AUX jack problems

mattk22 · #1 12-28-2005, 02:13 PM

I have an external Sirius unit in my bimmer, and I am having problems with it dropping out. Every time I go under a bridge, I loose reception for like a second, then my business radio will switch to FM and won't let me switch back to AUX to listen to my satellite radio. I have to switch my satellite radio to FM modulator. Anyone know how to fix this problem?

drex · #2 12-28-2005, 02:41 PM

you have the BMW unit or an aftermarket unit?????????

you should be able to stay on AUX if aftermarket whether or not there is a signal in the AUX line until you switch to another mode : FM, CD, Etc.

Sirius will usually drop in areas with no repeaters if going under a bridge, dense foilage, etc. It will then restart when a signal is received....

Please tell us exactly which unit you have, what year BMW and where/how your sirius unit is located and connected..

mattk22 · #3 12-28-2005, 02:50 PM

I have the BMW unit installed after I got my 2004 X3, I don't have any problems when using my iPod or anything. My Sirius unit is installed on the dash and plugged into the aux jack.

drex · #4 12-28-2005, 03:11 PM

that's weird. one thing shouldn't interfere with another (AUX mode should stay aux mode) until manually switched.

which sirius unit? where is your antenna?

Sirius will drop the signal when going under bridges, etc. especially older generation receivers. However, it should restart when the antenna has a clear view of the ski.

Regarding the mode switching to FM, that should have nothing to do with the sirius unit dropping the signal. for instance, when i switch to AUX, I can turn on and off my sirius unit (getting a thump) but even if there is dead space in the circuit, it won't switch out until I hit the mode button. I can turn the sirius back on, and it works fine. I don't know if this is a function of the business radio as I have the Nav setup (DSP)...

Who installed the aux and sirius radio? where is the sirius radio drawing its power from? have you tried powering down and repowering the sirius radio when you lose the signal before it switches to FM to see what happens?

mattk22 · #5 12-28-2005, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drex

that's weird. one thing shouldn't interfere with another (AUX mode should stay aux mode) until manually switched.

which sirius unit? where is your antenna?

Sirius will drop the signal when going under bridges, etc. especially older generation receivers. However, it should restart when the antenna has a clear view of the ski.

Regarding the mode switching to FM, that should have nothing to do with the sirius unit dropping the signal. for instance, when i switch to AUX, I can turn on and off my sirius unit (getting a thump) but even if there is dead space in the circuit, it won't switch out until I hit the mode button. I can turn the sirius back on, and it works fine. I don't know if this is a function of the business radio as I have the Nav setup (DSP)...

Who installed the aux unit and sirius radio? where is the sirius radio drawing its power from? have you tried powering down and repowering the sirius radio when you lose the signal before it switches to FM to see what happens?

I have tried everything to get the Sirius to work. Once it drops out, there is no way to get the Sirius to come back on the AUX. The Sirius unit is drawing power from the cig lighter. I installed the AUX jack, it works great with everything else I have. I have had the Sirius unit in another car with an AUX jack and didn't have any problems. So, I am pretty baffled as to why it does it. I agree with you comment on why it switches to FM, when I power off my iPod it still stays in AUX mode till I switch it. I thought of buying another Sirius tuner to see if it does it with that.

When I say BMW unit, I mean the BMW AUX jack from my dealer.

drex · #6 12-28-2005, 03:20 PM

no prob.

it sounds like the sirius unit is malfunctioning. it could be sending an aberrant signal spike when losing the satellite signal causing the radio to switch and protect itself by skipping the aux mode.

try this:

ipod -> aux adapter and play the ipod. turn the ipod off. if it remains in AUX, i'd switch out your sirius tuner to another one. which one is it, btw? if it falls out of AUX, then something is not quite right with the business radio.....

mattk22 · #7 12-28-2005, 03:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drex

no prob.

it sounds like the sirius unit is malfunctioning. it could be sending an aberrant signal spike when losing the satellite signal causing the radio to switch and protect itself by skipping the aux mode.

try this:

ipod -> aux adapter and play the ipod. turn the ipod off. if it remains in AUX, i'd switch out your sirius tuner to another one. which one is it, btw? if it falls out of AUX, then something is not quite right with the business radio.....

I have done the with my iPod and it works fine. So, I am thinking it must be my Sirius unit. It is the Starmate by Sirius, it runs 2.0 Sirius software. I am going to wait till the winter technology show and see what new Sirius is coming out with before I buy a new one.

rromeo39 · #8 01-11-2007, 04:44 PM

My wife and I both have S50 units and 2006 x3's. My S50 is from last year January and hers is from this year December.

We both have BMW Installed AUX jacks. Her AUX vanishes at random and doesn't come back until the car is shut off and turned back on. The S50 is the onlything connected to the AUX.

On my X3, the same thing happens but less often.

This does not happen with our ipods.

I'm guessing there's some incompatability between SIRIUS aftermarket units and the radio in our cars.

I have yet to find a solution except to just install the fm adapter behind the radio.