Want CD player for new truck

[RoyF]

I'm excited about my 2021 Ford F350 diesel, but it has no CD player. I suppose that only old folks listen to CDs, but that's what we like to do.

I have the Lariat entertainment system with a USB input, but do NOT have SYNC. I'll see what my local automobile stereo store has, but I welcome a suggestion.

[miltvill]

I use to make copies of my original CDs and keep the copy in my truck to prevent the original from getting damaged. My new truck does not have a CD player so I copied many of my CDs to a USB drive and plug the drive into a USB port in my truck. Now I don't have a stack of CDs in my truck (clutter). I have 43 CDs on my USB drive. I also checkout audio books on CD from my library and copy them to a separate USB drive I keep all of my audio books on.

I have also copied many of my old LPs to a USB drive and paly my old LPs in my truck.

[RoyF]

From the OP: I have learned quite a bit since my original post. I'm using iTunes to convert my CDs to AAC format.

I like to listen to classical music, which needs to be organized by composer (rather than by song title). So after copying the iTunes files to a flash drive, I create new folders (directories) and organize them to my own liking.

So I have a Puccini folder, which contains a Tosca folder, which contains a Callas folder, which contains the folders created by iTunes. (One Itunes folder per CD. Most operas require two, three, or four CDs.)

To find what I want on my flash drive, I use the command EXPLORE DEVICE. That displays the folders (directories) at the top level. From there I can go down the chain, just like on a computer. So, if I want the Milanov version of Tosca, I go to Puccini, to Tosca, to Milanov. Then PLAY ALL.

[Kavoom]

Gdetrailer wrote:

Kavoom wrote:

RoyF wrote:
I'm excited about my 2021 Ford F350 diesel, but it has no CD player. I suppose that only old folks listen to CDs, but that's what we like to do.

I have the Lariat entertainment system with a USB input, but do NOT have SYNC. I'll see what my local automobile stereo store has, but I welcome a suggestion.

Yes on a suggestion... I have NOT been able to find a decent substitute for a CD. I'm actually about to learn how to create digital versions of my CD's it is so frustrating. Imagine having to learn how to use new tech to replace the OLD new tech... And don't even get me started on the bluetooth...I'll used the darn cord...

And imagine, they had CD's down... I could put five in at one time and get to all the songs in my 07 Subaru easy peasy and now they don't even put on in the car and the OEM ordered one only holds one with little programability. Grrr.. I can't even get Android Auto to work half the time... Grrr

Follow my suggestions on how to properly put the files on the USB drive.

Do not just place all the files on the "root" of the USB drive.

Instead you use a folder for each album.

This separates and groups the files for each album ripped.

Then your radio will have the option to play just that folder (just like playing only one CD at a time) or you can set to play all files (like a multiple CD changer) or you can set to random play (like a juke box).

Thanks, will do... Just an old fart needing to rant about technology...

[ktmrfs]

Gdetrailer wrote:

ktmrfs wrote:


my solution was to import all my CD's to Itunes. From there they also then went to Google play (now gone) but I also from Itunes arranged them into playlists and then copied everything to a USB stick. Now at least on all my vehicles (4) the format from Itunes lets the car radio see them as playlists, or to select by artist, album, genra, etc. and then play them.

Or just put them on a ipod (get an older one from ebay) with enough storage (64Gb)

For me, I had to do some selecting for the IPOD route, I need about 300GB of storage for everything, but the USB memory stick worked fine for all my music.

One thing is that on my vehicles on first insertion of the USB memory stick it took several minutes before I could start selecting music, probably the time it took the radio to sort all the data out to display.

I DON'T do anything "i" brand related, that means no "i" phone, no "i" pad, no "i" mac, period.

Besides, the ONLY way you will get those to work is going to be through the BT adapter on the radio, a pretty hokey at best round about way to get your music fix.

I prefer the more direct route without the "i" tax price tag and lack of universal compatibility of the "i" products.

Not everyone is fully convinced of "i" products superiority.

Even just the simple act of sending a jpg photo from a non "i" product to a friend of mine that owns a "i" product results in total failure. He can't get my photos and I can't get his photos.. To me, that is an epic failure.

My friend went with "i" products because he couldn't figure out how to properly setup music files on a generic MP3 player, but in doing so has isolated himself to only those others that own "i" products.

