Vieks

So I'm coming off a 2013 gs and now have a new LS 460 and wondering if anyone has mastered the audio system without hacking.

Here is what I am doing and my issue. I want to have as much of my ripped mp3s available in the car as possible so I just bought the latest (7th gen) 160gb iPod where most of my music is stored. I have it connected to the car through USB thinking that I will not lose quality like I would if I was playing it off the cloud from my iPhone via bluetooth. Gotta assume the music is compressed a bit when played via Bluetooth but have not confirmed this.

So, back to the wired 160gb ipod. My question is if anyone else has to wait like at least 5 minutes for the option to be able to search by artist to become available? I'm talking about the area where you can select the 3 letters on the right that the artist begins with. For the first 5 minutes it's gray'd out and I'm assuming it's because it is downloading the info in every time I start the car. The album search just stays gray (3 letters) no matter how long I wait which makes the search in operable, just have to scroll alphabetically which is ridiculous. I also notice these search options are not available when connected via Bluetooth.

So, how have 2013/14 LS audiophiles mastered this system. What do you recommend to be the best way to get all my music in the car with the best possible sound quality and search options? Do I need to get a ssd drive so it makes the search options (album and artist) available quicker? Looking to use equipment I have and need some suggestions/advice on what works best. Thanks

sc4922

I also have a 160gb iPod Classic connected to my 2014 LS 460 L; my iPod has more than 6,800 songs on it. Most of the songs have been burned from CDs using the AAC codec at 256 kbps. It takes about a minute before I can search by album and artist using the 3 letter browse feature.

By any chance were your songs burned in one of the lossless codecs? I wonder whether the larger file sizes would make a difference in the "loading" time for the search/browse feature.

mistermet

I bought a 2013 LS a year ago and immediately noted that albums loaded slowly and sometimes disconnected my iPod Classic.
Info provided to me was that the problem was that the album art took too long to load on large collections. I have over 11,000 songs on my iPod.
I shut off loading the art work in settings and haven't had a problem since.
Lexus should provide a software fix. I miss the art work.

hjones4841

You are correct about the Bluetooth connection. It sounds worse than the USB connection.

mistermet

I use the USB connection.

nsaldanh

hjones4841: I have a 2012 LWB and I use blue tooth to pair my phone with the car. Audio quality is as good as connecting it via USB. in what way does it sound worse? - low bass? low treble?

Thanks.

Vieks

Nsaldanh,

You probably don't notice it but 9 times out of 10 when audio is streamed wirelessly it is compressed meaning the quality is reduced. A lot depends on what bit rate you have your music saved at, if at 128 then likely no difference, if 256 or higher I'm sure it is compressed.

My problem seems to have fixed itself. Now upon car start up I have the option of searching by artist or album using the 3 letter function right away. I think it initially took a while to load the artists and albums into the hard drive of the car but now all is good.

hjones4841

To me, the dynamic range is compressed via Bluetooth. Not that noticeable on rock and pop but I listen to a lot of jazz where it is definitely noticeable. (Try the George Benson and Al Jarreau - Givin' It Up album tracks and you will see what I mean.) Plus the highs and bass are rolled off some. I noticed the same thing using a Bluetooth receiver indoors hooked to a decent sound system while streaming from my iPod Touch.