American Anko AVB AI-05 Cassette Adapter for iPod and MP3 Players
By: American Anko Average Rating: 3.5 Total Reviews: 59
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 On: 2008-06-20
This adapter didnt work for my car. I drive a 2001 Ford Taurus. The cassette adapter made an awful noise and would eject after a few seconds. Im going to try the Sony adapter. It specifically indicates it designed for more most car cassette players where the tape insertion is on the side.
 On: 2008-06-08
I use this product quite often and am very please with it. The retracting cord locks in at various lengths if you dont want constant tention.
My vehicle tape deck rejected this adapter a few times at first, but I havent had a trouble since then.
 On: 2008-06-06
I just bough an ipod and also purchased this avb adapter, it was work great for me, I am so glad I got this one, I had a more expensive FM transmitter and sound
On: 2008-05-19
Product was defective. Would not work on two different car cassette players. Amazon quickly adjusted my account and I purchased an adapter from Sony which works perfectly.
On: 2008-04-14
I bought this item from Frys store, it has a good quality, clear sound, and is very dependable. Awesome price!! Definetly recommend this product to my friends.
On: 2008-04-14
i know some people are like me like to shop around to find the great quality item at a cheap price, I highly recommend this product,this adapter is awesome, clear sound,great quality,this product is exactly what i was looking for, would buy again.
On: 2008-04-12
After reading a number of reviews on iPod radio transmitters and cassette adapters, I made the choice to go with a tape - it sounded like you have to get a top-of-the-line, $100+ radio transmitter to get the same sound quality you can get out of any cassette adapter. Unfortunately, right out of the packaging, this cassette adapter didnt function (I plan to return it).
I picked up a Philips adapter for $10 at Walmart, which had its own minor malfunction, but with an adjustment to my car stereo settings (shifting the balance a little to one side of the car, plus properly adjusted levels of iPod volume and stereo volume), it sounds really good. So even if I didnt return the original, Im only out $20, which is way cheaper than a good radio transmitter.
Bottom line, if your car is cool enough to have a tape deck, I recommend that you go with the cassette adapter rather than a radio transmitter.
On: 2008-03-28
it is reliable, the sound quality is clear, at such a cheap price and great quality, will buy again.
On: 2008-03-25
I purchased this item when it was still $10, however I see now that it has a cost of $40. First of all, it does not work with iPhones!! Secondly, I tried it in my car stereo with my nano and it would not work. I then tried it in a friends car cassette player and while it played, it repeatedly skipped or ejected. There are brands of this cassette player at Walmart for $10 and it was one of these that ended up working the best. Do not waste your money on this product...$10 is one thing, $40 is robbery.
On: 2008-03-12
This works waaaaay better than my $50 FM transmitter. Sound is clear, dependable, steady stream of awesome music in my car. Works just the way it should. Would buy again!!
On: 2008-02-24
I bought 2 different brands of FM tuners, price is expensive and the sound quality is terrible. Dont waste your time looking into these products. I have had this cassette adapter for 2 years, the retractable cord is a great feature for storing & the sound quality is excellent. Dont forget to go to your iPod settings and turn the "sound check" ON so that your speakers dont blow you out of your car plus it will eliminate the loud hissing. Depending on the quality of your system/speakers, I would suggest turning the volume down 1/2 way on your iPod and adjust the volume on your stereo. If the cassette starts to pop out, you either need to clean the heads or your car just doesnt work with cassette adapters, "trial & error". This product is cheap and it certainly works for me!
On: 2008-02-16
AVB AI-05 Cassette Adapter for iPod
1. The mini plug is too large for an iPhone. I ground it down to fit.
2. Then when inserted in our Bose car audio system, it is ejected within a few seconds. That is likely because the Bose system has auto-reverse, and this gadget cannot cope with that feature, or it was defective on receipt.
A waste of time.
Giocm
On: 2008-02-08
It works just as expected. I was amazed at the clear sound quality. Make sure you got the retail package one with AVB logo on the product.
 On: 2008-02-03
Mine does what a lot of the other reviewers stated: it flips back and forth from side to side a few times and then ejects. After trying about ten times, it worked okay for about 5 minutes before flipping and ejecting again. I havent had the patience to try it since then. Im hoping itll just miraculously start working some day.
2 stars because I cant bring myself to return it since it was pretty cheap. Then theres the whole hoping-it-starts-working thing.