Works great if you really want to live on island.. The "i" product company started life with 100% proprietary parts and software and they have continued on that road all their lives while the entire world has passed them by.. The only thing that salvaged that co was the invention of the "i"pad..

I'm not an "I" fan either, but
(1) Itunes is free and works just fine on a windows computer

(2) I've never had to use bluetooth to connect an Ipod to the radio head unit in a car, and I've used it in dozens of cars of various brands, just plug it in through the USB port. you CAN use Bluetooth if you want but is NOT necessary.

(3) you don't need an I pod. just rip the CD's to Itunes then transfer them to a USB memory stick from I tunes, plug the stick in the vehicle and on all my vehicles the head unit will show the albums, artists, playlists, genra's etc. scroll through and pick what you want.

(4) I have the Ipod in the car mostly for a convenient way to listen to my music elsewhere or if DW wants to listen to other music with headphones while we are traveling. Not necessary but comes in handy.

I have had not so favorable experiences with some of the generic MP3 players I've tried, but that was a decade or more ago. transferring files problems, compatability with other head units, lack of ability to control the MP3 player from the head unit etc. So I bit the bullet and bought an older generation IPOD on ebay.

[Gdetrailer]

ktmrfs wrote:


my solution was to import all my CD's to Itunes. From there they also then went to Google play (now gone) but I also from Itunes arranged them into playlists and then copied everything to a USB stick. Now at least on all my vehicles (4) the format from Itunes lets the car radio see them as playlists, or to select by artist, album, genra, etc. and then play them.

Or just put them on a ipod (get an older one from ebay) with enough storage (64Gb)

For me, I had to do some selecting for the IPOD route, I need about 300GB of storage for everything, but the USB memory stick worked fine for all my music.

One thing is that on my vehicles on first insertion of the USB memory stick it took several minutes before I could start selecting music, probably the time it took the radio to sort all the data out to display.

I DON'T do anything "i" brand related, that means no "i" phone, no "i" pad, no "i" mac, period.

Besides, the ONLY way you will get those to work is going to be through the BT adapter on the radio, a pretty hokey at best round about way to get your music fix.

I prefer the more direct route without the "i" tax price tag and lack of universal compatibility of the "i" products.

Not everyone is fully convinced of "i" products superiority.

Even just the simple act of sending a jpg photo from a non "i" product to a friend of mine that owns a "i" product results in total failure. He can't get my photos and I can't get his photos.. To me, that is an epic failure.

My friend went with "i" products because he couldn't figure out how to properly setup music files on a generic MP3 player, but in doing so has isolated himself to only those others that own "i" products.

Works great if you really want to live on island.. The "i" product company started life with 100% proprietary parts and software and they have continued on that road all their lives while the entire world has passed them by.. The only thing that salvaged that co was the invention of the "i"pad..

[ktmrfs]

Gdetrailer wrote:

Kavoom wrote:

RoyF wrote:
I'm excited about my 2021 Ford F350 diesel, but it has no CD player. I suppose that only old folks listen to CDs, but that's what we like to do.

I have the Lariat entertainment system with a USB input, but do NOT have SYNC. I'll see what my local automobile stereo store has, but I welcome a suggestion.

Yes on a suggestion... I have NOT been able to find a decent substitute for a CD. I'm actually about to learn how to create digital versions of my CD's it is so frustrating. Imagine having to learn how to use new tech to replace the OLD new tech... And don't even get me started on the bluetooth...I'll used the darn cord...

And imagine, they had CD's down... I could put five in at one time and get to all the songs in my 07 Subaru easy peasy and now they don't even put on in the car and the OEM ordered one only holds one with little programability. Grrr.. I can't even get Android Auto to work half the time... Grrr

Follow my suggestions on how to properly put the files on the USB drive.

Do not just place all the files on the "root" of the USB drive.

Instead you use a folder for each album.

This separates and groups the files for each album ripped.

Then your radio will have the option to play just that folder (just like playing only one CD at a time) or you can set to play all files (like a multiple CD changer) or you can set to random play (like a juke box).

my solution was to import all my CD's to Itunes. From there they also then went to Google play (now gone) but I also from Itunes arranged them into playlists and then copied everything to a USB stick. Now at least on all my vehicles (4) the format from Itunes lets the car radio see them as playlists, or to select by artist, album, genra, etc. and then play them.

