Tropicmaster
01-27-2012, 02:00 PM
among your marine stereo units that will only be used to play MP3's ? I see that nearly all of them have an " aux in " jack for a player but here is my concern- when I plug my current player into the aux jack on my truck I have to turn the volume ALL the way up to be able to hear it at highway speed. There is no way you would be able to hear it on my boat at speed and as far as jamming, forget about it as there is just not enough volume available. Now I do have a much older player and am going to buy a new one shortly, but is this still going to be a problem? Actually as I type this I am realising that at some point I will probably add satellite radio so what unit would best support these two formats? I am not interested in gazillion watt amps and subs- all I want is a good sounding system to listen to at normal levels.
JENSENTechService
02-02-2012, 08:40 AM
When using a MP3 player (stand-alone player or smart phone) and connecting via the headphone output jack to the stereo’s AUX IN jack, you must turn the MP3 player’s volume level to maximum. This is the only way to provide sufficient signal for the stereo’s pre-amplifier to work with. To put this another way, if you connect a DVD player to a home stereo via RCA audio cables, the output is considered a “line level”, which is much stronger than a typical headphone output level at normal headphone listening levels. When you have the volume on the MP3 player to max, you are achieving closer to this “line level” signal. At that point, you can adjust the stereo’s volume control as you would when listening to radio or CD. Depending on device, a MP3 player may actually be louder than the CD or radio signal on the same stereo (when headphone volume level is set at maximum). This is noticeable when cycling through the different sources on the stereo.
In regards to our stereo line, if you do not need a CD player, I would recommend our JMS2212 stereo with JENAUX adaptor. This is a modular system that has a console mounted commander with an outboard tuner/amp module that can be installed under the console out of the way. This model has radio, NOAA Weatherband, AUX IN, USB and is both iPod & SIRIUS ready. The JENAUX adaptor is a mountable AUX IN and USB interface. This allows mounting the AUX IN/USB in a convenient location of your choosing. You can view our full line of JENSEN Marine stereos on our website.
As with all stereo systems, overall volume level while underway will vary depending on many factors such as motor (inboard/outboard), travelling speed, number and location of speakers in relation to listening position, wind noise, desired listening levels, source material (music type, talk radio, etc.). External power amplifiers are designed to provide more power than a standard hi-power stereo utilizing IC amps (Integrated Circuit) can provide. These are great when listening to music while underway at speed; whereas stereo power is more than sufficient for motor OFF music listening. As this is very subjective, it is very common to try the stereo by itself under your desired usage conditions and then determine if the system volume level meets your desired levels or if an external power amplifier will be needed. If you know you like to listen at loud levels and typically run wide open or while pulling skiers/tubers, an external power amplifier, such as our POWER760, would be recommended from the start. A good set of speakers will also improve the overall audio listening experience, especially when combined with a power amplifier, such as our MSX60CSS or MSX60RVR.
Please feel free to contact us with any additional questions or concerns. You can reach us on our toll free technical support line at (877) 845-8750. We are available M-F 8:00 AM till 6:00 PM EDT.
We look forward to hearing from you.