Observations on the Entune system with a flash drive

Thanks OP. Got my Music Library loaded and working. Great Info.

 

Sorry if these are dumb questions.

1. Can I just rip cds right to iTunes and it will be in the correct format?
2. Will I be able to rip successfully even if I didn’t purchase the music from iTunes?
3. Lastly, do you guys do the folder structure right in iTunes (artist, album, song title) and then copy all the folders onto the USB drive?

 

You dont "need" iTunes but it is helpful for tagging song files.
Ripping from CDs using iTunes will convert to mp3 if you set it up thst way in the iTunes settings. Mp3 will definitely work but other formats may work as well.
"Ripping" by definition is pulling the song from a disc which implies you have the disc so, yes, the songs will play. Any mp3 (and possibly other formats) regardless the source will play. As I said, iTunes is not required.
Folder hierarchy isnt required either. You could put all your songs on the drive with no folders at all but I would be pulling my hair out trying to sort or manage the files that way. The system will still read the song files and categorize them based on the data in the ID3 tags. But, since you asked, yes I like Artist, Album, Songs... seems the most sensible approach.

 

Oh... ITunes won't manage or create your folders, you have to do that yourself.

 

You do know you can just say "play artist z z top", right? (I know sometimes it doesn't work... and I don't think Cajun is a language option.)

...or press browse, quickly press the WXYZ button 4x to get to Z, then select ZZ. I know that is 6 taps; but, I view it as a quick three step process.

I guess they intend for you to use the voice control; but, like you I would like the option to browse from the wheel. I rented a lower trim Camry and put my USB drive in it. It did not have voice control; instead, it had a control pad (up, down, L, R, select, back like the one on the other side of our wheels). You could browse and select like you and I want. I have a grand vision of one day converting my wheel to work like the Camry poverty trim. I suspect the head unit has the functionality built in and it is just a matter of finding the right pins to swap.

 

No!!!! I absolutely did NOT know that I could just say "play artist ZZ Top", in Cajun (or Yat for that matter). How does this work with AC/DC or Queen or such, when there are about a dozen albums under each artist? I guess it would be way to easy to just say "next folder"?
Just this morning I was trying once again to find a button or knob to increment or decrement through folders without having to resort to stepping through the menus WHILE DRIVING. If it's unsafe to view a text on-screen while driving it certainly has to be unsafe to step through menus too, right TOYOTA?
My other vehicles have a knob that scrolls through folders, and using the up/down select button on the steering wheel advances to the first song in folder "B" if you advance past the last song in folder "A". I still think this truck did that 6 or 8 months ago prior to one of the updates. I know it used to allow viewing a text message on-screen while moving until fairly recently.

Anyways, thanks for the tip about voice control... I'm going out to try that now . . .

 

I think it will just play all songs by that artist.

or you can say...

"play album back in black"
"play song back in black"

 

I have my hierarchy as follows ...
Artist - Album - Songs
So -
The Beatles in the root of USB drive, in The Beatles folder Abby Road, Magical Mystery Tour, etc. Then the songs in each album folder.
ZZ Top in the root of USB drive, in ZZ Top folder Tejas, etc. Then the songs in each album folder.
etc, etc.
I can lookup and play by artist or album.
I used Windows Media Player (Windows 10) to copy the songs from CDs to MP3s on my hard drive and get the ID3 tags.
Suggestion: place a couple of artists/albums on a USB using your PC. Plug the USB drive into the dash and see if everything displays and plays as expected. Then copy the rest.

 

sorry for the old dig.

two questions:

When you do this still limited by the file types?

Does this recognize artist and the album down to songs?

 

ok guys, so either I'm Feeling like i'm the least tech savvy person alive. I've already tried THREE different thumb drives, and every time i plug it into my 2018 Taco it only reads some of the songs. I barely have 1000 songs on the drive. One drive i plugged in it only read ABC and TUV songs. WTF. the other two i tried did sorta teh same thing. I'm have a MAC computer and using iTunes on it. The songs i have are a mix of CD's i've uploaded, and songs i've down loaded or purchased off of iTunes. I believe all are MP3 or AAC "format". HELP a lady out please.

 

So has anyone found a good way to randomize songs, without repeating?

I like to keep a few hundred songs on a drive, and hear each song once before repeating any

In my old aftermarket unit, I would randomize the filenames with padded numbers. This does not matter with Entune, as it seems default playback is alphabetical title, not filename. The random feature is only good until you turn the vehicle off.

Any ideas?

 

Maybe there is an app for your phone that is better suited for audiobooks, and you could listen via bluetooth?

 

I just play by song title, that's pretty damn random.

 

This^
I just go to Audio>Bluetooth/USB>Songs>choose Any random song>play>hit RAND in the screen to shuffle to a RANDom song..

 

Problem with that is next time you start the truck, it doesn't remember what was played before. After a few days, you get a lot of repeats. After a few weeks, there are songs you never hear. This is a common problem with all MP3 players really. But most of those play by filename, and those were easy enough to randomize.

I just found "Mp3tag" that works perfectly! Add your directory, and you can randomize your tracks, with one click. Then you can add sequential numbers in front of the title. From there your truck will play them in that order. Right where you left off each time!

 

If you use a program to manage your music like Mp3Tag you can edit the tags on each song in order to create a "playlist" that entune will recognize. For example inside Mp3Tag (this is the program I use) select a song you want to add to a playlist. Then under the 'Genre' tag I simply alter that tag from 'Rock' or 'Alternative' to the playlist name (80's Rock) I want. Then once the USB is loaded in your truck, select Genre and then the playlist you have named (80's Rock). Bam... playlist cranking...

 

I have 13,000+ on my 128GB UltraFit drive. I have the Entune w/nav in my T4R. Probably one of the first stock head units I've liked. I didn't realize there was a 9999 file limit though. I though maybe not all of my music had copied over to my drive, so my music collection basically stops after the letter S.

My folders are arranged in "Artist" > "year - album" > "track# - song title"

Other than the file limit, I wish it would put the albums in chronological order. Would also be nice if it would move onto the next album instead of repeating the current album.

I have the album artwork embedded in the files at 500 x 500px and they display fine. I also wish my unit had the time on it, instead of a separate clock above it.

 

It does, if you choose to play "by artist". It will advance to the next album by the same artist. But then it would be nice if you could quickly scroll up or down through folders using the tuning knob instead of having to resort to menus on the touchscreen or using voice commands. Often, I don't KNOW what I want to hear next... I just want to scroll though until I decide to stop on something.

 

Yeah I didn't try that. Artist > All Songs does load all of the albums. The tuning knob lets me scroll through the list, or skip through the songs quickly. Between the tuning knob and the steering wheel controls, I barely need to use the touchscreen.