I have an '04 FX4 on order with the audiophile system. I am a nerd and still have tapes that I am still fond of...would it be possible for me to install (after I get it of course, perhaps aftermarket) a cassette player in addition to what will come with my truck from the factory? The 6-disc changer that comes with the audiophile is wonderful, but there is no tape deck.

(I wish I could have ordered dual media + the audiophile, but they wouldnt let me do that).


Thanks!!

 

tape? what the hell is that? j/k

 

Yes, I know - at least I dont want to play LPs in there But seriously, do I have any options or am I just outta luck with this?

 

you're probably SOL unless you have an external input jack on the head unit so you can plug in your Walkman.
I have a couple of am/fm 8-tracks lying around if you want.

 

Check out Crutchfield, they have a couple of tape decks with cd players

 

Hmmmm, weird. My '02 Lariat has the 6 disc CD changer under the rear seat, and the head unit has a cassette player. Factory original stock. You would think that Ford would have offered something similar if it's "audiophile".

 

well...you may want to get a tape deck and just connect the cd changer to it...easiest solution...

EASIER: buy cds and get rid of tapes...

even easier : download the songs and make the cds yourself....
then you can just keep your current setup

 

I was just thinking to myself. Cassette tape and audiophile don't even belong in the same sentence. Cassette is far from audiophile media for recording. As for LP's they are still to this day better than a CD for audiophile quality provided that you spend huge amounts on your turn table, stylus, cartridge, isolation, tone arm, etc.

 

Cassette tape might not be considered "audiophile", but looking at it from another viewpoint, the manufacturer could have offered the consumer the option for playing cassette tapes in the audiophile system. I have listened to cassette tapes that were recorded on high end systems that come very close to what one would expect from a CD. Vinyl can't come close to what a CD can put out no matter what kind of a system it's being played on. There are still hisses, pops, scratches, and all the other little things that are inherent in a vinyl LP. Yes, I agree that LP's sound good. I still have quite a few, and a good system to play them on too. It's still no comparison to digital sound reproduction.

 

Come on, Chris. You really don't believe that, do you?

The main reason some people say LP's are better than CD's is because they spent a lot of cash on good equipment to play an imperfect media. LP's are far inferior to CD's and you know it. Just because a perfectly mixed LP album MIGHT sound better than a very poorly mixed CD does not mean the LP media is superior.

CD's have better separation, lower distortion, more dynamic range, lower noise, etc. I can't believe you would compare the two.

Of course, if someone enjoys the particular coloration their turntable applies to their LP's, then they will say that it sounds better than a CD. However, it is a deviation from the original sound the recording was made to represent. That is a matter of personal taste, hence the existance of Bass and Treble controls on less expensive equipment.

However, a true audiophile's quest is simple: EXACT reproduction of a recording, with it sounding as the original artist / composer/ symphony / etc. intended. An LP is not as capable as a CD in delivering on this promise.

I know why people hold on to old technology (the money they invested, as well as a little mystigue) but to think that huge improvements have not been made to replace a 50 year old medium of sound reproduction is silly. I suppose people are going to tell us how much better picture quality a Hi-Fi VHS or BetaMax VCR has over these stupid digital DVD players and discs, huh ?? Same exact thing, except that Hi-Fi VHS and BetaMax themselves were far more capable of faithful sound recording and reproduction than any turntable, at any price, period. (Not to mention how a LP degrades in quality every time you play it, unless you use one of these: Laser LP Turntable)

Chris, you are killing me !! How can you make a statement about cassette tapes like that, then turn around and defend LP's, which are inferior to cassettes as well as CD's ? It is a well documented fact that many companies developed cassette decks that, when used with "Metal" tapes of the time, were capable of reproduction that was far superior to that of an LP. Remember Tandberg, Nakamichi, TEAC, etc.? They all manufactured superior decks, but guess what... They all suck when compared to CD's.

I don't have a problem with anyone saying they think LP's sound better than CD's. I personally have heard 1 LP that did sound better than the same music on a CD. However, it was because the CD was not properly mastered / mixed. Once the CD was available as a re-master, it sounded much better than the LP.

I do have a problem with people making blanket statements that insinuate that LP's ARE better for sound reproduction than CD's. The data is just not there...

Sorry for the rant, but LP's and tape are dead... they just haven't been buried yet.

 

I might be able to lend a technical hand to this quandary..

What I would do in this situation is take all the tapes you want to hang on to and record them to PCM (WAV) on a computer. This is a pretty easy endeavor, actually. After you've got the tracks recorded, you can write them directly to CD. Alternatively, you can encode them to MP3 and keep them on the computer for smooth, easy listening while you browse the forums

The In-dash changers by ford play CDR media just fine. I've got a collection of compilation CDs recorded on various types of CDR media and I haven't come across one that doesn't work yet. The reason I mention that tidbit is that, depending on the level of sophistication a cd player has, it might play SOME types of CDR media, but not others. But as I mentioned, my stock changer has played everything I've thrown at it thus far.

Hope this helps in some way.. I'd be happy to elaborate on specific programs and/or technologies if you decide to go down this avenue.

- Jim

 

I'll have to agree with that about the ford units not caring about the media used. I have the factory 6 disc under-the-rear-seat changer, and all I put in it is home burned CD-R media. It plays them all. But I think any of them would have a problem trying to read CD-RW media.

 

Well from what I've heard LP's have more depth than CD's but I'll let you guys hash it out...This should produce some good reading for me..

 

I've heard it go both ways too. However, I tend to believe a CD will sound better, but other than that I can't really comment because LPs were before my time and I've never really listened to any.

Same argument goes with solid state amps and tube amps. Many people dont like the SS amps because they are too 'cold' which I guess is what some people say about CDs...either way we can all agree that no one will agree on this. (assuming a person is from the LP side and the other is from the CD side)

To throw something else out there what about DVDA ? This is one of the reason why I have yet to buy a good CD player right now (in home or car).

 

Same here ..I've really never listened to LP'S either..Only when I was little and had no idea,also I've never heard a tube vs. solid state amp comparison..So my info is null and void ..For me CD'S are the way to go..The amount of people that actually own audio equipment that would reproduce sound good enough to compare a CD to an L/P is small anyway...People want cheap and easy... a CD.. The recorded media *****..hehh hehh..