Audio Volume turn-on level

[mkla2000]

noticed that sometimes the audio volume is zero when I turn on the ignition even though when the key was taken off after the previous drive, the volume was on.... anyone noticed this? is there a "solution"

[rmg2]

Quote, originally posted by mkla2000 »

noticed that sometimes the audio volume is zero when I turn on the ignition even though when the key was taken off after the previous drive, the volume was on.... anyone noticed this? is there a "solution"

Yes. Turn the car on and make sure all your seats and mirror and climate settings are in your preferred range. There is also a setting for the sound upon start up that can be set. Once you have set it and then programed the settings on the side of the seat, Then set your key remote to the setting you made on the side of the seat.

Once this is completed then each time you use the key remote that was programed you will get all the settings upon start up just as you programed them.

Hope this helps.

Modified by rmg2 at 3:55 AM 9-26-2004


Modified by rmg2 at 3:56 AM 9-26-2004

[mkla2000]

thanks - will do.

[GripperDon]

I followed everything you said up to the point of "then set your key remote to the setting you made on the side of the seat" or something to that effect. How do you set the key remote to anything? I only have 3 button on it? Please explain in more detail, sorry for being dummy.

[PanEuropean]

Hi Don:

What Rick was referring to is this:

The Phaeton recognizes who the driver is by looking at the key that is used to start the vehicle. In other words, the car can store up to 8 different sets of individual driver preferences (you, your wife, and your 6 teenage kids), assuming you are willing to buy an additional 5 keys, in addition to the 3 keys you got with the car.

Once a driver (key) is recognized, the car calls up all the saved preferences for that driver. This includes the radio volume start-up setting. If you have the radio volume start-up setting adjusted to the lowest possible level (only one bar visible on the far left end), the start-up volume will actually be 'OFF'. This is probably the condition you have at present.

To get all this driver recognition from the key fob working, it is necessary to once only match the key fobs with the driver preferences stored in the infotainment unit. Chances are that your VW dealer already did this for you as part of the PDI process, so, you can likely ignore that reference that Rick made. But, if you want to double-check that everything has been set up right, here is how you do the checking:

Find the three keys. If you have keyless access, make sure that only one key is within 25 feet of the car at any time. If you don't have keyless access, you can have all three keys with you (on your person) all the time.

1) Lock the car, leave it alone for 2 minutes.

2) Unlock the car, put the key in the ignition, turn the ignition on (you don't have to start the car). Check the driver ID screen that comes up on the infotainment display - just after you dismiss the legal warning - to see if the owner of the key you used in the ignition matches the list of driver names on the screen.

3) Turn the ignition off, get out, lock the car, wait 2 minutes, repeat the process with the next key.

If it appears that the car is not correctly matching up driver identification on the infotainment screen to the different keys, then refer to this thread for complete instructions about how to set it up: Store Settings for the Seat Memory buttons, key fobs, driver preferences (a complete how-to guide for setting up a new Phaeton).

FWIW, I do suggest that Phaeton owners identify the keys by using different key fobs or whatever, and then ensure that the principal driver (owner) always uses the same key fob, and the secondary driver (spouse, partner, significant other) always uses the other key fob. This will really, really simplify life for everyone. It is, of course, possible for anyone to use anyone else's key fob at any time - the car will still work great - but the driver who is using someone else's key fob will have to manually recall their stored preferences by pressing the button on the outboard side of the driver seat (to recall preferences for 'things that move'), and by manually identifying themselves to the infotainment system (to recall preferences for 'things that don't physically move').

To give you an example - if you drive out to the airport with your wife, then you get out to catch your flight, and your wife gets into the driver seat to take the car home, she has two choices: a) Turn the car off, give you your key, and then start the car with her key (kind of clunky), or; b) leave the car running with your key in it, but manually press the button on the side of the seat to recall her preferences for 'things that move' (seat, mirror, steering wheel, etc.), and then go to the appropriate menu on the infotainment and press the soft-key beside her name to recall her preferences for 'things that don't move' (radio stations, temperature settings, suspension settings, radio turn-on volume, and so forth).

Michael

[GripperDon]

Thanks You very much for the Info great work as usual, Thank rick aalso for alerting me.

[dcowan699]

This is never a problem for me anyway. My wife NEVER drives my car without my supervision so the whole "profiling" thing is never an issue. She probably does not even know where the second and third keys are, much less sets her own profile settings.

Psst! (whisper The keys are in the office inside the top desk drawer. Don't tell her!!

