I just got an Avic x920bt and so far I'm very happy with it.

Before buying it I was told by Pioneer tech support that using the CD-IU50V cable allows the signal from the Ipod to go from the ipod to the Avic in true digital format and is converted in the Avics 24bit A/D converter to analog. Crutchfield confirmed this as well.

Do any tech savvy members know if this is the case?

Thanks

It is analog all the way.

Yeah it is probably analog. The audio probably passes through the 3.5mm jack, since analog can't pass through the USB port.

Pioneer could have decided to design the cable to support digital audio over the USB and the video over the analog connection like the new Sony navis do but they didn't. My guess is a license fee has to be paid to Apple to support digital audio and Pioneer didn't want to pay anymore license fees to Apple then they already do. The iPod video out only supports analog video so that limitation is on Apple's side. All other in dash navi companies have sailed the same boat.

I guess a good test would be to hook up an iPod using the Apple USB cable and see what it does.

I tried that with a P4200DVD headunit that I had before and was getting audio.

I guess a good test would be to hook up an iPod using the Apple USB cable and see what it does.

 

I tried that with a P4200DVD headunit that I had before and was getting audio.

Did that unit support iPod video? Anyway trying to use USB only for an iPod with any of these navis will not give you audio at all.

Yeah the unit supports ipod video. The video wouldn't play but the audio did, I remembered. It must be different on the AVICs.

alright heres the deal, some of pioneers radios use digital and some of them use analog, the way that you can tell is by the type of connection cable it uses.

a lot of their cheap decks will just use a USB plug, this is digital, the radio has a cheap chip that decodes the MP3 inside of the radio then sends it to the amplifier.

the chips that they use on these are not the best quality and thats why this method is usually used on the basic decks.

with most of the nav systems, they use analog, the USB is just used for Ipod control and then there is a seperate cable that carries the audio and video from the Ipod (where the MP3 is decoded from a slightly better chip)to the head unit via an analog signal, which is supposed to give you better sound because the chip in the ipod is better that the one they would have used in the headunit.

now there are a few models out there like some of the alpine media receivers, that have a top notch D/A chip (24 bit burbrown D/A) that will use just a regular USB cable and do a much better job decoding the MP3 and giving you better sound.

Are you sure of that 1loudls?

Pioneer told me different.

The clowns at Pioneer don't know their head from their ass half of the time. Yes, we are sure. Call them back and you will probably get a different answer.

you know how i know that im right, have only the ipod USB plugged in and then plug something else like a phone into the 1/8" connector, you will get sound from the phone, and since the phone is outputing sound as a analog signal via its headphone jack, that means that the radio is expecting the same signal from the ipod.

why else could the same inputs be used for an aux video input OR an Ipod input?

you where also told this info from a basic TECH support guy (if your lucky)that works for the company that makes the most glitch filled nav system on earth that even their enigneers cant figure out how to fix, if those ass clowns knew what they where doing, then there would be no need for this forum.

when ever calling their tech support, you need to call at least three different times, because you will get a different answer every time, then you just have to take the responce that you get the most and test to make sure that it is true