Want Bluetooth Streaming... Tell Audi!

20930 Views 37 Replies 16 Participants Last post by myowdeeA5, Jun 8, 2014

Agilis

Discussion Starter · Nov 17, 2011 (Edited)

Hey everyone,

So there is still no word on Bluetooth Streaming using A2DP profile which got me thinking.

Audi's 2 slogans, "Truth in Engineering" and "Innovation through Technology". I feel both slogans are straight up lies as far as I'm concerned when it comes to the lack of support for this technology. You know, several customers are asking "WHY" there is no Bluetooth Streaming support in our vehicles, vehicles that cost 3 times as much as vehicles that come standard with Bluetooth Streaming, and Audi still has not given us a direct answer why we have been slighted.

So lets do something about this...

First, lets show Audi how dissatisfied we are by leaving negative reviews/feedback for their Bluetooth adapter for MMI 2G set ups.

Bluetooth Streaming Audio

I'm hoping this will inundate their systems because lets face it, the newer radio, MMI 3G, doesn't support something an older radio supports. This is absolutely despicable on Audi's part and I know others already agree.

Second: Contact Audi like I did:
Audi of America > About Audi > Contact

Now I contacted AoA using the Email method. One method may be preferred by you over another one. So go for it and don't hold back! After all, you spent a lot of money on your vehicle, and you have a right to demand some sort of answer.

I'm hoping that maybe we can light a fire up under Audi's you know what.

Now here's the drive and the reason why this could work:

The amount of people asking for Audi to support A2DP is shocking and Audi needs to know about this. My attempt at contacting was successful in the fact the rep forwarded my complaint to the proper channels and I'm afraid that's how far it went. So perhaps we need to push for an answer and that's what this is all about!

We as customers have nothing to lose.

So please, participate. Go ahead and ask on different boards (A4/S4) and other forums, and other places, for their members to participate. Maybe it's possible to get Fortitude, or other blogs/media channels, to pressure Audi.

If anyone has any other ideas, please post them here, I'm sure they'll be good.

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #3 · Nov 17, 2011 (Edited)

So the 2012 Facelifted A5/S5 has the Bluetooth Streaming but 2012 models, before the Facelift do not. How ridiculous is that?! Damn right dispicable and that's even a greater reason to pressure Audi and contact them about the lack of support for A2DP and an answer WHY it has not been made available.

Audi could even go the route as to offer an upgrade program for those with an older version of MMI 3G. I'm sure, many existing owners, myself included, wanting this feature, would pay to have their MMI 3G upgraded or swapped out to have the new hardware.

I just want a clear answer. Audi is slighting their customers, and it's not right. I have contacted Audi again and waiting to hear back from them. I may even use their Audi Live Chat.

Update: Talking to my dealer who has no problem talking to me about this sort of stuff, informed me that the 2013 models, which are the face-lifted models, won't be arriving any time soon and he has no schematics for that model year. So can anyone actually confirm that the Face-lifted models being delivered do in fact support the A2DP profile?

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #7 · Nov 18, 2011

gruffle said:
How do you get that?
It has been discussed of course, but I have never seen it in any Audi documentation.

I guess I'm just upset that a company like Audi, who celebrates the latest technology, wouldn't figure out a way to bring such a convenient feature to their customers, especially when cars worth a quarter as much have it. Just erks me.

Now, other than the infamous Brabec saying streaming could be supported with a SW update, there has not been any other mention of it. But with the large amount of people asking for this feature, how can they ignore it? With the large amount of money people are paying for these cars, I feel it's wrong of Audi not to give us something.

But don't worry, I'm calm now. I ordered a shopping list of parts that should allow me to implement streaming.

Oh, I like the 500GB idea but that would be a lot of music but still doesn't allow you to stream Pandora or Spotify.

Thanks for you comments and :cheers:

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #8 · Nov 25, 2011 (Edited)

Hey everyone,

The awesome Audi Exec. Case Support Specialist finally got a hold me after several games of phone tag and what an awesome conversation we had. :thumbsup: The main focus of the conversation was the Bluetooth Streaming. Bottom line, he thinks it's only a matter of time before there is some sort of update or device available. Here's why...

They, at Audi of America, are getting an overwhelming number of requests for Bluetooth Streaming and something needs to be done. He has seen a trend developing regarding the content of the emails he has been reading. They are aware of these forums on the subject, and Facebook and Twitter accounts are alerted to the issue.