 On: 2008-01-25
Ive tried FM transmitters with my iPod but in Chicago the airwaves are crowded and the results were expensive and unsatisfying. I switched to a Philips cassette adapter than came with a portable CD player and that worked for a year until the sound died.
I then switched to an adapter from Belkin which was noisy (there was a clicking sound when it was playing) but worked. The only problem was that on cold days (and sometimes no so cold days) the auto reverse on the cassette deck would engage, making the iPod unlistenable. I thought I needed a new adapter.
This AVB had enough good reviews and the price was right. I also liked the retractable cord. But, when I used it, the first thing I noticed was how much more muddy the sound was then I had been used to with either the Phillips or Belkin adapter. Then the AVB started auto reversing like the Belkin.
I didnt want to order another adapter so I opened the AVB and removed the little mechanism that controlled the auto reverse, put the unit back together and now this plays without the auto reverse bug. The sound is still muddy, though. Adjusting the bass and treble has no discernable effect. (I should mention that Im listening to audio books; Im really looking for a good clear voice.)
Since I figured out how to stop the auto reversing, I took my old Belkin adapter, opened it, removed that mechanism, and tried that. Much better sound than the AVB! The Belkin no longer click as it plays; now it squeak. But if I turn the volume up I dont notice the squeaking.
So, Id still recommend the Belkin and recommend the little surgery to remove the auto reverse mechanism (it was a little gear wheel combination. The wheel had a rubber ring around it).
On: 2008-01-09
For such a cheap price, I was wary that this product would actually work but it works great! We previously had bought one of those accessories that was supposed to play through the radio by picking up a certain FM radio frequencies... but it was awful -- always picking up interference from other stations. So this handy cassete device makes listening in our car to the iPod easy.
On: 2008-01-07
My tape deck kept flipping it over and after a few minutes spit it out. That was a waste of money...
On: 2008-01-05
I found this product from MacWorld Magazine. It was recommended and I can see why. Its reliable and clear. I had problems with a different cassette tape that I bought from radio shack but this one is great. The sound quality is amazing. I can definitely tell the difference in the quality.
On: 2008-01-01
I found the tape roller mechanism to be very noisy, and there is a hiss added to the sound input as well. I replaced this unit with the Sony cassette adapter, and havent had these problems.
On: 2007-12-24
sound quality is better then any FM tuner ive tried. Watch out for the zip-cord...it snaps! Stamp of approval, it gets the job done.
On: 2007-12-17
This item was supposed to connect to IPOD and play on my car tape deck. The adapter kept stopping, reversing, stopping, playing, reversing etc. I finally had to return it as I couldnt follow at all what was playing on the IPOD.
On: 2007-12-01
I was very disappointed in this. My cassette player just spit it back out and it did not work at all. The the cord got stuck and it could not be retracted. Horrible!
On: 2007-11-18
I bought 2 of these for my cars. But they only worked for 5 minutes. Then my screen shows "Tape Error."
Very poorly made and the design of the retractable wire is not well done either. It doesnt retract the wire properly.
On: 2007-11-17
I bought this Cassette adapter to use with my iPod in my car. The cassette player in my car plays all kinds of cassettes, new and old, very well without getting stuck or stopping. But, when I used the AVB AI-05, it stops every 15 - 20 seconds and then Ive to press play again.
This is very annoying. It behaves like when a real cassette in the player were to get stuck. I will attempt to return this product.
On: 2007-11-12
It works just as expected. I can now plug my iPod Nano into it, insert it into the tape deck and I get to listen to the music I want. And the quality of sound is fantastic. A very good buy for those of us who are still driving an old car without fancy mp3 connections.
On: 2007-10-20
I read the reviews and there was a mention of how if your tape deck automatically reverses, it wont work. Mine does reverse on its own (Hyundai elantra 06), but I decided to buy it anyway because it was economically priced. Initially, it kept switching back and forth but I randomly pressed every button on the tape deck, fiddling with it and voila, it started working. Not very technical, but it works now.
Sound quality is a little muffled. The bass is good but the rest of the register is not very sharp but decent.
One thing that does bug me a little is that there is a soft clicking noise as the tape plays. But I just raise the volume of the music to cover up that sound. For the price, I think its fantastic.
