Garmin GMA 340 Music Input

I have a Garmin 340 panel and the installer put a music input jack for
it. So, I tried plugging my portable MP3 player output into the music
jack. At maximum volume on the MP3 player, the music was almost
completely inaudible. Does the signal need to be pre amplified in some
way, or did the installer mess something up?

-Sami
N2057M, Piper Turbo Arrow III

"O. Sami Saydjari" wrote in message
...
I have a Garmin 340 panel and the installer put a music input jack for
it. So, I tried plugging my portable MP3 player output into the music
jack. At maximum volume on the MP3 player, the music was almost
completely inaudible. Does the signal need to be pre amplified in some
way, or did the installer mess something up?

Did he ground the connection?

"O. Sami Saydjari" wrote:

I have a Garmin 340 panel and the installer put a music input jack for
it. So, I tried plugging my portable MP3 player output into the music
jack. At maximum volume on the MP3 player, the music was almost
completely inaudible. Does the signal need to be pre amplified in some
way, or did the installer mess something up?

I use both a satellite radio receiver (XM, Delphi Roady 2) and an MP3
player with my GMA340. The MP3 player is normally set to about 3/4 high
volume to hear it comfortably, whereas the satellite radio has to have the
audio output (a setting within that receiver) bumped up two levels from my
truck's setting for comfortable listening.

FWIW...

BTW, the lack of a way to disable the auto-mute when receiving radio
communications (not talking about the intercom mute, which has been
disabled) makes listening to music while in busy airspace difficult.

Certain PS Engineering and the re-branded Bendix/King audio panels have the
ability to disable this auto-mute feature, making the music input feature
much more practical.

--
Peter













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The problem is an impedance mismatch between your MP3 player's output and
the GMA340's music input. This website:

http://www.fremarllc.com/accessories/index.html

has an adapter that will fix the problem and allow you to get full volume.
On the web page, scroll down to "Stereo music impedance adapter"

Regards,

-Mike Murdock


"O. Sami Saydjari" wrote in message
...
I have a Garmin 340 panel and the installer put a music input jack for it.
So, I tried plugging my portable MP3 player output into the music jack. At
maximum volume on the MP3 player, the music was almost completely
inaudible. Does the signal need to be pre amplified in some way, or did
the installer mess something up?

-Sami
N2057M, Piper Turbo Arrow III

O.,

the impedance mismatch is a problem - but yours sounds more dramatic
than it should be. Someone posted instructions on how to build an
impedance matcher yourself here a while ago, which I will repost below:

No need for field mods, nor for active components. If you have any
soldering skills, pick up a couple of 8/1000 ohm matching transformers
and a male/male mini-plug cable from Radio Shack. It's a minor
impedance mismatch problem. I put one together for my Cirrus and it
boosts volume by more than enough, and it's completely passive so
there's no batteries or other stuff. One of my fellow Cirrus brethren
came up with a great packaging hack--a small prescription pill bottle
is big enough to hold everything. Drill a hole in the bottom and in
the lid, tie knots for strain relief, and it's all quite tidy, if a
mite funny looking.

Dave;
Do you put one on each side (of the output)? And is that what I ask
for? An 8/1000 Ohm matching transformer? Thanks again

om: Dave Katz
Newsgroups: rec.aviation.owning
Subject: Music in Intercom
Date: 25 Jul 2002 10:00:59 -0700

Yep, one for each side if you want stereo. The low impedance side
(red/white) goes to the audio device, and the high impedance side
(green/blue) goes to the Garmin. You can snip off the black center
tap on the high side. I hooked the white and green leads to the
common (sleeve) connections on each side, but I don't suppose that
it matters so long as you're consistent (so you don't phase-reverse
one side.)

They were the only transformers for sale at the Radio Shack at which I
got mine. They may just be called "audio transformers" or somesuch,
but
it'll say 8 ohm/1000 ohm on the packaging.

--Dave

Thanks! I saw them at RatShack, about 3 bucks each. Total of about
12 bucks with all the other special goodies like a 2 dollar project
box and 4 dollar cord.

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)

Possible simpler solution...

