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Alpine KCA-420i

iPod control interface

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  • Alpine KCA-420i

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Item# 500KCA420I offer details

Item# 500KCA420I

Review Summary

 
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Alpine

Why would I need an iPod® adapter?

An iPod adapter allows you to connect your iPod to your car stereo, then access your playlists with your stereo's controls - a great idea for several reasons. One, you can scroll through your song titles on your stereo's larger display, instead of squinting down at your iPod. Two, you can route the adapter cable to your glove compartment or center console, so your iPod stays safely out of sight. Three, the iPod adapter keeps your iPod fully charged, so it's ready to rock when you leave your car. And last of all, some adapters bypass your iPod's internal digital-to-analog converter, using your stereo's superior DAC to turn your files back into music.

Our take on the Alpine KCA-420i

by Matt Freeman
Alpine Authorized Online Dealer

Forget about fumbling around with your iPod controls to change songs or albums while driving. Now, you can connect your iPod to a compatible 2004 Alpine in-dash receiver with Ai-Net connections (see below), and control all the functions right from the receiver! (Note: the adapter is compatible with all iPod and iPod mini models equipped with a dock connector and iPod software update 2004-04-28, or higher. )

The KCA-420i package includes a compact adapter module and two cables. Mount the adapter module in a hidden location in your vehicle, then connect one cable from the module to your Alpine receiver, and the second cable from the module to your iPod. Once connected, you can control virtually all iPod playback functions from your compatible Alpine receiver, including search (playlist, artist, album), track preview, and shuffle play (playlist, all tracks).

Alpine's Quick Search keys offer quick and easy navigation through your iPod's music menu, and you can set your receiver's Bass Engine controls to maximize the sound quality of your iPod tunes. And, best of all, the KCA-420i module automatically charges your iPod's internal battery as you drive.

Read a hands-on review of the KCA-420i at CrutchfieldAdvisor.com.

Compatibility Note: Be sure to check "Hands-on Research" for specific iPod model compatibility with this iPod adapter.

Highlights:

  • includes adapter module and two 78" connecting cables
  • for all docking iPods, including video iPods, iPod photos, iPod nanos, and iPod minis
  • access iPod with Alpine receiver's controls (compatible with 2004 Alpine Ai-Net receivers)
  • charges iPod battery while driving
  • artist/song info displays on Alpine receiver display
  • module dimensions: 5-9/16"W (with cables) x 1-7/16"H x 5-9/16"D
  • warranty: 1 year
  • Our 60-day money-back guarantee
Shop all Alpine iPod Adapters for Car Stereos
     

    Hands-on research from the Crutchfield Labs (what are the Labs?)

    Features and Specs

    Features and Specs
    General
    Adapter Type
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    iPod audio in w/ iPod control
    Vehicle Specific
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    No
    Brand Specific
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    Alpine
    Parts Warranty
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    1 Year
    Labor Warranty
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    1 Year
    iPod Compatibility
    Full-Size
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    Classic/5Gen/4Gen/3Gen
    Nano
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    Nano4/Nano3/Nano2/Nano1
    Touch
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    Touch2/Touch1
    Mini
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    Mini2/Mini1
    iPhone
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    Phone

    Product Research

    Product Research
    What's in the box?

    Download owner's manual

    • iPod interface adapter
    • 6.5' Ai-NET cable
    • 6.5' iPod connection cable
    • 2 Velcro strips
    • Four 5/8" self-tapping screws
    • Owner's manual
    • Quick Reference Guide

    Our Product Research Team

    At Crutchfield, you'll get detailed, accurate information that's hard to find elsewhere. That's because we have our own in-house Product Research team — they open the box, verify contents, check the owner's manual, and record dimensions, features and specs. We stay on top of new products and technologies to help people make informed choices.

    Features

    Overview: This adapter allows your iPod portable digital music player with a dock connector to be hooked up and controlled by a 2004 or newer Alpine receiver that uses the Ai-Net protocol. All the iPod buttons will be disabled when connected to this adapter and it will be controlled from the Alpine receiver. With this interface, you'll be able to play your iPod music files through your Alpine receiver and have all the titling information appear on the Alpine's display. Using the optional KCA-410C (item 500KCA410C), this adapter and a compatible Ai-Net Alpine CD changer can be connected to an Alpine receiver.

