Portable CD Player

[jmgiardina]

As a new R1S owner but an old guy, I have a lot of CDs. Does anyone have any experience adding an after market portable player to the sound system on the R1S? If so, please share your experiences.

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[Polar]

Unless that portable CD player has Bluetooth you’re shit out of luck.

 

[Phatman113]

Unless that portable CD player has Bluetooth you’re shit out of luck.

What about a built-in speaker?

 

[COdogman]

You could try one of these CD players from Amazon, which get surprisingly good reviews.

https://www.amazon.com/Portable-MON...751491143&sprefix=bluetooth+cd,aps,192&sr=8-4

 

[C.R. Rivian]

As a new R1S owner but an old guy, I have a lot of CDs. Does anyone have any experience adding an after market portable player to the sound system on the R1S? If so, please share your experiences.

There is no head unit like a conventional radio to be replaced. Crutchfield (https://www.crutchfield.com/car/outfitmycar/mycar.aspx) can help with speakers but has no options for adding a head unit. If they can't figure it out, forget about it.

There has been some discussion about future USB connections allowing for mp3 from thumb drives...but it's been a couple years so would not hold your breath. Even then, you would need to rip your cd's to mp3 format. Assume at this point that ripped music transferred to your phone for bluetooth connection is your only option.

 

[CharonPDX]

Another option is Apple's "iTunes Match" - $25/year gives you access to your ripped-from-CD music through Apple Music. If it's an album that exists in Apple Music already, you get the (potentially higher than CD quality) Apple Music version. If it isn't in Apple Music, you get your direct CD ripped copy.

I have access through the RIvian Apple Music app to songs from small local bands that were never on a major label, and broke up before digital distribution was a thing - so their music literally isn't available on any streaming service; but because the ripped CD is in my Apple Music library, I can access it via in-vehicle app.

 

[C.R. Rivian]

You could try one of these CD players from Amazon, which get surprisingly good reviews.

https://www.amazon.com/Portable-MONODEAL-Bluetooth-Transmitter-Rechargeable/dp/B09XJVV35Z/ref=sr_1_4?crid=33M4H5YHRMWR0&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.A-UYW50h6XRBY9V3il5b24k_GFbVYK08il2EyeT9fdJsonP_0mMxhOlIMO1eXli1b3iKlAsJV6B_VnqcC8mdroBfzRUl_N0fZXn0B8LvGUDEWMJ-FxGBh7MUUT4eQuvhnpKfq816DAQNt10MD2pKIJhhLk2mGIKjP10SJ04N9lxlRS2grGGsQXsKCiSYdfAGPnKN0VT-9GYhiw9ygYWkWP1XIYn7vSxubEud9OWB5ho.YdeWajyeIAfWH04uj3S3uBmwIjS7t7_eHC-YcRRlRWI&dib_tag=se&keywords=bluetooth+cd+player+for+car&qid=1751491143&sprefix=bluetooth+cd,aps,192&sr=8-4

Interesting, but unless the Rivian sees the unit as a phone for bluetooth purposes, the FM connection would be the only way to go. Assume that this would work, but not as well (quality) as bluetooth.

 

[C.R. Rivian]

Another option is Apple's "iTunes Match" - $25/year gives you access to your ripped-from-CD music through Apple Music. If it's an album that exists in Apple Music already, you get the (potentially higher than CD quality) Apple Music version. If it isn't in Apple Music, you get your direct CD ripped copy.

I have access through the RIvian Apple Music app to songs from small local bands that were never on a major label, and broke up before digital distribution was a thing - so their music literally isn't available on any streaming service; but because the ripped CD is in my Apple Music library, I can access it via in-vehicle app.

Likewise, Amazon music. If you purchased CDs from Amazon: " Thousands of CDs and vinyl records now come with free MP3 versions that are immediately uploaded to your Music Library. " Amazon Music Unlimited is pretty good deal, too:

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

As a new R1S owner but an old guy, I have a lot of CDs. Does anyone have any experience adding an after market portable player to the sound system on the R1S? If so, please share your experiences.

