Can The "dvd Changer" Play Audio

[ddaggett1]

I have a 2007 RX 400h with the Levinson sound system. The system identifies the changer as a "DVD Changer," but it appears to only play CDs. Optimally, I would like to use the "DVD Changer" to play MP3s burned to DVDs (as I can get a lot more of them on the DVD). Is there any way to make that work? Nero allows me to burn a "DVD Jukebox" with the MP3s, but the DVD Changer does not appear to recognize the format. Thanks in advance for any insight / assistance that anyone can provide.

[PIONEERSUBY]

I have a 2007 RX 400h with the Levinson sound system. The system identifies the changer as a "DVD Changer," but it appears to only play CDs. Optimally, I would like to use the "DVD Changer" to play MP3s burned to DVDs (as I can get a lot more of them on the DVD). Is there any way to make that work? Nero allows me to burn a "DVD Jukebox" with the MP3s, but the DVD Changer does not appear to recognize the format. Thanks in advance for any insight / assistance that anyone can provide.

[/quot

yes the indash cd dvd changer plays dvds in 7.1 surround sound. to get it to work on the front screen you have to put rx in park and put on the emergency brake. then the screen will play dvd movies or audio. gov regs dont allow the screen to work while driving as the gyro in the nav units locks out the screen. however the dvd sound should work while driving so you may need to ask your salesman to show you how to work it.

[Radiance]

The DVD Changer can play ANY Audio Format........the best sound quality would be from a DVD-A (DVD Audio) Disk....it will give you true surround sound from the Mark Levinson system.....you will really appreciate the sound quality.......however, there are very very limited DVD-Audio format disks in the market today and very limited choices on artists....and each DVD-A disk are much more expensive than a regular music CD or even a DVD movie......i bought several recently....and they are about $28.00 each. You can go to Tower.com or (Tower Records Stores) to look for the DVD-Audio format disk.....but i find it best to do it online because they give you a complete listing of all the titles available in the market today.....and will special order them for you if they don't have them in stock....i went to several Tower Records Stores and they no longer carry the DVD-Audio format disks becuase of very low demand.

The Mark Levinson System will automatically recognises the disk format as soon as you put it in.....so you don't have to worry. then the only setting to adjust is to turn the Surround feature ON in the Audio menu under DSP.......this will truely bring out the surround sound......and all the other audio format should have the surround setting off for the best stero sound.....

!Removed! Luck.....

[joetrav]

The DVD Changer can play ANY Audio Format........the best sound quality would be from a DVD-A (DVD Audio) Disk....it will give you true surround sound from the Mark Levinson system.....you will really appreciate the sound quality.......however, there are very very limited DVD-Audio format disks in the market today and very limited choices on artists....and each DVD-A disk are much more expensive than a regular music CD or even a DVD movie......i bought several recently....and they are about $28.00 each. You can go to Tower.com or (Tower Records Stores) to look for the DVD-Audio format disk.....but i find it best to do it online because they give you a complete listing of all the titles available in the market today.....and will special order them for you if they don't have them in stock....i went to several Tower Records Stores and they no longer carry the DVD-Audio format disks becuase of very low demand.

The Mark Levinson System will automatically recognises the disk format as soon as you put it in.....so you don't have to worry. then the only setting to adjust is to turn the Surround feature ON in the Audio menu under DSP.......this will truely bring out the surround sound......and all the other audio format should have the surround setting off for the best stero sound.....

!Removed! Luck.....

The DVD Changer can play ANY Audio Format........the best sound quality would be from a DVD-A (DVD Audio) Disk....it will give you true surround sound from the Mark Levinson system.....you will really appreciate the sound quality.......however, there are very very limited DVD-Audio format disks in the market today and very limited choices on artists....and each DVD-A disk are much more expensive than a regular music CD or even a DVD movie......i bought several recently....and they are about $28.00 each. You can go to Tower.com or (Tower Records Stores) to look for the DVD-Audio format disk.....but i find it best to do it online because they give you a complete listing of all the titles available in the market today.....and will special order them for you if they don't have them in stock....i went to several Tower Records Stores and they no longer carry the DVD-Audio format disks becuase of very low demand.