    Note: The KCA-420i is compatible with all iPod models equipped with a dock connector and iPod software update 2004-04-28, or higher. It is also compatible with the iPhone version 1.0.1. This cable will not charge the iPod nano 4th generation or iPod touch 2nd generation without the Scosche passPORT (142IFWA).

    Connections: The KCA-420i has the following connections:

    • Ai-Net Connection: located on the right side of the adapter. This connects directly to the Alpine head unit using the supplied Ai-Net cable.
    • iPod Connection: located on the left side of the adapter. This connects directly to the underside of the iPod portable digital music player, using the supplied interface connector cable.
     

    Product Reviews

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    Reviews for the Alpine KCA-420i

    Average Customer Review:

    51 people say:

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    Showing: 1-20 of 51
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    4 out of 5

    Easy to use / Great sound / Requires Organization!

    Written By Mike, Wichita, KA on Saturday, February 21, 2009
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    I have had no problems using this with my 1st Gen iPod Touch, Alpine IVA- D310 and JL amps/speakers/subs. The hookup was easy and functions immediately. The sound is excellent, especially if I use the MX settings in the head-unit, avoiding those too bass-heavy

    The biggest change is how I need to manage my music...more playlists than in the past to assist in getting to where I want to be. Also, if you like podcasts you will need to make a playlists for those or have them playing when you connect the iPod to the adapter.

    Overall, worth every penny....good-bye satellite radio!
    2 out of 2 people found this helpful
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    3 out of 5

    This does NOT work with iPhone 3G

    Written By Keith, Kansas City on Thursday, July 24, 2008
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    Bought this as a ipod playthrough/charging solution for my new iPhone 3G and while it will do all of the ipod functions it will not charge.

    Checking around the web it seems apple changed the pin configuration and disabled firewire charging, I am going to sit tight for an adapter.
    9 out of 10 people found this helpful
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    5 out of 5

    Alpine KCA-420i

    Written By Dongyoung, Sacramento, CA on Saturday, April 26, 2008
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    easy install!
    1 out of 2 people found this helpful
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    5 out of 5

    Alpine KCA-420i

    Written By Kyle, Blacksburg, VA on Tuesday, March 25, 2008
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    The product is great. End of story. If you're big on music and don't want to sacrifice quality, while being able to control the iPod from the head unit without worrying about depleting the battery, this is for you.

    If you read online reviews and the reviews below, you'll see the same few arguments, which I have not seen to be a problem. With the CDA-9855 it's not difficult to search for Artists or Albums. The charge problem is a problem with iPods in general, so it's not something specifically related to the 420i.

    To me, if you want digital quality, with control and the benefit of not running the battery down, this is for you. I rip my music lossless - quality is very important to me. If you're more casual about about how it sounds and how it plays in your car, then this might not be your first option.

    It's digital, it's control, it charges and it's hidden, so it looks great if you do it right.

    It's a win-win and worth the price if music quality is important to you. Even if it's not, it ends up looking really good.
    4 out of 4 people found this helpful
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    5 out of 5

    Great product

    Written By Jeffrey, Zelienople, PA on Thursday, January 17, 2008
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    I really enjoy the broad range of music I have in my car now, with my Ipod. Sure beats carrying around a boatload of CDs. Installed quickly. Works great in all aspects.
    1 out of 1 people found this helpful
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    5 out of 5

    Alpine KCA-420i

    Written By Greg, Richmond, VA on Wednesday, March 07, 2007
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    Amazing clarity, superb by far in comparison to any FM transmitters. This adapter was simple to install with my alpine head unit and works perfectly with my nano iPod. The only downsides are it can take a while to find the song you're looking for if you have a large library, but that can be solved with some practical playlisting. I would definitely recommend this if you're not looking to buy a new head unit but are tired of the static and poor quality of FM transmitters.
    2 out of 2 people found this helpful
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    5 out of 5

