Garmin - Vehicle Integration Box (VIB)

Pricey

Yes, your right. But, the FM transmitter just isn't doing the job, and the state I do much of my driving has passes a hands-free cellphone law.

If I purchase a 'good' BT headset I'm spending $60-90 which includes more cords, chargers, bla-bla-bla. (And still, I can't play MP3 through my car's speakers...)

So, If the Garmin VIB device actually works - and reduces clutter - I am considering giving-it-a-go.

But, I would like to hear some user feed-back before I make a decision.

Are you sure this is going to help?

It seems like it's a 'boxed' version of a GTM-20/21 Traffic Receiver...
The audio out goes to the vehicle Radio/CD, via its AUX-in (if it has one). You could presumably, just connect the 760's headphone o/p to the same place?

(I've never seen one, and there's no manual online - so I may well be wrong!)

I found a manual here:

http://www8.garmin.com/manuals/VIB10VehicleIntegrationBox_In...

I am trying to avoid the using the headphone-jack on the 760. Again, more wires/clutter...

And continually plugging/un-plugging the jack when removing the unit from the windshield when parked is eventually going to put wear on the unit.

Those are my concerns.

yup - they seem reasonable

Going back to this gizmo ... the vehicle stereo's speaker connections go to the VIB as do the actual speakers - so presumably, it can switch the car speakers between the Stereo and the VIB. (I've seen an Aussie product that does this too).

Do you suppose it provides 4 channels of amplification for these speakers, when the Streetpilot / Nüvi 7xx is using them? - or is it just relying on the inbuilt amplification of the Nüvi?

Also, the implication is, that the audio-in from the Nüvi arrives down that one 'flat' plug that goes to the cradle. But it could just be the headphone socket...it doesn't really say. (That would explain why it lists compatibility with the C550, but not the C510/C530 - the latter having no headphone socket).

Garmin are not making it easy to understand, are they?

Hey - Thanks for the replies...

You're getting a little technical for me, but I think you are saying that while listening to your car's radio/CD the unit will mute that and transmit the Nuvi's voice text to the speakers. Is that correct?

I am not sure about '4-channels of amplification', though.

I asked garmin support about the VIB's audio input. They assured me that the audio input was through the mount. Here is their reply, below:

"Thank you for contacting Garmin International. The VIB 11 comes with a cable that replaces the power cable for your Nuvi 760. This allows the VIB to connect directly to the mount instead of to the headphone jack as you suggested."

That seems to be the essence of it.

Well the issue is, when the speakers are switched from Stereo to the Nüvi, what provides the drive (because the Nüvi's o/p is a bit too feeble). Maybe it just provides power to one speaker (that would explain why it says you can't have hi-fi stereo from the Nüvi's mp3 player, without using the Aux-in jacks on the stereo).

Well that is interesting - I will have to have a poke around and see which pins it uses

I can see you are a man of knowledge in these technical areas...Thanks again for your input.

Could you quicky explain what you mean when you say that 'aux-in jacks are needed for hi-fi MP3 from the Nuvi'? I might take my car down to the local Hi-fi shop and have this installed. I would like to do eveything I can to insure it preforms optimally.

That's something Garmin say:
"You can also play MP3s from your c550 with stereo quality. HiFi stereo quality is only possible using an RCA cable (not included), and use of an AUX function on your stereo."
(This is from the VIB's Audio o/p, to the Stereo's AUX-in).

I take this to mean: that whatever audio can 'flow' from the Nüvi to the VIB and direct to the speakers, it's either not stereo, or not Hi-Fi!...

...My guess (and that's all it is), is that the VIB has a power amp that runs ONE speaker. It detects when the Nüvi is 'speaking', switches three of the speakers off and connects the remaining speaker to itself. This one speaker then outputs the Nüvi navigation instructions.
(So without the AUX connection, you'll probably get mono MP3 playback - possibly at less volume than is otherwise possible?.)

It would be interesting to find out how close to the mark I am, once you have it installed.

Thanks!

I'll let you know when/if I get it done...