[dzier]

The audio still resets to zero sometimes regardless. This has been a known issue for some time. My second key is never used and stays in my drawer.

[njwiseguy]

I have been experiencing the exact same problem. My wife almost never drives the car, my key is the only one that has ever been used in the ignition, and the volume is always at zero at startup, despite being up when the car is turned off and "volume at startup" is up.

My guess is it's a software issue.

[njwiseguy]

O.K.
On my trip home from work, the volume was on, I assume at the same level that I left it. Sounds great, right? One of the rare times that it worked.
I stopped on the way home to pick up take-out and when I started the car, the volume was at zero and could not be raised. I tried the cd player and it was showing that the cd was playing (I could change disks, the tracks were playing) but no volume. On the drivers display in the dash, the volume would not change.
What's up?

[dcowan699]

This happened to me one time (and only one time) when I had only around 200 miles on my car. It occurred exactly the way you described. What I did to fix it was hit the RESET button. I don't remember all of the things I pressed after that, but I think it is self- explanatory after you press the RESET hardkey. Try that.
A couple of other minor things happened to me when I first bought the car but I truly believe this car "learns" or adapts within the first 2000 miles to our habits, such as acceleration styles, radio use, nav, etc..

Turning off the ignition and going through start/stop cycles didn't even fix it when it happened to me.

[njwiseguy]

Agreed. Turning the car off, removing the key from the ignition did not fix the problem.

The only reset button I know of for the audio system is for the preset radio stations (I think).

Do you mean I should try a complete reset of everything - driver names, seat positions, etc. etc.

By the way - I have almost 7,000 miles on the car. This same problem happened to me early on. Maybe 3-4 times total. But not in the last 2-3,000 miles.

Another thing after my pit-stop at the takeout place. I had turned off the climate control system before I got there and it stayed off after restart. I do not think that has happend before. I wish that one would happen more often.

[dcowan699]

I'm not sure exactly what I did but I do know that once you press the RESET hardkey , you are then given an option to press either the softkey "reset" OR "reset all". Of the two choices, since it was just a radio problem I would choose only "reset" softkey. I did notice that the condensed CD info popped up when I pressed the RESET hardkey apparently because that was the failing feature at the time. Pressing "reset all" will probably reset your seats, stored temperature settings, stored radio stations, the units of measurements (gallons/litres, miles/kilometers, etc.).

For example, if you want to reset the radio stations back to factory settings, you have to press AUDIO hardkey, then FM or AM , then the RESET hardkey. At this time, you make the option to press "reset" (not "reset all"). I think this will then delete your previously stored stations.

Make a long story short, when this happens again, I would press the RESET hardkey, then choose the "reset" softkey at the lower right hand corner of the screen. Then if that doesn't do it, as a final all-out attempt and last resort, I would choose the "reset all" softkey.

Modified by dcowan699 at 9:45 PM 8-8-2005

[njwiseguy]

I will try your suggestions. Of course, it might be a while before I can confirm that all those little issues are fixed. I am interested in finding out what is causing these problems. Sometimes the hunt is more fun than the kill.
I have noticed that if I get in the car and start it up quickly, more things go wrong. If I put the key in, let the car "boot up", and then start the engine things go a little smoother.

[dcowan699]

Quote, originally posted by njwiseguy »

I have noticed that if I get in the car and start it up quickly, more things go wrong. If I put the key in, let the car "boot up", and then start the engine things go a little smoother.

Again, the same thoughts went through my mind too. But for some reason, I didn't have to keep waking up my car slowly after the first 500 miles or so. It just eventually started behaving and going right to the way I wanted things to go.

[PanEuropean]

Quote, originally posted by David, describing the radio volume going to zero when the car is unlocked: »

This happened to me one time (and only one time) when I had only around 200 miles on my car. It occurred exactly the way you described.

Hi Everyone:

I wrote a Phaeton friend of ours who works in a certain automobile assembly facility close to the Dresden Botanical Garden, and asked him to take a look at this post. Here is his reply (paraphrased by me):

Let me explain it this way, it is "German thinking around some corners"(in German: um die ecke denken). When you unlock the vehicle and then open any door OTHER THAN THE DRIVERS DOOR, or the trunklid, then the infotainment system powers up but the display AND the volume are suppressed in order not to annoy the customer, whose assumed intention is to put something in the vehicle and not to drive away.

The disadvantage however is this: If after opening a rear door you then open the drivers door, put the key in the ignition and start the engine, the radio will remain muted, you have to wake it up by making some input on either the volume button on the steering wheel or the round knob under the screen. The same condition will exist if your spouse opens the passenger door before you open the drivers door.