The Mark Levinson System will automatically recognises the disk format as soon as you put it in.....so you don't have to worry. then the only setting to adjust is to turn the Surround feature ON in the Audio menu under DSP.......this will truely bring out the surround sound......and all the other audio format should have the surround setting off for the best stero sound.....

!Removed! Luck.....

I have the exact system....I recently purchased Tommy by The Who in DVD Audio format....sounds incredible with one exception.....you do not hear the voice of the lead singer!!!! this channel is missing....not a flaw in disc as it plays in my home system....ever happen to you? any suggestions?

[Radiance]

When you play a DVD-Audio disk.....there are different goup selections.......that is similar to a DVD-Movie when you have to select the audio before you play the movie. Look on the DVD-Audio case and it will list all the different audio formats.......(e.g. 5.1 surround, DTS, Dolby...etc..etc.) then you can choose whichever you want to that will fully maximize the Mark Levison System.

have fun

[joetrav]

When you play a DVD-Audio disk.....there are different goup selections.......that is similar to a DVD-Movie when you have to select the audio before you play the movie. Look on the DVD-Audio case and it will list all the different audio formats.......(e.g. 5.1 surround, DTS, Dolby...etc..etc.) then you can choose whichever you want to that will fully maximize the Mark Levison System.

have fun

realize that when you first load DVD Video disc it provides options on screen....how do you access options on a DVD Audio disc, thanks.....

[Doug P]

I have a 2007 RX 400h with the Levinson sound system. The system identifies the changer as a "DVD Changer," but it appears to only play CDs. Optimally, I would like to use the "DVD Changer" to play MP3s burned to DVDs (as I can get a lot more of them on the DVD). Is there any way to make that work? Nero allows me to burn a "DVD Jukebox" with the MP3s, but the DVD Changer does not appear to recognize the format. Thanks in advance for any insight / assistance that anyone can provide.

Did you ever have any luck with the DVD MP3? I have the same setup as you... '07 RX400h w/Levinson Nav. I used iTunes to burn a Data DVD with MP3s, but of course that didn't work. Haven't tried Nero yet. Am burning an MP3 CD right now and will see how that goes. I can get about 100 songs on a CD but sure would like a 500-song DVD instead!

[GalacticS]

Same deal with me, can't get the cd/dvd player (2007 450h) to play mp3 dvd's. Can anyone out there help?

[spender]

Hi, so I assume that the Mark Levinson system from a 2004 LS with Nav is unable to play audio DVDs, with software hacks or otherwise? can someone clarify this for me? THanks

[PIONEERSUBY]

Hi, so I assume that the Mark Levinson system from a 2004 LS with Nav is unable to play audio DVDs, with software hacks or otherwise? can someone clarify this for me? THanks

the dvd audio players debuted in 2006 on the is350 and gs430 450h. no lexus up through 2005 can play them. i am working on installing the mechanism from the 2006 dvd changers in previous indash changers. lf the conversion works i will let you know. your 2004 ls430 screen has the video and audio inputs to support the conversion so its just a matter of getting the mechsnisms to convert seemleessly.

[norcal hybrid]

The DVD Changer can play ANY Audio Format........the best sound quality would be from a DVD-A (DVD Audio) Disk....it will give you true surround sound from the Mark Levinson system.....you will really appreciate the sound quality.......however, there are very very limited DVD-Audio format disks in the market today and very limited choices on artists....and each DVD-A disk are much more expensive than a regular music CD or even a DVD movie......i bought several recently....and they are about $28.00 each. You can go to Tower.com or (Tower Records Stores) to look for the DVD-Audio format disk.....but i find it best to do it online because they give you a complete listing of all the titles available in the market today.....and will special order them for you if they don't have them in stock....i went to several Tower Records Stores and they no longer carry the DVD-Audio format disks becuase of very low demand.

