Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!

Acura TSX Audio

2

Comments

  • uncledaviduncledavid Member Posts: 548
    Why in the world would wires need to be exposed?

    There are numerous reports of clean Sirus and XM installs over at the TSX enthusiast site.
  • roncanadaroncanada Member Posts: 2
    More information please re: "TSX enthusiast site." Thanks
  • uncledaviduncledavid Member Posts: 548
    Edmunds.com policy precludes me posting that information here.
  • tokashtokash Member Posts: 12
    I'm surprised how little discussion there is on the MP3 accessory. With the demand for the MP3 format exploding in recent years in the form of compact players, it seems the auto industry is still a few years behind in implementing this technology into their audio systems.

    I did a search for "MP3" in this thread and only came up with 14 entries...and not all referring to the MP3 player of the TSX and not one of them could answer my questions about it.

    I went to an Acura dealer on Sunday and their salesman were at a loss to my questions. The guy I initially talked to didn't even know the TSX came with an MP3 player option. The second salesman I talked to knew of the MP3 player, but didn't know any details about it. A third salesman behind a desk thought the MP3 option was available for both the TL and TSX. I'm pretty sure it's not available for the TL...but if it is, could someone please verify?

    If someone has one installed with Nav, could you please describe how it works, i.e.:

    Does it use the Nav screen to display song titles? If it does, does it use the filename as the title, or (for you computer savvy people) does it use the ID3v1 or ID3v2 tags that can be associated with MP3 files?

    Will the MP3 player take both CD-R's and CD-RW's?

    I'm looking into purchasing a TSX. The option of an MP3 player won't make or break my decision. But one thing is for sure; I do want an MP3 player of some kind and knowing how the factory player works will allow me to decide whether to use theirs or just get my own.

    Thanks in advance for any help!
  • rko2rko2 Member Posts: 40
    I agree with you that the demand for MP3s is high, but I don't know of many people that burn MP3 on a consistent basis. And, if you have experience here you know that not all burned CDs are playable by all MP3 CD players. Maybe Acura (and other makers) are avoiding this to sidestep consumer compatability issues and many more headaches.

    On the flip side, I wish that my TSX (and all other cars) included an auxillary input mode in the stereo that used a simple 1/8" stereo plug. This would enable us all to use any portable device (iPOD, mp3 player, laptop sound, etc.) through the stereo. Some aftermarket decks have this, but why not factory systems? Does anyone else hate using FM transmitters (especially with an antenna in the rear window)? And any TSX owners have an FM transmitter that works well?
  • tokashtokash Member Posts: 12
    Yes an audio aux input of some kind would be another great addition. It would be an acceptable substitute if car manufacturers are trying to avoid the compatibility issues that MP3 players can impose.

    I also wish the stereo dash layout wasn't so proprietary so you could easily swap the factory stereo with a prefered in-deck audio system. Maybe they do this in order to coerce the consumer into keeping/buying their accessories.

    I've tried using an FM transmitter (not in a TSX though) and found it to be lacking. You can still pick up engine noise and other background influences; you can't really have a pure sound with FM.

    Anyway, still looking for answers to my original posts...
  • c_hunterc_hunter Member Posts: 4,487
    For about $90, I bought an adapter for my wife's TSX that add's a direct line-in. She uses it for her iPod.

    When connected, you can press the "CD" button twice (display says CD-C) to select the aux-in. Basically, the adapter hijacks the CD-changer input jack for a generic aux-in. Being a direct line-in, the sound quality is very good. I believe the adapter is made by P.I.E., and it was easy to install. Check out some of the TSX-centric enthusiast web sites for more info.

