Music From Usb Stick - Car Slow To Provide Browse Option

BBKing · July 1, 2014

Hi folks,

New to the forum having just purchased a 14 model CT200h Luxury spec.

I have a query regarding music from a USB stick and would love to have your help and comments. I followed the advice from the earlier topic re purchasing a USB stick that goes in the compartment - the SanDisk CruzerFit (64Gb) - it fits very nicely.

We have about 16 - 18Gb of music on the device, ordered by Artist folder / Album sub-folder / individual song files.

My problem is that the car is mainly used for commuting and that it's taking more than half the commute for the car to read the USB stick (which it seems to do each startup) before it provides the 'browse' option (together with a 'video files not found' message). Until then, we can't select music on the stick and the car decides itself which folder to start playing from - not always the best choice for first thing in the morning! The menu does provide 'folder up' and 'folder down' options while it's reading the stick but these don't appear to do anything and no tree structure is displayed.

I'm wondering if I'm missing something. Our other car, a Volvo, only re-reads its 32 Gb stick (identical music to that in the Lexus) when it's been removed, and it seems to retain the tree structure in its memory between journeys so that you can simply select a folder and song to play from at startup. It's less sophisticated than the Lexus's 'browse' function, which contains multiple options eg. artist, composer etc., but at least it's available every time.

We've had to resort to Bluetooth music in order to listen to what we want in the first half of the commute, which means fiddling about with a phone.

Has anyone else encountered this and is anyone aware of a solution?

Many thanks!

BBK.

adnewton · July 1, 2014

Are you sure all files are either mp3 or wav?

BBKing · July 2, 2014

Thaks for your reply, Adam. It seems the Sandisk people put software on the USB stick and there were also some m4a files on there too which probably came from iTunes. I've removed all of them and will give it another try when we do our next commute.

Kind regards,

BBK.

Abbo07 · July 2, 2014

I use the micro Sandisk but made sure I only download tracks on MP3 format. Initial loading in to car takes a minute when refitted but then will immediately fire up to the track being played when turned back on with the browse folder lighting up about 15 secs later.

Whosthebagdaddy · July 2, 2014

I would make them all mp3 and also some systems have trouble reading sticks over 32gb. It may be a high density stick in shoich case the current Lexus system will take an age to read it.

PWOOD · July 10, 2014

great post OP I thought it was just me having this issue. It bugs me big time as well. I have any 10GB MP3 all ripped by dbpoweramp at HQ so average 290 bitrate. I never had an issue with my honda CRZ playing music quickly. I wonder if the file size is to big. I'm using a 16GB sandisk micro which is a pretty quick rated device as well. I have another stick and I suppose I could try just 10 albums and see how that works.

Off topic but I can t browse music on my Samsung s4 via Bluetooth only plays what I was last listening too. Should be able to surely.

PhilipK · July 11, 2014

I've no experience of the Lexus system yet, but do have an aftermarket Audiovox MediaBridge in my BMW Z4, which can play music from a memory stick.

It is also very slow to read a 64Gb stick, and there are two ways to speed it up:

1) Use as small (in capacity, not physically) a memory stick as you can. If 4GB or 8Gb is enough music for a trip, then use a stick of this size.

2) Make sure that the ID3 tags in the MP3 contain as little information as possible (ideally just song/artist/album). If you are storing album cover images or lyrics in the MP3 file, then it can slow down the music player.

Hope this may help.

Desmond · July 18, 2014

A sort of related question as I'm soon to get a CT with premium nav - there are 2 usb ports, anyone know if you can put music on usb sticks into both ports and switch between them?

Abbo07 · July 18, 2014

Yes. They come up as USB 1 & USB 2 so you can switch as you want. If you are going to use the Micro sticks (so as to close the consul lid with them inside) I would suggest not to go above 16 GB as Lexus system will take a age to load the 32 & 64GBs.

Desmond · July 18, 2014

Thanks Ron.

Derek870 · July 19, 2014

Not exactly the same but my ipod reacts the same, I never remove it from the car, yet it seems to take forever to load up, I can understand google phones by Bluetooth etc doing this, but I have the full on ipod kit and its annoying

I had the same kit in my BM and it seemed to remember the ipod, even if you removed it

maybe there is a magic button somewhere, but that would mean reading the manual!! Lol

rayaans · July 19, 2014

Same issue in a 14 plate loaner I had. Drove me nuts. I found a fix though, basically, turn the audio off. Wiggle the usb stick and then turn it back on. If that doesnt work, pull it out and put back in, then it works. Really weird system to be honest.

PWOOD · July 21, 2014

The Sandisk 16gb micro I am using came with Sandisk security which i had left. I formatted it fully yesterday and its just as bad with 9GB of music. I could try a 4GB stick and see if its the cars inability to handle a 16GB stick as mentioned above but then I would be paying out money to try a theory. Ill wait until i find someone with such a sized stick I can borrow.

PWOOD · July 21, 2014

I have just called Lexus Customer relations who have raised a query and Ill post back once they have replied.

BBKing · July 21, 2014

Hi All,

Thanks to everyone who has replied. It seems that just getting a 16Gb stick may not fix the problem. Glad to hear Paul's run this by Lexus customer support. The information below may also be of use if/when they reply.

