My Lexus ML system is better that the Bose system in my Cadillac. Average sound playing XM but much better streaming. Amazon music sounds great.

 

That makes absolutely no sense. You may have an issue with your system. Is it a ML?

 

Yes indeed. Cmon

 

Amazon music does sound terrific. I don't stream it enough.

 

Not entirely sure what your response is, but I'll assume you have a ML and you think XM sounds better than your MP3 files. Can you please tell me what bitrate you're using? Because, there's no way XM will ever sound as good as a 320 Mbps MP3. Not even close...

 

You're insulting my intelligence asking me if I'm sure it's ML. I've owned this car longer than most members on this site. Copy that XM sounds quite clear and the MP3s on the flash drive sound awful.

 

I'm with Mike728 on this - not the question if you have a ML or not, but that something is wrong if a decent MP3 sounds worse than XM. May not be with your system, but with the source material or media or something.

 

Properly encoded 320 Mbps mp3 will sound very close or indistinguishable from CD quality.

 

I'm sorry if you felt I challenged your intelligence. I don't believe I ever asked if you were sure you had a ML, just "if" you had one. Thank you for confirming it.

 

Got it so I suppose it's the media on the flash drive. They were simply exported from the PC to the drive and most were converted from CDs. Perhaps I used the wrong approach (my knowledge of this stuff is limited) but I assure you that source is horrendous quality on the ML - but get this sounds fine in my wife's RX which does NOT have the ML system.

 

MP3 is an encoding format. Does not say anything about the audio quality. You must have listened to low bit rate MP3s from the 90s.

I can encode MP3 to 320kbps which is indistinguishable from a CD. Also CD is low quality by todays standard where lossless audio or high resolution audio is the gold standard.

 

ML in my 2020 ESh sounds amazing. That's all I can say.

 

Using the USB connection from an iPhone or Aux port is the best way to enjoy the ML. Great improvement over BT.

 

I use flash memory and FLAC songs. That’s where ML shines the most.

 

Yeah one easy way right now is to go download free hi-res sampler from HDtracks at https://www.hdtracks.com/#/album/61d...947355ea247555

These are professionally encoded in 96KHz at 24bit. The proper way to bring out the ML.