Scottward

I had a loaner stock ES350 while I was waiting for my UL to come in. I thought the stock system mid-range was good, but it was missing some low-end and high treble. I did not know about the cross-over. I must admit the ML in mine is the best sounding OEM I have ever heard out of experience with ~20 other premium makes/models.

SmokeyES35

oops i meant to say not terrible.. yeah the low end is lacking... certain songs bring it out.. but not by much.. and yeah. the high end can get drowned out. I say redo the whole system.. if you are gonna do something.. do it right.

superchan7

The stock sound system is a bit tinny, but it's not a deal breaker. It is a little disappointing...my father's RX400h has the ML, but I didn't get a chance to try it out for more than a few minutes (in Hong Kong).

GiantsInFL

the lack of a great stock sound system will not be a deal breaker for me. That can be easily redone down the line. I am much more concerned with the overall quality and smoothness and quitness of the car. And the room, I love having plenty of room in the car. From what you guys have said, I am pretty much good as long as I dont get a 07.

Scottward

I drove my car in heavy rain today for the first time and the inside was still as quiet as a tomb. No detectable wet road tire noise made it to the cabin, which was a first for any car/truck I have ever owned.

codejd

The stock system - for what it is - stinks. Get the ML system (even though you have to get NAV at that point!) and be happy...

Tarkio

Definitely get the ML and NAV. The ML is exceptional, just be sure to turn off surround sound when listening to music or else the bass will sound mushy and not at all defined. With surround off the bass is very tight and sounds like what you would expect from a higher-end audio system.

The NAV really creates the luxury feeling for me. Besides having the obvious NAV benefits, NAV is the touch screen computer control center for the car. Everything is at your fingertips, easy to see and operate. The ES is a different car without it.

GiantsInFL

exactly what I'm looking for

jkayca

I don't find the stock system that bad. It needs a base speaker though. Something that can be added by your local car audio shop for a lot less than going with the ML system. For nav I have a portable system. Works great when I need it which is almost never. The fact that it's portable means I can use it for geocaching

SmokeyES35

Im not sure if just adding a better speaker would work either, the amp isnt that good, It was suggested to change the amp, and it would improve the sound significantly, especially a digital amp. Yeah I wasnt feeling the nav too much to be honest. It was a pain in my *** to search for radio stations, and reaching to touch it all the time. Also at night, I like it really dark inside the cabin, and I know the nav has a night mode, and all, but its still noticeable. My phone has navigator anyways, so meh.

jkayca

Correction to my previous post, there IS a base speaker. Can you tell I've only had the car for a week?

To follow on to what Smokey said...
So maybe a new amp is what's required. I'm thinking this would actually be easier to change than wiring up another speaker. I'm not sure how the new systems work though. Last time I put a stereo into a car it was an all-in-one unit, two speaker jobbie.

Tarkio

Hi - I'm not sure if you're referring to the ES350 NAV system. It's very easy to search for radio stations, and it doesn't require any interaction with the NAV touch screen. Simply press and hold the up or down button on the steering wheel. The radio will search for the next higher (or lower) station, and the frequency will be displayed on the screen.

To select preset stations, just press the up or down button on the steering wheel once and cycle through the presets. Press the Mode button on the steering wheel to select the AM, FM1 or FM2 presets. Press and hold the Mode button to turn off the audio system.

The NAV touch screen adds the option of seeing all of your 18 radio presets (6 per screen) and jump to any of them randomly without having to cycle through them all. But you can always just cycle through them all from the steering wheel.

I find the night mode on the NAV to be very subtle and non-intrusive, but you can alway just turn the screen off by pressing the "screen off" button. To turn it back on simply press any menu button.

I guess I don't understand how not having the NAV system eliminates the need to reach for controls. The touch screen is right in the dash where any controls would be anyway.

I used to have the Verizon cell phone navigator and it was actually pretty cool. It was just useless for me in town around tall buildings and stopped navigating when I was in downtown underground freeway tunnels.

codejd

I suppose I should have stated more clearly what I meant; I did not feel the need for NAV at all, really liked the backup camera and thought the ML system was absolutely mindblowing! Still, I could not justify the expense when I found out you had to order NAV to get ML in this car.

The system claims to have 8 speakers with what I suppose includes a passive radiator (where you're getting any bass at all!) as opposed to an actual subwoofer mounted in the middle of the rear deck. Otherwise there would be a "subwoofer control" mixed in with your "bass", "mid", "trebble", etc.. I'm sure somebody here knows the general makeup and the balance of the system (precise speaker and amplification specs) but I can tell you from the past 10 months of listening and adjusting and toyin around with this stock system, it is very very difficult to get a good clean sound.

Otherwise I think the car is an absolute joy. Besides a couple of rattles I have had absolutely no problems and would highly recommend this car.

Luvmy350

iTrader: (2)

I should say it was a loaner from Lexus. Sorry.

Luvmy350

iTrader: (2)

I don't have a choice now but was just wondering what the difference was. I don't doubt you but after the GS experience, it didn't seem like a really big deal. I love my sound!