billyboy47

i see here on the forum people discussing cd's and ipod's. i also have seen where a few people have used the flash drive in their usb port, which is what i've been using more so than my cd player. to me the flash drive is so much easier to use and takes up way less space. and, in my opinion the flash drive sounds just as good as a cd. it may take a little time transferring one format to another but, you tailor your sound your way in the order you want. so guys and gals, whats your thought, if any?

EVRose

I don't have a USB input so I stream Pandora from my phone through a Kawal harness tapped into the XM receiver. I rarely use CD's. I have several hundred songs stored on my phone but rarely listen to those either.

Gearhead Jim

Our 2009 w/Nav does not have a usb port, so bought the GM Personal Audio Link (PAL) and a small Ipod to go with it. All stored in the trunk, but it's controlled through the factory radio.

Sure, it was kind of a pain to transfer the CD songs I like into Itunes, and then easy to buy more. But now I have 500+ songs that are all my favorites, and don't have to listen to the blabbering DJ's on XM nor deal with their criminally insane billing practices.

GC456

I use the USB in my Silverado and I love it!
My 1LT Vette doesn't have a USB port in the front. Is there a USB port in the back of the radio I can use?

hankg42

I use a flash drive in my C6 rather than CDs. Works well, and certainly takes less space. Interestingly enough, the same flash drive will not work in my GMC Sierra Denali's USB port.

billyboy47

yes because its a pain in the ***! in my 013 i insert the drive into the usb port and touch play, done. i have music all day long when i'm not listening to my npp's.

billyboy47

exactly!

billyboy47

weird. mine works in my totota matrix.

billyboy47

i don't think the 1lt came with the usb setup.

GC456

Ok Thanks. Not a big deal, I just burned everything to MP3 CD's. It works pretty well. I can get 6 albums on 1 disk.

DezVette

For those who only have a rear USB port: link

Homeboy77

I just started to use my USB port instead of buying an Ipod. So far I see two issues. 1. Browsing (like for artist) is very slow. 2. When I use my phone and Bluetooth, my navigation does not interrupt the USB sound so I can't hear commands. I do like the quality of sound from my USB. I would say it is the best choice I have. I am using an Alpine unit.

GC456

Cool! How do you know if you have a rear USB without taking it apart?

J Vette

If you are using the same bit-rate with both, then there should be no difference in sound A flash drive using a lossless codec IE FLAC will sound as good as a factory CD. But MP3 will not sound as good as a factory CD because of the MP3 compression bit-rate. Even at 320kbps i9t will not sound as good. But it is more convenient. And that is what MP3 is about..., Convenience. But many people do not know much about the lost sound of MP3s because it has become the dominate media due to its convenience.
All that said, a Corvette is not really the best place to do sound comparisons. I listen mostly to XM and know they are using MP3's. But with the top down its hard to hear any difference between the cd and the MP3 because of the outside noise.
But when I play a CD vs MP3 on my high end home system, there is no doubt which sounds the best.

J Vette

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
What he said!

smurfkiller

i have a pioneer dvd, nav head unit in my car. it has ipod hook up 99% of the time i just use the usb there is a 8 gig thumb drive in my glove box full of music i just keep that on random

lar66BB

Lift the console lid, it is in the rear of the console.

DezVette

The only way to know is to either know what head unit you have in your vehicle or to look at the back of the unit to see if there is a USB wire coming out with the rear harness.

billyboy47

exactly. its like comparing apples to oranges. i know a lot of people bash bose but, i have the floor standing 601's that sound great. i also have the sunfire speakers that at 8" tall can take 400 watts each.

Nosferatu

I prefer wireless bluetooth audio streaming to the stock head unit

Plus I can EQ the crap out of it to make it sound "somewhat okay"