I am just back from Canada where I rented a 2014 Ford Fusion. This car worked perfectly with the 64 Gb stick that the Lexus had so much of a problem with. (1) the indexing system - this took at least as long as the Lexus on the first time but there was no problem because (i) it retained the index and didn't reindex on every trip; and (ii) if you did want to reindex, it had a specific option for this - I added some music from my trip while I was there and the reindex happily updated the system. (2) the browser - this had two options - the first to look at the index and select songs by artist/album etc, which if indexing was not available as per the Lexus's, and the second a simplified browser to access the folder/file structure and select .mp3 files directly from there.

This was the complete answer for me and it seems astonishing that I find it on a Ford rather than a Lexus. It occurs that the Lexus's browser could be updated to provide the direct access option by way of a simple software update. Whether retaining the index could also be added in a software update I don't know.

It does seem to me that Lexus needs to up its game here!

Will be interested to know what customer relations say in due course.

Regards

BBK.

PWOOD · August 6, 2014

No solution other than reduce the file size for each track as anything over 6meg will take twice as long to load apparently. I do HQ MP3 copies so will try more compression (reluctantly). Maybe it's assumed folks still rip at original iTunes default of 128mbps.

Valkirk · August 11, 2014

Found the USB MP3 system terrible in the Lexus - infotainment really is one of their weakest points.

In the end just started streaming music from phone via Bluetooth, much better :)

friedmike · May 4, 2016

Not sure if anyone is still experiencing issues, but I can share my experience. I have a 2014 IS and the infotainment system has been extremely frustrating. there are multiple known issues:

Cover Art - Lexus display doesn't like any cover art over 16k in size or 150x150 in pixels. This means any cover art from normal iTunes purchases or other music services that you've put on a USB drive generally will not display. You'll see the terrible clip art of Gracenote artwork, even if the gracenote is turned off in the settings and cover art is turned on. You need to use a MP# tag editor like Zortam or Bliss and resize all of the cover art to the specs i shared. Then it will display.

USB Speed - This is another issue. However, it isn't related to the size of USB drive or the brand. It is related to how the files are tagged. When MP3 files are written they include tags (ID3v1 and ID3v2). Lexus has a very difficult time reading and processing ID3v2 tags. Most MP3s come embedded with both. If i have 1GB of songs with version 2 tags, it will take about 2-3 minutes for the car to scan and index the drive. Until then, I cannot switch tracks, switch folders, or use other functions like random and repeat. Sometimes it will even take longer. Once it is done, I have access to all the functions until I stop the car overnight and it is no longer in its local memory cache. But for driving around town, it generally remembers what it has indexed. If your files only have version 1 tags, then your speed is very normal and starts right away. again, with a tag editor you can go in and batch remove all the version 2 tags. Then your music will play fast again.

This is a tremendous pain. It was also a problem in the ES and GS models, but has been corrected in both for 2016. Not sure if the IS has been corrected, but I'm assuming so. There is no firmware update available that fixes it either. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out.

rayaans · May 4, 2016

Got to say, I have no issues with any of the music in both my RX and my IS.

The system only takes a while to load if I take the USB out and put it back in again. If you just leave it it'll remember.

Dont see the big deal with cover art either - how does that affect listening to music again?!

thar · May 5, 2016

The USB stick loads pretty fast for me even though I take it out after each journey. I have to take them out as I can't close the cover with them in and I'm not leaving anything on show, any excuse for tealeaves to break into my car!

I'm going to try and source some micro USB sticks as someone suggested earlier then I can leave the stick in when I park. If anyone has any recommendations, that would be great.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

gct200 · May 6, 2016

The USB stick loads pretty fast for me even though I take it out after each journey. I have to take them out as I can't close the cover with them in and I'm not leaving anything on show, any excuse for tealeaves to break into my car!

I'm going to try and source some micro USB sticks as someone suggested earlier then I can leave the stick in when I park. If anyone has any recommendations, that would be great.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

I bought this micro USB from amazon. Flap closes down fine so it is hidden away and I just leave it plugged in.

SanDisk SDCZ43-016G-G46 Ultra Fit USB Flash Drive, USB 3.0, 16 GB https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00LLEN5FQ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_4GplxbAHFQZQ3

Loaded lots of MP3's and films to keep my little one amused and it loads instantly with no problems.

thar · May 7, 2016

Thanks gtc200. I had a search and found a SanDisk 16GB Cruzer Fit for £5.99 delivered at Mymemory. They look a similar size to the one you recommended and should hopefully allow the cover to close.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

PWOOD · May 7, 2016

It fits that's the one I have.

colin79666 · May 8, 2016

I've now gotten the initial load/indexing of 13GB MP3s on a Sandisk Cruizer Fit 16GB down to 3 minutes in Pauls old car :-) About 2300 tracks in total, one folder by album disc under the root, FAT32 formatted.

I removed all the ID3v2 tags as suggested above, which also removes all the cover art. I can live without the cover art if it speeds up the ability to browse the album list.

PWOOD · May 8, 2016

What is really annoying is the fact that a while back there was a move to HD in the car by some manufactures which was kicked into touch due to copyright issues by record companies.

Colin I wonder if you sometimes drive with no music on just to marvel at the silence, I know I did :-)