No CD Player !!!

Rip your CDs onto a flash drive in Mp3 format in the highest resolution. Use the free software "fre:ac" that MONEYJOHN recommended on the first page of this thread. If you can not get that to work then spend some money to download the software called "Express Rip". Do not purchase the additional teck support. You will not need it. The express rip software is from Australia so the price varies according to the day to day currency exchange rate, and you credit card company will probably add a small additional fee for over-seas transaction. But the software is very good.

You want to use a flash-drive that is rated for temperature extremes. The Samsung BAR plus in the Champagne Silver, flash drive is rated for temperatures below the coldest and above the hottest temperature it will ever see in a vehicle. You can get them from Amazon. You really do NOT need the most expensive largest ones. My collection of over 200 CDs and the additional ones I borrowed from the local libraries resulted in 1230 songs and that uses up less than 6 Gigs of storage space on a flash drive and I used the highest resolution when I ripped them into Mp3. At the rate the smallest one, 32 Gig will hold more than 6000 songs. If you get a flash-drive holder that Amazon recommends. The flash drive is small enough to loose and the holder protects it when in transit and prevents you form loosing it.
 
Originally Posted by Hermann
When I bought my current truck two years ago this month, the Dodge er Ram had no CD player. The Ford did and it sounds great. The base stereo with two door speakers and two mid/tweets on the dash sounds great.

Not saying this is why I chose the Ford, the predatory sales practices of the Ram dealer actually caused me to laugh in their face, they threw me out. Ever heard of a failure to lease fee? Low value trade in fee? I felt dirty when I walked er thrown out.


Like with the OP's Jeep, the CD player is an option on the trucks.
 
People don't buy or burn CD anymore these days. Look at all the laptops and desktops, they don't have optical drives anymore. Also how many people buy CDs these days?

I guess they expect you spotify or youtube music. All the younger folks at work do this now, they don't "download" like us older folks for musics and movies, they stream.
 
Originally Posted by MNgopher
You want compressed, try listening to Sirius... That is the main reason I refuse to subscribe or use that service. The Audio quality is noticeably awful.

When it comes to CD's ripped at high quality versus the CD, to be blunt, I can't tell the difference when I'm driving down the road at 70 mph. My vehicle is a vehicle, not a concert hall...

What I have found with Sirius is some tracks sound really bad while others sound pretty good. I guess that's one benefit of getting older is my hearing isn't what it use to be or I've just got use to digital. I agree a vehicle is not a good sound stage anyway.
 
Originally Posted by Quattro Pete
Originally Posted by ARCOgraphite
That is the most hated, junk piece of music that I ever heard.

I cant believe you played that!

What ever happened to the intro of Also Sprac Zarathustra ?

Or the synthesizer ending to ELP's Lucky Man ?

OK, how about "Angel" by Massive Attack, or "Time" by Hans Zimmer then.
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For me it will always be... Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight
 
Originally Posted by wemay
For me it will always be... Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight

Great song, but it doesn't dig deep enough into the lower end bass region to test out a system. Personal preference, of course.
smile.gif
 
Get your choice of audio playback device (source device if the receiver or amp does not) that does FLAC digital format. Flash media is so inexpensive these days that there's little point to ripping CDs to a lossy compressed format like MP3, then having to store multiple quality versions for different playback scenarios. Rip it to FLAC -ONCE- then throw the CDs away or sell at a garage sale, whatever.

Today's tech allows every song the average person has ever heard, or ever will hear in their lifetime, to fit on few enough mSD flash cards that they take up less space than a pack of chewing gum.
 
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Originally Posted by Dave9
Get your choice of audio playback device that does FLAC digital format.

Yeah, but if your car's entertainment system doesn't support FLAC, then you'd have to deal with a second device that does and wire it up to your car for sound and power. Too much hassle for me personally, but certainly doable.
 
This brings me back to my high school and college days, when I still used CDs in the car. I used to carry one of those huge CD wallets with over 50 CDs in it. I'd pick out 2 CDs before going anywhere: One CD I wanted to listen to, and a "back-up" in case I changed my mind halfway through my commute - too dangerous to be flipping through the wallet while driving. And I'd be committed to those 2 CDs for my whole drive. I only traveled with burned copies, and kept the originals safe at home. No matter how careful I was, the travel discs always got scratched up and eventually started skipping, usually right at the best part of my favorite songs. Those were dark times, for sure! I'll never go back to using CDs in the car!

