Currently we are leaving a lot of sound quality on the table by using Bluetooth to connect a mobile phone to the Model 3 sound system. Audio via wired USB sounds much better than Bluetooth due to a lower compression rate. For those of us with paid Spotify accounts, we are able to specify a higher bit rate of 320kbps, but that is wasted with a Bluetooth connection. The Model 3 sound system is simply not sounding as good as it could with this simple change. This basic functionality is present in all three of the non-Tesla cars I currently own.
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Feature request -- USB audio from phone
- Thread starter lotusland
- Start date
RScottyL
Member
The smarter thing might be to just put all of your audio files on a USB flash drive and just keep that plugged in all of the time.
This would only work if you are not wanting to stream audio from the phone!
How would that be smarter? Most people under the age of 40 don't own any "audio files". Things like CDs and audio files are really a thing of the past at this point. My music has been entirely on Spotify for more than five years. The concept of using a USB drive to manage music is only one step above plugging in an 8-track IMO.
This limitation -- no audio over USB -- as well as the lack of integrated Spotify -- is a real disconnect between how people listen to music today and how the Model 3 operates. I suspect that whoever controls this area of the car's design is 40+ and a little out of touch. It's a small detail but it is so backwards that it diminishes the car overall. Ditto on the voice reco...it is several years behind the times.
This limitation -- no audio over USB -- as well as the lack of integrated Spotify -- is a real disconnect between how people listen to music today and how the Model 3 operates. I suspect that whoever controls this area of the car's design is 40+ and a little out of touch. It's a small detail but it is so backwards that it diminishes the car overall. Ditto on the voice reco...it is several years behind the times.
Even my teenage son "owns" some music, so it's kind of silly to say that mp3s are the same as 8 track tapes. But more seriously, your comments come across as pretty ageist. People have been wanting usb streaming for a long time, it's not like you are the first person to notice it's missing.
This is really the best way to do it. Glad drives are so cheap. We have over 200GB of music in a flash drive and use Media Monkey to sync with our music collection every now and then.
The only issue we have is with the actual media player software that I really hope they fix soon...
Yikes you need to readjust your world view a little bit. I'm in my early 30s and own over 10,000 music tracks with most of them in lossless formats for the best sound quality. Why do I do that? So that when I am in the middle of a long road trip with spotty cellphone coverage I still have ALL my music with me. I also have all my music during a flight as well as when I'm in an island vacationing in the BVI.
Don't assume everyone else shares your limited needs...
The faulty USB Media Player in our Tesla is the one feature that I gripe about almost daily and really the one issue with the car that I wish they would fix. There are many reasons for why someone would want to listen to their own music and the reasons I offered are just a few out of many.
You know what I find really confusing about your condescending tone? You deride people who own their music as old folks who listen to 8-tracks. Have you perhaps considered that some go that route because they down want to listen to a salad of highly compressed sounds played over streaming audio at the whim of spotty cellphone ceoverage? When you compare a library of high quality music played over USB to streaming audio, it is the streaming audio that is 8-track IMO.
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GPinzone
Member
You want a high quality audio interface to play your streamed low bandwidth lossy-compressed music?
what? you mean "Me" doesn't equal "Everyone"Yikes you need to readjust your world view a little bit. I'm in my early 30s and own over 10,000 music tracks with most of them in lossless formats for the best sound quality. Why do I do that? So that when I am in the middle of a long road trip with spotty cellphone coverage I still have ALL my music with me. I also have all my music during a flight as well as when I'm in an island vacationing in the BVI.
Don't assume everyone else shares your limited needs...
The faulty USB Media Player in our Tesla is the one feature that I gripe about almost daily and really the one issue with the car that I wish they would fix. There are many reasons for why someone would want to listen to their own music and the reasons I offered are just a few out of many.
You know what I find really confusing about your condescending tone? You deride people who own their music as old folks who listen to 8-tracks. Have you perhaps considered that some go that route because they down want to listen to a salad of highly compressed sounds played over streaming audio at the whim of spotty cellphone ceoverage? When you compare a library of high quality music played over USB to streaming audio, it is the streaming audio that is 8-track IMO.
Brilliant idea - except now we need to put in request to fix all the USB music player issues.
I agree. The media player is my only issue with an otherwise perfect car. It would be so easy for them to fix the media player issues but they hey, we can now play Atari games!
We just need a thread here with 20 pages of complaining and they will fix it right away
They did with the "Camera on top" thing but the "Comprehensive USB Bug List" thread on this forum is like 88 pages long without much attention.We just need a thread here with 20 pages of complaining and they will fix it right away
Glamisduner
Active Member
I don't think bluetooth should really degrade audio quality from MP3's if it does it's something in the implementation. I have a pair of expensive bluetooth headphones that can also take a cable from my USBC phone. I really can't tell much a difference between the two. I think tesla just needs to increase the bitrate allowed from their bluetooth audio.
