how do you get music onto the hard drive ? do you have to put it on SD card then transfer it or is the hard drive removeable ? where is the hard drive ? - behind the dash or in the boot ?

There has been quite a lot of discussion around the Columbus/MFD3/Trinax/RNS510 as it is known.

You could have a wander through this thread, http://briskoda.net/ice-security-insurance/skoda-mfd3-trinax-my-thoughts-warning-lots-pictures/90971/

but to answer your specific question the HDD lives in the unit.

You can transfer music via SD or DVD. It may also be possible to rip cd's but I haven't tried it yet.

how do you get music onto the hard drive ? do you have to put it on SD card then transfer it or is the hard drive removeable ? where is the hard drive ? - behind the dash or in the boot ?

As Hedge says, you can copy MP3 and WMA files from either SD card or DVD. Maxmium SD card size is 2GB, as the Columbus does not support SDHC. Dual layer DVDs work fine, so maximum capacity there is about 7.3GB. With the current firmware, it's not possible to rip CDs direct to the hard drive.

The hard drive is built into the Columbus unit, and is not easily removable. You can get it out if you want to, but it means breaking the warranty seals on the unit. The actual drive is a Hitachi Endurastar J4K50, which is specially designed for automotive applications. The only reason I can think of for removing the drive is to put in a bigger one. Right now, that's not possible as nobody understands how the original drive is formatted.

For more information, someone has very kindly scanned in the Skoda manual for the Columbus. You can download it here:

RapidShare: Easy Filehosting

Bagpuss.

ive been told at the launch and at our own superb day that it is possible to put cd's in a copy them to the hdd.

its something i will be trying out as soon as our demos arrive

ive been told at the launch and at our own superb day that it is possible to put cd's in a copy them to the hdd.

its something i will be trying out as soon as our demos arrive

It's possible to copy MP3s or WMA files from a data CD to the hard drive, but you cannot rip a normal audio CD to the hard drive. To do this, the Columbus unit would need to have an MP3 or WMA encoder built in, and it definitely doesn't. That's not to say it couldn't be added with a software update (are you listening Skoda?).

Bagpuss.

Bagpuss is right, we had a vRS Octavia with the Columbus satnav unit and whilst you can rip CD/DVD with MP3 files burnt to it and you can rip straight off the SD card it won't copy a store bought CD to the hard drive.

If you wanted to load a normal CD to the hard drive you'd have to put it into your pc first, save the tracks to hard drive and then burn them as a data CD.

-James

It's possible to copy MP3s or WMA files from a data CD to the hard drive, but you cannot rip a normal audio CD to the hard drive. To do this, the Columbus unit would need to have an MP3 or WMA encoder built in, and it definitely doesn't. That's not to say it couldn't be added with a software update (are you listening Skoda?).

Bagpuss.

ah that makes sense i suppose. i'll try it out on ours later. also i suppose it could get round some copywrite laws maybe? by having made a copy already you arent using the skoda equipment to copy direct from the original perhaps?

anyone check the dvd playback yet?

Yes I checked the DVD playback and it works well, the sound is very impressive. We watched Ronin, probably the best car chases ever on film.

Yes I checked the DVD playback and it works well, the sound is very impressive. We watched Ronin, probably the best car chases ever on film.

nice one. i think ours might get loaded up with adult films now for the showroom, as i havent got much to loose now!!

Hi, ì´m a bit confused and wanna make shure i understand u all correctly.

In my 2009 skoda superb ambition 2.0 TDI DSG, there´s a COLOMBUS unit.

If i understand u guys correct, i´m capable of playing DVD´s and putting music into the harddrive??? Hmm, i knew i should have read the owners manual...

Please, be so kind and send me an PM with confirmation

Cheers

Jan Inge

PM sent Jan.

We watched Ronin, probably the best car chases ever on film.

Nah

Steve McQueen in Bullitt or Eleanor in Gone in 60 Seconds

Carl:thumbup:

Nah

Steve McQueen in Bullitt or Eleanor in Gone in 60 Seconds

Carl:thumbup:

Odd, that's what I keep in the car for Demo's

I have a nice little demo DVD that came with a Bose Stereo I used to have.

nice one. i think ours might get loaded up with adult films now for the showroom, as i havent got much to loose now!!

Debby does Columbus?

Phil