Now Audi of America is really pushing for Bluetooth Streaming because of the overwhelming response received by Audi owners. They just need to convince Audi of Germany. Something AoA is using for leverage is this:

The 2013 facelifted models have the Bluetooth Streaming, and are pretty identical with minor changes to the existing MMI 3G systems. He assured me that the radios are not much different, they do not have the touch pad addition, they look and operate the same. He believes Audii of Germany will need to have an answer/solution once existing MMI 3G owners get wind of this and respond.

So this is good news for those wanting Bluetooth Streaming with their MMI 3G.:cheers:

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #12 · Dec 5, 2011

Mediaboy said:
Hi.

My 2012 A5 is on order to be built in week 03 2012.

I wanted BT audio streaming, but now I'd rather not have it. It drains the battery (iPhone) and there is a sound quality hit too. No point in having a B&O sound system and putting low quality audio through it.

I'm going to keep my phone for BT calls and use an older iPod in the glove via AMI to provide the music.

I testing all this on an A5 I had on loan for the weekend and it worked very well.

Hope that helps you.

I disagree. There is no quality difference between a Bluetooth connection and an iPhone/iPod hooked up through a cable. This is mostly because Bluetooth v4.0, which I know the the iPhone/iTouch uses, has more than enough bandwidth when it comes to not sacrificing audio quality. Now, if there is a difference, you're kidding yourself if you think you'll be able to detect the difference.

The real difference is the either the player, the source, or a combination of the 2. A member here switched from an Android phone to an iPod Touch and heard a world of difference when it came to the quality. If you're listening to a low bit rate stream vs a 'premium' stream, you're going to hear a difference, guaranteed. For example, I subscribe to Digitally Imported Premium and listen to 128 AAC and it sounds great compared to their lower end streams.

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #16 · Apr 15, 2013

stencil said:
Hmm. 2 posts, both about this device. Fishy.

Not "Fishy" at all. AirPlay solution for AMI....

Looks to be a spectacular device if it works like everyone says it does. I'll know soon enough. Should be here this week. :thumbsup:

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #18 · Apr 15, 2013

AudiStype said:
hey Agilis, as you may know my car and your car have pretty much the same exact tech, and I can tell you that that bluetooth Adapter works like a charm.

I simply hooked it up to the audi, then entered in the pin "0000" and it worked perfectly. There was no change in sound quality either. But i do have one issue. The issue is when my phone is connected to the Audi's bluetooth and the Adapter's bluetooth there are issues with phone calls and i'm not to sure how to fix it. it makes a weird sound that i cant really explain, but overall I think it works better than the one Audi make now because you can also see your whole music library on the dashboard and stuff as well. Unlike in the newer Audi 2013, you cant look all of your music library.

Pandora and other third party application work as well.

hope this helped, and sorry about the grammar errors i wrote this up quickly.

No problem. Thanks for the info. How does Third Party applications work if the phone is operating in Accessory Mode while connected to the Tune2Air. Then again I'll be using an iPhone and things may be more restrictive.

The noise you hear is it like a clicking? I think that is an issue with the 2 profiles connected at the same time. The only BT device I had that does not do this was the BlueRidge device.

It's highly annoying maybe can be fixed via Firmware.

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #21 · Apr 16, 2013 (Edited)

Okay. Tune2Air is the real deal. Before my review, I have used the Miccus Blue Bridge Mini-jack RX. This had excellent sound but no MMI 3G support and needed to be powered off of a USB/12V adapter. Most recently, I tried the solution at Audi MMI 3G Bluetooth Music Streaming - Audi MMI 3G Bluetooth A2DP Music Streaming ... This worked well, but only because the device could be powered by the AMI port. But again, no support for the MMI 3G interface, and the sound quality was not all that great. Really, it is just a custom AMI cable that allows the device, a Belkin Bluetooth product, to be powered by the AMI.

Now on to the Tune2Air. First and fore most, this device is being used with my iPhone 5 running latest OS from Apple. It is not seen as an accessory which locks the device. That was the first and only concern. The MMI 3G interface allows the device to be browsed just as if it were connected directly to the MMI thru the AMI port and no functionality is lost. Third party apps work, such as DI.FM.app, but there seems to be an issue with displaying the current track being played in the app. Not sure who is to blame but other than that, it works extremely well. If you are wondering, while Tune2Air is connected, the phone can be used just as if Tune2Air was not connected, meaning you could browse the web, YouTube, etc.

