Hi everybody,

As you can see by my name, I was shopping for a Civic but...the deal was too sweet: I just drove home in my new '07 Accord LX!

Now I need to intergrate my iPod, and from what I've gathered most people are using patches like Blitzsafe and USA Spec, which give you an AUX input to plug in your iPod...? Forgive me, I'm no techie.

Basically, I want a radio unit that will display and control my song tracks. My friend has such a set up in his Scion (the iPod is hooked up under the conscole and displays the tracks on his stereo). I'm pretty sure this won't work on my factory Accord, so I was looking at the Alpine units.

Does anyone have an Alpine like this? Is it hard to control the tracks? Do I need crazy wiring? Any input is greatly appreciated, before I go next week into sound shop and get ripped off.

Thanks for your help!
5speed...ACCORD

 

I have an Alpine CDA-9855 and I had to buy a second $100 box to connect my iPod. The newer Alpine decks these days have a wire connected directly to the deck. On my deck it is PITA to scroll through playlists and tracks, so I usually just unplug it, select what I want, hit play, and plug it back in. The second generation of Alpine iPod decks feature the single wire, full-speed integratio, and a better UI for scrolling through songs (I believe it's through the **** and not the slider bar). If you aren't looking to add betters speakers and subs later then don't spend your money on a new deck and just have Honda add the iPod support.

 

Finch, I wasn't looking to add a bunch of thunderous subs and speakers, but I still think the new Alpine iDA-X001 might be worth it. I mean, I'm not crazy about the price but from what I hear (and what you told me) the other Alpines are MEGA-slow in scrolling, have problems showing all tracks, etc. At that point, why not just plug it in a AUX jack?

Well thanks for the quick lesson and facts. I need to put some more thought into it....

 

I just got a Dice elect. kit, it hooks up to your factory stereo and it does control your ipod from your factory controls. plus if your radio supports text then that too will show up.

 

I don't think the new Alpines are slow with selection (they are advertised as "full speed') and I've toyed around with the newer version of my deck with the full speed and its seems fine. You're not going to get the speed of the click wheel but it is definitely increased in response. I think the X001 would be a good choice for an OEM replacement, I just wish the screen wasn't on the opposite side of the driver. On another note, the MediaXpander feature is an amazing advance over the stock sound. And learn from my mistake: don't just go to Best Buy and lay your cash on the table for MSRP price. Look around online and buy the cheapest, I bet you could find one for $300 - $350 if you look hard enough, it's worth the wait.

 

Thanks for the replies, guys. I'm sure my factory radio won't display text, which only leaves me 2 options: forget text and go with a simple "line-in" connection, or tare out the whole unit and get that Alpine. The X001 is sweet but a bit pricey (now with car and house payments), and the interface is awkward on the right-hand side.

I made a quick phone call from work today and found out that a simple "line-in" installation will run me $200 ($70 for the cable and $130 for the labor. Although, the USA Spec cable for Honda sells around $130. Hmm...) Also, I cranked my stereo today and was less than thrilled with that "blah" factory sound. So maybe if I go with just the iPod cable, I'll have the cash to spring for a couple decent speakers too. The verdict is still out.

 

On the note of factory speakers, I still have mine in and they sound great. Once I got my Alpine deck with a software crossover built in I sent 75% of my bas to my subs to take the stress of bass off the speakers. Smart decision on going with the cable rather than a new deck, its not worth the money if you just want th support and not performance.

 

Well, just made another call to a company my friend recommended, and they said pretty much the same thing: go with the Aux-cable method. They said the Alpine would be too expensive for me, and probalby not worth it. They also recommended I get what richnamk has, the DICE kit. It's a bit more money but it will give me full control of my stereo, and maybe even some text on my factory unit. As for the speakers, they said I could upgrade them—just a little, because it's all relative to the stereo. IE, the power produced = sound of speakers. Basically, if I'm not getting a new deck like the Alpine, or want to install an amplifier, I shouldn't spend all that money on the labor of wiring.

So I think I'll give it a shot. These guys seemed really cool and informative. For under $300, I'll be rocking out once again

 

i hear the honda ipod interface isnt worth the money or sumtin like that and you should go with the usa spec one

 

If you have a LX then you can install the item yourself, its not hard what so ever. Took me 30 min to put it in my friends '06 LX Accord. PM me and I'll hook it up. So go with the dice kit.