    CRaig
  • enya18enya18 Member Posts: 19
    I'm looking into the idea of adding a cassette player as an accessory to the TSX that I would like to get (in the near future), for the purpose of being able to use my MP3 player in the car. According to the ACURA website, it costs a little over $200 (MSRP) to add-on. Edmunds doesn't have an options list which shows the invoice prices for accessories. Do I have to pay MSRP for an accessory? Or is there a way to find out the invoice price?
  • c_hunterc_hunter Member Posts: 4,487
    If you just want to connect your MP3 player, say an iPod, to the factory stereo, then there are better ways to do it than installing a cassette deck and using a cassette adapter. Several manufacturers make a harness kit that attaches to the radio's CD changer jack and provides a direct line-in. I paid about $90 for the kit I put in my wife's TSX.

    Craig
  • geoinsdcageoinsdca Member Posts: 9
    Hi,

    Can u give any additional info on where u found/bought TSX adapter to use the AUX feature for an I-pod, or the product/part number? Its exactly what I have been looking for!

    I spent 2 hrs at the Acura dealer on Mon, and another hour on the phone with Panasonic (radio maker)

    I have the Nav version, not certain if yours does or if that matters?

    Thanks very much.
    George, Long Beach, CA
  • c_hunterc_hunter Member Posts: 4,487
    Try some of the TSX specific enthusiast web sites for more details. I'd love to give a link, but then Edmunds would delete my post. Logjam elecronics sells some -- look on their website.

    Craig
  • yosyos Member Posts: 1
    Warning - don't get the Acura MP3 player - it's a joke, doesn't connect to an IPod and is a waste of money.
  • tridderitridderi Member Posts: 9
    I purchased a Red and Black 2005 TSX without navigation system (as a map works just fine for me).
    I purchased fog lights because I live in upstate NY and they are very useful in the winter with the snow "falling sideways", as it often does.
    I got the dealer to throw in the mud flaps, trunk tray and wheel locks for free.
    I bought the wind visor because my previous Hondas would be far to noisy without the visor. I would barely open the moon roof. With the visor, it is very quiet. It is noisier to open a window than the moon roof. So totally worth it.
    I also bought the MP3 CD player because I have a large number of MP3 CD collections with Bible studies that I have purchased (although most people just have personal MP3 players instead, so this would not be the best for them). I agree that a line-in connector would have made a lot of sense. I love being able to listen to my MP3 CDs directly in the car. I must point out that I am very disappointed that navigating through the disk is difficult, since the MP3 titles don't show up on the screen, although since it does display the titles from the XM radio, it is obviously capable of doing it.
    Anyone know of a firmware upgrade that can provide the text?
  • tridderitridderi Member Posts: 9
    I put another note in ...
    I bought a TSX with the MP3 CD player. I have only used it for CD-Rs. It has recognized every single one that I have used (purchased or created manually).

    I don't have a navigation system, so I don't know where it would display it there. On the other hand, I would presume that it would display the data in the same place as the XM radio display.

    As far as what is visible ... it is disappointing. It displays "D-# T-#" where # is the number of the disk and track. It treats the directories as disks and the MP3 files in the directories as tracks. They could have come up with anything better than that (even 8.3 format would have been better!). It makes it virtually impossible to select a particular song that you want without memorizing the number of the disks and the number of tracks for each (and the directories are probably alphabetical). I have many MP3 CDs that are for Bible teachings, so I still find value in this option, but if I wanted it just for music, I would not have bought it.

    My only hope is that sometime in the future, someone will come up with a firmware upgrade, since the radio can display text, as it does with XM.
  • tcwattcwat Member Posts: 10
    I have a 2005 5AT without Nav. How do I get the XM radio to automatically rotate and show all the info like station name, artist, and name of song? I know how to press the button to manually rotate.

    Thanks.
  • manavimanavi Member Posts: 150
    I didn't know you could press a button to scroll the text. Which button do you press?
  • tcwattcwat Member Posts: 10
    It's the top button to the right of the radio. I forget what it say, random maybe? Push it and it will switch to the next view.
  • manavimanavi Member Posts: 150
    Oh, I misunderstood what you were talking about. You're talking about switching the display to "Name", "Title", "Station", etc. I thought you were saying you could scroll the display to read a long title that is being cutoff.