The sound quality is superb. It is equal to the Miccus solution I had first and way better than the Belkin. The bass response and over all sound quality is rich and full.

Overall, I highly recommend this product if you want full MMI 3G support, in a no nonsense product.

AudiSType: I've emailed viseeo about the interference/clicking heard when both profiles are in use at once. I've received one reply which I responded too. I hope they respond again soon. As for a work around, I don't have 1 yet except turning off Bluetooth on the phone and allowing the MMI to connect and leave Tune2Air disconnected until Phone call is over with. I'll keep you posted but you should email them your concerns as well at [email protected]

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #23 · Apr 17, 2013

Ok, so the problem I had with Tune2Air and my third party streaming app not refreshing the current track title in the app was exactly that - Tune2Air is not refreshing the song title. Enabling 'Show Track Info' for some reason forces the song title to refresh.

But 1 issue I am experiencing and not sure if it's normal is I cannot get songs to pause. Pausing the song using the phone after a couple of seconds starts playing the song again. Is this how the music behaves without Tune2Air?

Last thing I will say, This is the only device I have owned that will auto-reconnect to the MMI which is a plus.

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #24 · Apr 17, 2013 (Edited)

Deepmeister said:
Maybe I am missing the point of this thread, but my MMI 3G Plus has bluetooth streaming. It picks up my (paired) Android Samsung Galaxy S3 phone and plays audio tracks from it via Bluetooth streaming, controlled by the MMI in the dash.

The sound is not too good as it converts to Analog from Digital, hence not as good as a direct USB stick in the AMI or SD card in the slot which is generally digital most of the way through the process.

Please describe your vehicle in your signature better... that way it is clear and there is no guessing, especially when it comes to the year of your vehicle. Most people, like me

, interested in Tune2Air or a A2DP Bluetooth solution have vehicles before 2013, where Bluetooth streaming was finally supported natively. Prior to MY2013, the MMI only supported the Hands-free Bluetooth profile.

:cheers:

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #26 · Apr 18, 2013

AudiStype said:
lol i know never had a quick minute to do it but ill do it now.

Anyway quick question about your intake is the AWE S-Flow intake causing you problems at the dealership, like warranty wise, cause i want to get one but i think my dealership is an asshole. IMO.

I have the S-Flo filter only. NOT the intake system which in my, and others opinions, is not worth it and is a gimmick. :thumbsdown: That being said, my dealership is top notch, and 100% supportive of anything I do, as long as it within reason. Try to find a different dealer. Ask around here for recommendations. :cheers:

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #28 · Apr 18, 2013

AudiStype said:
not many people from Houston are on these forums.

Anyways are you planning to buy the Adapter?

What adapter? The Tune2Air? I already bought it. But having problems with the device being available after I get in the car in the morning. I need to reconnect it to the AMI cable then it can be connected to the phone. I'm actually about to contact tech support about it.

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #29 · Apr 18, 2013

Looks like I will be updating my devices firmware/software when I get home from work. Looks like fun too! Tune2AirWMA1000BluetoothMusicReceiver,SupportAirplay,Audi-A2DP,Mercedes-A2DPandVW-A2DP - DOWNLOAD - ViseeO Worldwide Official Site

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Agilis

Discussion Starter · #31 · Apr 23, 2013

Agilis said:
Looks like I will be updating my devices firmware/software when I get home from work. Looks like fun too! Tune2AirWMA1000BluetoothMusicReceiver,SupportAirplay,Audi-A2DP,Mercedes-A2DPandVW-A2DP - DOWNLOAD - ViseeO Worldwide Official Site

Just a follow up... The firmware upgrade is a royal PITA and will require some patience. It involves acquiring a 32 bit Windows XP / 7 installation. Once this is acquired, you install the firmware upgrade platform which is locked. To unlock, you have to email Viseeo your hardware ID that the platform gives you, and they will send you a license code. Once unlocked, the device can be upgraded with the firmware IMG you downloaded when downloading the platform installer.

So if you do this on a weekend, don't or at least get the license code first.

I found my device to have out dated firmware, which was evident from the problems I had. But since the upgrade, everything just works and works well.

Also, the clicking noise/interference heard while connected to both my car's hands free profile and the Tune2Air device is not present. The latest firmware may have addressed this issue.

You can check the Tune2Air's firmware version using your iPhone: Navigate to Settings: General: About: Scroll down to Tune2Air

Latest version as of this post: 3.17 (2013-04-02)

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