On: 2007-10-03
Much, much better than my $100 fm transmitter. I live in Southern California and its always hard to get an available FM frequency thats clear- theres always noise or the music that goes through is very low quality. Frustrated, I decided to give this cheap alternative a chance. When I tried this cassette adapter I was amazed at the clear sound quality. I listen to all types of music- I usually dont have problems with modern pop, rock - but when I try to play classical or opera, the sound quality with FM transmitter is bad, or the music is even barely audible. This cassette transmitter let me hear everything- clear and I dont need to turn the volume up. This proves that pricier products dont necessarily mean better. Now Im just using my FM adaptor as an expensive Ipod car charger.
On: 2007-10-02
i could not get this device to work in my auto cassette player. the player kept ejecting the cassette after about thirty seconds.
On: 2007-09-30
This was a disappointment. After functioning for a few seconds, the car tape deck automatically ejected this device. Now I am using an ipod FM transmitter with satifactory results.
On: 2007-09-26
This stupid thing didnt work at all! I tried it in 3 differnt cars and all it did was runn real fast and pop out. Dont waste your money! I ended up returning mine.
On: 2007-09-26
I unpacked the adapter and put it in the cassette player in my car. It churned for several seconds, then the player spit it out and showed the message ERROR 1. I tried several more times, same result. The player in my car successfully plays music cassettes and works fine with another adapter similar to this one (which unfortunately broke, therefore requiring a replacement). I do not recommend purchase of this item.
On: 2007-09-18
Just as it says on the package, I can play my iPod tunes on my six-speaker car stereo system without installing expensive equipment
No scratchy noises. The sound is not quite as good as when I play CDs, but it still sounds pretty darn good.
I purchased this a month ago, and my dog did give it a little chomp before I snatched it away, and it still works just fine.
On: 2007-09-17
This adapter only read 4 out of all songs on my ipod from my car stereo system on my Moonson Hyndai Sabta Fe 2004. Too bad.
On: 2007-09-13
Definitely worth every penny (I even paid extra to have it shipped overnight!). I can now listen to my iPod in my car and its great!
On: 2007-09-12
this unit is great except for the sound quality is a lot less than i thought it would be. the other problem is that when the adapter is cold it has a tendency to skip a lot. i plan on buying the actual attachment for my deck instead of messing around with this.
On: 2007-09-02
When I put this adapter into my Toyota Camry Tape Deck, the car spins it, tries to read both sides of the tape, and then spits it out. WHen I put this into a SONY stereo system in my house, sometimes the tape deck keeps switching sides, not knowing which one to play, and when it does settle on a side, I only get mono sound and I have to crank the IPOD volume up to near max and there is a high pitched whine in the background. DO NOT BUY THIS. The retractable cord is great, but its useless if the cassette adapter doesnt work!
On: 2007-09-02
I had a fair amount of trouble with the AVB adapter. The first one I bought didnt work, so I returned it and ordered a new one thinking it might have been defective. But the second one didnt even work, the cassette seemed to change sides while playing which meant that I got intermittent audio. On the other hand, a Belkin adapter I borrowed from a friend worked perfectly.
On: 2007-08-31
I bought this for my wife to use in her Explorer with her Sandisk MP3 player. Sound is good through the stock headset (which has the radio, tape deck, and cd player). I cant tell the difference between a real tape, cd, or the MP3 player playing through the tape deck. But the mechanism sounds like rocks grinding, luckily the sounds dont travel through to the speakers...
On: 2007-08-31
After trying 2 of the more expensive FM transmitters I landed on this product and it has worked flawlessly for 2 months now. This is the next best thing to your radio having an Ipod Jack.
On: 2007-08-23
I bought this item based on the overwhelmingly positive reviews it has received. Unfortunately, it did not live up to the hype. The bass is extremely distorted and completely drowns out the mids and highs. I have to turn the bass all the way down just to get a song to sound normal. Once I get the settings just right it does sound ok...but there is so much work involved every time the song changes that its just not worth it. I drive a VW Golf, so anyone driving a Golf be warned that this product does not work so well with that particular tape deck.
On: 2007-08-16
I play in a local acoustic folk rock type band and I record all our rehearsals on my Sony mp3 recorder. I can now listen to them in the car and work on vocal harmonies, etc. between practices (Yes, Im one of those idiots you see driving down the road singing @ the top of his lungs). Works great for me in my 2000 Ford (w/ factory sound system); no excessive noise, easy to use. Retractable cord is a nice touch. Well worth ten bucks.