I just saw this on the Garmin site today and was wondering about it as well. However, if you only get Mono output for the mp3 functions it wouldn't be worthwhile for me. I was hoping for something that would integrate all functions of the nüvi with the automobile. My car stereo is old and doesn't have an aux input. If it did, I wouldn't be looking at this type of device. Sigh........ I had hoped to get rid of the tangle of wires.

I have just installed the VIB11 to my Garmin Nuvi 860 and my car stereo and I thought to share my experience:

Indeed the VIB comes with a cable that replaces Nuvi’s power cable. This allows the VIB to connect directly to the Nuvi’s mount. I concluded that the VIB has its own built-in amplifier that amplifies the audio signal taken from nuvi. It detects when the Nüvi is announcing navigation prompts and switches ALL speakers off (in my car 2 rear, 2 front and 2 sub) and directs the amplified sound from the Nuvi to ALL the speakers. The voice quality is very clear and loud. The VIB has a cable that when it is grounded the audio level is set to low volume and when it is not grounded it is set to high volume. I can also do fine volume adjustments using Nuvi’s Sound Mixer settings.

Now the bad news:
1) To my surprise the VIB only detects navigation prompts. It does not detect voice prompts for speed or proximity alerts. So my custom Speed POIs that used to be announced before installing the VIB (I use my custom mp3 speed alert files) are not detected and no sound is send to the car’s speakers. My guess is that the VIB does not detect audio coming from mp3 sources.

2) I have also connected the VIB (via its two RCA plugs) to my car stereo AUX IN as described in the user manual. Unfortunately, the audio is distorted and although I spent a lot of time playing with the volume settings I have not managed to get clear HiFi sound as the user manual says. By the way, when my car stereo is at the AUX mode I can hear the voice prompts for my speed alerts but of course I don’t have my radio always at AUX mode. Connecting the Nuvi’s to my car stereo AUX IN using the headphone jack works fine and I get HiFi sound. As soon as the VIB is connected the audio is distorted.

I have emailed Garmin and I am waiting for their reply on the above issues. As soon as I get a reply I will update this post.

http://www.mixitproducts.com/mixit2.html ? This unit has a priority input that silences all others when a signal is present. Therefore you could use the regular headphone output and get ALL the audio from the GPS.

Thanks for this link, it's very interesting. Another drawback of the VIB is that it doesn't work with MSN Direct...this would allow me to keep that.

I didn't know about the MIX-IT device but having just read the user manual I can't figure out how I can apply this in my case: what I need is to mix the sound from my car stereo (factory fitted radio with CD / mp3 player)and the sound from my Garmin and have the output to my car's speakers.

If my car stereo had a Line Out, then I could have connect it to one of the MIX-IT stereo inputs, then connect my Garmin to its mono input and then connect the headphone output jack from MIX-IT to my car stereo Aux In. But it does not have a Line Out...

It seems to me that the it is a Garmin's firmware feature to enable all types of announcments (navigation prompts, speedlimit alerts, MSN alerts, etc) to be picked up by the VIB and routed to the car stereo.

I will wait for their response. Let's hope it will be a positive one.

Does the VIB require the car stereo to have an Aux input and an AUX function in the dial?

If you want to listen to your mp3 files stored on your Nuvi then Yes, your car stereo should have an AUX Input. The VIB has a set of AUX Outputs that you connect to your car stereo. Although, I used this setup, the audio is distorted and I am not happy with it.

The other option is to use the FM Transmiter function if your Nuvi is offering this but again the audio quality suffers.

I was considering the VIB because I would like to listen to my own tunes while in the car. But my 2005 Volvo does not have an AUX function, and, so I assume, no AUX inputs in the rear of the deck. There are none in the front either.

The FM transmiter just frustrates me...

Thanks for your comments they were very helpful to me.

I had originally seen the mount when looking into the VIB kit and ended up buying just the $5 mount only from Garmin and using it with my 760. Works great, very stable.

Link to installed mount photo:

http://home.comcast.net/~rjrsw2005/Garmin%20760%20and%20010%...

So I checked on the link in the OP.

FYI, the VIB is "discontinued product".

I guess this thread is closed.

The various different models of this unit are still availble from other sources at pretty good pricing just no longer carried by Garmin.

How does that mount connect to the dash?