Or just put them on a ipod (get an older one from ebay) with enough storage (64Gb)

For me, I had to do some selecting for the IPOD route, I need about 300GB of storage for everything, but the USB memory stick worked fine for all my music.

One thing is that on my vehicles on first insertion of the USB memory stick it took several minutes before I could start selecting music, probably the time it took the radio to sort all the data out to display.

[Gdetrailer]

I do want to add some extra information to help make the conversion process a bit easier.

You can't just copy CD audio files directly to a USB drive.

CD audio files need to be "ripped" (converted) to a computer sound file format.

That is typically done via a third party ripping software or you can use Windows Media player.

Now, here's the rub, depending on the ripping software you use, it will automatically create a file name for each song on the album, some albums may contain additional information with album name, artist and the song name.

To get your radio to play each song in the album in the order of play of the CD can be challenging but it starts with the ripping software and setting the file names in the order of play.

Side note, MP3s use not only the file name but also hidden "metadata ID tags" for playback order, if you rename the MP3 file but not change the Metadata ID tag the file may not play in the new order.. CD rippers typically will copy the filename info into the hidden MetadataID tag for you.. However, if you decide that you don't like the filename after the rip, you will need to manually edit that Metadata ID tag and that may require additional software depending on your PC and what you are using for a ripper.

The software I use is from an old Creative MP3 player, when I start the process it gives me the options to name the folder that it will rip the album to.. I adjust that as needed before ripping.

Then it will show all the songs and if no song title data was found it will list them as T1, T2, T3 ect..

That will not play correctly if you have T11, T12, T13..

Why?

Think as a computer, It will see T1 and the next logical file is T11, T2 will play after T11 but T12 will play after T2..

On edit, the flip side, the computer may see T1 as T10 or T2 as T20 so to speak which is why a leading zero before T1, T2, T3 is needed..

It is a computer logic issue, computer logic sees T11 as T1.1, T12 as T1.2..

To fix that you need to use a leading zero.. So, T1 becomes T01, T2 becomes T02, T3 becomes T03..

Folders also follow same logic..

Some players also play the folders and files not in alpha numeric order but by the date and time stamp which can get extremely frustrating.. I haven't really noticed car stereos doing that so much but have seen that with portable MP3 players.

Now back to music file names..

I will typically use the first letter or two of the album name or the artist name at the beginning of each song, keeping this consistent for each song is important for proper play order).

Then T or Track followed by song order (01, 02, 03) and then the song name.

Doing this BEFORE ripping to your PC is critical step that many folks miss.

The next key step is not putting all the files directly on to the "root" of the flash drive..

Root is the "base" letter of your USB stick as seen by the computer..

So, if your USB stick shows as the letter "i" you need to have only FOLDERS showing in letter "i", no music files should be there, all music files should be inside the FOLDERS. The folders can be named as the album name if you don't mind the player playing album starting with "A" before album named starting with "Z".

With most car stereos you do not use or need "playlists" so forget about that "feature" that you may be used to, it doesn't exist on most car stereos.

I rarely have any issues getting the ripped files to play in the correct order by following this method.

Once you have all of your music ripped and in folders, you can just copy the folders to the USB drive.

Then insert USB drive into the radio's port, the radio should automatically detect and start playing starting folders with A and ending in Z..

If you want to only play ONE folder, the radio should have the option to let you search for that folder and play all files inside or just one file. That is the SAME as inserting a CD and playing it.

You should also have the option to play all files on the entire drive, this is the same as having a CD changer with the exception a CD changer it plays the order of CDs from positions of the CDs.

You should also have a random play option which basically is the same as "shuffle" you would have found on a CD player.

For better sound quality, you can rip to WMA (Windows Media file format) but the downside is WMA files are larger so you can fit less music per Gig of space.

You can also rip MP3s at a higher "bitrate" to get better sound quality, typical default of MP3s is 128Kbs, that can be set to a higher bitrate if you are looking for better sound quality.. But you do have to be careful of the rate you choose, not every car stereo may be able play all possible bitrates.

WMA files come with some baggage, called DRM (Digital Rights Management) that many car stereos cannot play. Typically only purchased and downloaded WMA files will have this enabled and you will have to filter the DRM out of the files before a car stereo will be able to play it. Car stereos typically do not have any way to play DRM protected files.

MP3 files do not support DRM data so that typically will not be an issue.

Hope this helps!

