MP3 Players that work via the USB?

[Ilya]

So, I'm a techie for a living and am an Android guy. It's pretty much against my religion to use Apple and their phones/computers . HOWEVER, I will admit that manufacturers have done a REALLY nice job of incorporating the iPod connection into the entertainment system of todays modern cars.

My iPod Nano is nearing capacity (16GB). I had to change my high-bitrate tunes from 320kbps to 256kbps in order to save some space. I really like the small form factor of the Nano and don't want to get an iPod Touch 32GB which is basically the size of an iPhone. Especially because I sometimes take the iPod with me when I'm on the motorcycle and it's perfect for the pocket in that case too. Otherwise it only leaves my cars armrest cubby when it gets brought inside to update the library.

Are there any other devices out there that the Y51 entertainment system can read/work with and is fully integrated (steering wheel controls, playlist selection, shuffle all songs, etc.)?

If I recall, last time I tried an Android phone, the car says that it cannot read the disk inserted or something like that. Probably because of how the partition of the device is setup.

What are ya'll using?

[agoodall]

I have a 16gb flash drive plugged in to the usb. That is all I use. No cords is better for me.

[Ilya]

I could try that. Does it integrate the same way (able to search by artist, shuffle all, playlists, etc?)

[agoodall]

I could try that. Does it integrate the same way (able to search by artist, shuffle all, playlists, etc?)

Yes sir. Everything is searchable. You can play randomly or by folder, etc...

[ibc]

USB flash drive works perfectly except for 1 issue: It takes a bloody LOOOOONNNNNGGGGGG time to read the USB before you can hear anything from it. Grrr. And if you switch source to something else (eg DVD, map, radio) and then come back to USB, then you have to suffer the USB re-intitalization ALL OVER AGAIN. So stupid. It's zippy fast if your USB is almost empty (eg holds 4GB or less). But if you fill it with 16GB of mp3 files, then the radio freezes for 10+ minutes to read the USB, and that's ridiculously long, so I gave up on USB. Btw, USB 2.0 or 3.0 suffer same slowness.

Instead, I use an ipod classic on long road trips. In town I use double-layer DVD with 8GB of mp3's. The ipod and DVD are both instant on! So nice!

I wish there was a phone holder in my dashboard. I usually lay the phone on the flat shelf under the radio screen, or else it stands in the ashtray. That's sub-optimal, But the ipod is hidden in the big box between the seats, where I can ignore it.

[TreyhunnaM37x]

I use my 128gb iPhone 6S. No issues. Call work. Playlists work great. Charges. Hidden in armrest. Prevents texting. (Still answer texts with my watch and Siri) But still answers calls thru car. Awesome.

[Ilya]

USB flash drive works perfectly except for 1 issue: It takes a bloody LOOOOONNNNNGGGGGG time to read the USB before you can hear anything from it. Grrr. And if you switch source to something else (eg DVD, map, radio) and then come back to USB, then you have to suffer the USB re-intitalization ALL OVER AGAIN. So stupid. It's zippy fast if your USB is almost empty (eg holds 4GB or less). But if you fill it with 16GB of mp3 files, then the radio freezes for 10+ minutes to read the USB, and that's ridiculously long, so I gave up on USB. Btw, USB 2.0 or 3.0 suffer same slowness.

Instead, I use an ipod classic on long road trips. In town I use double-layer DVD with 8GB of mp3's. The ipod and DVD are both instant on! So nice!

I wish there was a phone holder in my dashboard. I usually lay the phone on the flat shelf under the radio screen, or else it stands in the ashtray. That's sub-optimal, But the ipod is hidden in the big box between the seats, where I can ignore it.

Yeah USB won't work for me then. Guess I'll have to go out and buy a giant iPod...

[agoodall]

USB flash drive works perfectly except for 1 issue: It takes a bloody LOOOOONNNNNGGGGGG time to read the USB before you can hear anything from it. Grrr. And if you switch source to something else (eg DVD, map, radio) and then come back to USB, then you have to suffer the USB re-intitalization ALL OVER AGAIN. So stupid. It's zippy fast if your USB is almost empty (eg holds 4GB or less). But if you fill it with 16GB of mp3 files, then the radio freezes for 10+ minutes to read the USB, and that's ridiculously long, so I gave up on USB. Btw, USB 2.0 or 3.0 suffer same slowness.

