USB Drive capabilities

[rockytt]

I don't feel particularly lazy, or that I'm over-thinking my situation - but I've been bouncing around forums and manuals for about an hour trying to figure this out-

Had been using an old iPod plugged in via USB for music. I leave it on random/shuffle all the time and I can be surprised by any of 10,000+ songs that might pop up - worked perfectly.

iPod was stolen (wife left the car unlocked in front of our house) and I don't feel like shelling out for another one and figured I'd just buy a USB stick, copy over my iTunes folder(s) and everything would continue as before.

Of course it didn't - seem like all I can do is select a folder manually and play the songs (in order) that are there - one album at a time. (Oh, the horrors!) Random/shuffle doesn't seem to do anything.

Here's my question(s) - Should I be able to do what I'm trying to do? (Basically, replace an iPod with a USB flash drive and shuffle all the songs on the drive from inside their (roughly) 1000 different folders)

 

[Nashco]

I haven't tried this on the Spark EV, but there are free programs you can use to rename files with random titles for exactly this purpose. So rename the files on the USB and leave them in the root folder, should spew random music without intervention.

Bryce

 

[rockytt]

Thanks Bryce - I hadn't thought about the random titles to simulate shuffle - that's a good idea. (Although I confess that moving 10,000 songs out of their sub folders into the root directory seems like it might take a while!)

I guess I was hoping there was either a) a program that would take my iTunes library and convert it to something the Spark liked or b) some setting I'd missed on the Spark that would just let me copy the whole folder (with subfolders intact) and have it work just like my iPod.

 

[Sparkler]

Is there a maximum size USB stick that the Spark can take? Wondering about 64GB for the next purchase...

So far I have not gotten through the 4GB one I put in. It's loaded with live concerts, so really don't want random with that one, but was thinking about doing the massive/random thing on the next stick.

Anyone tried a USB>SSD? (That's where knowing the maximum size allowed would really be required.)

 

[rockytt]

I've seen on other Chevy forums folks have gone up to 128gb - so 64gb seems safe - that's what I had in mind if I can get the details worked out

 

[Chocula]

I have a 32 Gig drive in mine and it works fine. When you select "Menu", the first option is "All Songs" which lists everything in all of my folders. I enable shuffle and repeat all and this seems to play random songs from random folders/albums.

Chocula

 

[rockytt]

That would be great - thanks for the follow up - I'll give it a go tomorrow

 

[Nashco]

There's a bunch in the owner's manual if you want to read the nitty gritty details. For example:

USB storage device capacity
limit is 2,500 music files,
2,500 photo files, 250 movie
files, 2,500 folders, and
10 stages of folder structure.
The iPod/iPhone can play all
music files supported, but will
only display up to 2,500 files on
the screen in alphabetical order.

http://www.chevrolet.com/content/dam/Chevrolet/northamerica/usa/nscwebsite/en/Home/Ownership/Manuals%20and%20Videos/02_pdf/2k14spark_ev.pdf

Bryce