These are the links to close up views of rear and side view of the Garmin Model # 010-10969-00 Mount. I selected a small replaceable panel in both my vehicles to mount it to if I would ever need to remove it:

This is a safe site with a strange choice of name!

http://www.crackaddict.com/~flynn/z/garmin_mount/010-10969-0...

http://www.crackaddict.com/~flynn/z/garmin_mount/010-10969-0...

Excellent response. The pics make it perfectly clear how the mount attaches. Now if there was only an easy spot to attach that mount in my vehicle I'd use it. It looks like a great method of mounting.

I bought the same garmin mount and attached it to a ProClip vehicle mount.

Very sturdy and quality construction as the pics above reveal.

Greetings from Brazil!

The VIB 11 unit seems not available for sale anywhere.

Would Garmin be planning to launch a new model?

Regards,

Felipe

http://www.logjamelectronics.com/volvo1.html
Good luck

Thank your for your attention.

I have wrote them asking for help in order to select the correct auxiliary converter for my car and CD player. Please read below.

I am also not sure if it could override the normal audio output of my CD player as the VIB 11 seems to do.

Regards,

Felipe

My email to them:

"...

Link: http://www.logjamelectronics.com/auxford.html

I own a Ford Ranger double cabine made in Argentina and use a Pioneer DEH-4980MP CD player.

I would like to have an auxiliary input converter which would function with the audio output of a Garmin GPS into my CD player.

I have navigated in your site but I am in doubt which one could serve for my car and CD player.

Which specification of my Ford Ranger should I ask my local Ford dealers in order to select the correct auxiliary input converter?

Links about the Pioneer DEH-4980MP CD player:

http://www.pioneer.com.br/Pioneer/Portugues/detProduto.php?c...

http://www.pioneer.com.br/Pioneer/upload/download/DEHP4980MP...
..."

They (Logjam) answered me as follows:

"It is our company policy not to sell or ship outside the USA.".

I have also goggled "Mix-It2" and found that it is primarily used as a "Motorcycle Audio Amplifier and Mixer" and used inside motorcycle helmets.

However, one has used Mix-It2 to mute its front speakers as necessary (http://www.radardetector.net/forums/escort/38163-got-my-upgr...). How do I connect the output of the Mix-It2 to my car front speakers without impedance mismatching?

As far as I know earphone and speaker outputs have different impedances.

Regards,

Felipe

Greetings from Brazil!

First again my thanks to Zetaroy for his attention and patience.

I have researched a little more about the products Logjam Electronics.com listed.

One of them was P.I.E. (Precision Interface Electronics). I do not use a "factory" (Ford) radio on my car, but a Pioneer DEH-4980MP CD player.

On the site of P.I.E. I have found this "PIONEER AUXILIARY AUDIO SWITCHER" unit at the price of US$ 81.95 (http://www.pie.net/pie_store/shopexd.asp?id=125&bc=no). They wrote:

"...
Detailed description:

THE PIO/P-AUX AUXILIARY INPUT/CD CHANGER SWITCHER IS DESIGNED FOR USE WITH AFTERMARKET PIONEER IP-BUS SERIES PRODUCTS. THE PIO/P-AUX IS PLACED IN SERIES BETWEEN THE PIONEER IP-BUS CONTROLLER AND SLAVE UNIT, ALLOWING YOU TO MAINTAIN THE IP-BUS SLAVE AND ADD AN ADDITIONAL AUDIO SOURCE
...".

At the figure they said the following notes:

"...
NOTE: IF NO DEVICE IS CONNECTED TO INPUT SOCKET OF PIO/P-AUX, RADIO'S "AUX" MUST BE USED. (???)
...
WHEN RADIO SIGNAL IS DETECTED HERE, THE PIO/P-AUX WILL DISCONNECT THE AUDIO FROM THE IP-BUS DEVICE THAT IS CONNECTED, AND WILL CONNECT THE AUDIO FROM THE EXTERNAL RCA DEVICE TO THE PIONEER RADIO.

