To add a Line-In/Aux-In port to our Jaguar factory radios has been discussed a lot in various threads.

As per SARC's most recent write-up I used the glorious "butcher-your-CD-changer" method originally developed by JROAL to get the Jaguar factory radio in my 1999 XJ8 to play music from my iPod.

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=11886

While sitting in front of my totally disassembled Jaguar CD-changer and questioning my sanity doing such a thing, I was wondering if there was no better and easier way to do that modification. Plus the routing of the shielded RCA-cable from the trunk into the center console was an absolutely nightmare.
(I routed it very cleanly under the carpet to be completely invisible.)

In fact there is a much easier and cleaner way to add MP3 capability to the Jaguar factory radio.

Here we go...

Get yourself two pre-wired AI-Net (Alpine) / Unilink (Sony) connectors.
You'll obviously need one male and one female connector.



(I bought them off eBay for about 12$ shipped.)


Here's the AI-Net wiring layout:




Now you have to identify all the wire colors.
Use a continuity tester and write down which wire-color is associated with which PIN.




Identify the wires associated to PIN 4, 5, & 6 on both connectors and bend them aside. (These are the precious ones!)
Using a soldering gun solder all the remaining cables together using the wiring layout to identify the associating colors.



After that put some heat shrink tube on the soldered ends.


Now get yourself an RCA cable and cut off the connectors leaving a few Inches of wire attached to them.
(I used an RCA-extension to have one female and one male RCA Jack, but that depends on your planned layout.)




Now solder the RCA-cables to the remaining wires of the IA-Net connectors.
Again sealing them properly with heat shrink tube.




Here's your finished "adapter":




That adapter-cable now is a simple plug-in version of JROAL's butchered CD-changer!
It can be connected between the CD-changer in the trunk and the AI-Net cable from the radio without ever touching your CD-changer!

AND - Here's another nice thing:
(Most likely works only for the standard sound system (no amp, no woofer on the rear shelf).)
If you are able to get hold of a STRAIGHT male AI-Net connector it is possible to plug the adapter-cable directly to the headunit!
That way you won't have to route any cable from the trunk through the car to under the center console.
Routing from behind the HU is WAY more convenient!
(Unfortunately the 90 degrees male AI-Net connector will not fit in the headunit's plug.)

Have fun!


David

 

@DavidN

Great write up, thank you ! It's always great to see variations. After I had done mine I did look online for a cable that I could butcher instead, but at the time I couldn't find a male/female cable.... were you able to buy the male and female connectors "unconnected" as they appeared in your first pic ? or did you buy a male/male and a female/female and cut both up ?

Just out of interest, did you try to connect behind the HU with this cable and did it work ? (And also do you have the standard or the upgraded sound system with the amp in the trunk and the sub on the rear shelf ?)

I had another discussion here on similar topics.... https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...25&postcount=3

....and the concern would be that the cable that comes out of the HU doesn't actually go into the CD changer on the premium system it goes in to the amp. So if you cut into the cables behind the HU you could end up losing all other sound (ie Radio) ?

Anyway, glad you got it working, it's a great add-on to a great car

 

SARC,

thanks for your comments!

I was able to buy the AI-Net connectors exactly as you see them on the first picture.

My car has the standard sound system (no amp, no woofer) and yes, the adapter-cable directly attached to the HU works fine with the std system.

I will edit my posting above as I doubt that it will work on premium systems as well.

David

 

Well damn I was about to ask if it would work with my 98 Vanden Plas. The speaker covers say harmon kardon or something like that and I do believe there is a subwoofer in the back. The tape player Ipod adapter has got to go though! The quality is horrible. Can I ask why it may not work with the premium system? I am not very familiar with these stereos.

 

@ixj8it

You can still get this to work as David has shown, it's just that you need insert your cable at the CD changer in the trunk, you can't do it behind the head unit in the dash.

You then just need to run your cable from the trunk into the centre console...... it's pretty easy and is described here....(about half way down the post)

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...81&postcount=5

 

Exactly!

Only difference with the AI-Net cable as I understand it, is that with the premium system the AI-Net cable from the HU is routed to the amplifier and not the CD-changer.
So you can still add the Aux-in to the CD-changer in the trunk.