    Better than I expected

    Written By PJ Levesque, CT on Thursday, March 01, 2007
     
    After all the negative reviews, I bought the KCA-420i anyway because it was the only option I had for integrating my iPod into my HU without buying a new one. I didn't want separate wires for charging and audio and I would be all over the road if I was looking at the thing while driving. WELL, as it turns out, all Alpine HUs made January 2005 up until the integration of the Alpine interface received an upgrade and this thing works GREAT! Install was a breeze, plug and play, and the hardest part was finding a good flat place to mount it inside my dash. Song titles and everything load quickly, if not instantly, sound quality is great, and I can scroll through lists at an acceptable speed. It's what I'd expect and hope from an interface that is NOT an iPod. All in all, the only thing I could ask for is faster scrolling through lists as it has to go one at a time, but there really is no lag. A-Z playlists, mix playlists and good tags on your mp3s are recommended to make it all smoother. If you care enough about your music to integrate your iPod in your car, you should put in the effort to have quality files to play anyway. I'm using an Alpine CDA9851 HU.
    3 out of 3 people found this helpful
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    4 out of 5

    Alpine KCA-420i

    Written By John, Sioux Falls, SD on Saturday, January 13, 2007
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    If you're like me and you have an older Alpine deck and you want your iPod to run through your deck, then the KCA-420i is the way to go. There are some limitations (only seeing the first 255 song titles) but overall it works great. Easy to install and simple to use. Some people complain that it's slow but I haven't noticed any problems. The manual suggests to use playlists to make searching more efficient so that's what I do. Great product if you don't want to spend the money on a new Alpine deck.
    1 out of 1 people found this helpful
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    4 out of 5

    Alpine KCA-420i

    Written By Andrew, Sandy, UT on Sunday, September 03, 2006
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    The only complaint I have is that it is very slow to shuffle through songs. This is avoidable by disconnecting the ipod and choosing the song before hooking it up again. The sound quality is superb, and it is about the same price as a good fm transmitter. I would highly recommend it.
    1 out of 1 people found this helpful
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    1 out of 5

    Alpine KCA-420i

    Written By Grant, Apple Valley, MN on Sunday, June 04, 2006
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    This adapter is very disappointing. While the sound is quite good and the convenience is great, the fact that it will leave the iPod running after the car is turned off and will not recharge a "dead" iPod battery really irks me. This is by far one of the poorest engineered products I've ever purchased.
    3 out of 10 people found this helpful
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    3 out of 5

    Average

    Written By Jake, Heber, UT on Wednesday, May 17, 2006
     
    I bought this product with the Alpine IVA-D310 in dash dvd player. It has proved to definitely have its on and offs. It's so nice being able to have all my cd's on my ipod without carrying them in my truck. I have a 60 gb ipod with over 10,000 songs. Yes it is extremely slow shuffling through songs. You can just live with it, or as I would recommend make a playlist for every letter of the alphabet with the artist's last name. Some people have said that they can't shuffle or look for one song. I don't know what their problem is but I have not had any problem listening to shuffled songs. The very long cord that connects to the ipod is very nice. Being able to place the ipod where ever you want. One thing I've noticed is you have to disconnect the ipod before powering off the unit or turning your car off. Because I found it to keep the ipod on, and little to my knowledge I had my ipod going for days on end. If you have an older apline unit, and would like an ipod adapter I would recommend getting this unit. It had some cons, but the in dash controls and ipod charging are very nice. I just hope that with the new alpine adapter they fixed the few bad qwirks.
    1 out of 2 people found this helpful
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    4 out of 5

    Alpine KCA-420i

    Written By Mike Koesters, Catonsville, Maryland on Friday, May 12, 2006
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    I just purhased and installed the KCA-420i yesterday, but haven't had the opportunity to really "road-test" it yet. From my limited use, I'd say this is a keeper. While selecting songs is not as simple, or as fast as the iPod's incredibly simple interface, it does perform pretty well. It is certainly easier than finding songs on the iPod screen while you are supposed to be driving. I don't know if the newer interface is any better, or not. In any event, I was not about to replace my less than one year old radio with a newer one that is compatible with the newer interface. A better interface will not be on the market unless and until Apple designs it themselves!
    Was this review helpful?    Yes | No
     