The Mark Levinson System will automatically recognises the disk format as soon as you put it in.....so you don't have to worry. then the only setting to adjust is to turn the Surround feature ON in the Audio menu under DSP.......this will truely bring out the surround sound......and all the other audio format should have the surround setting off for the best stero sound.....

!Removed! Luck.....

The DVD Changer can play ANY Audio Format........the best sound quality would be from a DVD-A (DVD Audio) Disk....it will give you true surround sound from the Mark Levinson system.....you will really appreciate the sound quality.......however, there are very very limited DVD-Audio format disks in the market today and very limited choices on artists....and each DVD-A disk are much more expensive than a regular music CD or even a DVD movie......i bought several recently....and they are about $28.00 each. You can go to Tower.com or (Tower Records Stores) to look for the DVD-Audio format disk.....but i find it best to do it online because they give you a complete listing of all the titles available in the market today.....and will special order them for you if they don't have them in stock....i went to several Tower Records Stores and they no longer carry the DVD-Audio format disks becuase of very low demand.

The Mark Levinson System will automatically recognises the disk format as soon as you put it in.....so you don't have to worry. then the only setting to adjust is to turn the Surround feature ON in the Audio menu under DSP.......this will truely bring out the surround sound......and all the other audio format should have the surround setting off for the best stero sound.....

!Removed! Luck.....

I have the exact system....I recently purchased Tommy by The Who in DVD Audio format....sounds incredible with one exception.....you do not hear the voice of the lead singer!!!! this channel is missing....not a flaw in disc as it plays in my home system....ever happen to you? any suggestions?

Joetrav,

I posted a similar topic in the Hybrid forum re: ML DVD-Audio & Rear Channels Missing (below). bnmintx posted a topic in the -07 RX350 forum in early Jun'07 (second excerpt and my response).

HYBRID FORUM

Mark Levinson DVD-audio & Issue w/ Rear Channels

Norcal Hybrid Jul 2 2007, 01:24PM

I purchased an '07 RX 400h w/ the Nav/ML pkg two wks ago. The DVD-Audio does not process the rear channels correctly. Depending on the source mat'l it can be very audible. It is very evident on Marvin Gaye's "The Marvin Gaye Collection" (Motown B0001109-19, DVD-Audio), Track 3 "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". Tammi Terrell's vocals are located in the rear channels in the duet w/ very little of her vocals in the front (for echo/reverb). Without proper rear channel processing, it sounds like she's in an echo chamber with her voice severely attenuated. It is also evident on Richard Thompson's "Rumor and Sigh" (Capitol 72434-77932-9-5, DVD-Audio).

Over the weekend, I went back to the dealer to see if my vehicle was at fault or is it inherent in Lexus/Mark Levinson's design implementation of DVD-Audio. I got the same results on another '07 RX 400h and an '07 LS 460. It appears to be a design flaw but more analysis is required. My wife, son, his girlfriend & I all had the same observations. I tried adjusting the DSP & controls but to no avail. My wife has an '05 Acura RL w/ DVD-Audio and it sounds significantly better (functions as intended). I also have DVD-Audio in our home theater system and it also places the rear channel musical effects correctly.

Has anyone noticed similar issues when listening to DVD-Audio discs? I contacted Lexus and they stated no other customer has communicated a similar issue. They indicated they will look into it but who knows. The Nav/ML pkg costs $4130. For this amount of money, it is reasonable to expect that it function properly.

Welcome observations from others. I posted in the Hybrid forum but it appears to be endemic to "all" ML DVD-Audio designs.

Regards,

Norcal Hybrid

07-RX350 FORUM:

Issues With Mark Levinson And DVD-audio

bnmintx Jun 10 2007, 08:09 AM

I have a 2007 RX-350 with the ML sound system. When I play some DVD-Audio discs, there appears to be a channel missing. An example is on Steely Dan's Gaucho, the song "Hey Nineteen" has background vocals missing.

Has anyone else noticed this?