Now I use my old iPod classic 160 GB (even that is a dinosaur now; still infinitely better than using CDs) plugged into the USB input on the stereo. The iPod stays in the glovebox, completely out of sight and everything is controlled from the head unit. I have my entire music library on it (over 2,000 songs), all in CD-quality lossless audio format. Any song or album I want to listen to is available with the press of a few buttons. The last aftermarket car stereo I bought (originally for a Honda CR-V I used to own, now it's installed in my Ranger) doesn't have a CD player, and I don't miss it at all.
 
Originally Posted by madRiver
Ripping a CD to USB memory stick involves using a computer with CD which is a rare thing now.

True. If you have a notebook/laptop without a CD drive, you can pick up an external CD/DVD drive for $20 or less.

Most desktop PCs still include a CD/DVD drive, I believe.
 
Originally Posted by Quattro Pete
Originally Posted by Dave9
Get your choice of audio playback device that does FLAC digital format.

Yeah, but if your car's entertainment system doesn't support FLAC, then you'd have to deal with a second device that does and wire it up to your car for sound and power. Too much hassle for me personally, but certainly doable.

If you had to you could just use one that plugs into the cig/aux outlet, powered by it and transmits via FM, unless your vehicle head unit does bluetooth then just use your phone. If you buy it from someplace with a good return policy, like Amazon if you have Prime, then you can try the FM reception and return it for a different one if it isn't up to snuff. Some also provide USB charging and hands free calling if the vehicle doesn't do either of those functions.
 
I grew up in the audio cassette era and I lived through the audio CD era. I used the cassette but I've always HATED the audio CD. When the first audio CD players first came out, they skipped. They didn't come out with enough cache and any little bump caused them to pause or skip. I remember having a small external player in my car resting on a big pillow. There is better audio media than the CD. My sister had a Ford Explorer that they had the dealer regularly replace the unit. Also being a little compulsive about the CDs discs, I hated the scratches that having them in the car would do. CD in the house, I love. CD in the car, I've always hated. Besides, if you want to see the writing on the wall, WalMart no longer has the prerecorded CDs in the $5 box. They have obviously seen the recent CD sales.
 
Originally Posted by Dave9
Originally Posted by Quattro Pete
Originally Posted by Dave9
Get your choice of audio playback device that does FLAC digital format.

Yeah, but if your car's entertainment system doesn't support FLAC, then you'd have to deal with a second device that does and wire it up to your car for sound and power. Too much hassle for me personally, but certainly doable.

If you had to you could just use one that plugs into the cig/aux outlet, powered by it and transmits via FM, unless your vehicle head unit does bluetooth then just use your phone. If you buy it from someplace with a good return policy, like Amazon if you have Prime, then you can try the FM reception and return it for a different one if it isn't up to snuff. Some also provide USB charging and hands free calling if the vehicle doesn't do either of those functions.

So insist on sticking with FLAC, just so you can then send it via FM transmitter? LOL! Ok.
 
My wife's Tiguan with a touch screen /Apple play had a nice surprise lurking when we opened the glove box. Above an old fashioned CD player
 
Originally Posted by MParr
I didn't think it was a great idea to delete the CD players from new cars. However, I have adapted and put all of my CDs on thumb drives. That large CD case has been replaced by two memory sticks.


I bought a used car 5 years old with a 5 CD changer and a single CD player above the navigation display. Haven't used it. In theory I don't even know if it works, but someone borrowed the car once and told me it did. I have Sirius, bluetooth and the apple ipod connection. No need for CDs. Can't even remember the last time I bought one. I basically use Spotify, I have the subscription and use an old 4th gen ipod which I leave in the glove compartment and just sync that once in a while so I can listen to all my music without ripping any CDs, just add it to the playlist from Spotify at home. I also have Sirius which I use once in a while when I get bored. I signed up for the $60 for one year of service. They do it all the time, I think you just call and they try to get you to do $100 for a year but if you keep asking for the $60, they will eventually give it to you, easier than the $30 for 6 months which means you have to call again in 6 months.
 
Originally Posted by rrretiree7
I just bought a 2017 Jeep Cherokee and it has no CD player. The salesman told me the new Dodge trucks do not have them.
Why the heck are they up to and what am I supposed to do with my huge box of CD's


I'm still trying to figure out what to do with those old 8-track tapes....
 
Originally Posted by Quattro Pete
Originally Posted by wemay
For me it will always be... Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight

Great song, but it doesn't dig deep enough into the lower end bass region to test out a system. Personal preference, of course.
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Thats true. The baseline is great but not chest felt.
 
I am upgrading audio system in BMW for last two weeks. Unfortunately I could not retain OE head unit. Too many complications. So got aftermarket Kenwood and went with no CD. It is easily 2 inches shorter and allows all additional cables for amplifiers I ran to properly store behind, including PAC interface to retain all steering functions. I am not sure why would manufacturers at this point go with CD.
 
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