[Gdetrailer]

Kavoom wrote:

RoyF wrote:
I'm excited about my 2021 Ford F350 diesel, but it has no CD player. I suppose that only old folks listen to CDs, but that's what we like to do.

I have the Lariat entertainment system with a USB input, but do NOT have SYNC. I'll see what my local automobile stereo store has, but I welcome a suggestion.

Yes on a suggestion... I have NOT been able to find a decent substitute for a CD. I'm actually about to learn how to create digital versions of my CD's it is so frustrating. Imagine having to learn how to use new tech to replace the OLD new tech... And don't even get me started on the bluetooth...I'll used the darn cord...

And imagine, they had CD's down... I could put five in at one time and get to all the songs in my 07 Subaru easy peasy and now they don't even put on in the car and the OEM ordered one only holds one with little programability. Grrr.. I can't even get Android Auto to work half the time... Grrr

Follow my suggestions on how to properly put the files on the USB drive.

Do not just place all the files on the "root" of the USB drive.

Instead you use a folder for each album.

This separates and groups the files for each album ripped.

Then your radio will have the option to play just that folder (just like playing only one CD at a time) or you can set to play all files (like a multiple CD changer) or you can set to random play (like a juke box).

[Kavoom]

RoyF wrote:
I'm excited about my 2021 Ford F350 diesel, but it has no CD player. I suppose that only old folks listen to CDs, but that's what we like to do.

I have the Lariat entertainment system with a USB input, but do NOT have SYNC. I'll see what my local automobile stereo store has, but I welcome a suggestion.

Yes on a suggestion... I have NOT been able to find a decent substitute for a CD. I'm actually about to learn how to create digital versions of my CD's it is so frustrating. Imagine having to learn how to use new tech to replace the OLD new tech... And don't even get me started on the bluetooth...I'll used the darn cord...

And imagine, they had CD's down... I could put five in at one time and get to all the songs in my 07 Subaru easy peasy and now they don't even put on in the car and the OEM ordered one only holds one with little programability. Grrr.. I can't even get Android Auto to work half the time... Grrr

[APT]

I agree with Timmo!. Digital Memory is cheap -> Choose the numerically highest bitrate/sampling as your SW allows. Also, before you purchase the USB drive, review the Ford manual for any size limitations.

What computer operating system are you planning to use? There are plenty of guides and videos on the web to assist you in the (therapeutic?) process. 🙂

[Gdetrailer]

RoyF wrote:
From the OP: OK, you guys have convinced me. I'm putting my CDs on a thumb drive. I have hundreds of CD's, so this will keep me busy for a while.

Thanks for the good advice.

Don't get me wrong, CDs DO sound better over all since they have a sampling rate greater than the average MP3. However, honestly with the Ford Factory stock stereos not even CDs quality can help the poor sound quality.

Ford chose to severely crush and cut off the bass with their stereos, it is the reason I typically replace the OEM radios with aftermarket.. But, I hit a brick wall when I started looking at the expense and time involved in replacing the OEM unit and a bit irritated that they put the outside temperature readout on the radio display instead of with the drivers panel making one more item that doesn't work with aftermarket radios..

Radios die and I guess down the road when the OEM radio fails, I will just hookup a simple aftermarket stereo under the dash and call it a day.. Replacement OEMs will cost more than the vehicle is worth..

[Timmo_]

As one who has a large collection of CDs (many are older than sin and not available anywhere in digital format) ripping them is rather simple. Windows Media player does an adequate job of ripping.

If you are an audiophile, then you will certainly appreciate playback fidelity of 320 Kps vs the standard 192 Kps; think 16 bit vs 64 bit. Yes, selecting the higher speed will consume more memory, but as an audiophile choosing between "memory space" or "fidelity playback" is a no brainer choice.

If your media player is capable of playing FLAC Lossless, you might consider it--but most people's ears can not discern the difference.

[monkey44]

When I bought my truck, it still had a CD player in it, AND also a USB port. After a few times with the CD's, and after listening to the Flash-USB port, I took a few days and transferred all my CD's to Flash drive ... never looked back, but it did take some time from CD >>> Flash. WORTH IT ... 🙂

The other thing, you can skip a song if you don't want to transfer one, and only chose the ones you like best from each CD.

[RoyF]

From the OP: OK, you guys have convinced me. I'm putting my CDs on a thumb drive. I have hundreds of CD's, so this will keep me busy for a while.

Thanks for the good advice.