Isn't that a nice and customer friendly feature? The sad thing is this: no-one understands it. Just try it out and the logic behind it will disclose itself to you.

Now that our friend has explained it, I all makes perfect sense. I have encountered this same behavior (no radio volume) from time to time as well, but it has always been if I first opened a door other than the driver door. I do recall also that it is only necessary to make one tiny input on either the steering wheel volume button or the round dial for everything to come on, exactly at default volume levels.

Michael

[njwiseguy]

Quote, originally posted by PanEuropean »

...I do recall also that it is only necessary to make one tiny input on either the steering wheel volume button or the round dial for everything to come on, exactly at default volume levels. Michael

I was always surprised that if I even touched the volume control, the stereo would "wake up" to a higher volume setting than I was expecting. This might not be my ideal setup, but at least now I understand the design "feature".

[dcowan699]

Michael, I was unaware of that feature. Now that you mentioned that feature, it does seem I've had that happen before but I never questioned what was going on in those instances..... I just turned the volume back up and forgot about it. I never perceived it as something was wrong.

However, what happened to me right after buying the car was different than that. My radio/CD was LOCKED UP and I had no control over any functions (volume, track selection, radio stations, etc.). I couldn't even change from audio functions to climate control or nav, or anything else. I was forced to reset everything. After that point, I have had zero problems. Again, I think , at least in my case, the onboard computer just had a glitch possibly due to low battery issues that we've touched on before since the car was so new when it happened. This may be Christopher's problem. He may have a weak service battery (the one on the left side of the trunk).

Thanks again for the above explanation

[njwiseguy]

Quote, originally posted by PanEuropean »

Hi Everyone: I wrote a Phaeton friend of ours who works in a certain automobile assembly facility close to the Dresden Botanical Garden, and asked him to take a look at this post. Here is his reply (paraphrased by me): Let me explain it this way, it is "German thinking around some corners"(in German: um die ecke denken). When you unlock the vehicle and then open any door OTHER THAN THE DRIVERS DOOR, or the trunklid, then the infotainment system powers up but the display AND the volume are suppressed in order not to annoy the customer, whose assumed intention is to put something in the vehicle and not to drive away. The disadvantage however is this: If after opening a rear door you then open the drivers door, put the key in the ignition and start the engine, the radio will remain muted, you have to wake it up by making some input on either the volume button on the steering wheel or the round knob under the screen. The same condition will exist if your spouse opens the passenger door before you open the drivers door. Isn't that a nice and customer friendly feature? The sad thing is this: no-one understands it. Just try it out and the logic behind it will disclose itself to you. Now that our friend has explained it, I all makes perfect sense. I have encountered this same behavior (no radio volume) from time to time as well, but it has always been if I first opened a door other than the driver door. I do recall also that it is only necessary to make one tiny input on either the steering wheel volume button or the round dial for everything to come on, exactly at default volume levels. Michael

I don't think our interpretation of this is accurate.

When the trunklid or rear door is opened, the system powers up but the volume AND DISPLAY are suppressed. Then when the driver gets in and puts the key in the ignition the rest of the system wakes up. We all experience that feature, but that is not what we are complaining about.

Today I intentionally opened the trunk and a rear door, then got in the drivers seat and started up the car. Volume came back on with no extra adjustments. So, the audio volume not coming on is not a design feature, it is a small glitch. Not as bad as the few times when the volume is locked up - no sound at all and restarting the car doesn't even fix it.

I do think the car is very sensitive to changes in battery charge and voltage drops, but I do not think that is the case here.

[dcowan699]

Chris, do you have a VAGCOM?

[njwiseguy]

No, I do not.

I am very interested in getting together with someone local to run some tests on my car. I would also like to try some of the modifications that everyone has been talking about. Vin and I are going to get together soon. I think he also would be interested.

Chris.

[dcowan699]

It's possible if you run a scan , you may see a problem come up to aid you in diagnosing the problem. This is seen as a fault in one of the addresses.
Also, give your scan to Michael and he may see the problem too.

[rmg2]

Quote, originally posted by GripperDon »

Thanks You very much for the Info great work as usual, Thank rick aalso for alerting me.

You're welcome.

I hope you got my IM response.

I do not always have the time to respond quickly on the forum or the IM. I guess that is a good thing from a business point of view.

