I hear that they are both excellent systems, but which one do you guys think is better? From what i've heard, I believe that the Levinson takes the cake.

 

Levinson is a great system, U can do a Search on Mark levinson and u can see all the posts that were on there, I believe that everyone thought Levinson was the best too, I mean if it wasn't then Lexus would have just kept Nakamichi

ShOwGS

 

It was my understanding that Lexus switched to ML because ML was willing to conform to the proprietary Lexus (Denso {?}) "networking" scheme.

 

DEJAVU!!!!!


https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...son+is+not+bad



I think the ML system is better, but that may just be me. Ive been listening to the Nakimichi system lately, but it doesnt sound too bad.

 

I have never heard the Nakamichi system, so I can only go by marketing hype and what I've seen in print.

Nakamichi makes nice mid-level audio equipment. At the time Lexus was using them, it was at or near the top of stock sound systems.

Mark Levinson is clearly a high-end audiophile company. They are the top-of-the-line in Harmon International's lineup (which includes Infinity, harmon/kardon, JBL and others). They spent extensive time and research in designing a sound system and an acoustic environment in Lexus cars that would maximize sound quality. The Mark Levinson system in the LS430 is widely recognized as the best stock sound system ever produced.

 

in my opinion ML is better

 

I've heard both before at the same time, played the same CD side by side, my vote goes to ML by a hairline. And only with a selection from a live Billy Joel concert. With jazz and classical music, these two systems are even steven.

Bottomline: if you don't have a comparison, you won't be able to tell the difference.

 

for the amt of money u spend on upgrading to the ML system you can stick to the stock setup and trash it and upgrade to aftermarket products which will blow away the levy sys...

 

I think the fact that the two are comparable says a lot for the Nak system. I have the Nak and assumed the the ML would be cleaner, more headroom, punch, and sound stage.

From what you guys are saying it seems as though there really isn't much to worry about and the system isn't a 4k upgrade.

Plus it is good to know that ML is a "Harmon" company. I bought one of their receivers to find that it was mfg'd in Taiwan and riddled with problems. A different Harmon than of old.

 

I've just come back from my Lexus dealer. While I was there I asked one of the salesmen if I could listen to the ML system. The 430 in the showroom had no battery, so he took me out to a SC430 (I think) and I listened to the radio. No CDs to hand and mine were in the car in the workshop. The salesman didn't seem to know how to adjust the controls, so I suppose I get a typical demonstration.

It sounded rubbish. Boom tizz. Goddam awful. The sound was all on one side and the armrest shook underneath my arm on every bass note. I couldn't listen to it for more than two minutes it was so bad. 4 thousand dollars? For a ghettoblaster?

Stevie

 

Stevie,

The ML system differs from car to car in terms of sound quality. I found the one in the GS430 barely acceptable (to my standards) while the one in the LS430 proved to be a bit better. This is with a bit of tuning involved.

Still, I'd go with aftermarket unless a person didn't want to mess around with audio.

Percy

 

I think barely acceptable puts it quite nicely, Percy.

Hype is a wonderful thing.

Stevie

 

yeh, think about it...what do u expect to get from ML for $4k???