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Auxiliary input #1 also has a headphone jack with a volume control knob. This is a must have if your Sony stereo receiver does not have a built-in jack for external devices, such as an mp3 player. XA300 comes with all the cables you need, except the one to hook up your mp3 player or other external devices. I have not found a use for it yet. Operating instructions can be found at this link:[.].This has been a great addition to my car's stereo system and lets it play my handy mp3 player during my long and otherwise extremely boring commute every day. To hook up my Creative Zen I had to purchase an audio cable with 1/8" stereo plug at one end and dual RCA's at the other.
Plugging a headphone does not disable audio output to the receiver; you can listen through the headphone and the car speakers at the same time. It works seamlessly with my XR-F5100 receiver. It could be useful to some; especially if the driver does not want to be distracted while the passenger is listening to the stereo. XA300 comes with two auxiliary inputs; I can hook up one more device to it. The USB is not powered and can be used to connect a laptop computer. For private listening, just turn off the speakers.
Pros:works with FLAC and other formats through USB portflexibility with multiple inputs, headphone jack, and volume controlpowered through UniLink connectionCons:awkward to mountwon't allow clock to display when in useUSB port disconnecting when other inputs are used may cause computer software to misbehaveThe USB port is the main reason I wanted to get this box instead of the off brand cheaper versions. It is primarily needed to activate the auxiliary inputs on Sony car stereos, but it is too large to mount hidden away for some cars, and the included cable is too short (about six feet) to put the XA300 in the trunk. Even when I switch back to the USB input on my stereo, the music will not start playing until I restart my media application on the computer.
What this means to me is that audio formats are being decoded on the computer, not the XA300, so you can use whatever audio format you like, for me, FLAC. On another laptop I tried, this was not a problem. I was happy to see it installed as USB speakers without additional drivers on the two XP laptops I tried.
On one of the laptops I tried, the disconnecting USB port would require a media software restart when quickly turning the ignition key from "on" back to "accessory", such as when turning off the engine but wanting to hear the stereo. Using the USB port should alleviate concerns of cheap, noisy analog circuitry in your computer, likely a laptop for your car, which has fewer options for a nice sound card. However, on the laptops I tried, the sound was very good when using the laptop headphone jack output and the analog input of the XA300.When switching through the inputs on my CDX-C6850, the USB port disconnects when it is not selected, which causes an interruption on my media software.
Regardless of the display mode on my stereo, the clock will not show when using one of the XA300 inputs.Some aspects of the XA300 make it seem like it was not well thought out. There is a volume control on the front, making it seem like the XA300 should be accessible and visible, yet the only mounting hardware included was velco strips, which isn't an attractive way to mount something that can be seen.
Well, times have changed and my stereo is running perfectly. Just get a Sony HWSBTA2W Bluetooth Transmitter/receiver and connect it to the XA-300. In my case, I bought a MiniDisk changer due to its compact form factor and my entire music collection on MD (That's how long ago I bought this stereo, you know, that very small slice of time when MiniDisks emerged). I knew it was Unilink compatible, was able to run a CD changer directly from the head unit. Well, I've read some of the previous reviews about this unit, and it seems some people just need to do a bit more in depth research before making a purchase. It works flawlessly. No problem. You really can't go wrong, you just need to have a little bit of experience connecting automotive stereos."But this doesn't have Bluetooth." you say.
I bought a Radio Shack brand that created so much noise, it was unbearable to listen to anything. I'm in the market for a Sony 16Gb Walkman, but I'll deal with the wonkyness of my phone. I did so with my Sony head unit. I highly recommend using a Sony automotive power adapter though. Although the bulk of my collection is still on MD, I currently own a large collection of MP3s and want to cut down on clutter, so I'd like to use my phone's A2DP Bluetooth compatibility. So, the only way to have the best of both worlds, plus have additional inputs for a computer (An OQO 2 or an EEE PC come to mind) and another analog source, is to get the XA-300. Luckily, I had a Sony DCC-E345 power adapter. Other than the phone I'm using.
This is a high quality unit that works well. I don't get the reviews/rants below--review the item, not the company or their other products.If you need an auxiliary input adapter to hook up additional devices to your car stereo, this does the trick. The sound is good/clean. Install is simple.
I purchased this unit hesitantly after reading some other reviews by people bashing Sony for their lack of flexibility in respect to upgrades or add- ons. Awesome. I swapped the old deck back in after a week.
I have had my sony head unit for some time (about 2 years) and refuse to part with it because of it's awesome sound tailoring, but was looking for an easy way to hook up my digital files. Instead, you get a NON-POWERED usb port with- get this- a type B female connection (like a printer) so you need at the very least a cable adapter, and ONLY A LAPTOP will run through it. I specifically contacted a Sony online tech rep to confirm what I assumed but did not find reference to in any of the other reviews- the usb connection for an auxiliary input.
So the draw on this unit was obviously the usb input, which I was assured by the tech would do the exact same thing as the usb deck, i.e., read & play a thumb drive and display all info on the deck face. I even bought another deck that had a front panel usb input which was great for capability with my 8gb corsair thumb drive (killer storage by the way- big, tough, and fast) but the deck only had a 3 band eq. No loudness, no bass, no treble control.
Yes- Sony expects drivers to lug a laptop computer along to listen to music files. Either wait for something better or look elsewhere- It's a shame because Sony has been head and shoulders above anyone else in every other feature.
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