On: 2007-08-06
Perfect solution for using my ipod in your car. Love the white color and the adjustable cord. Since the cord is retractable, I think it will really save wear and tear on the connection point. Otherwise I might end up wrapping the cord around the cassette when I store it, which can lead to teh connection getting frayed and then the sounds cuts out.
On: 2007-08-01
We were so frustrated after loading lots of songs on our IPod - all we got was static!!!! This is so inexpensive and it works perfectly . . . what a great product . . Youll be thrilled with the sound.
On: 2007-07-30
I can hear now all songs that I want in my stereo car. I was looking to listen my favorites songs in my car, but only have a stereo and you now, find cassettes in those days is a mission imposible. So with this Cassette Adapter , I only plug in my iPod in it, and problem solve.
I very cheap solution. The adapter work excellent
On: 2007-07-30
This is a very unique gadget. One does not have to mess with long cords since the cord is adjustable. I only need 3 inches from the ipod to the tape deck, so I am able to keep it a neat, organized look when hooked up with ipod. Love it. Cant hear the tape wheels when it plays---dont have to worry about that if considering this your mode of connection vs. FM tranmitter for car audio playing. Also works in home stereo cassette players.
On: 2007-07-28
At first I bought an FM transmitter thinking it would probably work better, because it was more expensive...I was wrong. I live in Los Angeles which has a radio station on every other channel. I couldnt go any two blocks without picking up static or a radio station. The sound quality was also horrible when I could get it to work. I turned the volume as high as it would go and I could still barely hear it. The AVB Cassette Adapter is three times less expensive, so simple, and works great. The sound quality is just as good as the built in CD player. I would definitely recommend this product!
On: 2007-07-20
This product works as advertised. The retractable cord is really nice because you will not have any long dangling wires while you are driving. You can basically make it be the exact length you want it to be. I did find that in one of my vehicles, I have to crank up the ipod volume to about 80% to get good audio. This was not the case however in another vehicle.
On: 2007-07-17
Sound quality is on par with the rest of the cassette adaptors...dont spend more on this one. The cord retractor is more trouble then its worth.
On: 2007-07-16
I bought this adapter to use with my I-Pod shuffle so that I could listen to it in the car. I have a very good aftermarket stereo system that sounds great, but when using this adapter, it sounds like I stuffed cotton balls in my ears. The sound was muffled, had no dynamic range, and was unbearable. I have since tossed it in the garbage, where it belongs.
On: 2007-07-13
I bought two of these, one for each car. One works and one doesnt. Ive tried the one that didnt work in another car and still no luck. Im still giving it 3 stars because they were so cheap (about $10 each), making the one that didnt work no great loss.
On: 2007-01-16
Less than a year after purchasing this item I have to buy a new one because the cord connection is going bad. The sound is good and I like the retractable cord. But right now if I dont have the cord positioned just right I get sound on only one side of my car or no sound at all. Its a common problem with these types of devices, but I expected it to last at least a year.
On: 2007-01-15
Less than a year after purchasing this item I have to buy a new one because the cord connection is going bad. The sound is good and I like the retractable cord. But right now if I dont have the cord positioned just right I get sound on only one side of my car or no sound at all. Its a common problem with these types of devices, but I expected it to last at least a year.
On: 2006-10-08
I had a more expensive FM transmitter and the sound quality pales in comparison to this product. My sister-in-law has a very expensive Apple FM transmitter and the sound quality with this cassette is 100 times better. It sounds like the music is coming staight from the CD player. There is hardly any distortion and it is amazing that this sells for only $8. If I would have heard this in someones elses car and not known how much they paid, I would assume it would have been at least $50 (it sounds that good).
Buy it...dont hesitate for a second!
On: 2006-10-07
I had a more expensive FM transmitter and the sound quality pales in comparison to this product. My sister-in-law has a very expensive Apple FM transmitter and the sound quality with this cassette is 100 times better. It sounds like the music is coming staight from the CD player. There is hardly any distortion and it is amazing that this sells for only $8. If I would have heard this in someones elses car and not known how much they paid, I would assume it would have been at least $50 (it sounds that good).
Buy it...dont hesitate for a second!
