OldGazer Posted May 25, 2012 Share #1 Posted May 25, 2012 Hey Y'All! Lately we have been having issues with the audio system on our '91 VR, mostly with the cassett deck. To get music we have been using an iPod and a cassette adapter. That worked really well until the cassette deck started having issues. The main problem was some times the drive system would not run and this caused the auto-reverse mechanism to cycle repeately. Each time the deck cycled we would hear a click in the audio. I tracked the problem down to the drive belts. Some times things were fine, but as time went on the problem grew worse. Then a problem with with my head set reared its ugly head: I had an intermittent connection and would loose the left speaker... To "fix" these issues we decided to get a set of Scala headsets... That turned out to be a bad move. Not only did the head sets not function as advertised, I couldn't stream audio from my iPod to both headsets at the same time, so I fixed my headset cable and we sent the head sets back... But that's another story... Anyway, I hit on the idea of getting an FM transmitter and forgetting about using the cassette deck. After some research, I decided to get a Griffin iTrip. That was a good move! This thing is sweet. Its small, it connects to the iPod/iPhone docking port, there is an app that will run on my iPod Touch 4th gen and our iPhones, and so far the audio is pretty good. When you compare the price of $30.00 for the iTrip to the $242.99 for the Scala head sets, its a no-brainer. If you're worried about battery life, the iTrip has a mini-USB port, and if you have a 12 volt cigarette lighter style outlet wired to plug in to your Battery Tender cord (Hint Hint!!), then all you need is a 12 volt to USB adapter, the appropriate USB cable and you're all set.... I haven't had the chance to do any road testing yet, but I might get some time to take a ride later on today and I'll post my results. Y'All ride safe... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldGazer Posted May 28, 2012 Author Share #2 Posted May 28, 2012 (edited) Ok, road testing is pretty much done. Spent 8 hours yesterday and several hours today on the bike. First off, this little gizmo sucks some juice! The main issue is when you make a prolonged stop, be sure to turn your iPod off. Second, I believe there are some issues with Auto-Lock in that you can loose audio...haven't verified this yet, but for the time beeing I am running my iPod with auto-lock set to Never... This also contributes to power drain.... Third, unlike the synch cable and other attachments, this device does not have any latches. What this means is that if you set this in one of the front pouches, hitting a bump may dislodge the device and you loose audio... A work around is to keep the device in an inside vest pocket. Another issue is that an iPod w/Griffin connected to a USB cable make it impossible to keep the device connected to a power source and keep it in one of the front pouches. Turns out this configuration is just too long and you cannot snap the pouch closed. My GF is working on a way to solve the previous issues. She is sewing a cloth pouch with elastic straps. The pouch will hold and protect the "rig." The exlastic straps will keep the Griffin in place, and there will also be a small button hole to allow a USB cable to be connected so the device can be charged while it is in use. I still like the thing though. The sound quality is pretty good, we don't hear any ignition or cassette drive motor noise, and there is one less cable to worry about. Y'All ride safe.... Edited May 28, 2012 by OldGazer Left somethiing out.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alwrmcusn Posted June 8, 2012 Share #3 Posted June 8, 2012 I'm guessing the '91 VR does not have "audio in" capability that would allow an MP3 player? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prairiehammer Posted June 8, 2012 Share #4 Posted June 8, 2012 I'm guessing the '91 VR does not have "audio in" capability that would allow an MP3 player? That is correct, Alfred. For those First Gens looking to modernize to an MP3 audio source, without the cassette adapter or FM transmitter issues, VentureMP3 has made up an audio in jack for us. It is patched in between the amplifier and radio. It allows control of the stock audio as before but with an additional input source. http://ventureaudiolink.wordpress.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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