Solution: Create a Spotify account, free (with ads) or paid ad-free. Search for your artists/albums and add to your favorites list. Overtime, you'll end up with your entire collection, or whatever portion is available on Spotify, in your favorites to play/shuffle from.

I suppose you could use a portable CD player connect to a bluetooth or FM transmitter... but that's rather clumsy.

 

[BigSkies]

Another option is Apple's "iTunes Match" - $25/year gives you access to your ripped-from-CD music through Apple Music. If it's an album that exists in Apple Music already, you get the (potentially higher than CD quality) Apple Music version. If it isn't in Apple Music, you get your direct CD ripped copy.

I have access through the RIvian Apple Music app to songs from small local bands that were never on a major label, and broke up before digital distribution was a thing - so their music literally isn't available on any streaming service; but because the ripped CD is in my Apple Music library, I can access it via in-vehicle app.

Is it confirmed that this works with the Rivian infotainment?

I have my old iTunes collection (which included ripped from CD music id'd in iTunes) in Apple Music, and the Rivian wouldn't let me log on without a paid Apple Music subscription. I wasn't aware of this "Match" service though.

This would solve some of what I find infuriating about Rivian's infotainment approach.

I just want to listen to the music I own and have purchased without a god-damned paid streaming service requirement.

 

[CharonPDX]

Is it confirmed that this works with the Rivian infotainment?

I have my old iTunes collection (which included ripped from CD music id'd in iTunes) in Apple Music, and the Rivian wouldn't let me log on without a paid Apple Music subscription. I wasn't aware of this "Match" service though.

This would solve some of what I find infuriating about Rivian's infotainment approach.

I just want to listen to the music I own and have purchased without a god-damned paid streaming service requirement.

You do also need an Apple Music subscription to use it in vehicle, sadly. You don't need an Apple Music subscription to use it in the Music or iTunes apps on Mac or Windows; but it appears that vehicle apps are gated to only let you do anything at all if you have an Apple Music subscription.

it also requires a Rivian Connect+ subscription unless you use a WiFi hotspot. So… This ain't gonna save you money, but it will let you play *YOUR* CD collection in the vehicle.

(That is the downside of the Amazon and Spotify methods - they only work for songs they have in their collection and for Amazon, that you have purchased at Amazon. This works with obscure garage bands that aren't available online anywhere.)

If you have an iPhone, you can just use Bluetooth to connect to the vehicle and do it via Bluetooth from the iPhone Apple Music app without a full Apple Music subscription, just the iTunes Match.

Here's how to sign up for iTunes Match: https://support.apple.com/en-us/108935

 

[BigSkies]

You do also need an Apple Music subscription to use it in vehicle, sadly. You don't need an Apple Music subscription to use it in the Music or iTunes apps on Mac or Windows; but it appears that vehicle apps are gated to only let you do anything at all if you have an Apple Music subscription.

it also requires a Rivian Connect+ subscription unless you use a WiFi hotspot. So… This ain't gonna save you money, but it will let you play *YOUR* CD collection in the vehicle.

(That is the downside of the Amazon and Spotify methods - they only work for songs they have in their collection and for Amazon, that you have purchased at Amazon. This works with obscure garage bands that aren't available online anywhere.)

If you have an iPhone, you can just use Bluetooth to connect to the vehicle and do it via Bluetooth from the iPhone Apple Music app without a full Apple Music subscription, just the iTunes Match.

Here's how to sign up for iTunes Match: https://support.apple.com/en-us/108935

Ah well. I had momentarily gotten my hopes up. I'm okay with the Connect+ subscription, because I get real value from that in multiple ways, and I realize data is a service that costs money.