On: 2006-09-23
I am so glad I got this. We had an iTrip transmitter but live in such a dense area (radio signal-wise) it was almost useless, we were constantly getting station "bleed through". This was the perfec solution and works flawlessly.
On: 2006-08-23
Thank goodness Radio Shack was out of junky cassette adapters. We then searched Amazon, and picked this model because of the reviews. We both listen to audible books on our commutes. My husband and I both had the same reaction: we had gotten used to our old adators, and never knew they sounded bad until we plugged in this one. Were not audiophiles, but the difference is striking. The cord take-up reel feature is convenient too: no cord strewn all over the gear shift and front seat. Now Im writing a great review!
On: 2006-08-22
Thank goodness Radio Shack was out of junky cassette adapters. We then searched Amazon, and picked this model because of the reviews. We both listen to audible books on our commutes. My husband and I both had the same reaction: we had gotten used to our old adators, and never knew they sounded bad until we plugged in this one. Were not audiophiles, but the difference is striking. The cord take-up reel feature is convenient too: no cord strewn all over the gear shift and front seat. Now Im writing a great review!
On: 2006-08-21
Used to use a radio transmitter for my iPod, which was terrible in parts of the city. I use my iPod to listen to podcast of talk shows and love the AVB Cassette Adpter. Only 4 out of 5, because of a slight hissing sound. For the money, a great purchase.
On: 2006-08-11
It is perfect. Thats all I can say. Works great and I love how the cord spins itself up with a little tug.
On: 2006-07-10
An affordable item that works! After several bad run-ins with a cassette adapter that will play my "60 gb video ipod". I finally came upon this item.
Though, I was skeptical at first. I was amazed at how perfectly it sounded as I inserted into my car stereo - which is a 2003 Honda Pilot. And shockingly was how loud it was. CD quality sound, little static - which is fine.
The only problem with this item I have is the retractable wire. Which gets tangled up when you try to retract it back into its unit. And you have to pull it all out and drag the base into the middle of the wire for it to completely roll back in.
All in all its a great product. AVB should also try releasing a black version of this item in this future.
On: 2006-07-07
I received this item and thought that the price was great, considering the reviews from others. Unfortunately, the AVB cassette adapter did not work with the cassette player on my car stereo. In case this is of any help, it was a stock pioneer head unit on a lexus sc300.
It might just be that I received a defective adapter, or it is not compatible with my car. Either way, the car never recognized it, after trying multiple times, it kept making a noise that sounded like it was spinning and even if it had read the adapter, the noise coming from it was too loud to hear the music over it.
I ended up returning it and purchasing a Dynex DX-CA101 and that one worked fine and worked quietly.
On: 2006-06-13
I recently bought an 06 Mazda6 and with a newly installed tape deck, I wanted a high quality cassette adapter that would not give me any problems while I was driving. I previously owned a Sony and Monster cassette adapter. The Sony always was and still is reliable but being how old it is, the sound quality isnt perfect. The Monster was a piece of crap that constantly would be ejected from my old tape deck so I went with the AVB. Im glad I did. The sound is great, it spins extremely quietly, and the retractable cord is very nifty. Ive only had it for maybe 2 weeks but if it keeps working as it has, then I am very satisfied with this product.
On: 2006-02-16
I just bought an ipod and purchased this AVB adapter at the same time. It was an excellent choice. Im in my car all day for work and it was great to start enjoying my ipod right away. I found that keeping the volume of my cassette deck a little lower and compensating with the volume on the ipod takes care of any hiss. It sounds great and it was $10 well spent.
Update: I just tried using this cassette adapter with my ipod and home stereo. Its great! I just popped the adapter in the cassette player (the cord sticks out through the door, but it does close) and it works! Im so excited that I can use my ipod with my stereo that Im going to buy another adapter. I had previously tried using a cable directly from my ipod to the stereo inputs of my receiver and that did not work well at all.
On: 2006-01-18
I have been looking for somthing to use to listen to my music on the way to work in the car for a while.
I settled on this because of its less than $10 pricetag and eligibilty on super saver shipping and had almost nothing to lose.
It plug into the standard headphone jack of any kind. I use it for my cd player but you could use it for anything from an ipod to your laptop.
The audio quality is excelent.
The retractable cord is very convient although a little trick to first figure out how to use. It makes it much more portable and dosent get in the way as much as it would.
I have no complaints and for less than $10 it would be a shame to pass up.
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