Help... missing sounds while playing mp3 through aux

[happymeal18]

Hi sirs... need your help and expertise on my car audio. Im not even sure if its the setup thats the problem or the HU itself.

Basically my HU is a pioneer DEH 2950... entry level HU with aux and mp3 in-dash. My main source of music is my creative vision m player which I plug via a 3.5 to 3.5 jack connector to the HU. my jack connector is already gold tipped so its a high end jack.

Anyway, sound is really good (together with mu subs, amp, and custom EQ in my player) however I noticed that in some songs (or probably most of the songs which I fail to notice since it's too negligible already), some instruments can't be heard. Even in some songs, the voice can't be heard.

When I half unplug the jack from the head unit, the missing instrument would be heard, however compromising the stereo sound turning it into mono.... but again the missing instrument sound or voice will be heard.

Just to give you some examples, when the jack is fully plugged to the HU, I won't be able to hear the guitar solo in my sharona, or the harmonica intro in crazy (by aerosmith).... I half unplug the jack, then I will be able to hear the solo and the harmonica (but the rest of the song will sound like mono)

I hope I was able to explain the problem clearly and hopefully you could suggest solutions to this problem.

Thanks!

[StraightSix]

It seems that you have the wrong kind of plug. Although you may have the right size (3.5mm), you must have the correct number of poles for each plug.

An ordinary stereo ear/headphone plug has 3 poles ... one each for the left channel, right channel and ground. Some devices need a fourth pole, ex: a control line for the device.

If your HU needs a 3-pole plug, use a 3-pole plug at that end. Consult your HU manual for the required plug.




If your MP3 player needs a 4-pole plug, use a 4-pole plug for that end. TIP: The supplied headphones should tell you how many poles it requires.



HTH

[happymeal18]

Thanks sir, i'll look into this!

[yapoy86]

there are many possible causes for your problem...

here is what you should do to verify...

try burning a CD MP3 that contains the same music where you experience missing sounds... then check if it will recur to what you have described..

if it has possible that you have a problem on either left or right channel of your system... try controlling the balance from left to right and check if they have equal sound output...

if it has not recur possible cause of the problem is the jack you are using.. use another jack and compare... also check your player sound output via earphone and check if the sound you are referring as missing will be heard..

[siacojin]

It seems that you have the wrong kind of plug. Although you may have the right size (3.5mm), you must have the correct number of poles for each plug.

An ordinary stereo ear/headphone plug has 3 poles ... one each for the left channel, right channel and ground. Some devices need a fourth pole, ex: a control line for the device.

If your HU needs a 3-pole plug, use a 3-pole plug at that end. Consult your HU manual for the required plug.




If your MP3 player needs a 4-pole plug, use a 4-pole plug for that end. TIP: The supplied headphones should tell you how many poles it requires.



HTH

Whoa! I didn't know this! Very informative. Thanks! I have the very same problem but I'm experiencing it with my PC

[StraightSix]

You're welcome siacojin.

It's the way the contacts inside the socket are laid out ... that when you have a plug and socket mismatch, a line will either be shorted or left unconnected. Hence, the problem happymeal18 is experiencing.

---

I've browsed the Zen Vision M website and indeed, the device uses a 4-pole 35mm connector.

You may have difficulties finding a 3-to-4 pole plug adaptor and vice versa, and a harder time for a pre-wired cable. So I've drawn up a simple diagram. You can use an existing stereo patch cable (3 poles) or one with a 4-pole plug on each end ... it doesn't matter because you don't need the 4th wire, and you only need to replace one plug.



The 3-pole plug goes to your Pioneer HU, and the 4-pole plug goes to the Zen Vision M player.

[happymeal18]

thanks for this. Anyway, when i use earphones on my vision m, its just an ordinary 3 pole jack, and the sound is complete. Does this mean the HU really has a bearing on the completeness of the sound?

[StraightSix]

In that case, you better check the integrity of the cable with an ohmmeter, testing for continuity from tip to tip, and for any shorts.

You can also try turning off any sound enhancement feature of the HU and see what happens.