    1 out of 5

    below standard

    Written By Jim, Tulsa, OK on Friday, February 17, 2006
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    I bought this unit to hook up my brand new Ipod to. I had read the other reviews, so had my doubts, but was desperate to find the best hook up for my truck. This thing is not the solution. The good stuff -- you can hide the ipod in the glove box etc, charges the battery, excelent sound -- but that's all that is good. I really wanted the onscrean titles on my moblie video screan, it does that, but it takes atleast 12 seconds to show. It is pretty much impossible to find a specfic title, some people said that shuffle dosen't work on theirs but mine worked fine when set to shuffle on the ipod. But you cannot choose a specific song to hear when shuffleing; that is all you get shuffle, or skip to the next random song. I already had a Changer hooked up and Sat radio on the AI NEt, so I was out of inputs, meaning I had to buy the input expander too so I had to spend $150 for an input that should have been able to "piggyback" like the Sat Receiver. Hopefully the new Ipod full speed that Alpine is releasing right now will solve many of these issues, but it is too late for any of us shopping for this product. I am pretty frustrated with many of the controll shour commings and expandabilty on my first Alpine system over all. I ithink that I will be going back with Kenwood on my next system (after I have spent over 2 Grand on this ALpine stuff that won't do everyting I want.) Needless to say that I am returning this item and going with the old standby of RCA cables. Crutchfield is great though, best place to buy stuff period, catalog, in store, or internet.
    1 out of 4 people found this helpful
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    5 out of 5

    Very Happy

    Written By J Wett, Millville, NJ on Friday, January 20, 2006
     
    After reading all of the reviews for all of the ipod to aftermarket radio solutions I decided on Alpine. Alpine's reputation for excellent sound quality did not dissapoint me. 2005 CDA-9853 with the glide bar and KCA-420i. I have no complaints with search times or the time it takes to play or display information. Even though it doesn't control the ipod "exactly" like the click wheel I couldn't be happier. My 40GB is about half full so searching for a single song on the ipod can be a long process even with the click wheel. All you have to do is spend a little more time making useful playlists on the ipod to make searching easier. Plenty of cable to mount the adapter and find a nice convenient spot to keep the ipod out of sight because the last thing I want to do is constantly have unplug the ipod and put it somewhere to feel safe.

    Goals achieved - 1)Control ipod through head unit that displays song title, album, artist.
    2) Quality sound
    3) Hide ipod and adapter.

    Downfall - The only downfall for me is when a song is playing I can't search for the next song while the current song is playing. I can live with that small downfall because you have to remember what is happening: You are trying to control a hard drive with a radio not a computer.
    7 out of 7 people found this helpful
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    4 out of 5

    Very good option for the money

    Written By Jeff, Orange County, CA on Wednesday, January 18, 2006
    Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
     
    I typically don't ever write reviews but after using this product I was compelled to respond to the other reviews.
    At first, I was very skeptical about purchasing this after reading some of the initial reviews. However, since I installed the unit and started to use it (about a month now) I have been quite satisfied with the overall results. This interface may not be perfect but I do think this unit does a good job for what it was meant to do.
    My main 3 objective for this unit were:
    1) Something that would allow easy installation to my aftermarket Alpine head unit
    2) Provide audio quality better than the FM alternatives
    3) Allow my head unit to control my IPOD mini (4G maxed out)
    4) Head unit control interface to be somewhat user friendly with regards to controlling the ipod
    Many people complain that it takes a long time to search for songs. I typically search by Artist, Album or Playlist and I don't have any issue with the unit being slow. Perhaps if I were using a 30G ipod, maxed out, the interface would be slower. However, for me, the interface to the ipod seems to be fairly responsive - but I have learned to be patient in life too.
    Using my head unit to control the ipod is fairly straight forward and simple once you get the hang of it and I think it works relatively well. My Alpine isn't an IPOD so I don't expect it to work like an IPOD so I am cutting it some slack.
    I strongly recommend this unit for anyone looking for a good solution to interface your ipod with your head unit. It's not perfect but I think the PROs, by far, out weigh the Cons (lag in searching for songs) I hope this review helps!
    1 out of 1 people found this helpful
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    4 out of 5

    Great, but not Perfect

    Written By Jeff, Texas on Wednesday, December 28, 2005
     
    Overall, I have been very please with the iPod adapter. Hopefully future head units and adapters will correct the obvious shortcoming of the adapter (it's slow).

