jaybird

Hey guys,

Just wanted to share this, as I spent quite a bit of time researching options during this process so hopefully this will be good info for someone else looking to add a simple iPod solution/Aux input to their pre-'08 GS, with a very finished mounting look.

I have Sat radio and listen to that most of the time, so I’m not a hardcore iPod listener and my normal listening profile is just to listen to a Playlist, and maybe skip past a song or two, or maybe listen to a podcast, but not navigate and jump around through all the Artists/Albums/Titles, etc.. So my first set of google searches was how to add an Aux input directly to the stereo, and there are some threads in the SC forum on here (as well as on other car forums) of guys who soldered an Aux connection directly to their head-unit. I considered that route but was too worried about frying everything and costing myself big $ in repair/replacement

So then I started looking at iPod kits, and was basically underwhelmed with the options – it seemed like most of them had less than optimal control through the stereo, as the interface with CD or Sat emulation the kits use just is a little awkward. Ie issues like limits of 99 songs per playlist, and limited text display were just quirks I didn’t like. Also seemed like lots of bugs and firmware revisions on some of the various units.

I did read the review on here of the Vaistech ML+ (which seems very slick and almost swayed me to go with that solution), but in the end based on how I use my iPod, all I wanted was a very simple hookup that was < $100.

So, I bought the Dice I-Toyota-R (on eBay for around $70), which has both the iPod specific cable interface but also an Aux interface. I wanted the Aux interface for a couple of reasons – I thought it was a good thing to be able to control the music from the iPod itself since that’s a better interface, and the iPod specific cable is kind of big and unwieldy for a clean mounting solution, so having the Aux cable connection available so the iPod was easily accessible for anyone in the car that wanted to play DJ (my wife for instance, who seems to jump to new albums/artists b/w every song ) was one of the goals.

All of the threads on here on removing the head-unit were very helpful, I just followed those and it was a piece of cake. I ended up mounting the Dice unit (which works great by the way – no issues to report) in the glovebox (with a little Velcro tape to hold it in place), along with the iPod specific cable, so if I’m by myself in the car I can just plug my iPod in and leave it in the glovebox, and then use the radio controls to jump ahead past songs if I want. I ran the Aux cable underneath the center trim piece but I wanted a very ‘finished’ looking solution, not just an open hole with a cable dangling through it, so I spent a good bit of time researching solutions here also. Many of the 3.5mm mounting jacks that I found required soldering connections, which I didn’t want to get into, so I ended up getting the iSimple IS335 kit (just google it, I got it for about $12 on eBay) since it has a 3.5mm cable with a mounting jack on it.

The first pic below is just a stock pic of the IS335 kit;

I drilled a hole through the front/bottom of the center console, which was a little problematic as the tray made it kind of tight quarters to get a normal drill in there. So I used a Dremel since that was able to fit inside the center console. The IS335 kit indicates a 3/8” bit for the mounting piece, but I started with a much smaller bit since I was a little worried about how the console and the felt lining would react to being drilled, but there were no issues at all and I was able to drill the hole very easily. I started with the Dremel from inside the console with a small bit, but then the Dremel with a larger/longer bit wouldn’t fit inside the console anymore so I just used a regular drill from the other side (so the drill was on the side where the shifter is, facing into the center console) with a larger bit to increase the size of the hole that I had already started. I first tried fitting the mounting jack into a 5/16” hole as I wanted a very tight fit, but that didn’t work and the 3/8” hole does fit very tightly.

So, once the hole is drilled, you just push the mounting jack into the hole until it’s flush. It feels very secure, but over time if it starts coming loose I can always add some superglue to keep the face secured tightly.

Here are some pics of the finished install of the mounting jack;

memasterac

It looks pretty clean to me and for under $100 material you get a 3.5 mm jack fits your primary use is just super. The iPod interface cable is a bonus too!!

If I didn't get the Vaistech VML then the 3.5 mm jack is the way I want it too. I don't like the Vaistech VML using the Lexus's interface but do appreciate the USB memory playing for the good sound quality.

What interface does the Dice I-Toyota-R use when you connect with the iPod cable? I assume you can't control the iPod directly (such like passenger mode)?

mysteryan

You can also save some money by canceling your satellite subscription. I was disappointed with the fidelity of Sirius. Streaming internet radio like Pandora sounds so much better. Now that you have a dock, try it out.

jaybird

there are 2 modes you can use on the Dice to control your iPod, which you set with dip switches - one is 'Locked' mode, where you can only control through your stereo (ie iPod controls are disabled) and it actually works pretty good for the way that i described how i listen to my ipod, but scrolling for artists, albums, etc.. isn't great as you can't jump ahead to letter 'S', for instance, you need to hit the 'Next' button to scroll through every single artist one by one, and it's fairly slow to move from one to the next. there's also 'iPod' mode, where you control the music from the iPod itself but it doesn't pass all (or any?) of the text to the radio display, so all you see on the radio display (at least in the emulation that i'm using, which is MP3), is Folder 1, File 1, etc.., not the specific album name and track name.

sartask

How easy was the Dice I-Toyota-R to connect to the main stereo system?? I like the way you described the install, but am wondering what setting on the Touch Menu you push in order to use your iPod. Secondly, does it charge your iPod when you used the interface cable (not the 3.5mm)??

jaybird

it was pretty easy. just a quick note on that - the manual clearly says to disconnect the battery for the install, i read some posts online that said they were able to install their dice unit successfully without disconnecting so i tried that first, but it didn't work for me that way so i did end up disconnecting the battery. it took a little bit of playing around with the dip switches and the switch on the ipod but then it recognized it as the external cd changer. so to use it i just cycle through the modes (AM, FM, Sat, CD, etc..) until it gets to it or just hit the CD button twice.

from the touch screen on the stereo you will have to change the source to either be the iPod cable connection or the Aux connection, depending on which you have plugged in. the manual describes that process pretty well.

lastly - yes, it does charge the iPod when it's plugged into the iPod cable. also if you have that cable plugged in and shut off the car, the iPod stops and will re-start from that same spot when you start the car again, which i definitely like better than the Aux connection, where the iPod itself will just keep playing on it's own.

dunnojack

would be nice if you could make a video demo of the dice software

KATSLEX06

Nice clean job you did looks very professional. I hate not having that port.