See if your player has a "line out" jack. If so, just put your plug from
your audio panel in that jack as it is properly impedance matched.

Although I have never seen one, you may have a "line out" jack that is
labeled differently. Check your units instructions and see if it provides a
way to hook it into your home stereo. If it does, connect to the jack shown
in those instructions.




"Mike Murdock" wrote in message
...
The problem is an impedance mismatch between your MP3 player's output and
the GMA340's music input. This website:

http://www.fremarllc.com/accessories/index.html

has an adapter that will fix the problem and allow you to get full volume.
On the web page, scroll down to "Stereo music impedance adapter"

Regards,

-Mike Murdock


"O. Sami Saydjari" wrote in message
...
I have a Garmin 340 panel and the installer put a music input jack for
it.
So, I tried plugging my portable MP3 player output into the music jack.
At
maximum volume on the MP3 player, the music was almost completely
inaudible. Does the signal need to be pre amplified in some way, or did
the installer mess something up?

-Sami
N2057M, Piper Turbo Arrow III

Mike Murdock wrote:
The problem is an impedance mismatch between your MP3 player's output and
the GMA340's music input. This website:

http://www.fremarllc.com/accessories/index.html

has an adapter that will fix the problem and allow you to get full volume.
On the web page, scroll down to "Stereo music impedance adapter"


Well, good grief! Just what did Garmin have in mind for this "music"
input option? Sounds more like a design flaw to me. My PS-Engineering
PMA6000 has the music inputs, and my iPod provides more than enough
volume. Not to mention the fact that I can completely disable the music
muting, if I so desire. Looks like Garmin kind of dropped the ball on
the whole music input idea.

Happy Flying!
Scott Skylane

Peter R. wrote:

I use both a satellite radio receiver (XM, Delphi Roady 2) and an MP3
player with my GMA340. The MP3 player is normally set to about 3/4 high
volume to hear it comfortably, whereas the satellite radio has to have the
audio output (a setting within that receiver) bumped up two levels from my
truck's setting for comfortable listening.

FWIW...

BTW, the lack of a way to disable the auto-mute when receiving radio
communications (not talking about the intercom mute, which has been
disabled) makes listening to music while in busy airspace difficult.

Certain PS Engineering and the re-branded Bendix/King audio panels have the
ability to disable this auto-mute feature, making the music input feature
much more practical.


So does the GMA 340. Read the installers manual, please.

Scott Moore wrote:


So does the GMA 340. Read the installers manual, please.


Not exactly. The PS Engineering can be done by some sequence
of knob pushes on the panel. To get "Karaoke mode" in the Garmin
you have to restrap a pin on the back (which can be run to an external
switch).

Ron Natalie wrote:
Scott Moore wrote:


So does the GMA 340. Read the installers manual, please.



Not exactly. The PS Engineering can be done by some sequence
of knob pushes on the panel. To get "Karaoke mode" in the Garmin
you have to restrap a pin on the back (which can be run to an external
switch).

Yes, there is a switch pin, as well as another music input back there
that I wished I had hooked up on installation. The mode needs to come
to a switch, so you can choose if you are listening to important stuff,
or just keeping your eye on local traffic. Also, people talking in
the cockpit also cut out the music, which is often wrong, since everyone
must be told to shut up just to listen to music.

The second input would have been very handy now to hook my XM music player
to, and should have been a jack (#1 goes to the CD player). Oh well.

I would have also brought out at least one of the extra passenger jacks,
and probally both of them, to jacks in the front panel. You can plug things
in there, like a cell phone patch. There are 6 places on the 340, I have
a four place airplane.

Another "would be nice" is to be able to switch the front passenger to one
of the back places, essentially a crew/passenger switch. The reason is, we
travel as a family, and my wife often needs to be talking to the kids in
the back seat, while I am trying to manage the airplane. The "pilot" switch
does that, but I lose the ability to listen to music myself that way.

Of course, its getting to be I need an operator switch panel to make it
all work :-)

I agree that it would have been nice if the 340 had a front panel combination
for that, its clearly an oversight. But I still think the 340 is a nice unit.