Meridian sound system on MY14 LR4

[umbertob]

I wonder if this means the LR4 is going to stay the same for a while. It seems like a fairly large change for a vehicle that is supposed to be redesigned soon...

Don't know if that's much of an indication of things to come. Their supply contract with Harman was probably up and/or they had committed to switching the entire lineup to Meridian by 2014. Other than installing different speakers and amp in the car, I doubt they will make substantial structural changes to accommodate the new system. I bet the Meridian speakers will be located exactly where the HK ones used to be in the LR4. We already know the UI is the same, save for the Logic7 button being replaced by a Meridian Surround button in the Audio Options screen...

 

[Quijote]

Don't know if that's much of an indication of things to come. Their supply contract with Harman was probably up and/or they had committed to switching the entire lineup to Meridian by 2014. Other than installing different speakers and amp in the car, I doubt they will make substantial structural changes to accommodate the new system. I bet the Meridian speakers will be located exactly where the HK ones used to be in the LR4. We already know the UI is the same, save for the Logic7 button being replaced by a Meridian Surround button in the Audio Options screen...

Exactly. That's not a big change.

 

[ougrad1]

I've listened to Meridian home components: they are a rather nice mid hifi brand. Which doesn't mean a whole lot in car applications, in my experience,since there are many different factors different from home listening environment. It seems that a lot of audio companies have ventured into this area with a different degree of success. Krell on an Acura and ML premium on LX570 have been the best I've listened to.

Re: Meridian, I checked it out on a loaner Evoque. It's moderately nicer than my HK, and all things being equal, would be a good $2k upgrade

I agree, the ML systems on the Lexus' are one of the best factory sound system I've heard. I had an evoque as a loaner and thought the Meridian system was solid and better than most other branded systems.

 

[uhur]

Strangely, the sound of the same audio company varies on different models.
Mark Levinson on a Lexus 330 was rotten with no bass, yet it was superior on the LX570. Lesson learnt: can't assume anything unless I listen to the sound with my own ears, audio brand notwithstanding

 

[umbertob]

That's so true. When I brought in my LR4 for the 15K mile service last month, they gave me a barebone 2013 LR2 as loaner for the day. The stock "low end" Meridian sound system sounded... well, it sounded great, dare I say nearly as good as the super duper 825W Logic7 system in my LR4 to my ears.