Mhobizal

I have a 2014 ES300h with the Mark Levinson system. Where is the amp located? I'm just curious what version of the amp is installed in my car.

jollick

Under the passenger seat. If your sub-woofer does not distort at volumes above 40 to 45 you have the new amp.

Mike728

You've probably not heard of him, because you're not an audiophile. Bose is horrible and shouldn't be mentioned when referring to quality sound. As they say: Bose Blows!

Mark Levinson

Mike728

With the Levinson, it's all about the source. XM was so bad sounding on mine, I cancelled that subscription. It still sounds fine in my wife's C-RV. MP3's can be pretty decent, if encoded at 256k and above. Anything less, the audio starts to suffer. It excels when the EQ is closer to flat and surround is turned off. I'm still very impressed with it.

don1

I came from an Acura TL ELS system which I found to be much superior in sound quality to the Mark Levinson. After almost a year I'm getting used to it but still find it lacking especially in the low end.

Mhobizal

@Jollick, thanks for info. Looks like this thread has created some contervousy!

I too, had a 2008 Acura TL with the ELS system prior to my ES300h. The TL stereo allowed for DVD audio disks which are amazing quality. Unfortunately, this audio format never took off. The TL system did sound very nice, but the DVD Audio format really made it shine!

In my opinion, the Mark Levinson system is really good. Before buying my current Lexus, I compared the other other stock Lexus audio system and did not like it. That is why I spent the extra money for the Mark Levinson system.

don1

Yes, the 3rd gen TL had a great system but IMO the 4th gen was even better. I had a 2006 and then a 2010 TL which was the better of the two. I would place the ML close to the quality of the 3rd gen TL's ELS system.

Mike728

You do know that the ML can also play DVD-A's. It's just kind of a PITA to start. You need to be in Park with the parking brake engaged. Then chose the high res audio layer in the menu. Once it starts, you can release the brake. All you'll lose is the video portion of the DVD-A. If you don't follow those steps, it will play the DD layer. Also, if you haven't already, take the source off of Surround mode. This will allow for the most pure sound. If the source is multi-channel, it will play it back multi-channel. The built in matrix surround is just a gimmick, IMO.

Steve9R

The only complaint i have with the ML System is the volume..

Digital Radio here seems to be slightly quieter than normal FM Radio, so i find i often hit 'MAX VOLUME' on those good tunes, which isnt really that loud.. no distortion though..

Steve

Mhobizal

Not all of my DVD-A's will work.....that is what I've found with my collection.