Instead, I use an ipod classic on long road trips. In town I use double-layer DVD with 8GB of mp3's. The ipod and DVD are both instant on! So nice!

I wish there was a phone holder in my dashboard. I usually lay the phone on the flat shelf under the radio screen, or else it stands in the ashtray. That's sub-optimal, But the ipod is hidden in the big box between the seats, where I can ignore it.

Yeah USB won't work for me then. Guess I'll have to go out and buy a giant iPod...

I would still try a flash drive before buying a big ipod. I have never had the long/prolonged load time that IBC described.
When I start my car it takes about 30sec to load my flash drive and after that is pretty seamless.

[infinitedrift]

I use my Note 5 and before that my S4 via Bluetooth with no problems. Just make sure your Bluetooth is already on before getting into the car. The initialization is much faster this way. I play my music through soundclound app and youtube music app.

[Ilya]

I use my Note 5 and before that my S4 via Bluetooth with no problems. Just make sure your Bluetooth is already on before getting into the car. The initialization is much faster this way. I play my music through soundclound app and youtube music app.

I haven't tried my Nexus 6P, but my LG G4 had a 3-4 second delay for literally every action. Can't have none of that.

I'm serious, I can't stand Apple iPhones and computers (Android/Windows guy all the way), but the iPod integration in this car is absolutely fantastic. Trying to mimic that otherwise nothing else will work.

[rsilva800]

I haven't tried my Nexus 6P, but my LG G4 had a 3-4 second delay for literally every action. Can't have none of that.

I'm serious, I can't stand Apple iPhones and computers (Android/Windows guy all the way), but the iPod integration in this car is absolutely fantastic. Trying to mimic that otherwise nothing else will work.

Android/Windows guy all the way here as well. I have been using my phone as my music box since I have the M via Bluetooth streaming without any issues or delays. I just registered my phone to the M's media center and it syncs automatically as soon as I start the car.
I am currently using an LG G4 with no issues whatsoever. I have also added a 128GB class 10 micro SD to store all the music, photos and videos on it.

P.S I also like my music at 320kbps

Rob

[Ilya]

Can you explain what you just said? My phone is setup to be an audio device, but what is this media center and sync you speak of? Are you saying the MP3's are downloaded onto the hard drive of the M?

Weird that your 2011 has no issues with the G4 and both my 07 and 11 had significant lag with all the phones I've had. If I hit pause on my phone, it'll actually pause 2-3 seconds later. Sometimes 4.

[adeedpb]

I am running a Note 5 and I have experienced the 2-3 second lag but only when pressing pause or play; there is no lag when changing tracks from phone or radio controls.

[rsilva800]

Can you explain what you just said? My phone is setup to be an audio device, but what is this media center and sync you speak of? Are you saying the MP3's are downloaded onto the hard drive of the M?

Weird that your 2011 has no issues with the G4 and both my 07 and 11 had significant lag with all the phones I've had. If I hit pause on my phone, it'll actually pause 2-3 seconds later. Sometimes 4.

What I meant to say was that I have the phone set up as an audio device so it syncs/connects automatically when the car is on. Media center is referred to the cars Navigation interface/Software.

I have experienced the play and pause delay, but it happens only when the phone reconnects to the Bluetooth after the car has been shut off.

Hope that clears the confusion.

Rob

[Ilya]

It does. I had the same setup with my G4 and it was very annoying. The lag was ALWAYS there...1 minute, 10 minutes, or an hour after connecting to the car.

[SmoovC]

I have kind of went a different route: my Nexus 6 is paired to the media center for cell phone call duty only. I have a Samsung Galaxy S2 9.7" tablet paired to the media center for audio duty, which is connected via hotspot to the N6 for a data connection.

This allows me to have Pandora, Plex (from my home server), Media Monkey (for music stored on the S2's micro SD card), Google Maps, Escort Live and a host of other apps running through the media center's audio. This configuration also leaves the lone USB port available for either mine or the girlfriend's 160GB iPods.

Perhaps it is because of using one device for calls and one for media; but I have not experienced any lag, and am able to use the steering wheel controls for track back/advance.

[rsilva800]

I have kind of went a different route: my Nexus 6 is paired to the media center for cell phone call duty only. I have a Samsung Galaxy S2 9.7" tablet paired to the media center for audio duty, which is connected via hotspot to the N6 for a data connection.