Mike

MY (Norcal Hybrid) RESPONSE TO bnmintx (Mike) Jul 2 2007, 05:19 PM

Mike,

I purchased an '07 RX 400h two wks ago. I posted a topic today in the Hybrid forum "Mark Levinson DVD-Audio & Issue w/ Rear Channels". I searched the other forums and saw your topic. Guess you & I are the only ones that critically listen to DVD-Audio discs in their cars. I'm somewhat surprised considering the cost of the Nav/ML pkg....

I don't have the Steely Dan Gaucho DVD-Audio disc. The problem I noticed are the rear channels are missing (I don't know if all the source mat'l is missing or just vocals?). Is this the phenomenum you observed? Your description seems to correlate as you described the background vocals are missing. The issue I observed is very evident on Marvin Gaye's "The Marvin Gaye Collection" (Motown B0001109-19, DVD-Audio), Track 3 "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". Tammi Terrell's vocals are located in the rear channels in the duet w/ very little of her vocals in the front (for echo/reverb). Marvin is in the front channels. With the ML DVD-Audio system, you can barely hear her as the front channels have her voice attenuated to expand the surroud presence. It is also evident on Richard Thompson's "Rumor and Sigh" (Capitol 72434-77932-9-5, DVD-Audio). I gather most discs primarily use the front channels and assign the rears for surround/presence. Discs that have "aggressive" use of the rear channels should highlight the problem.

Did you contact Lexus or Mark Levinson? I did today and I was told I was the only one in the U.S. who has communicated this problem. If others notice the same issue, it will help if people contact Lexus (http://www.lexus.com/contact) to make them aware of the problem so it can be fixed. I'm fairly certain it is not unique to a particular vehicle as I went to the dealer this weekend. I heard the same issue on another '07 RX 400h and an '07 LS 460. The fix could be a FW upgrade if the DSP is incorrectly processing the channels. It's disappointing that ML did not sufficiently validate their design before it went into production. I thought ML was a audiophile electronics company. Doesn't appear they listen to their own designs....

Cheers,

Norcal Hybrid

[ronsou]

I just got a new 2008 RX400H, with nav system and Mark Levinson. I do not have the rear system entertainment package.

I see this same issue - it plays a CD with MP3's just fine. If I burn a DVD created same way as I created the CD, it says "No Music." I am assuming that the system simply does not support MP3 DVD's, yet some responses here seem to indicate that it actually does.

Did anyone having this problem get any resolution, or a definitive answer that DVD mp3's simply do not work ?

Thank you.

[gordonw]

DVD MP3s will not work. Only CD-ROM, CD-R, and CD-RW.

[ronsou]

DVD MP3s will not work. Only CD-ROM, CD-R, and CD-RW.

Thank you Gordon - too bad, but at least now I won't spend any more time on it.

So without the rear entertainment option (which I dont have), its essentially just a CD player (incl MP3 files), correct ? (I mean I know its actually a DVD player, but not for the front screen. Maybe it will play a movie there even, if I have it in Park, with Brake on, etc - but for me thats not a feature I'd use. )

[Gaugster]

I posted this preivously in the IS250/350 forum. It addresses the player issues with DVD-A and ML.

It would be interesting to try to burn MP3's in the DVD-A format on to a disc to see if it would play.

****************************

Hello, I have had similar difficulties with different DVD-A discs.

I have to say that I do very much like the ML system but I do not believe that it is "fully" compatible with DVD-A. This is kind of a mute point as DVD-A it not mainstream yet if ever.

I am an audiophile / techno-snob from way back and have looked into DVD-A in great detail when it first hit the scene.

The DVD-A media (i.e disc) will be recognized by the ML system. However the ML website only states that MP3, WMA, PCM, Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 data formats are compatible. This list excludes the DVD-A specific format of Meridian Lossless Packing (MLP) a.k.a Packed Pulse Code Modulation (PPCM)

Don't worry, I don't really know what that means either. I just know it is different from DVD-V formats.

http://www.marklevinsonlexus.com/overview.asp?model=is

Hence the typical DVD-V formats (DD & DTS) sound great but the high resolution DVD-A (PPCM) is hit or miss.

I have the Blue Man Group DVD-A but can only use the DD or DTS sound tracks. The PPCM sound track will play but the center channel is not audible and sometime I hear a cracking sound. Perhaps my radio is broke but I doubt it.

