Conference cookie::notes$archive:cd_v1

    
    I haven't seen any of those, but have used an aftermarket CD-cassette
    adapter. Plugs into the headphone jack on the CD player; has a
    cassette-shaped adapter which goes into the cassette slot in the
    car, and inputs the signal via the tape head in the cassette player.
    
    Seems to work OK, sound quality is not bad. However, most portable
    CD players are rather susceptible to vibration, and I get a lot
    of skipping unless I'm on a consistent, smooth road surface.
    

    I wanted desparately to buy a Proton 203CD recently, which is basically
    the same as the 214 except the 214 has more power. (I wasn't interested
    in the power because I was planning on buying a separate amp). I
    finally gave up and settled for something else only because I couldn't
    find the 203CD or the 214 anywhere. This was definitely my first
    choice for a car stereo, though.

     I have a Jensen 6400 (?) with a CD input. I did not buy the deck
    for this option, as I don't have a portable player. (I bought it
    because my factory stereo died and this model was on sale) The deck
    is equipped with 2 RCA jacks for input. The CD switch will over-ride
    the radio, but cassette over-rides everything. Now that I have this
    option available, I am interested in buying a portable player. My
    concerns about doing this, are that I don't have a place to "mount"
    a portable and I am not sure how the unit will take to being bounced
    around in the car.
    
    Russ

    I had them run the input for a portable CD over to the glove box
    on my Blazer when they installed my stereo. Now, if I could just
    find a 1/8" male-male stereo plug to make the connection with, I
    could tell you how it works on the road as to skipping, etc.

I use a Concord HPL-550 which has the RCA phono inputs in the rear of the unit.
I use my Sony portable in the car ALL the time.  I have two techniques for
minimizing the vibration:

	- Get a large Ziploc bag, fill it slightly with air, then lock it
	  shut.  By placing the CD player on the partially filled sack of
	  air, the bag absorbs most of the shock of bumps and vibrations
	  and just rolls around.  Downside of this is that some air escapes
	  and you have to refill it every couple of hours.

	- Find some plastic packing material (the kind with the bubbles
	  in it that some folks like to "pop") and place the CD unit
	  on that.  Works like a charm and has the same effect as above.

Recoton sells a CD mounting plate which attaches allows you to mount the CD
player somewhere inside the car.  I think it sells for $20.  I've seen it
at Fry's in Santa Clara.

AAA

    re .5
    
    (I assume you were replying to my note about the 1/8" plugs)
    
    Radio Shack doesn't sell one; what I'll probably end up doing is
    buying the plugs and some cable and rolling my own.

re: .7

If it's the regular sub-miniature stereo jack used for
regular walkman type head phones, Radio Shaft does have it.
I bought a pair of them at least 2 years ago, and have seen
them recently.

Not every Radio Shack stocks the entire catalog of stuff.
If the one you looked in didn't have it, you could try an
other store or order it.

You-Do-It electronics in Needham has 'em too.
MIL in Waltham also has 'em, but their hours are more limited.

    Radio Shack does indeed have the plugs, but not a ready made cable
    for lazy folk like me. I looked through their current catalog and
    there's nothing there unless I missed it. They've got probably hundreds
    of permutations of a mono 1/8" plug  going to every other kind of
    connector known to man, but only 1 or 2 flavors of the stereo plug.
    
    I've got a couple more places to check (this is Colorado Springs)
    and I'm going to rig it up myself.