David

 

I hacked the cd changer last night. All I bought was a 16' headphone extension cable from radioshack. I cut the 3 wires inside the changer and soldered my headphone wires in there. I was going to just cut the cable open outside the changer, but the cd output wires and data wires are bundled inside grey sleeves in the AI-Net cable. I didnt know which one to break into and was getting tired of trying to save hassle, so I put the shield back together and taped the cable up. I got this done in 2 hours so that not too bad. I love the sound quality by the way. If it winds up needing more "punch" later I might get an inline amplifier, but I think it will be just fine without it. I also found out the gas tank is in the trunk! lol I ran the cable through those vent things that are on the LH and RH sides of the rear deck, just below the C pillar trim. I popped off the vent, threaded the cable through it and poked the cable through the crack between the C pillar and the rear deck cover. I am going to hide the wires later when I do the trans fluid change. Thanks to you all for keeping good information out there!

 

If you are using an iPod, I hardly recommend getting yourself a cable with a doc-connector for the integration!
Sound quality and more important the volume will increase significant!
I got myself a cable that allows me to charge my iPod (hooked it up inside the center console to the rear cigarette lighter).
The iPod is just fixed with velcro tape to the side of the parking-brake (which I don't use at all).
When not in use, the iPod stowes away nicely in the center console.
(It's completely invisible as an anti theft precaution, even if I doubt that my 1st gen iPod would be of any interrest for burglars.)

 

So you are running audio through the dock cable too? That's what it sounded like! I was thinking of buying a charger that plugs in a house, cutting off the box on the end of the wire and wiring it to the cigarette lighter since all the box does is make it DC instead of AC. For the newer ipods that wont charge on 12v, i have an adapter that drops it down to 5v.

If you know which wires in the adapter carry audio or a charger that also lets you run audio, let me know Thanks

 

That's correct.
Audio & 12V through the doc-connector.
(My 1st gen iPod uses 12V, the newer ones 5V and the latest gen 3V.)

Here's the PIN-Connection...
And if you solder a 1MOhm resistor between PIN 15 and 21 the iPod will automaticly shut down when power supply is turned off.

 

Where do I find one of these cables? I would be worried that a charger off the shelf at the store wouldnt have the audio wires inside. Can I hack up a Ipod to USB cable for this? I think a cheaper solution for me may be to buy one of those Ipod to Cd changer bus cables that they make for pioneers. The last one I bought was like $12 with shipping. Let me know, this is obviously the best way to handle hooking up the Ipod! Thanks

 

For example...

eBay item # 360221029494 (12V charging function)
eBay item # 280501599275 (5V charging function)
eBay item # 200465811247 (5V charging function)

 

Looks like the top one is the winner. I will get that so I can run my ugly big white Ipod (probably the same as yours) and my wife can use the adapter she has to charge the ipod nano. You are the man. Thanks!

 

I'm going to try doing this into the head unit on my Standard Sound System at some point. I think it's such a good way of doing it (No Disrespect SARC)

@David-I notice your head unit is different to mine-was there a different type for Germany?

 

Looks just like my US 2000 XJ's... could it be your 2001?

 

@David-I notice your head unit is different to mine-was there a different type for Germany?[/quote]

The HU shown is from a 1998-99 car.
The HU for 2000-2003 is different, bigger LCD screen and more cursor buttons, externally, also a number of internal differences.

 

My HU has no built-in navigation system.
It's the basic version with just Radio/CD and telephone.
I know that the headunits with navigation have a bigger LCD screen and some more buttons.

Nevertheless, the AI-Net ports are all the same, so the adapter cable should work as long as it is the std sound system.
With the premium system you would have to use the adapter cable in the trunk (plugged in between the CD-Changer and the AI-Net cable attached to the changer).

David

 

This will work with the premium system if you install it in the trunk, it should also work with ze radio. Alternatively you can butcher or try my Alpine aux-switcher fix.

 

Hi guys
I just completed making my cable exactly how David explained. I was able to get a straigt male AI-net connector so I hooked it up right behind the head unit.

The problem is with the extention cable plugged in line the head unit does not recognize the CD player. I have checked all my pins to ensure good solders and correct location. Has anyone succesfully installed this behind the radio. I have the base sound system with no amp so I have no idea why it doesn't work if all the cables are going straight through excpet the sound. Any Ideas??

 

Now that's strange!
In theory - if soldered correctly - it should work plugging it directly into the HU.
To verify that you soldered the right connectors try it in the trunk!
(That's my only idea...)

Meanwhile I put together 4 of these connectors for a few of my Jaguar driving friends over here and they all work!
(But every one of them installed the cable in the trunk.)

Good luck!

David