I just installed an Alpine 9833 + KCA Ipod interface and noticed the following....Everything works perfectly except when I shut off the car or HU, my Ipod mini does not power off. I checked the ipod settings and the "sleep option" is on. So the Ipod is supposed to shut off after 2min of inactivity. I think the problem is that with the interface, the Ipod thinks there is still activity...so it stays on and the next morning the Ipod battery is so dead, I have to unhook the unit and use the 110v charger to get it out of the "low battery mode".

Here is my question....I am running v1.2 on my mini....is this my problem? Anyone know what version is supported for the mini...the KCA documentation only mentions not to upgrade to any version after April 2004 but does not specifically state the version number. Anyone else have this problem? I assume to get back to v1.1, I have to flash the drive.....right?

 

Where does it say in the manual NOT to upgrade? Mine just says you need to have the April update at least in order for it to work.

I don't have mine installed yet so I'm not going to be much help, but I haven't seen an iPod Mini installed yet with this adapter so it may be something in it's firmware that's not in the regular iPod software.

And isn't the iPod supposed to charge off of the KCA?

 

woops...yea the manual says not to use versions PRIOR to 4/28/2004....I'm not sure if this is my problem or not....installed it all a few weeks ago...didn't notice a problem...then hooked up my ipod to my PC and noticed it said a new version was available...applied the update (v1.2), put the ipod back in the car...following day the battery on the ipod was dead...recharged...same thing next day.

The problem is that the ipod gets so drained, that you need to leave it hooked up to a power source for a bit to get it not to show the low battery indicator...matter in fact, I had to do a few resets to get it to boot once I had power to it. The KCA supposedly charges the unit...but with short drives, it is not enough to get it out of this mode once the battery has been completely drained.

So either my KCA is not charging the unit...or it is not shutting off....so much for isolating the problem....I just did a "restore" on the unit to get it back to v1.1...guess I should have left it with v1.2 and tried messing with the auto shut off feature first before resetting to v1.1....

need to try it in the car and will repost...


edit: v1.1 installed on the mini and it definitely shuts off...time for some research.

 

Well...looks like I am not alone(Ipodlounge forum link):

Re: Battery losing charge?

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Originally posted by Stingrey
I'm having a different problem (aside from the slow scroll, MIX mode turning off when you turn off the car, etc.) from anything anyone else is mentioning... I'm not sure what is going on. The battery on my iPod was dead when I got out of work today (I only work like an 8 hour shift, whether I work all 8 hours is another story ; ) and yet just this morning it had a full charge. Why do I know this? I had my CDA-9835 installed THIS past Saturday and the iPod lost the charge on Monday... I took it out of the car to charge fully using the power brick...

I figured I'd used the iPod outside of the car a bit, so maybe just possibly I killed the battery. I charged it and plugged it back into the car, held the charge just fine the past few days. I even checked after almost every long term park (4 hours or more, i.e. work/sleep) and the battery showed a full charge... Including this morning. I get out of work today, battery is dead. This is just after listening to Foo Fighters (third one by them in a row since MIX was turned off since I turned the car off the night before and it takes about three songs to get to work) and then turning the car off, which turns the Alpine HU off and technically the iPod...

I was glancing at the iPod while this happened, the battery charging indicator stopped and the iPod's display went out like it normally does. I lock the glove box and go to work, get out and no juice. This same iPod if (after it charges this evening) I hit play and have some headphones in it and play it at any volume, it will easily make it through my work day with juice to spare... Somehow I'm getting a pretty good drain on my iPod and I can't figure out why. Called Alpine for suggestions...

They said maybe it is 'cause I have my "HOLD" button enabled on top of the iPod so as to avoid the buttons from activating any functions when it is not in the glove compartment. He said it was just a suggestion (and only since I had mentioned that it was engaged), but other than that, he had no suggestion. Anyone else having a battery die out on them for no good reason? ANY info appreciated if you know anything about someone having a similar issue.

Rey

P.S. software 2.2 on iPod, 5.0 (I think?) on the actual h/u.
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Hi Rey

I'm having near enough the exact same problem as described above... and I'm 99.9% sure it's to do with temperature. Forgive me if I'm wide of the mark here, but is it cold (ie near or below freezing) where you are at the moment? Do you perhaps leave the car in a garage overnight which keeps everything (relatively) warm, but then have to park outside in the cold while you're at work?

Since installing my KCA-420i my iPod (40Gb 3G) has permanently stayed in my glovebox, with the exception of being taken out for syncing. The battery is fully charged most of the time (as far as I can tell the KCA-420i seems to charge the iPod as it plays?), however if I leave the car outside on a cold night (ie there is ice on the car when I come back to it) the iPod is pretty much dead, and my Alpine HU displays 'no Magzne' when I select the CD changer as music source.

Taking the iPod out and looking at the display i turn it on and the display is really dim (and sometimes has what looks like a line of dead pixels running horizontally across it) - the low battery indicator comes on for a moment and then the iPod shuts down again - no backlight, no nothing. However if I then put the iPod in my pocket for an hour or so to gently warm it up it turns on fine, the dead pixels slowly disappear, and it plays when attached to the KCA-420i once more.

I figure the way around this is to take the iPod with you when you get out of the car (if the car is likely to get very cold). The only problem is that when re-connecting the iPod it doesn't seem to play from where it left off, and you have to go through the (often lengthy) process of finding the song you were on previously. Come summer and I'm guessing it won't be a problem anymore - although it might fry instead!

If you need more info on operating temperatures then check out the apple website or have a search through the forums here - there are probably about a dozen threads relating to how wise it is (or not) to leave iPods in cars. I reckon that with the KCA-420i, a lot more people are going to want to keep their iPods permanently in their cars too....

 

Someone later on in that thread confirmed that it WASN'T a temperature issue.

I honestly think it's on Apple's end. There can't be too much to the Alpine end of the interface, from what I think.

And as quickly and frequently Apple releases firmware updates and new versions, it wouldn't suprise me that it'd be needed.

Good luck. I hope I don't have the same problem. Guess it'd be a good reason to get a new color screen iPod.

 

My ipod died on me too. I couldn't understand why. It had a full charge the previous day and I didn't use the ipod that much...
My solution. Disconnet the unit when you turn the car off. For me, battery now lasts days at a time. I think if you leave it connected, it drains the ipod battery. Just a suggestion.

 

The ipod has a battery similar to a cell phone battery. it's not good to plug the ipod into a charger at every chance. Battery life will diminish signifigantly. Let the ipod drain until it is dead then charge wholly. I don't think it was a good idea to have the Alpine unit charge the ipod on every drive because it will ultimately just wear out the battery life of the unit.

From what i understand the ipod interface technology is now available to other consumer electronic companies. Soon you will see ipod interfaces for pioneer, sony, etc. Let's see if they can get it right, because the 1st gen from Alpine seems to be a dissapointment.

 

[QUOTE=Willie Gee,Dec 22 2004, 11:40 PM] The ipod has a battery similar to a cell phone battery.

 

I have the Alpine Ipod interface and was curious about that as well. I believe it takes like a full minute or 2 to eventually shut down. If you have the time, check it out. It should eventually fade to black or power down. And yeah, make sure to keep getting the latest upgrades from Apple.

 

Oops!! Disregard my last post. It seems you did wait out the two minutes. If only I read your entire post.

Maybe it's just a Ipod mini problem. I leave mine hooked overnight in my garage and no probs.