That's because someone got the title right on that thread in that the title is a cause for action...
Someone messed up the title for the USB thread when it was named "Comprehensive USB Bug List."
That thread can gather a 100 more pages and nothing will get done.That thread should have been instead titled, "When will Tesla fix the broken media player so we can listen to music in the car?"
I'm a pretty aged ageist then as I am almost 60. I don't doubt that there are many teens that own some music, but even those who own tracks are much more likely to stream them via the phone then copy them to a USB drive.
Yes, that system works but it is just so klugey for such a state-of-the-art car. It sounds like some of you are quite happy with that set-up though.
You represent about .01% of the population. Most people do not even know what lossless files are.
...
Actually it sounds like we share the same need here.
See what I mean? We agree!
You know what I find really confusing about your condescending tone? You deride people who own their music as old folks who listen to 8-tracks. Have you perhaps considered that some go that route because they down want to listen to a salad of highly compressed sounds played over streaming audio at the whim of spotty cellphone ceoverage? When you compare a library of high quality music played over USB to streaming audio, it is the streaming audio that is 8-track IMO.
Well that was a resopnse to the statement that using a drive is somehow "smarter". It's not. All the hardware is already in place to pipe in USB audio, it could be done easily and should be. Whether you guys have a workaround you like or not has no bearing on whether this should be corrected.
Arguing lossy vs lossless is like arguing religion. There is no question in my mind though that bluetooth -- as implemented by Tesla -- is lossy compared to wired USB. This is very low-hanging fruit compared to creating FLAC files and carrying a drive. No it's not perfect but it is worth doing.
That's why this post does not say "Comprehensive USB List". I'm asking for one specific, easy to do thing. Unfortunately with all the posts saying "we love our usb drives" I doubt this will get traction.
It is not difficult hear a difference between BT audio and wired USB. I can't comment on your specific situation.
That's because someone got the title right on that thread in that the title is a cause for action...
Someone messed up the title for the USB thread when it was named "Comprehensive USB Bug List."
That thread should have been instead titled, "When will Tesla fix the broken media player so we can listen to music in the car?"
Or "USB Audio From Phone".
Guys I apologize if I have offended some of you. This seems like a very basic fix to me, something that would benefit the typical user that docks their phone in the car.
Amazing suggestion.... if the year was 2002.
Wooloomooloo
Member
Never argue about audio... it really is like arguing religion (like someone above said)...
That being said, there are many ways to listen to audio these days, and the Model 3 seems to fall short compared to many other cars. I personally use Apple Music for most of my casual audio listening these days, and while it sounded reasonable through CarPlay on my prior car, over Bluetooth in the Tesla is sounds very muted. In fact so much so that I end up turning the volume up to 70 or 80% just to hear it, which then blows my speakers when something bongs or bleeps, or the nav says something (I know you can reduce the volume).
Anyway, they could do a better job and definitely carry the audio over USB. CarPlay / Androind Auto features, especially reading and replying to messages over voice, would also be welcome.
That being said, there are many ways to listen to audio these days, and the Model 3 seems to fall short compared to many other cars. I personally use Apple Music for most of my casual audio listening these days, and while it sounded reasonable through CarPlay on my prior car, over Bluetooth in the Tesla is sounds very muted. In fact so much so that I end up turning the volume up to 70 or 80% just to hear it, which then blows my speakers when something bongs or bleeps, or the nav says something (I know you can reduce the volume).
Anyway, they could do a better job and definitely carry the audio over USB. CarPlay / Androind Auto features, especially reading and replying to messages over voice, would also be welcome.
for the love of pete just give us wireless carplay and android auto. or audio support in the browser so we can use the web apps for audible.com and stuff.
Glamisduner
Active Member
You mean for the tesla? Or Bluetooth in general?
Fact or Fiction: Does Bluetooth Wireless Audio Reduce Sound Quality?
See the Optional Codec section.
What I'm saying is that this might be fixable via software support. Yes USB audio sounds better in the model 3, but I don't think it has to. I'm not talking about lossless vs mp3 either, mp3's played through USB sound better than those streamed from bletooth, almost like tesla is forcing bluetooth to lower the bitrate.
Also, most newer phones don't have audio jacks. Would need to use a dongle which I guess would need to attach to another dongle?
Their hardware/software would need to be certified for AptX and AptX HD. They do have AAC which is 100 times better than SBC. Android Oreo (8?) can send audio as AAC. You can even force it in developer options.