I want to buy the Viastech ipod integration for my LS.

Does anyone know if i will have any problems laying AAC music files through ipod to Viastech ipod on the Mark Levinson audio system??

 

You'll have no issues. I have the latest VAIS unit in my 600h and it plays both AAC and Apple Lossless files perfectly. You need the iPod to do it though; it won't play them off the USB drive.

I have the older SLi unit in the LS430 and it sounds fantastic; but it's picky with the quality of the files. 256K or higher will sound markedly better than the standard 128K.

The ML is that good.

Cheers!

 

Anything that the iPod will play through your headphones will play through the VAIStech box.

Forget 128K, 256K, the MP3 format, and any other lossy compression algorithms - they all sound terrible when you have a system as good as the Mark Levinson. It's easy enough nowadays to find everything in FLAC, but since the iPod doesn't play FLAC files, just convert FLAC to WAV (FLAC Front End 1.7 is easy to use), then load the WAV files to the iPod.

If you are short on space and have time for the extra step, convert the WAV to AAC to apply the only lossless compression that the iPod can play. I personally don't bother since I have plenty of space so it's a useless extra step for me.

I suspect most people who complain about the ML speakers not sounding good are not using store-bought CDs in the factory CD player or are not using lossless music files through a direct integration kit. The ML system incredibly clear and accurate at all frequency ranges and volume levels. The subwoofer doesn't echo or hit harder than it should (although some people are accustomed to and prefer such untuned systems).

All speakers reproduce sound pretty much exactly as it was recorded in the studio. But low quality music input equals low quality music output, so feed your system with the highest quality input possible.

 

Do you know how to set up the flash drive to play on the MML unit? I just installed mine last week and although the Ipod plays perfectly, Nothing happens when i plug in my flash drive with music on it. Is there a step i missed during installation?

 

Maybe you have to put them in a specifically named file, "Music" for example.

Another thing would be the format of the USB. Make sure it's formatted to FAT32 so that it can be read by the Vaistech.


I have the MML as well, but I just received my car from Central Pine yesterday, so I haven't had the chance to install mine and play around with it.
So check the user manual for the correct file naming.

But the idea of having a mobile USB that you can carry to your laptop, fill and update with music, and then bring it back to your car with you, plug it in and forget about it; is also a really nice feature to have.

 

Thanks for the response. I did get it to play. Now I have to get the playlist to play the songs in the order I want them to.

 

I have 3 VaisTech MMLs and love the sound quality - but the recorded input must be high quality lest the output will be low quality. The ability to stream music, podcasts, radio, etc. and operate it through the existing audio controls is seamless.

 

There's a folder structure and additional playlist files you need to put onto the USB drive (see the manual) but it's such a pain that I just have a couple old iPod classics that just live in the car. I've already solved this media management problem once; why try to do it again. Plug, sync go. if you use iTunes for music it's almost brainless.

I think the USB protocol would work with an old phone as well; if you have an old phone with removable storage it might be worth a try.