Is it possible? I just burned 2 different mp3 CD's and they didn't play in mine.

 

Try them in the CD Changer? Also, when inserted, they take a VERY long time to begin playing because there are so many tracks to load. Wait far longer than you think is reasonable.

A regular CD will begin to play in a very short time. The 1st time I inserted an MP3 CD I almost gave up & thought it didn't work also.

 

I tried it in the single CD player and the CD changer.
I left it in there for a minute and it just switched to the next cd. When I selected the mp3 cd from the menu it would say "CD 6 error". What program did you use to burn the CDs?

 

Nero

 

I used Nero for both CDs but it still didn't work.

 

They only play in my changer too. But I read in another thread around here that you can have them play in your COMMAND unit if you go in to the dealership and have them do a free "update" to the head unit. I play mine in the 6-disc changer. No matter where they will only recognize 99 songs. I have all 6 discs loaded up with MP3s, 594 of them. I think that's over 30 hours of music. Yeah, they take a few seconds to load up and another few to display the track names and CD title. But it is very cool and I use it all the time like that. I love seeing the CD title at the top and using the Magazine button on the Audio menu to browse the CD titles. I also like using the steering wheel buttons to scroll through the song names on the NAV unit. I wish the song names displayed on the dash on my W203 instead of just the track numbers though.

 

I use Realplayer. (That's the player I use for all my music because I understand its interface, which to me is simpler than most.) To burn MP3s you have to buy the upgrade, which is cheap. It uses your e-mail address & a password, so it will let you use the upgraded capabilities on any computer with Realplayer once you log on to the player on that computer.

Everything else seems too complicated for my feeble oldies loving mind.

Just out of curiosity, when you insert it into the single slot CD, do you then get a previously unseen softkey that is now labeled MP3?

 

When I put an mp3 CD into the single slot it says "No audio CD" and wont do anything. When I put them in the changer it says "CD 6 error" 6 is the slot it was in. Not sure why its not working for me.

 

Oh, gotcha. I like doing it as a Roxio Data CD project but I have had a lot of luck using the built in CD writing capabilities of just Windows. I put a CDR in the drive and just drop 99 MP3 files on the CD drive folder in Explorer. Then I right click the folder and hit Write to Disk. I use Media Player to manage all the files (about 12GB).

 

i had the same issue with my e class. it still wont play some cds in the single cd player, thats why i had to go and buy the cd changer. it came out to 251 but when i get it i should be able to play mp3s and all that good stuff.

 

I use itunes to burn MP3 CD's and it works fine shows all the track names ect. You can also just use your computer and burn the CD as a data CD just make sure you organize your MP3's in the correct folders.

 

I am also having the same issue...

 

Hey,Drop,what head unit do you have? I have the 6 disc changer,but have the Audio 50 head unit ,and have actively been pursuing a head unit that displays file names.

 

It's the '05 to '07 MCS II COMAND System 2 unit, I think the MB PN#: A203-870-29-89 in my W203. MB Doctor sells it. If you have the Audio 50 (non US?) then I think yours may be APS based and not MCS. But I really don't know much beyond that from what I have been able to Google up.

 

damn that would be awesome if i had that

 

The Comand in my '05 E500 works just fine with MP3's, and I've never had a software update (God knows I need one !!). I use iTunes for the most part. Weird how some don't - there must be a reason that we haven't touched on here yet.......

 

I think it do have something to do with the update software. I update my comand software and i can play mp3 too.

 

Hiya, first post from a new 2004 E500 Wagon owner - 1 week and one day since I picked it up, and learning new things everyday.

I don't have a changer, just the single unit and COMAND would say that there was "No audio CD".

I am due to book it into the dealer to get Sirius, Bluetooth and a front plate holder (I wish I didn't need this, the front looks soooo beuatiful without it. Darn NY) so I will remember to ask them about a software update to play MP3 CD's. I'll post back and let y'all know how it goes.

 

In my '07, both my changer and single slot will play MP3s. If I insert the CD into the single slot no titles or CD Name is displayed. In the center of the screen there's a sequential number for each tune, and in the top between the blue arrows gibberish letters and ASCII Characters are displayed.

Pull the CD out of the single slot & the changer will send the Song Title to be properly displayed in the center of the screen with nothing displayed between the blue arrows on the top of the screen.

Who knows !?!

 

I don't recall seeing the "Detail" softkey on my COMAND (when playing MP3s). What comes up when you select that?

 

In an '04, a mp3 cd will only play in the single slot, not the changer.
And it will only play if you've had the necessary command software upgrade.
Same applies to an '03. This is for U.S. models.

Detail soft key must be from '05 on, cause it's not on my '04.
Pressing it probably brings up the song/artist playing screen as seen in DAD's second photo.

Edit : Also be aware that too high a bit rate in the mp3 will cause "stutter" in the playback.

 

I think you mean to say too LOW a bitrate...

 

Actually, no. I have one album on my cd @ 320bps and it stutters.
Or maybe that one is just an aberration.

BTW, that same album plays fine on my pc and stand alone dvd player.
All other albums on the cd are under 300bps and play perfectly in the car.
So I don't know exactly where the sweet spot is before playback problems.

 

Pretty darn sure that a minimum 128 bit-rate is required. (I had an e-copy of the COMAND manual but toasted it so can't quote chapter and verse.) Not sure what happened to the link to the other post was elsewhere in this thread, but it warned against too much compression (i.e. too low a bit rate). 320 bit-rate is the "least compressed", closest (in theory) to "CD quality".

 

Just the filename.MP3 of what is playing, nothing spectacular.