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from my research and talking to experts while trading up my 17 GX non-ML to 18 GX with ML, only Luxury trim comes with ML package. Noted that it's called a package, not individual option.
That does appear to be the case as I was looking at a bunch of Carguru ads as well.
'10-'13 Premium
'14+ Luxury
In Canada it appears it is all ML regardless of trim for the most part. I'll post specifics in first post as I know we have quite a number of Canadian members here as well.
I have a new to me 2015 GX460 Luxury with a Mark Levinson system. While it’s better sounding than some factory systems, it has room for improvement.
I’m coming out of a 2015 4runner with the JBL system that sounded absolutely terrible. With the 4runner I contacted a company called OEM Audio+ and they worked miracles with my 4runner. Basically they created custom filters for the factory speakers and completely redesigned the subwoofer system. They sell the kits that are designed to install yourself with no cutting of wires.
I contacted them again to see if they had anything for the GX460 w ML. Sandy (the owner) said no but bring it down and let me run some tests and analyze the data. The data verified my thoughts. The ML has a strong mid bass bump that sounds okay at low volume but sounds really bloated when you turn it up. Sandy said the components of the ML system are very high quality with plenty of power but he agreed the tuning was not to his taste. The ML system is very self-contained and most of the crossover is processed within the factory amp. Sandy tried a few things and hit the nail right on the head. He installed filters for the 3 dash speakers and used the same plug and play inline filters he sells for 4runners on the 6x9’s on the front doors. The results are downright impressive. Filtering out some of the bass from the front speakers really cleaned up the sound. Now the system remains clean and clear with no stress whatsoever when I turn up the volume. The speakers just completely disappear in surround mode and the bass from the factory sub has far more presence. I can’t wait to go sit in some traffic now.
Hopefully they’ll add this package as one of their products.
I have a new to me 2015 GX460 Luxury with a Mark Levinson system. While it’s better sounding than some factory systems, it has room for improvement.
I’m coming out of a 2015 4runner with the JBL system that sounded absolutely terrible. With the 4runner I contacted a company called OEM Audio+ and they worked miracles with my 4runner. Basically they created custom filters for the factory speakers and completely redesigned the subwoofer system. They sell the kits that are designed to install yourself with no cutting of wires.
I contacted them again to see if they had anything for the GX460 w ML. Sandy (the owner) said no but bring it down and let me run some tests and analyze the data. The data verified my thoughts. The ML has a strong mid bass bump that sounds okay at low volume but sounds really bloated when you turn it up. Sandy said the components of the ML system are very high quality with plenty of power but he agreed the tuning was not to his taste. The ML system is very self-contained and most of the crossover is processed within the factory amp. Sandy tried a few things and hit the nail right on the head. He installed filters for the 3 dash speakers and used the same plug and play inline filters he sells for 4runners on the 6x9’s on the front doors. The results are downright impressive. Filtering out some of the bass from the front speakers really cleaned up the sound. Now the system remains clean and clear with no stress whatsoever when I turn up the volume. The speakers just completely disappear in surround mode and the bass from the factory sub has far more presence. I can’t wait to go sit in some traffic now.
Hopefully they’ll add this package as one of their products.
How much did they charge to install the five filters?
So far nothing, it was R&D. They had the car 4 days. The final parts couldn’t be very costly. If they market a kit it would be plug and play and not sure how they would price it.
I have a new to me 2015 GX460 Luxury with a Mark Levinson system. While it’s better sounding than some factory systems, it has room for improvement.
I’m coming out of a 2015 4runner with the JBL system that sounded absolutely terrible. With the 4runner I contacted a company called OEM Audio+ and they worked miracles with my 4runner. Basically they created custom filters for the factory speakers and completely redesigned the subwoofer system. They sell the kits that are designed to install yourself with no cutting of wires.
I contacted them again to see if they had anything for the GX460 w ML. Sandy (the owner) said no but bring it down and let me run some tests and analyze the data. The data verified my thoughts. The ML has a strong mid bass bump that sounds okay at low volume but sounds really bloated when you turn it up. Sandy said the components of the ML system are very high quality with plenty of power but he agreed the tuning was not to his taste. The ML system is very self-contained and most of the crossover is processed within the factory amp. Sandy tried a few things and hit the nail right on the head. He installed filters for the 3 dash speakers and used the same plug and play inline filters he sells for 4runners on the 6x9’s on the front doors. The results are downright impressive. Filtering out some of the bass from the front speakers really cleaned up the sound. Now the system remains clean and clear with no stress whatsoever when I turn up the volume. The speakers just completely disappear in surround mode and the bass from the factory sub has far more presence. I can’t wait to go sit in some traffic now.
Hopefully they’ll add this package as one of their products.
FYI, the front door speakers (not dash) are purely midbass or lower...no vocals thru them. They work in conjunction with the rear cargo subwoofer (which can go lower than front door speakers) to get bass all around the cabin. Toyota/Lexus calls it "Distributed Subwoofer System" or something like that. You neutered the front door speakers which may cause valleys in bass frequencies. Play some more songs...i bet that you will start to see that your system will now lack bass all around. The cargo subwoofer is not strong enough to blast bass around the cabin (esp front passengers).
I agree the front door speakers were going too low, They didn’t neuter them, they tamed them down a little. Still lot’s of bass just cleaner. My opinion is the front doors are not good places for subs or shared subs because they are too close to the driver. It’s fatiguing like sitting too close to the speakers at a concert. I also agree to keep listening for what’s missing. The goal was to just get rid of or tame the bump. I’ll listen for another week or two.
Not a shill but thanks for the warm welcome. Just sharing my experience with other enthusiasts. I’ve brought them 2 vehicles to use for R&D. They ended up producing a upgrade kit for the 4Runner limited and its selling well.
I took a quick screenshot using an app on my phone called Analyzer. I watched this app in live mode for about 5 minutes looking for a hole in the curve. The eq on the ML is flat and so are the balance and fade.
This shot was taken while playing Amy by Ryan Adams. The app also generates test tones. I played the 50 Hz tone to see what the front door speakers did. They do play the tone but not very loud.