    AFAIK, the display will automatically show the artist name and title of the song briefly when a new song starts, and then it will switch to whichever info screen you had it on before the song started. I don't think there's a way to get it to continually switch through all of the information screens.

    I think you should just pick which info you are most interested in and leave it on that one screen. I leave mine on "Name" because that's what I'm usually most interested in knowing: the name of the artist.
  • tcwattcwat Member Posts: 10
    Oh, sorry. You are right, I should have said changing or switching.

    I thought I saw it automatically changing during the song when I was test driving the car but it may have been on the nav version. I thought I was overlooking something. Oh well, it is still nice.

    Thanks.
  • brian39brian39 Member Posts: 2
    I bought the belkin mini stereo audio cable to plug in my iPod to the AUX input in my 2006 TSX, but for some reason, I hear no noise. Does anyone know of the reason for this? Or is this not compatible? Thanks.
  • crissmancrissman Member Posts: 145
    Make sure your radio is set to AUX and that the cable is plugged to the iPod headphone jack. Should work. This is how it works in my '06 Civic.
  • xplorx4xplorx4 Member Posts: 621
    You need to install a Ground-Loop Isolator (GLI). You can get one of these at Radio Shack.
  • uknyukny Member Posts: 5
    Anybody experiencing lack of AM transmission In certain locations the transmission is inaudible..whistling, buzzing etc. This problem did not exist when I first bought the car....Help! cannot listen to Sean Hannity and Mark Levin :(
  • devore420devore420 Member Posts: 30
    I haven't experienced a consistent problem with AM radio, but I do experience a lot of interference with both FM and AM radio because of traffic sensors at intersections. I'll pull up to a red light and the FM will become fuzzy and as soon as it turns green the signal will clean up. I think it's related to the sensors in the road that trip the lights. This may not be what you're experiencing.

    Or maybe just leave it as is... for me, being unable to hear Sean Hannity would be a nice feature.
  • novicenovice Member Posts: 64
    devore420

    I have some fuzziness with my FM and AM--but with XM I don't use my conventional radio sets anymore. Plus--I had your exact thought about Hannity--I'd beg for static.
  • crudcrud Member Posts: 5
    If you have your cell phone charging...that may be your problem. When the cigarette lighter is used, it screws up the frequency of the AM radio. Try unplugging it.
  • cloveclove Member Posts: 10
    Our 2000 Expedition has this and I love it -- does the TSX have this feature -- it is where it shows the radio station name, artist and song
  • jmty02jmty02 Member Posts: 1
    I just got a 2006 TSX about three weeks ago. So far all is good, I love it. I don't think my sound system is bad at all. Coming from my 1990 Acura Legend, I had 2 12" subs in the back and good speakers all the way around, that sounded awesome. Now, it doesn't seem that bad, I was reading some of the other posts and it sounds like some blown speakers. I don't have any rattling with my speakers. There are a few issues I want to address/confirm.

    First: I notice also that my FM seems to come in and out a little bit, even on the popular channels, it seems that way.

    Second: Anyone notice a small "hissing" sound when playing CD's? Like you can hear a small, small sound that sounds like when your TV is "snowy". I noticed that, not that its a big deal, but a little annoying.

    And the biggest item I want to talk about: has anyone had 4 or more people in the car and the back speakers do not play? On two seperate occasions, I had the back seat telling me that nothing was coming out of the rear speakers. I didn't even ask them the second time, they brought it up to me. I don't know if it is a courtesy thing where it shuts off the back speakers so it doesn't blow out the peoples' ears in the back. I have checked the fader and balance and everything is fine. When I drive by myself or with a passanger in the front, they all sound fine, just when there is 2 or 3 people in the back. Anyone notice this too?
  • mrgold35mrgold35 Member Posts: 73
    Are you taking about the 6X9 by the back windows or the 6 1/2 on the back door side panels? I think the 6X9 are like subwoofers, the TSX’s amp filters the sound and only sends lower freqs to these speakers. Some owners replaced the 6X9 with 3-way or 4-way 6X9 to get a better sound from the rear. They sometimes had to add an extra amp or steal the speaker wire from the door panel to get the full sound from the new 6X9. I usually turn down the sound when I have back seat passengers and at a low volume you probably won't hear/feel the 6X9.

