you can have a huge collection of music (literally thousands of songs, or compilations that run well over an hour), and have it tucked away somewhere so that everything still looks factory.

One day I will upgrade my headunit, but funds are a bit dry after doing the boot install last year and sorting the throttle body issue. Making an aux input cable cost me nothing, and I can run music from either my phone, ipod, or my partners iphone, and I don't have to worry about changing adapters or having cables everywhere.

 

I don't want to say money is not an option as money is hard to come by and I like to hang onto it when I have it. Having said that driving an XJR just soaks up cash at the fuel pumps so everything else looks cheap, like buying a new head unit ( I do between 2,000 and 3,000 kilos a month). My drive for the iPod is simple on a few levels. I don't like wires all over the place so the tape adapter I don't like but I did look here for one but could not find one. I don't stress about the sound quality as the unit sounds great just now anyway and at my age, 53, the ears are not as fussy as the 20 to 30 odd year olds ears. I can cut a ton of CD's, that is cheap but the CD boot unit is not great, gets that error message, why waste all that time cutting CD's and then there are the pot holes that live all over Johannesburg not to mention the speed humps that seem to pop up as often as the speed humps, the CD then skips. I have a few iPods so one can live in the car for a bit before having new songs put on. A jack/lead in the dash is what I do in my other cars, I have a '77 MB SLC and a '98 Audi A4 like that, they both have new head units as that was easy to do. This unit is a Ford unit and they just did not have the extra bit in the back to take a lead from. I have found that on my daughters 2005 Ford Fiesta I have just bought her, a triple deck thing which I have to buy an adapter for as no lead behind there either.
I don't see the need to upgrade the head unit but there is also the fact that a new one won't fit that space and look right either. So it is back to finding a way to wire in my iPod.

Thanks everyone for taking the time to answer and give ideas, much appreciated. I'm off to the dealer now to see what system is in it and to hear if they have had any ideas from current owners of similar models.

 

HI,

I think I might take you up on that offer to explain where you cut in etc. Once I have been to the dealer and found out a few things I'll give you some feedback and I think I will need to do something to get the iPod working.

Regards

 

Grandell, same for me.
Reading some of your other posts, seems we think along the same lines.
Don't know exactly why, but prefer to do it your way too.

Eric

 

This was a huge help, specifically the last couple of pages on the pdf document in Sarc's post
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...t-11943/page6/

 

I will admit I seem to be in the minority here, but I listen to the radio most of the time. I like the balance between music, news and traffic information. I haven't managed to play all the CD s I put in the changer when I bought the car yet, and have never put a cassette tape in the player, so don't even know if it works.
Just thinking about it, the US is a vast country so you probably have to drive through areas where the is no radio coverage. In the UK nowhere is more than 75 miles in a straight line away from the coast, so unless you keep lapping the M25 it is virtually impossible to hear all the tracks in CD player.

 

Heh... I listen to the radio most of the time too! In fact, it's causing quite an internal conflict that I've spent so much money on a stereo that will perfectly audibly reproduce radio static.

What really makes me jealous is internet radio. You guys get perfectly clear HD radio, and can make your own stations and broadcast the songs you want from your own collection

 

The problem with radio in the US is it's 50% advertisements and most stations play the same 10 songs on repeat all day long with a few "requests" thrown in.