I'm old enough that I was once dumb enough to put real money into an iTunes collection. I find it absolutely infuriating that those purchases were effectively wasted because Rivian + Apple (mostly Apple) decided to entirely nerf the user experience for those with purchased music.

Rivan's Bluetooth player kinda sucks. The player will be stuck filtered to whatever was last played on the iPhone. If I was listening to a single artist on the iPhone, the Rivian will only play that one artist. If I was listening to a Podcast, I can only listen to that one Podcast.

Flipping through my phone isn't safe, and I have one of those insurance plans that dings me for phone usage in the car. Fiddling with a phone in the car is not behavior I'm going to model for my kids under any circumstance.

I don't particularly care how Rivian solves it. They can give access to a thumbdrive. Heck, I'll go back to a CD player. Or they could just make the bluetooth player not suck. I'm open to any solution that doesn't suck donkey balls.

I realize this is the tiniest hill to die over, but it might be the difference between choosing a Rivian or something else when I'm in the market for a car some years from now.

 

[CharonPDX]

Ah well. I had momentarily gotten my hopes up. I'm okay with the Connect+ subscription, because I get real value from that in multiple ways, and I realize data is a service that costs money.
...
I realize this is the tiniest hill to die over, but it might be the difference between choosing a Rivian or something else when I'm in the market for a car some years from now.

I enjoyed discovering that my Ford Mach-E could play MP3s from a floppy disk via a USB floppy drive plugged into its USB port. I wish Rivian would let me put music on USB and play it back. (Sadly, the Mach-E wouldn't play audio CDs with a USB CD-ROM drive, only MP3 CD-R discs.)

Agree on the "don't use phone" - I'm on one of those insurance plans, too. I use Siri to operate my Bluetooth playback. Which is… hit-or-miss.

The Apple Music app thing seems to be an Apple limitation, not a Rivian. It's the same way on Tesla, and even on Android phones. To use the app at all on anything other than Apple devices or Windows app, you have to have an Apple Music subscription.

 

[Ingo B]

Another option is Apple's "iTunes Match" - $25/year gives you access to your ripped-from-CD music through Apple Music. If it's an album that exists in Apple Music already, you get the (potentially higher than CD quality) Apple Music version. If it isn't in Apple Music, you get your direct CD ripped copy.

I have access through the RIvian Apple Music app to songs from small local bands that were never on a major label, and broke up before digital distribution was a thing - so their music literally isn't available on any streaming service; but because the ripped CD is in my Apple Music library, I can access it via in-vehicle app.

The music industry is making us atone for the late 90's piracy era by charging again for music already purchased. The irony!

 

[Ingo B]

Ah well. I had momentarily gotten my hopes up. I'm okay with the Connect+ subscription, because I get real value from that in multiple ways, and I realize data is a service that costs money.

I'm old enough that I was once dumb enough to put real money into an iTunes collection. I find it absolutely infuriating that those purchases were effectively wasted because Rivian + Apple (mostly Apple) decided to entirely nerf the user experience for those with purchased music.

Rivan's Bluetooth player kinda sucks. The player will be stuck filtered to whatever was last played on the iPhone. If I was listening to a single artist on the iPhone, the Rivian will only play that one artist. If I was listening to a Podcast, I can only listen to that one Podcast.

Flipping through my phone isn't safe, and I have one of those insurance plans that dings me for phone usage in the car. Fiddling with a phone in the car is not behavior I'm going to model for my kids under any circumstance.

I don't particularly care how Rivian solves it. They can give access to a thumbdrive. Heck, I'll go back to a CD player. Or they could just make the bluetooth player not suck. I'm open to any solution that doesn't suck donkey balls.

I realize this is the tiniest hill to die over, but it might be the difference between choosing a Rivian or something else when I'm in the market for a car some years from now.

You're not alone. The lack of direct music playback (i.e. not streamed) was a serious black eye on my list, no matter how many times that Rivian guide tried to extol the values of the in-trunk spare tire tub.

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