    How do the speakers sound to you when other folks are in the car? If it sounds the same to you, it probably the 6X9 in the rear acting more like subs than reg full range speakers.
  • unity520unity520 Member Posts: 8
    Is there a way to get your ipod to play using your steering wheel controls?
  • johnny420johnny420 Member Posts: 473
    I don't think so.
  • stlcarguystlcarguy Member Posts: 30
    There was. I think it was called Audio Link. (same system offered on other Acuras). They stopped offering it on the TSX because their was bleed over with the XM. Haven't heard if they're going to re-release any time soon.
  • johnny420johnny420 Member Posts: 473
    IIRC, the Audio Link didn't let you use the steering wheel controls to control the iPod, though. It was one of the big complaints about it.
  • 4acuras4acuras Member Posts: 13
    I WISH the TSX system was BOSE, it is not. I had a 200 TL and really liked the sound it had, especially the cassete deck. Played my high end self made tapes from an NAD deck and B $ O turntable really good. I complained about a bit of distortion I thought I heard in my TSX and the dealer replaced the amp (so they said).

    I get a crunchingly hissing, sort of crackling (hard to describe) sound from the center of the dash with the stereo off. It seems to come from the tires as it gets louder on rough roads. It has a slight affect on the sound system.
    Maybe my next set of tires will fix that.
  • 4acuras4acuras Member Posts: 13
    As a condition of my taking a lease on my TSX (I recently bought it from the lease) I had the dealer install the cassette deck. It takes up the upper storage spot but the deck sounds decent. I have a lot of Chromium, high end cassetes I made on a mid end NAD deck from a good CD player and also vinyl from a B & O turntable and wanted to be able to play them without going digital with them. Of course, I am an analogue fan anyway.
  • 4acuras4acuras Member Posts: 13
    AM is always going to be a problem due to it's nature. It
    drps uder bridges and tunnels, it skips around due to weather much more than FM. I was listening to New Orleans on I10 in the Florida panhandle at 2 AMK and San Antonio, just south of I10 on I75 in Florida at 3 AM. FM won't do that You guys must be young. I come from AM only rock stations era.
  • capriguycapriguy Member Posts: 1
    Can any one suggest me low cost cable compatible with all mp3 players to connect mp3 player to acura's music system
  • dakota03dakota03 Member Posts: 9
    Does anyone know if you can add XM to an 04 TSX and have it operate through the factory radio. I don't want to have to add an additional interface to the car like a sky-fi.
  • mezzaninebrownmezzaninebrown Member Posts: 1
    Don't waste your money on an Acura audio link.
    This thing called a neo iOnaux costs 200 buck and you can install it yourself with no tools.
    you don't need to drill any holes nor do you need to remove the radio.
    the cord is in the stoage bin right below the A/C or disc changer so your ipod is there instead of in your glove box
    if you have the navi you need to buy a special harnss for 35 dollars
    this allows you to use the ipod controls, changer controls, or steering wheel controls to control your ipod.
    all of this can be purchased from mp3yourcar.com
    just selct ipod and then, acura, then year, then TSX
    there is a video of installing it on a TSX so ANYONE can do it
    it is super easy and sounds great
    all spelled out for you on this website
  • buyinginncbuyinginnc Member Posts: 7
    Do you get full access to playlists/artists/albums/genres and is it easy to navigate through them using the radio controls?

    I have an 06 non-nav TSX and would like to add the iPod link but not sure which one. There is also icelink and iPod2Car...