I have found it again cheaper for US$ 49.98 at xmfanstore.com (http://store.xmfanstore.com/piopaux.html) stating:

"...
PIE Pioneer Auxiliary Audio Switcher

The PIO/P-AUX is a current sensing device that will automatically interrupt the PIONEER IP-Bus audio lines going to the PIONEER radio (and switch in an external RCA signal) whenever audio signal is detected on its RCA inputs. The PIONEER IP-Bus audio lines will reconnect to their previous state 10 seconds after no audio signal is detected by the PIO/P-AUX on its RCA inputs.

Pioneer CD changer function is maintained by connecting the CD changer data cable to the IP-Bus input on the PIO/P-AUX.

NOTE: While in CD changer mode, the RCA source connected to the PIO/P-AUX will need to be shut off to allow the switching circuitry of the PIO/P-AUX to disengage. As long as an audio signal is detected on the PIO/P-AUX RCA inputs, the unit will remain in its "switched" state.
..."

I have never seen a CD changer and how it works. I do not know if this unit would switch to the "RCA input" automatically without loosing any bit of audio, i. e., the beginning of the speech message of the GPS Garmin.

I have also not understood what P.I.E says here:
"NOTE: IF NO DEVICE IS CONNECTED TO INPUT SOCKET OF PIO/P-AUX, RADIO'S "AUX" MUST BE USED."

Though xmfanstore.com will export only to Canada, they are available cheaper than P.I.E. for US$ 54.95 at (http://www.amazon.com/PIE-Switcher-Pioneer-IP-Bus-Radios/dp/...).

Amazon.com also lists for US$ 8.91 another cable "Scosche DCAXPI011 / DCAXPI011 / DCAXPI011 Auxiliary Input Adaptor for Pioneer Radios" (http://www.amazon.com/Scosche-DCAXPI011-Auxiliary-Adaptor-Pi...):

"...
Product Description
SCOSCHE DCAXPIO11 Pioneer(R) Auxiliary Change Input Cable Adds aux inputs to a Pioneer(R) radio via the changer port Pioneer(R) Auxiliary Change Input Cable
..."

Also Scosche describes nothing abot at http://www.scosche.com/products/sfID1/151/sfID2/315/listPage....

There are some user comments about such cables at amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/SOUNDGATE-AUXCBLPIO-Auxiliary-Pioneer-...).

I am thinking about buying the "SOUNDGATE AUXCBLPIO Auxiliary Input Cable (Pioneer IP-Bus to RCA)" at amazon.com and see how it works.

I am not sure how it will works. Will it damage my CD player when connected to the audio output of my GPS when frequently disconnecting the main audio source of the CD player?

Would I still really need a Mix-It2?

Many thanks again and again Zetaroy.

Regards,

Felipe

carioca10,
I'm not familiar with adding an aux. input to an aftermarket headunit. I have a PIE aux. input connected to my factory Honda radio and my nuvi acting as an external CD Changer http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f161/zetaroy/PICT0001-3.jp...
Your best option would be to ask your local car audio installer about your specifics. Good luck.

Many thanks for your attention and patience Zetaroy.

Regards,

Felipe

VIB 11 is no more listed at the Garmin site: https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=134.

VIB 10 is still listed as discontinued: https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=164!

Regards,

Felipe

VIB 10 still available at Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000MRGB7W/?tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=...

http://www.inawise.com.au/gpsxo.html

http://www.inawise.com/910-8001-manual.pdf

http://www.gpsoz.com.au/gpsxo.htm

Does anyone know anything about it?

Regards,

Felipe

http://www.twowayradiogizmos.com/gemini.html

http://www.twowayradiogizmos.com/Images/PP_GEMINI.swf

There is also this Gemini Audio Interrupt System, but I have not seen clearly in their installation diagram how and where do you connect to your car radio or car cd player input!

Regards,

Felipe

Source: http://www.yourtomtom.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=13387

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNBkvwTOkXE

Site: http://www.ioplay.co.uk/home.html

Fortunately neither gpsXo nor Gemini have answered me. I had even phoned inawise (gpsXo), although they have not answered me.

In this mean time I have found this IO PLAY from Britain. It seems an more improved version than the Parrot.

I am still annalysing but it seems the better solution with my TT 740.

Anyone had tested it?

Regards,

Felipe

Garmin makes a good product, but their speakers and microphones stink. Tom Tom has much better quality hands free phone services.
Jen