I also have an Emerson Lake & Palmer DVD-A which seems to play the PPCM sound track just fine???

Both discs are displayed as PPCM 96kHz. I believe this indicates that it is a surround sound format. I would like to find a DVD-A disc recorded in PPCM 192kHz. This is a high resolution stereo format and may play well in the ML system.

**************************

[intrica]

DVD MP3s will not work. Only CD-ROM, CD-R, and CD-RW.

This is correct. I think of this as a pretty arbitrary restriction brought on by poor design; it's almost as if they went out of their way to limit functionality.

A DVD full of high-quality MP3 or even WAV files would have been awesome. Note that using mp3s you get the track and folder names displayed on the radio. That's awesome - you can find your way among hundreds of songs if you burn a CD-R. But it could have been thousands on a DVD-R, and perhaps lossless too.

Having said that, I managed to burn a DVD with multiple audio tracks (several CDs worth) in DVD audio track quality using Toast 7 Titanium on my Macbook Pro.

It was actually pretty painless, but it felt like work. I got bored after adding 3 or so CDs to one DVD but I think I calculated the limit to be a bit higher. Toast even created a splash screen that displays on the dash screen when parking brake is on but it was cheesy and only partially functional.

I had previously spent a dozen hours trying these things using free burning software I found on the web. Toast was absolutely worth the money, and they now have a later version that might be even better. I had also tried using some of my 5.1 DTS disks in the car and I thought they sounded like regular stereo. I needed a DTS 5.1 test disk. Fry's didn't have one that worked. I bought the Mannheim Steamroller disk that contained a "5.1 test" but it was inconclusive.

But I can settle the dispute here, and sadly, you won't like it the message. I could not find a 5.1 channel test disk for DTS anywhere but I found a 5.1 source file from the Swedish National Radio on the web and I burned that to a CD-R using Toast. It played in 5.1 in my livingroom 5.1 stereo and all 6 channels were nicely 100% separated. Then I took it to the car and the back channels and base were mixed in with the fronts. Bah.

Well, I thought, it says "DTS" right here on the player There must be 6 channels in there from the DVD reader at least. Perhaps they just added a mixer so that the rear seats would not lose the front channels. I bet I can remove that mixer if I get a look at the schematics for the stereo and can figure out where it is in the car. Best case I hoped to be able to cut a few resistors or remove a mixer widget from a cable. I had the opportunity....

I did make myself impopular at my Lexus dealer when I brought the car in for 5K mile service. I asked about the stereo and they didn't understand what I was talking about (big surprise there) but I escalated to the top service manager and he graciously set me down at a logged-in computer connected to their Intranet and showed me a browser for the schematics. Then he LEFT ME ALONE. I thought this was great service.

In the next hour I had determined beyond any doubt:

1. The most expensive Lexus models (LS, GS, ES) have true 5.1 sound, as advertised.
   
2. The others don't. Specifically, the 2007 rx400h (my car) has "11 speaker stereo". The center channel mixes left and right, and the base is all over.
   But there are ONLY two amplifier channels.
   There is NO WAY to get the rx400h (at least 2007 model) to play true 5.1 (redistributed to 7.1 channels) music or video soundtrack without replacing the whole Mark Levinson unit.
   I read the schematics. Couldnt find a place to add an amp to get the missing channels - Could not see any indication for anything except left and right,
   all the way from the DVD player. If it doesn't say "7.1" or "5.1" in the specs, you get stereo.
   
3. Getting the rear seat entertainment center makes no difference. I saw where it would be hooked in. The sound will still only be stereo.
   

Notice the differences on the the Mark Levinson webpage. The top Lexi mentioned above have "Discrete 5.1 Surround Sound" whereas the others have something like "7 channels" and "Proprietary DSP technology". Sounds like "Stereo we messed around with" to me.

Obviously I was disappointed - I paid almost 50K for the car and I had seen the "DTS" printed on the dash which had influenced my buying decision.

