Audience won't select Aux source

[Fen]

Hi All,

Real question at the bottom if you can help and don't want to read the background...

Not exactly a new member, but it's been some time since my last post so this is like a first one.

Anyway I picked up a 2006 Octavia 2.0 TDI DSG yesterday, and it has an Audience with Sound System and maxidot as well as the jumbo box, but it's too early to have the aux port in the JB. It does sound pretty amazing for an OEM system from a CD though - way better than my Mini's Harman Kardon setup (or the e46's HK for that matter) and whatever my RS6 had in it, and plenty good enough for me to commute with.

Anyway; lack of Aux: No problem; the HU has a setup option for Aux on/off and Aux volume, the later cars had it from the factory and I have a box of bits of stereo wiring in the garage... After some research on here I figured out that I need to connect the right channel to pin 1, ground to pin 11 and left to pin 12 in the small block at the bottom of the rear connector. I even mamaged to find the right plug as the car didn't have one in that position at all, and a left/right/ground wire with the right connectors to clip into the plug. So far so good and with a quick bit of soldering of a 3.5mm stereo socket onto the other end I was good to go.

Now the real question I can't get the source to be Aux on the HU. The manual says something like press the CD button repeatedly, but all that does is switch to CD. Holding the CD button doesn't do it either. I HAVE enabled the Aux on setting in the menu (and disabled / re-enabled it and power cycled the HU) but it just isn't there. So, is the HU faulty or am I missing something? I have also had a poke around in VAG COM prior to taking the HU out and didn't see anything that looked relevant.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Fen

[gadgetman]

You should press CD, then press again to get AUX.

If it doesnt, then your radio is too early to support it.

[mannyo]

Not all the audience HUs supported Aux, on early ones it did not work even though the menu option is present in the same way it didnt work on early Stream headunits.

The only way to connect an external source to an early Audience is to bin the headunit and replace it, which if you have the upgraded sound pack is more difficult than it seems due to the amp being controlled via canbus.

[Fen]

Thanks guys - I think that that includes mine after another hour or so messing with it in that case.

I wonder if the dealer would entertain it as a warranty claim; after all it does say it can be enabled but it just doesn't work when you do, which one definition of broken to my mind.

[gadgetman]

LOL, I dont think they will.

Might be lucky an a FW update at the dealers may enable it.

[Fen]

I'll try it on - the car is back for a service on Wednesday as part of the deal. The FW idea is a good one though as that really should be something they can do.

Is it possible to upgrade the FW myself however? For the BMWs I have had you can download it and burn it to a disc which you insert into the drive and it then boots into the upgrade process - is that the same for VAG head units?

[and.poulsen]

According to Skoda in Denmark it is not possible to update the FW to get AUX working.

[Dr Zoidberg]

If it's like the stream the isn't a physical connector, so no amount of software will get it working

[Fen]

There's a physical connection on mine, evidenced by the pinout sticker on the top. It isn't a 3.5mm jack port, but it's still supposed to be there in the form of left+, right+ and common ground pins.

I'm not surprised they can't fix it in firmware, though I suspect that is because there is no way to upgrade the FW rather than it not being a software fault.

[mannyo]

The firmware on audience and stream are fully upgradeable, and their has been a number of upgrades for both headunits. My Audience had 2 firmware upgrades whilst fitted to the car, one of which was done whilst I was stood next to the programmer.

[Fen]

That' s good to hear. How do I get it done? Back to the dealer? How do they do it, just through the OBDII port?

[mannyo]

Yes, dealer does it through the obdii port.