[marv25]

i experience this a lot. its usually loose lang. i just got a new cable then ok na. but ang galing nga nyan minsan eh. klarong klaro yung backup vocals.

[Nelson de Leon]

Probably polarity issues. Maaring may cancellation.

[jumpman138]

revive ko lang tong thread na to...i just recently purchased a pioneer 2950 myself, 2nd hand of course. just noticed that the music played through my mp3 player(aux-in), samsung k3, is not as loud as compared to a cd. the player uses the 3-pole jack, i checked...i've yet to notice missing instruments though. is it really like that ba...? music is not as loud played through the aux-in...TIA

[happymeal18]

so far the volume is ok when I play mp3 through the aux-in...just some missing instuments on some songs.

try fixing the equalizer/settings of your mp3 player. Also try using different baby jack connections just to see if the problem is with your cable.

[jumpman138]

so far the volume is ok when I play mp3 through the aux-in...just some missing instuments on some songs.

try fixing the equalizer/settings of your mp3 player. Also try using different baby jack connections just to see if the problem is with your cable.

the player is at normal playing mode...at its highest volume it still does not compare to the loudness from the cd player. to give ya'll an idea, to satisfy my ears, from he aux-in i set the HU volume to around 35-41 maybe...but through the cd player i'm satisfied with the HU volume at just around 18-24. will try to buy another 3.5mm jack...i just bought mine in ace hardware at just 65Php. hehe...medyo kuripot kasi ak eh.

[danieyoyo]

the player is at normal playing mode...at its highest volume it still does not compare to the loudness from the cd player. to give ya'll an idea, to satisfy my ears, from he aux-in i set the HU volume to around 35-41 maybe...but through the cd player i'm satisfied with the HU volume at just around 18-24. will try to buy another 3.5mm jack...i just bought mine in ace hardware at just 65Php. hehe...medyo kuripot kasi ak eh.

sir naka-high na ba nun ang volume ng MP3 player mo?

[jumpman138]

sir naka-high na ba nun ang volume ng MP3 player mo?

yes sir...at its highest volume na ung mp3 player. sa jack nga kaya un...?

[alas6]

the player is at normal playing mode...at its highest volume it still does not compare to the loudness from the cd player. to give ya'll an idea, to satisfy my ears, from he aux-in i set the HU volume to around 35-41 maybe...but through the cd player i'm satisfied with the HU volume at just around 18-24. will try to buy another 3.5mm jack...i just bought mine in ace hardware at just 65Php. hehe...medyo kuripot kasi ak eh.

sir, i also had the same cable sa ace hardware and experienced similar results. when i changed to a higher quality cable, it turned out ok. ang comment sa akin when i inquired about it is that the wiring of the php 65 cable manipis daw to the point that it affects the output quality

[jumpman138]

sir, i also had the same cable sa ace hardware and experienced similar results. when i changed to a higher quality cable, it turned out ok. ang comment sa akin when i inquired about it is that the wiring of the php 65 cable manipis daw to the point that it affects the output quality

baka nga sa jack talaga sir...anyway, can you suggest a better cable, where to buy, price, and the name/brand...might go and buy a new one later after work. thanks...

[CVT]

sir, i also had the same cable sa ace hardware and experienced similar results. when i changed to a higher quality cable, it turned out ok. ang comment sa akin when i inquired about it is that the wiring of the php 65 cable manipis daw to the point that it affects the output quality

So, there's significant signal loss in these cables..... Hhhmmmm.....

7202:bruce_lee:

[jumpman138]

sir wala kayang cable na parang ung sa landline...? ung swirly para hindi messy. and haba kasi nung lenght nung mga cable na to eh...or ung parang sa car chargers...basta ug paikot-ikot na cable. ya'll know what i'm talking about right...? hehe :D

[Yuki13]

reviving this thread. stock HU for vios 3rd gen.

i've been using my Creative Zen Mosaic mp3 player via the Aux port for a while now. bigla na lang di na ma detect nang HU two days ago yung mp3 player.

I'm sure that my mp3 player and cable are in good condition, it still works in our van's HU. any ideas on what the problem is?