    If anyone has comments on any of these after market iPod hook ups, I would love to hear them!
  • dynatsx1dynatsx1 Member Posts: 10
    I recently purchased an '06 TSX w/ nav. I'm approaching the end of my 3 month XM trial period, and I'm not sure I want to renew it. I really like the selection of music that is offered, but I've found myself not listening to it much because of the poor sound quality. I've heard it is because of music file compression by XM - has anyone heard anything about this? Is there any fix? In my opinion, I'd say the old school radio has better audio quality at times than XM. Anyone else notice this as well?
  • rakudramarakudrama Member Posts: 5
    I have a similar feeling about the XM sound quality. It is noticably bad on BBC world service where it sounds very 'thin' like a cell phone. I doubt if there is a fix - the 3 month intro is supposed to convince you to buy service.

    The Acura sales person said that you can haggle with XM to get a better price than the prices advertized at xmradio.com. Has anyone tried this and got a better price?

    In my urban area we have some excellent FM choices. Personally, I'd pay $3/mo for XM, not more.
  • pickledherringpickledherring Member Posts: 10
    I'm looking for something that gives me better sound from my iPod in my 07 TSX w/out nav than the auxilliary input.

    Has anyone been using aftermarket connectors, like Logjam or others, and can share some suggestions for getting good sound from the iPod? The previous posts on this topic were pretty old, so I was hoping for some fresh info, maybe updates on new technology, adapters. Thanks.
  • mytsxmytsx Member Posts: 1
    Hello everybody,

    I just purchased 2004 TSX with 31,000 miles on it. I noticed that, when driving at night, it's hard to recognize the buttons on the audio system because it is completely dark! No lights on any of it, except for the display. I don't have navy, by the way, just a regular audio system. Can you help me find out what's wrong?

    Thanks
  • bvdj84bvdj84 Member Posts: 1,724
    Does the 08 TSX have an audio, separate amplifier??
  • armishanksarmishanks Member Posts: 14
    There was a TSB on the lighted audio controls for the 04s. The lights would dim or go out completely. Call Acura or stop by your dealer to see if your car is covered.
  • sbrodiesbrodie Member Posts: 13
    I just picked up an 04 tsx w navigation, like it, but miss the audio that I had in my Legend. Does anyone know if I can do the following?? I don't really want to alter the factory nav/radio system but.

    Can I also install my Kenwood excellon radio, that would then allow me to add my sirius equipment and kenwood changer?? I'm thinking it could install in the little door under the factory radio. BUT, I would need to do something about the wiring harness. Is their a dual harness made by anyone? One that would allow plug into the factory as well as the Kenwood? Any thoughts?
  • bvdj84bvdj84 Member Posts: 1,724
    First off, are you wanting to use the power from this kenwood to power the whole system, while still using the navigation? That is possible, but realize, you will lose all functions of using your steering wheel controls to change the settings. You will be using the navigation strictly for its purpose, and the kenwood for the sound.

    I am not sure I would do that, I would keep the factory as your main system, while trying to see if you could add the kenwood as an auxilary into the main system, therefore leaving access to all features of the car. I hope I understood what you were saying.

    Any sound shop, not bestbuy or stores like that, but a sound shop, will be able to tell you whether you can hook this up like an auxilary. Therefore you can hook your surris radio up to that. It can be done.
  • sbrodiesbrodie Member Posts: 13
    I want both. I want to be able to use the factory radio for am fm ect, and the Kenwood excelon for sirius and usb (which it has). A local stereo installer told me yesterday they can do it, but they want $500.00 seems a little pricy. From there description, it doesn't sound that hard to do. They did say they need to order a part, but they won't tell me what part, or how they will do it, prob thinking I'd just do it on my own(might be right if it's real easy.

    Anyone recommend an installer in the San Fernando Valley???
  • sbrodiesbrodie Member Posts: 13
    I did it myself, and it works better than expected. Will be doing the final mounting of things this weekend. The excelon kenwood really sounds much better than the factory, and since the factory radio is still hooked up, I can compare the difference with the push of a button. Now I have the kenwood for sirius, usb and aux plug in as well as the knewood cd changer, and the factory for AM/FM
Sign In or Register to comment.

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles