I don't want to do any mods to the 98 XK8.

I would be happy if I could plug my phone or mp3 player into an aux port.

I came across one of these tape-aux converters.

Will this work with the tape deck on the 98 XK8?

 

Yes, I have one in my 97.

 

Terrific.

Is the sound quality decent?

 

I use the ION Bluetooth Cassette adapter in my tape player. It allows me to play Pandora, use my phone, and stream my music. Cassette Adapter? Bluetooth - Bluetooth Music Receiver for Cassette Decks - ION Audio - Dedicated to Delivering Sound Experiences It has excellent sound quality . Several others here use it if you do a search.

 

I have one, it works, but I think the quality leaves a lot to be desired.

I found a thrift store here that sells cassettes for a $.25 each. Most are 20-30 years old but still work perfectly. I got the complete "Boston" catalog for a $1.

My wife just shakes her head when I put it on.

 

+1 on the above. They work reasonably well as long as you're not a real audiophile. The only problem I had with mine was that (I guess because the headphone cable sort-of doubles-up as a radio antenna for the phone) I got interference when the phone did it's "handshake" with the mobile mast. Could get rid of that by going into airplane mode, but that defeats the purpose of the phone somewhat !
Obviously, wouldn't be a problem with a dedicated MP3 player.
Which head-unit do you have - the Harmon Karden (LCD on right) or Alpine (LCD in centre). If the former, it uses a standard DIN plug on the CD player, and you can do a very simple aux-in with no modification at all to any of the wiring in the car (but you lose the CD function).

 

I use the ion adapter as well it suits me fine.

 

I ended up taking a quick ride to Bestbuy. Found this cassette adapter by Monster.
Searched through my "junk drawer" and found a very old iPod with about 2K songs on it.
Plugged it in, and problem solved.
Sounds fine, with decent stereo separation , and it just so happen to fit in that nifty little holder under the radio.

 

most likely like my 03 the cassette player most of our players had not been used in ages. Get one of these
Audio Cassette Head Cleaner Kit with A Bottle of Wet Solution Nice Package | eBay

My player gives me a dirty error message time to time.

 

I've used a cheap cassette adapter for years and it works great. Sound is much better than radio, not quite as good as CD (but close).

I'd try it before trying something else. You can get these for under $10 if you look around.

 

Quick update:

I ended up returning the Monster version and buying one made by iSimple.
The Monster was giving me an annoying hum.
The iSimple is very clean with deep base, and acceptable range.
It also has a built in mic for hands-free calling.

Just thought I'd share my experience.

 

I posted my experiences with the ION bluetooth cassette (search for my "Poor Man's Bluetooth" thread).

Nothing but great experiences so far. Works like a charm and the best $20 I spent.


Doug

 

I chose not to get the bluetooth version because I have an old iPod with tons on music and no BT.

Another question:

Cigarette lighter works fine.
HOWEVER no car/ phone charger would work.

No clue at this point.
Suggestion ?

 

I've just bought one of these. Works well with my phone and I can route calls through the audio system too. Not perfect for an audiophile, but to be honest I prefer to listen to the music from the engine!

Wireless Bluetooth Car Kit FM Transmitter Radio MP3 Music Player With USB Port | eBay

 

Not as simple of a solution, but a bit more elegant (I plan to do this sometime):
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...e-deck-142592/

 

For a while I used a Cassette adapter that had a SD card slot. The nice thing about it was fast forward & rewind skipped to the next/previous files on the card. They're not too expensive on eBay or Amazon.