This allows me to have Pandora, Plex (from my home server), Media Monkey (for music stored on the S2's micro SD card), Google Maps, Escort Live and a host of other apps running through the media center's audio. This configuration also leaves the lone USB port available for either mine or the girlfriend's 160GB iPods.

Perhaps it is because of using one device for calls and one for media; but I have not experienced any lag, and am able to use the steering wheel controls for track back/advance.

Great point. I will need to try that with my spare S4. Maybe the lag can be attributed to the Media Center trying to connect the same device as both, Audio and Call.

Rob

[Ilya]

So, I connected my Nexus 6P to my car for audio and it worked pretty well. Still a *slight* delay (like a second) but I guess that's expected without wires. I use an app called "PowerAmp" which has a nifty built in equilizer and it actually made a difference.

However, later in the day, the BT connection must have been bad cause music was staticky and every now and then there would be a spike sound (like a microphone glitch) for a split second.

BT is out. I can't deal with something that isn't consistent.

Honestly, nothing beats the iPod and the Android guy in me hates to admit it. Gonna try USB next, but my guess is I'm going to give in and get an iPod Touch.

[SmoovC]

I am totally with you on the Windows/Android thing Ilya, and as you mentioned nothing beats the iPod as far as "universal" integration. My only wish is that our cars came with a 3.5mm aux in, so we could use a universal aptX Bluetooth receiver, and bypass the Factory BT audio altogether.

My girlfriend's 2011 Sentra SL did not come with BT streaming; but does have a USB and a 3.5mm input. I added an aptX BT receiver, and it sounds great with her Moto X Pure Edition.

An interesting note: I had my N6 paired to BT HF, BT audio, and also to the Passport Max 2; all at the same time. I noticed that BT HF voice quality was choppy, so I unpaired BT audio and the issue went away. Don't know if that helps anyone, but it is something to make note of in this discussion.

[Ilya]

Yeah I have my OBDII, phone (calling) and phone (audio) synced to the car and it was working great on the way to class. When I got back in the car after class had ended, it sounded like crap lol. Probably would have been okay with a restart of the car or a reconnection of BT I don't want or should need to do that for this to work.

Gonna try the USB flash drive method on the way to a D1 basketball game today and see how that works. If it works decently well then I'll stick with it...otherwise I'll have to pony up the cash and get a massive iPod touch (have literally -100 use for apps, screen, whatever else it has...it'll never leave the armrest console).

[SmoovC]

May I suggest looking for a used/refurbished iPod Classic? 5th gen units has the best sound, and are pretty readily available. I too do not use any apps via crApple; I merely use the iPod for mass storage of audio and playback in vehicles.

[ibc]

Apple discontinued the ipod Classic in 2014. You can still buy used ipod on ebay, but they're not cheap (unused is 2x MSRP). The 5th generation had smaller (80GB) capacity, 6th & 7th gen. were bigger (160GB). The DAC difference is irrelevant for cars, since plugging ipod into the USB interface sends digital (not analog) audio signals to the car's HU, so that bypasses the ipod's internal DAC entirely and instead uses the car radio's own DAC. The biggest benefit to ipod is perfect integration with Infiniti HU, and 2nd benefit is the ipod's AMAZING battery life. Downside is its internal HDD.

But back to the OP's question...
Is the (modern) Android interface as good as Apple's when used in the M/Q70?
Are some Androids vs. others any better integrated with Infiniti HU for audio?
After all, a 128GB SD card inside an Android can nicely compete with highest capacity ipod.

[Ilya]

Not sure about interfaces as I've never used an iOS device for anything more than like 5 minutes. I used MacOS in one of my web design classes for a whole semester and I wanted to off myself every tuesday and thursday at 5:30pm.

My phone is about as new as it gets, running the last non-adultered version of Android (it's a Nexus device so it has no LG/Samsung/HTC skin over top of it, etc.). It's not an issue with the software as much as it is with the bluetooth itself (which is technically separate from the OS). One time it was fine, the other it was not clean.

Yes, Android phones that still have expandable storage certainly win that battle. The G4 had up to 2TB storage capacity lol. Most Android phones have gone away from removable storage and batteries though.

[SmoovC]

The DAC in the 5th gen would benefit the OP when in use on his motorcycle; as he said he now uses a Nano in that fashion. What would be irrelevant is the battery life while in use in the car; since it is always plugged into USB.

