Getting the Most Out of Your iPod Without Sacrificing Sound Quality
Written: Feb 24 '04 (Updated Feb 24 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: reasonable price, works perfectly without diminishing sound quality, enables greater use of iPod
Cons: none as I see it
The Bottom Line: Excellent accessory makes the iPod more versatile, particularly for those who don't normally listen to music via headphones.
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For those of us who don't normally use portable CD players, an iPod seems to be unnecessary at first glance. That was my impression about a year ago, Christmas 2002. My father-in-law loves all things Mac and bought iPods for both my husband and I for Christmas.
I was very touched by his generosity, but wasn't sure when I would use it. It wouldn't be appropriate to use at my office and I tend to take my dog on short walks (under 20 minutes) so I wouldn't use it then either. And, while we uploaded our CD collection to our computer and have legally downloaded other songs from iTunes, we don't need iPods when we're sitting in front of our computer since brace33 already upgraded it with better speakers/sound card because of his penchant for gaming.
But my dear father-in-law is quite thoughtful and also gave us 2 XtremeMac iPod Cassette Adapters, one for each of our cars. This great accessory is the ONLY reason I even use my iPod. And, having reviewed epinions on the iTrip FM transmitter (which seemingly appears to be more convenient than this cassette adapter since it only requires a simple AA battery-sized plug-in adapter), I am even more convinced at how great this accessory is.
The $20 adapter that converts a $400 item from paperweight to useful object!
The photo above shows the adapter, which is cassette tape-sized and has a long cord--similar to the one we had for our old portable CD player. I find it more than long enough to plug in and then leave the iPod on the console in-between the seats or even on the floor by the passenger's feet. And I don't find it a hassle to store, since I just coil the cord around the tape and throw it back in the glove compartment after each use.
In terms of its performance, I can find no flaws. Unlike CD players (even those intended for car use like the Sony one we have), the iPod never skips so the cassette adapter works perfectly. While I admit I'm not an expert audiophile, I did upgrade the speaker system in my car and I cannot discern any differences between a CD and the iPod. Again, poor sound quality is the biggest complaint with the alternative iTrip FM transmitter (which is also more expensive).
And while I find it's not convenient for daily usage, since I don't like to leave my iPod in the car or the cassette adapter in the deck, the adapter is invaluable on long trips. We typically take 4-5 hour road trips on our vacations up to Lake Shasta (see my epinion on Houseboating at Lake Shasta!), so having the adapter enables us to NEVER listen to a song twice.
What I love most is that we don't even have to do anything inconvenient to hear a variety of songs, like switch CDs in my trunk-based CD changer, make my own mixes to customize song order, or sit through commercials on the radio. Instead, one just scrolls through playlists (which can be created while downloading MP3s onto the iPod from the iTunes software). So if we're feeling sleepy and want to wake up a bit, I might select the high-energy electronica/dance music playlist. It already has all my favorite songs in the order I've selected and I can listen to them with a push of a button without any additional work on my part. When that playlist is completed or my mood changes, I can switch to a different genre. In addition, I could also just go to the list of all songs and play them all until we reach our destination.
For me, this adapter truly made the difference between having a nice paperweight and actually making the most of the iPod. While $20 may seem a bit pricey, it's reasonable in light of the high cost of the iPod to begin with and the benefits of customizing musical choices on long car rides.
I highly recommend it!
Recommended:
Yes
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