    PROS:
    1) Sound Quality - the iPod sounds great! This is the main feature I was looking for in the adapter and it delivers. It is difficult to distinguish between a CD and the iPod.
    2) Text/Titles - all info from the iPod is sent to the head unit's display. I have an 8-character display which is limiting, but newer model head units will correct this. I agree with several other reviewers that it would be nice if the titles were visible while changing songs instead of reverting to showing track numbers.
    3) Battery - keeps it charged, but it would be nice if it could charge a dead iPod
    4) Out of sight - mounted the adapter under the driver's seat with connection to iPod in same location

    CONS:
    1) Slow - I have 40 GB iPod which makes finding songs virtually impossible. I actually unplug the iPod, use the click wheel, and then plug it back in. The adapter picks up with the song you just selected. I do get tired of constantly unplugging it. Playlists helps but again I have almost 4,000 songs on my iPod.
    2) The adapter forgets that you are in random mode often and forces you to start over at "A" when you want to select an new album/song/playlist.

    WISH LIST:
    I would like to see an adapter (or head unit) with a remote that mimicks the click wheel. Also I would like to see the layout of the iPod's menu system replicated. The iPod is king for a reason. Alpine needs to immitate it as much as possible.
    1 out of 1 people found this helpful
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    5 out of 5

    Very slick interface if you read the directions first

    Written By Dave, Connecticut on Friday, December 23, 2005
     
    I have to say I can't see why people are confused about how this works. It took me about 20 minutes to install (piggybacked to my XM direct) and after reading the quick reference guide I was up and running! I have a 2gb Nano so I don't have a ton of songs but I find the interface very user friendly after you use it for a few minutes. Scrolling speed while in quick search mode, while not perfect, is really no slower than on an MP3 CD. Definitely don't plan on searching in album mode. That would take forever. With alot of artists I could also see how that would be a bit of a pain, but I have about 150 on my Nano and it didn't seem too bad.My one real complaint is that you can't display artist name and song name at the same time but you can't do that with XM on the 9830 either so I think that's more the headunit than it is the adapter.
    All in all, if you're looking for a sleek and intuitive way to use your iPod with an Alpine stereo, this is the way to go.
    1 out of 1 people found this helpful
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    5 out of 5

    Rocks

    Written By sparqs, Lawrence, KS on Saturday, December 03, 2005
     
    I've always been an Alpine fan and they are always #1 in my books, I love this Ipod interface, the clarity is awesome, the bass really kicks, the highs and separations are tremendous (as always from Alpine) the FM transmitters are a joke, there is no comparison. The hook-up was clean and simple, I have the XM-Radio(external TUA-T020XM) that has a pass through AI-Net for the changer, I was listening to the Ipod in 5 minutes, I highly recommend this to anyone with Alpines, no one else comes close in simplicity of hook up, now, What would be really cool is if Alpine (and all others) would put a plug-in on the front of their units, straight through cable.................hmmmm, Merry Christmas Everyone
    1 out of 1 people found this helpful
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    5 out of 5

    Alpine Interface

    Written By Dean, Concord, CA on Wednesday, November 09, 2005
     
    Well first off, I was a little worried to buy the interface at first. As soon as I got it hooked up and the Ipod kicks on, I just got a little gitty. I will admit that the controls on the headunit is a little hard to get use to. Im using the CDA- 9807, I already loved my headunit, but this just added to it once you get a hang of the controls. It is a little slow when it comes to searching for songs, artist , playlist. Etc... But The sound is great, and if you can get past the slow search speed I believe you will love this interface. I have my system hooked up to Two 12's and one 2000W 2/ch, So I needed the Clarity which this interface brings to you. After I installed the interface I did notice a little bit better Bass from my Subs. The nice thing about the interface is that It uses all your Preset EQ settings that you have giving to a song on Itunes, For the Ipod. This is a great interface for those of us that use there Ipod none stop, and enjoy listening to there music clearly in the car, Without the Fm transmitter (which never get good reception anyway).
    1 out of 1 people found this helpful
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    4 out of 5

    Alpine's Ipod interface

    Written By Rick, Chicago, IL on Saturday, October 22, 2005
     
    I've been using my Ipod through the Alpine interface in two cars for about four months and this week the Ipod would not sync up with either Alpine head unit. I had to back-up and restore the Ipod back to factory to get it to work. A simple reset on the Alpine head units did not correct the issue! Over-all the interface is well worth the money.
    Was this review helpful?    Yes | No
     
    1-20 of 51 >>

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      Alpine KCA-420i