The Lair

Premium audio for the 4runner is just an "upgraded" head unit and speakers that are only a little better IIRC. Its really not much of an upgrade.

 

Guys, these EQ apps are just an app that enhances the audio from your device. The PowerAmp app will act as a player too but my primary source for playback is Amazon Prime Music, so I never use it for that. I have GB's of music stored on my phone from old CDs and I can use the app to enhance the sound of those but I rarely do. I'm just a hoarder.

Basically, I start Amazon Prime, and then start the app. Think of it as a home stereo system, with a receiver, a disc player, tape deck, phonograph, reel to reel and then it all goes through a amplifier with a EQ.

As far as the quality is concerned "We particularly loved the equalizer and the fact that this music player supports the flac audio format. After all, it’s one of the very few formats that offers lossless audio playback."

"Poweramp v3 introduced support for hi-res DACs, both internal and external, which means it can play up to 24bit/192khz audio files, if your phone’s internal DAC supports that sampling rate, or you have an external DAC. The UI is very clean with liquid-smooth animations, and has various display options, such as folder / album display with cover albums.

Poweramp v3 has a 10-band equalizer with custom presets, and it plays pretty much all audio file formats. The audio engine features Float32 internal sample, Float64 DSP processing, up to 384khz sampling rate, various dither settings, SWR/SOX resamplers, and some additional DSP effects such as stereo enhancement and reverb."

So yes, obviously connecting a 3.5mm cable to the headphone jack of the phone and the Aux jack of the vehicle would definitely provide cleaner sound, I have not needed to do that in my Taco. I just didn't think the JBL system was worth the money Toyota wanted for it.

Now with that being said, that Mark Levinson system in the Lexus (it's a Hybrid) is unlike anything I have ever heard and I have two home based systems that are top of the line. However............

"Premium Sound systems are equipped with unique, bamboo charcoal-based resin diaphragm speakers. Constructed using a complex compound combining bamboo charcoal, bamboo fibre and resin, the diaphragms are injection-moulded to a thickness of only 0.2-0.3mm. They are some 10-15% lighter than a conventional speaker diaphragm, yet 20% stiffer and with a 10% greater sonic speed. As a result, the sound is clearer and more natural than that of a conventional resin diaphragm."

"Clari-fi™, from Mark Levinson’s parent company Harmon, uses a series of pre-coded algorithms to analyze audio signals of compressed digital tracks in real time. The technology then replaces the aural subtleties which are lost when downloads are rendered usable on smartphones, tablets and mp4 players, for perfect playback."

So I know a little about what sounds good and what sounds like shit. I can always tell if the PowerAmp app is off. It is still the number 1 music EQ app on the market. Neutron is the #1 IOS app.

 

I think I have Poweramp Pro from when it was on sale/free. I didn't realize it acted as a DAC though. I may have to check it out soon. Thanks for the info!

 

Yea, I've had it since then too. I upgraded to eliminate the adds and that cost me $2.99 at the time LOL.

Trust me, I am not always cheap, and I really like great sounding music, but in the truck I just couldn't see investing a lot of money or time to improve the sound. I always regret being cheap like this after being in the car.

When I found this app I was so glad. It improves the sound quality of the cheaper oem system so much I feel like I am almost content. That's not to say I won't ever do the tweeter upgrade though. That is so easy to do and really not a huge cost.

But.............as it stands, with the right song playing with me wearing shorts I sometimes feel like bugs are crawling on my legs from the bass moving the hairs.

 

Our shifters have an internal bushing to minimize road noise and vibrations, but as they get old they get sloppy. I could have injected the handle with epoxy or JB weld, but I thought this was cooler. Shoulda used a metric, but I actually use all my wrenches and didn’t have a single one I wanted to sacrifice.



https://youtu.be/_jttf0kntak

 

I Think We Need To Talk!

 

Cool you could of gone and bought a single wrench to use in Metric. But 3/4 or 19mm who's counting pretty much the same thing. I didn't realize they had rubber in between those 2 shafts (that's what she said) ugh damn NVH ruins all good road feel left in a car. Pansy drivers today can't stand to actually have a connection with the rd.

 

Yeah I thought my tranny just had excessive play until I installed my short shifter awhile ago. That's when I realized all the play was in the upper half of the shifter. Finally decided to do something about it, and man does it feel good. It's so tight.

 

Wanted to lob that one in for an easy set up

 

So even the short shifter had that isolation too?

 

It’s hard to explain, you’d have to look at the urd one and see how it’s designed. It reused the entire stock shifter assembly.

 

Gotcha. Well as long as it works you still got the shorter throw and no more rubber sounds like it's good to go.

 

@EatSleepTacos talking about you on the book of faces.

 

Where at?

 

Old Bay Tacos.

 

I'm so ready to get this installed. Waiting on the arms to come in and @EatSleepTacos to make some free time for me...

 

Is it just me or is one spring longer?

 

Just the way they were rotated I think.

 

lol that's weird!