[insane79]

Hi guys,
I have the standard bmw Y cable i have been using for connecting my iPod to my car, i m planning on getting the iphone5 & using that for playing music, do i need the lightning cable adaptor from apple to attach the 30pin of the Y cable to make it play music from the iPhone 5?

Thanks..

[cap1]

Yep, been using the adapter and it works fine.

[jafza412]

With this method, does the iDrive interface with Spotify and other music apps, or just the music on the iPhone?

[feconi]

Originally Posted by jafza412

With this method, does the iDrive interface with Spotify and other music apps, or just the music on the iPhone?

Just music on the iPhone. With Spotify or most other music apps I can use the steering wheel controls to change songs in a given playlist, but I can't switch between playlists or choose songs directly on the iDrive screen. The current song playing in the music app shows up correctly on the "Current playback" screen but I can only see playlists on the iPhone hard drive.

[kgemz]

Any reason why I couldn't get mine to work? I have a Y cable and had an adapter (that I already returned) and I couldn't play anything through the USB interface on the stereo. It only played music through AUX, and I was unable to use controls on the steering wheel and stereo itself. (2007 E92 335i WITHOUT I-Drive)

[insane79]

Originally Posted by kgemz

Any reason why I couldn't get mine to work? I have a Y cable and had an adapter (that I already returned) and I couldn't play anything through the USB interface on the stereo. It only played music through AUX, and I was unable to use controls on the steering wheel and stereo itself. (2007 E92 335i WITHOUT I-Drive)

did you use the apple adaptor or 3rd party?

[DASHOCKER]

spotify can play through 09 I-drive? if so how? does not work for me..

[kgemz]

Originally Posted by insane79

did you use the apple adaptor or 3rd party?

I used the Apple adapter.

[alexwhittemore]

Originally Posted by kgemz

I used the Apple adapter.

It sounds like your Y cable is probably not working, for the $20 it'll cost you I'd just try a new one.

[kgemz]

Originally Posted by alexwhittemore

It sounds like your Y cable is probably not working, for the $20 it'll cost you I'd just try a new one.

So I SHOULD be able to play music through the USB option on the stereo, right? Because when I had mine plugged in, I was able to press play on my iPhone 5 and it played through the AUX interface. I guess I'll just order a new cable, thanks!

[alexwhittemore]

Originally Posted by kgemz

So I SHOULD be able to play music through the USB option on the stereo, right? Because when I had mine plugged in, I was able to press play on my iPhone 5 and it played through the AUX interface. I guess I'll just order a new cable, thanks!

Yeah, so the Y cable does two things which are electrically distinct from each other: it breaks out the analog line-out present in the 30-pin connector to a 1/8" headphone jack, and it translates USB to the UART serial interface iPods have used since the dawn of the 30-pin dock to handle communication and control from accessories (so the skip/play/pause/etc buttons on your stereo dock work, for example, or in the car's case, so the steering wheel buttons work and so the headunit gets track and playlist info).

Assuming both work, the car recognizes via USB that the Y cable is plugged in and talking to an iDevice, and puts the headunit in iPod mode. If the headunit>serial converter>iDevice chain doesn't work, the HU remains in Aux mode, which is pretty error-proof. In either case, audio itself goes over the same channel: 30pin line out to 1/8" plug to aux in in the center console.

Anyway, the cheap $20 Y cables you get on amazon (and probably the OEM bmw ones too) use crappy USB-UART converter chips, have awful soldering, etc etc etc, such that more often than not, replacing the cable will actually solve these sorts of issues. Personally, I've opened up and repaired my cable multiple times by just re-soldering all the connections myself with good tools and solder.

As for the lightning to 30pin adapter, it adds another layer of complexity, but it and software are rarely to blame for these sorts of issues. For the most part, it faithfully implements all of the interfaces that the 30pin standard supports, although it omits some that don't matter here (like video).

[insane79]

guys check this video, he is having issues connecting the Y cable through the lightning adaptor. link-

[alexwhittemore]

Originally Posted by insane79

guys check this video, he is having issues connecting the Y cable through the lightning adaptor. link-

So on my car I made a power injector cable specifically because the MULF can't pump 500mA, and iPhones get angry about it in some charge states (if it's dead empty, it'll take what it can get, if it's full, it doesn't need anything, and somewhere in between it'll flicker like this).

In that case, though, he's fully charged. Some probing would determine if his phone is dragging the power down and resetting the chip in the cable, or if the phone itself is unhappy.

Anyway, a power injector would probably take care of it.

[insane79]

Has anyone tried plugging the iPhone 5 straight to the usb in the arm rest instead of using the iPod Y cable? i got the Y cable but have to buy the 30pin to lighting adaptor.

Thanks..

[alexwhittemore]

Originally Posted by insane79

Has anyone tried plugging the iPhone 5 straight to the usb in the arm rest instead of using the iPod Y cable? i got the Y cable but have to buy the 30pin to lighting adaptor.

Thanks..

Search. You MUST still use the Y cable, and you MUST get the adapter. There are good, not-fucking-around reasons for both.