darylhuff

I have a 2005 GX470 sports model which includes the Navigation System/Mark Levinson® Audio System Package. I like most things about the car with the exception of the sound system. For all the hype Lexus makes over the "premium" sound system, it is just OK. FM sound is OK, but reception is poor to fair. The CD sound is also OK. However, the AM sound quality is abysmal.

It doesn't matter how I adjust the tone settings of treble/mid/base, it still sounds like someone talking into a barrel. It isn't just voice that is bad as I currently have my iPod jacked in through the tape deck and my audible.com audiobooks sound fine -- limited of course by the cassette conversion interface. I'm waiting for vaistech.com to release their AIC-100i product to fix my iPod problem.

Do I just have a bad AM radio module in my system, or do others have the same complaint about their [not so] premium audio system?

Daryl

gs400jon

IMHO, the Nakamichi sound system in my former GS400 is better than the ML. However, I have no complaints about AM or FM reception on the GX.

rjfiore1

I think that the sound system is good to very good. I think that it depends on what you are listrning to, though. I definitely agree that the am station that I listen to (WBZ 1030 Boston, MA) does sound muffled. The lower freq. of voices surely resonates the door panels. Also, I can barely hear the "voice" in the NAV, regardless of how loud the setting is. Oh well, I guess we have to spend another 50 grand for a better stereo. Of course, my E320 Bose system sounded a bit better, but it certainly did not have the SPL that ML has.

luckylex

I have only had my 2005 for 4 days, but I totally agree with you. The AM sound is bad. I only listen to if for the traffic reports and an occasional sports talk show, but it sounds like people are talking from under a pile of blankets. Overall, I am not that impressed with the sound system and I also thought that so far I don't think it lives up to the hype, although I haven't yet gone through CDs. I was surprised. So far, I think the mitsubishi infinity in my recently departed vehicle had a slightly better sound, but maybe it is too early to tell.

steevr

AM with the M/L in our '04 is just okay. The CD and FM quality is excellent. Blows the stereo in my RX away. My only complaint is sometimes FM reception is so-so. I guess thats the price you pay for the convenience of not having an external antenna.

<VENOM>

AM for real, several older people I know got XM and thats cleared it up, seems AM is fading in all the vehicles not just the GX

98Nav400

Finally, someone else has said it. I have an '04 am disappointed with the ML Stereo. Sure its better than some, but not anything special in my opinion. I had a VW Touareg for a while with their premium system and it was head and shoulders above my GX's.

That being said, the system is still pretty good for me but I have been scratching my head when reading all of the raves about it. I thought I just didn't have the settings right (maybe I still don't).

Still love the GX....

yaro1

AM? How could you even listen to AM! Its nothing but a droning of monotone voices and commercials with terrible quality(its 100-year-old technology!)! No matter whether you have a ML or w/e AM STINKS !

I have had mine since September and the ML grew on me. While nothing compares to my Bose setup at home (an audiophiles paradise), for car audio, ML is pretty good. But, the Bose in my Corvette is a little better though. Go figure!

By the way, pop in a CD and turn it up, then you might appreciate it's quality at low frequencies and the good midrange.

luckylex

Don't know where you live, but in Chicago the only traffic reports are on AM. And if you do a lot of highway traveling, traffic "on the 8's" is a staple!

darylhuff

I've actually had quite good AM radios in cars previously. This is by far the worst AM radio I've seen -- including the countless rental cars I've used over the years.

I guess everybody has different tastes in how they like their sound. The system seems to be tuned very well for the crowd that likes to chop the suspension out of a car and put in huge subwoofers so that all you can hear (and feel) are frequencies below 1000Hz. I like to hear the whole range. There is minimal mid-range in the Lexus stereo and no high end to speak of. They aren't going to win any audiofiles with this system.

I really like the rest of the car so I'll live with the substandard "premium" soundsystem.

lexusls430

Ok i might have a fix for your radio reception. For all you that have the rses make sure the the option to make the sound play through your car audio is off. I have it in my LX470 and it was on for like a week and the am was soo bad i could hardly hear anything and i played around and found out it was that option. So make sure it is off and you should get better reception.

SacKen

Audiofile (sic) here! Just thought I would crash the party so that the folks contemplating the upgrade don't feel that everyone thinks it is crap.

I find this discussion rather amusing. I'm just curious, what makes a "good AM radio"? My guess is that this system was not designed and tuned for superior AM radio quality . That said, I have no complaints about the AM sound quality. Typical AM sound from a stereo is bland and sounds like it is eminating from a tin can filled with cotton. I personally think that this system actually adds a little life and fullness to AM radio. If you want the old fashioned tin can sound, use the EQ and drop the lows all the way down, up the mids, and keep the highs flat.

Pop in a good CD and this system is better than any other stock system (and many ill-designed after market ones as well) I have experienced, including the B(l)ose in my Acura and my friends MB. I've never had the opportunity to play with the Nakamichi system that has been mentioned, though. Considering that an SUV introduces many challenges in designing a sound system and is not ideal for good sound quality, I think they did a great job.

Muffled sound? Minimal mid-range? No high-end to speak of? Does everyone know how to use the equalizer?

If you want to really test the system, pop in a good studio recording of classical music. My personal favorite to show off the system is John Williams "Summon the Heroes". You can hear and feel every instrument as if they were playing in front of you. Speaking of the "high-end", the horns scream like they were in the car with you. On the tracks with the chorus, the voices are clear and amazing (that mid-range that was mentioned). For more vocal tracks, the Ray Charles "Genius Loves Company" is a good one. Many different performers so you get a good sampling of many vocal styles.

As for reception, I personally haven't had any problems in Sac. It is as good, if not better, than the other vehicles I have owned (including 2 others with the antenna in the glass).

My only complaints are that we should get more than a 3-band EQ in a system like this and I wish the EQ settings were saved based on what you are listening to. I hate having to readjust it as I change between CD, FM and AM.

Cheers!

yaro1

I think we have some non-audiophile posers!

Rock (ahem)..classical on

Quant

AM was never designed for wide frequency response, and is best at mid range. Hi freqs and bass usually get lost in AM transmission. Thus if you try to listen to AM on a good system, these outside frequencies get inflated to levels that are not pleasing. Since lo & hi content is not there to begin with, you end driving up noise along with bass & treble. Hence the distortion.

Combine this with the fact that most vocals have almost no lo-freq content, and you end up with the poor AM quality apparent in the GX (as well as other high end systems). One system I owned actually had a "speech" button that cut-out almost all the bass whenever I needed to listen to talk-shows / vocals. This is similar to what SacKen is recommending above (trimming the bass & treble) when listening to AM, especially talk-shows or traffic/weather reports.

As far as other systems sounding better, that could be either that their frequency response not as good, or they could be automatically trimming the bass and hi freqs whenever you switch them to AM.

98Nav400

I have no complaints about the AM quality simply because I don't expect much from AM. It is funny how from car to car talk show hosts sound COMPLETELY different.

My only statement on this thread is that I don't think that the sound quality is something to rave about. While it is relatively good; it is in a relatively high end car and should be. I just came from a VW Touareg with their Premium Sound II and I think the VW had a lot better sound quality than my GX. I wish there were some preset equalizer setting for Rock, Classical, Etc, since some of us aren't experts at setting the equalizer to maximize sound quality.

On a different stereo quirk, I know that I am going to blow my speakers apart one of these days when transitioning back from the DVD mode. When listening to DVD's through the speakers I have to turn the volume way up; sometimes I forget to lower the volume back when going back to FM and it is WAY too loud--scares the poop out of me everytime...