In answer to the OP's questions:
1) As an "integrated unit"; probably not. The limitation is the functionality of the M series' interface.
2) I believe some are, depending on how one integrates.
3) 200GB cards are readily available for under $100, making storage far greater than even the highest capacity iPod.

[Ilya]

So I tried USB and it worked much better than BT....HOWEVER, and this is me being picky, there is NO pause option to be found anywhere. Which is DUMB. I can pause on the iPod and BT, but not USB. I need it as I tend to pause often.

Looks like I'll try to squeeze all the life I can out of my 16GB Nano and then I'll have to get a 32GB iPod touch (it took me like 10 years to collect 16GB so I should be good with 32GB for a long long long time).

[agoodall]

So I tried USB and it worked much better than BT....HOWEVER, and this is me being picky, there is NO pause option to be found anywhere. Which is DUMB. I can pause on the iPod and BT, but not USB. I need it as I tend to pause often.

Looks like I'll try to squeeze all the life I can out of my 16GB Nano and then I'll have to get a 32GB iPod touch (it took me like 10 years to collect 16GB so I should be good with 32GB for a long long long time).

To pause I just turn the stereo off. When you hit the knob again it starts right where it left off.

Glad the flash drive is working for you. I think people who have issues with lag may not be organizing their music in folders. (theory)

[Ilya]

So I tried USB and it worked much better than BT....HOWEVER, and this is me being picky, there is NO pause option to be found anywhere. Which is DUMB. I can pause on the iPod and BT, but not USB. I need it as I tend to pause often.

Looks like I'll try to squeeze all the life I can out of my 16GB Nano and then I'll have to get a 32GB iPod touch (it took me like 10 years to collect 16GB so I should be good with 32GB for a long long long time).

To pause I just turn the stereo off. When you hit the knob again it starts right where it left off.

Glad the flash drive is working for you. I think people who have issues with lag may not be organizing their music in folders. (theory)

There was a 15 second delay each time I start the car that I forgot to mention. Everything is sorted into 11 folders (my playlists - basically genre's).

Didn't think of the power button...good idea lol.

[sage789]

I'm new here and sorry to bring up a very old thread, but this came up on my search. I just got a 2011 M37s and have similar questions. I also have an LG G4 android and the BT skips and is generally unreliable. I bought a bluetooth transmitter to bypass the phone's bluetooth (I plug the G4 into the transmitter with a 3.5mm audio cable) and that solved the skipping issue, but now the song data is not passed to the HU and I can't control the G4 with the steering wheel.

Ideally, I would like to be able to play music stored on the device, play music in my Amazon Music account and play music in my Google Play account, depending on the situation. I also use my G4 for Google Maps. I was thinking about going the iPod Touch route and using the G4 as a Wifi hotspot, but I think both devices would have to be mounted, since I don't think GPS works on iPod Touch. I think I would need the Touch visible to switch between Amazon Music, Google Play, and the music app, right? and I would need the G4 visible to use Google Maps.

Am I missing something, or should I just bite the bullet and switch to an iPhone? (ugh)
Also, I was wondering if the new Google Pixel 2 with Bluetooth 5.1 makes any difference? I assume Infiniti can't update the BT, correct, since I think it's chip-based? What version is the BT in the HU?

Thanks!

[Ilya]

Welcome to the forum!

I'm currently on the Pixel XL running Android Oreo 8.0 (since the Nexus 6P was mentioned in my post - that thing was running 7.1 or so) and honestly, other than occasional drops (entirely) of BT signal streaming works great. I've used Google Play music, was using Spotify for a while, and recently setup my personal NAS to stream music (Synology DS216j NAS) via the DS audio app. Works great. So I think the G4 BT version or ability is just not jiving with the car.

I also have a Pixel 2 (Wife) and Pixel 2 XL (Me) on order. Will report once those arrive at the end of November...if I don't forget. lol.

EDIT: Not sure what the BT version of the car is, but you are correct, unfortunately you can't update it or at least I haven't found a way/heard of anyone doing that.

[cyanide7730]

I use an iPhone 6 without issue via USB mainly cause it shows artwork and current song info. (BT doesn't after the first song or so)
I do use BT when I need to charge my phone faster, via a dedicated charger. Though like Ilya, it will sometimes drop out entirely and then reconnect.