[dcowan699]

Now that I've become more aware of this topic, I've been noticing a wide array of volume/radio behaviours. This morning I was listening to a CD on my way to work. I pulled into a quik-stop to get some coffee and when I returned to my car I cranked it up and had no volume. I was actually unaware of it at that moment as I was watching traffic so about 45 seconds later, the volume returned to it's normal level on its own. I've noticed this before but never thought to mention it.

[agnos]

The radio volume gremlin has been alive and well on my car since I bought it one year ago. Pretty much 30% of the time when I start the car, volume will be at 0, even though I never turn the radio off or lower it to zero when I leave ther car. I simply got used to pressing volume up on the steering wheel whenever I can't hear the radio at start up, just like I press the "Accept" button (which about 25% of the time comes up in German first, but that is a whole different story) after starting the car.

I always use my key (my wife must have driven my car a total of 5 trips), almost never open the trunk or a passenger door before entering the car (although keyless unlock is set to open all doors simultaneously), so I don't think it is an issue w/ the key or a special volume mute feature that I'm unaware. More likely than not, it is just some software bug, considering how many functions this car has.

On a different note, I had noted in the forum a while back that the keyless entry feature was not working on my car. It miraculously healed itself after about one week, precisely as I was demonstrating to my VW service specialist how it was NOT working Well, keyless entry stopped working again about a week ago, and I decided to wait and see if the problem would go away. What do you know...it started working again yesterday morning. Very strange.

[PanEuropean]

Agnos:

I think that your problems with the German language prompt on the infotainment screen at start-up can be solved by having the software in your J523 Front Information Display and Control Unit (the big screen) updated to version 0223, which is the current software version.

The 0223 version has been installed in all Phaetons built for the past 12 months, and seems quite trouble-free. In Europe, Phaeton technicians routinely update the software in the various controllers by using an update CD that Volkswagen provides. For some reason, Volkswagen of North America has been 'rather slow' in making this update CD available to the North American dealer network. This means that the only way to get the software updated is to advise the dealer that you are having problems with the German language prompt appearing on the screen, and they will then replace the entire J523 unit (a $3,000 part) with a new one which will ship with the 0223 software in it. This is, of course, covered under your new car warranty.

If someone hears that the 0223 software update CD has finally been released in North America - please let me know so I can post correct information about it.

Michael

[trekguy]

Michael, what do you mean with your post "not to annoy the customer"? Annoy with what? The radio volume does not come on when the car is unlocked and a rear door is opened, right?

I also have been wondering why my volume (sometimes) needs to be woken up, and you have, as always, provided an answer. I just don't understand the German logic behind it.

[PanEuropean]

Quote, originally posted by trekguy »

Michael, what do you mean with your post "not to annoy the customer"? Annoy with what? The radio volume does not come on when the car is unlocked and a rear door is opened, right?

You are correct. But, power is supplied to the J523 Front Information Display and Control Unit as soon as a door (any door) is opened. If a person opens any door, then touches a button on the J523 (e.g. the nav button if they want to plan a route, or the telephone button if they want to make a call) - then the screen will light up and the system will be fully functional.

The rationale behind the muting referred to above is that under those circumstances, the user would probably not want to have the sound system come back on at whatever volume level they had it at before - or, at the default turn-on volume level, if that is lower. So, the entertainment audio is muted until either the volume knob is touched or the volume up button on the steering wheel is touched. A single touch on either of those two controls will cause the entertainment audio to come back on, at either the previous volume setting or the default turn-on volume setting, if that is lower than the previous volume setting.

I think that if folks are still having difficulties with the entertainment audio not coming back on after having read all of this, then the answer might be to double-check the 'default entertainment audio turn-on volume' setting of the J523. If this has been set to the lowest indicated level (one bar illuminated), then the entertainment audio will always be turned off whenever the car is powered up - regardless of what it was set at during the last driving cycle. I have my car set up this way deliberately - I don't often listen to radio, etc. in the car, I like silence. Perhaps I was listening to a program last time I was driving, but if that was the case, I don't want the radio coming on next time I get into the car. So, I have the default audio volume turn-on level set up as you see below, and this gives me silence every time I use the car. If I want to listen to entertainment audio on the next driving cycle, I have to manually turn up the volume level.

This setting (lowest possible) will yield silence when the car is started.
This screen can be accessed from the SETTINGS button.

[PanEuropean]

Photos re-hosted.

Michael

[Reflect]

I enjoy this feature since I drive with my baby around so I open her door in the rear first to mount her in the baby car seat. If the music was to turn on same as previosly she would have a heart attack since I always have themusic 80-90 max volume.

[PanEuropean]

Photo re-hosted.

Michael