I am going to buy a 2011 to 2013, IS350C soon. I have read where the standard Lexus audio system is not very good. When I look for the Levinson system in used IS350C's I hardly ever see the Levinson emblem in the CD area. Am I missing something? Is the Levinson system worth searching for? I am not an music affciado but I don't want something bad either. The Levinson system in our 2003 GX470 doesn't blow my mind ( one front bass do speaker is bad though...) My 1999 Camry system sounds okay to me. Is the Mark Levinson emblem by the CD player the only clue? Is the face of the audio system different from one to the other? What say you all? Thanks!

 

The standard sound system in the is250/350 is actually quite good. It is not blow your ear drums out loud, but the actual sound quality at normal volumes is good. You have a 3 way setup up front with a decent 8" subwoofer, i enjoy it. I would say it is the best oem sound system I have heard so far.

 

Since I posted this, I dug deeper (should have earlier) into this awesome forum and found discussions mirroring your thoughts. I appreciate your reply and will not lose any sleep over not finding the ML system in our future IS!

 

The bass is actually really good. I put bass boost option on my iphone and max out bass in my is250 and its pretty clean quality without any distortion, even up to 40 volume.

 

I have the EXACT same requirement lol. I'm on the hunt for another 350 & along with black paint and non white interiors the Levinson system is one of my search parameters lol. And like yourself, I'm not an audiophile whatsoever so. And if you're 99 Camry's sound system is ok for you, this IS will DEFINITELY sound ok to you lol. Though what confuses me is how your Camry's system sounds better than the older Levinson system which is touted by many to be better than the newer (newer than around 2007) Levinsons. Weird.
At any rate if you're using the Levinson as a search parameter stop doing that because you're NEVER going to find one on a car that's actually worth buying. They were an option that pretty much no one chose during the 11, 12, & 13 model years. You're wasting your time looking for one honestly, and they're not worth the hassle of severely curtailing your search results for especially if you're not an audiophile.

 

The F-Sport solves the white interior problem.... It's all black!

I will say the stock 14 speaker system is good. Not great, but good. What it needs is an EQ and all would be much better...

I play mostly from a USB stick and hate the clunky artist/album selection option on the menu. You have to push next for every album unless you wise up and use the voice commands.

Play Artist P¡nk
Play Song Whatever You Want

As said not a game changer unless you hate how Toyota implemented the audio interface at the HU.

 

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-...-showdown.html

In my opinion the ML system sounds awesome and well worth getting if you can find one.

 

 

Bass is actually really good imo. If you like to "bump" your music though, you might want to add a sub. i guess it just depends on what you expect from your sound system,

 

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