Anyone using iPod/DICE on the standard E46 head unit?

[stevesuk]

Hi all,

I've been looking at the DICE iPod kit, which seems to be about £100.

I've got a 2002 E46 coupe which has the standard CD changer wired in the boot. I assume that if I want to mount the iPod and DICE box in the boot of the car, all I need to do is to remove the CD changer, and plug everything in and it will just work? (ie. no need to route cables through the car or anything).

Is anyone using this device on an E46 with the standard business cassette head unit? Just wondering how well the menu system works, and how well the track/artist names etc. work.

Cheers,

Steve.

[stevesuk]

Thanks for the advice guys.

I have the car booked in to the local independent BMW specialist to sort a few minor niggles on Wednesday. If that doesn't cost the earth, I'm probably going to order the DICE unit and an iPod Classic later in the week.

The trader I bought the car from lost the CD changer cartidge, so I only have radio at the moment (not having owned a cassette tape for some years).

[stevesuk]

From doing some research, DICE seems to be good value. I was originally looking at Intravee (based on recommendation). But if you buy that, you also have to buy some kind of Alpine control box for the iPod, which pushes the total price up to nearer £200.

Thanks for all the advice guys, I think I'm going for the DICE. The trader has been promising me for the past 3 weeks that he's put the CD changer cassette in the post (and the book pack, which was also missing), but I doubt I'll ever see it - you just know when someone is telling fibs! ... so moving over to MP3s seems a good opportunity to upgrade at the same time.

[stevesuk]

SJobson said:

it needs the battery to be disconnected for 30 seconds to reset the head unit and boot the DICE. I imagine the E46 will be similar.

Just checking in advance... do the standard E39/E46 business audio systems require a code number to be entered after you've disconnected/reconnected the battery? Since I don't have any such numbers, I thought it would be worth finding out before disconnecting

[stevesuk]

Hi all,

Following the good advice here, I bought a DICE kit and an iPod Classic.

Even a mechanical numpty like me found installation a doddle (even though at the moment I've left it mounted in the boot, I might be brave enough to cable it to the centre console eventually).

Just one query in case anyone knows. Every time I go to the car and look at the iPod, it seems to be turned on and displaying "Connected" on the screen. Is this because the action of unlocking the car wakes up the electronics? Or is the iPod on all the time and draining my car battery? The DICE manual seems to indicate the iPod will only be charged when the ignition is on.

Cheers,

Steve.

[stevesuk]

Eggle said:

Steve, just looking at the dice and google found this post.
Can you run me through the install as my cd changer has packed up and I would prefer to spend the money on a integrated ipod thing

What you need to do is to remove the rear trim in the boot. This gives you access to the metal "cage" that holds the CD changer. Undo the bolts and remove the changer. Disconnect the wiring from the changer, and connect it up to the DICE box. Job done.

I did disconnect the battery whilst doing the job, and it didn't cause any issues when reconnecting (no codes to enter etc, just had to set the clock in the car). I since read that there are two fuses you can pull instead. But I guess when playing around with the electrics in a car, its always fairly good practice to play safe and disconnect the battery.

Originally, I left the DICE unit and iPod in the CD changer "hatch" in the boot, but eventually I decided to route the cabling through to the front of the car so the iPod ends up in the glovebox. Helpfully, BMW left a hole in the top of the glove box which is just big enough for the DICE cable to pass through. And even more helpfully there are some cubby holes underneath the fusebox that are just the right shape for the DICE interface box to sit in This does involve removing some trim, the glovebox and the rear seat cushion. But it was all easy enough to do (even for a heavy handed numpty like me), and I also found some great guides online.

In particular:

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=9E6590CE7D...
and
https://www.europeanautosource.com/support-center/...

I think the only difference on my car was that there weren't as many screws to undo to release the glovebox.

Hope this helps... it is a useful gadget, have some 8 hours of driving to do this week and I have loaded the iPod up with some Podcasts

Steve.