Oh, one more thing I also asked if they could set the computer to display degrees Celsius instead of Fahrenheit. Nope. Can't be done. I looked at the schematics for this also. And the in-dash clock cannot show 24 hr time either - it's most significant digit is a "1" at most, in hardware. It would likely have cost another dollar to get a segment display with 24-hr capability.

Customization of my computers is a big deal to me. My Canon camera has more customization settings than my car. I believe that car companies still have a lot to learn about user's desires.

- Monica

[ap708]

DVD MP3s will not work. Only CD-ROM, CD-R, and CD-RW.

Will dvd audio programs like dvd solo work for dvd audio?

I have an 08 GX with rear entertainment and I want to play dvd audio (so I can put in a bunch of music at once).

thnks

[RattleExtreame330]

I have a 2007 RX 400h with the Levinson sound system. The system identifies the changer as a "DVD Changer," but it appears to only play CDs. Optimally, I would like to use the "DVD Changer" to play MP3s burned to DVDs (as I can get a lot more of them on the DVD). Is there any way to make that work? Nero allows me to burn a "DVD Jukebox" with the MP3s, but the DVD Changer does not appear to recognize the format. Thanks in advance for any insight / assistance that anyone can provide.

i am a lexus tech, dont play burned cd's/dvd/s as they are to thick and will be come loged (jammed). is 300 are particullary bad, but i don't recomend it on any model lexus.

[PIONEERSUBY]

I have a 2007 RX 400h with the Levinson sound system. The system identifies the changer as a "DVD Changer," but it appears to only play CDs. Optimally, I would like to use the "DVD Changer" to play MP3s burned to DVDs (as I can get a lot more of them on the DVD). Is there any way to make that work? Nero allows me to burn a "DVD Jukebox" with the MP3s, but the DVD Changer does not appear to recognize the format. Thanks in advance for any insight / assistance that anyone can provide.

i am a lexus tech, dont play burned cd's/dvd/s as they are to thick and will be come loged (jammed). is 300 are particullary bad, but i don't recomend it on any model lexus.

the 2001 to 2005 is300 and lexus lx470 98 to 2000 cd changers were both made by fujitsu who has, i hope ,given up making any kind of multiple cd dvd changers. they were both disasters at getting burnt cds stuck in the mechanism. . . pioneer is the remaining maker of all the mark levinson dvd cd players for lexus the reason they are remaining is that most of their changers work just fine. pioneer made dvd units have had some problems playing some brands of burnt dvd discs but certainly not enough problems to have a "dont play" warning. the jamming of pioneer units is mainly from stickking 2 cds in the same slot not from different thickbness dvd blanks. also there are mark levinson system cd players in non nav cars that just play cds through a mark levinson amp but have no ability to play dvds. . the only mark levinson dvd movie players come in navigation system equiped lexus. also unless adjustments are made the movies wont play while vehicle moving but the dvd sound should still come through like on a dvd music video .

[GSguy77095]

Just to add to this thread, I recently purchased a 2008 GS460. When I play Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road DVD-Audio, I find certain passages missing (they are present in my home theater).

I did listen briefly to the first track of Steely Dan Gaucho DTS 5.1 (Babylon Sisters) and definitely heard the background vocals on the rear channel. I've ordered the DVD-Audio (newer release) and am anxious to hear how it is reproduced on the ML system.

I will be speaking with my dealership on this matter and have already submitted an inquiry with Mark Levinson. I would anticipate that this should be resolved with a firmware upgrade, but it doesn't sound like this has been happening (according to what I'm reading in this thread). Instead, these issues may be addressed with subsequent hardware releases.

I am so hoping the DVD-Audio issue can be resolved so I can enjoy the full range of my collection while on my daily commute to the office.

Any other information from others on this matter would be appreciated.

Thx - Mark

[wnasir]

Guys, The only problem here is the video format. Pal and NTSC! Guys in the USA and Canada can play NTSC formats while if you try to play a PAL formatted video the picture quality changes and you may get a black and white picture. I have tried to adjust my car DVD player to play both but it seems that we have to live like this. cheers