I really wanted to buy, but now very disappointed...
 

I have a '2000 E-Class which I really like, but the stereo and NAV are just horrible. I have spent a lot of money to improve them, but they still suck. I added an iPod adapter to my Jeep Liberty, and now the sound system and NAV just blow away my Mercedes - how embarrassing! I wanted to trade my 'E for a new C-350 because I thought they had solved these problems. I went to the MB dealer with iPod in hand to see how the new iPod adapter will work. I had not read this forum, so I did not know that the iPod information would not show up on the main LCD screen. Of course the salesman did not know that either. How disappointing! This car had the multimedia package and the iPod would play, but no control with the center console button. After reading this forum I now know why. Also when I unplugged the iPod, it did just what my 'E does when I unplug from the aux input jack - it blasts your eardrums out because of the huge difference in volume. I can't believe in 8 years they have not fixed it. I guess there is a setting with the multimedia package that will partially solve this - I have to check that out. Anyway, I will go back and take a second look, now armed with the knowledge gleamed from this forum, and see if I can make this stuff work. The salesmen just do not know anything. I know this sounds crazy, but if I cannot get good iPod integration, I will not buy this car - it means that much to me!

You can get the ipod integration kit which is around $300 which allows you to control the ipod with the steering wheel controls and shows the song information on the screen.

http://www.mbusa.com/byo/pop_opt_pac...o&model=C350WZ

It sounds like you were using an Aux jack....that just isn't any good. Ipod integration kit is the way to go with MM for control of the device.

The system apparently is much impoved over prior versions...

i don't know about the W204's but the iPod info dosen't show on the main LCD screen, just on the display in the speedo

I have the ipod kit and it works quite well. You see the song titles on the speedo screen and control it with the steering wheel buttons.

Cdn_MB can you post pics of your car. I like your wheels alot and thinking about getting those like yours over the AMG`s

I understand how the system works (now). I was NOT using the Aux Input, but rather the iPod Integration Kit. Since at the time I did not know that the information was displayed on the speedo, and neither did the salesman, I did not look for it there. In any case how lame is that! You have that nice large screen where you could have all the iPod functions listed along with album art and you put it on the speedo? Are the playlists displayed? BTW, that 450 watt sound system sounded like crap. Maybe it wasn't set up right. I hate to belabor this point, but my four year old Jeep still sounded much better...

I fear the Emperor has no clothes..

How about playlists? Is the volume problem solved?

Volume is better on the newer kits but I admit, it's not 100% of the CD player.

As for functionality, you can listen by playlist, album, song title, artist, genre, pretty much all the music functions of the iPod are directly available through the steering wheel controls.

This made me :). You're buying a ~$40,000 ipod.

Anyways, my car doesn't have the multimedia option, but those that have it are impressed by it. I hope you'll like it on your next dealer visit, because the car - I think - is great!

Lol the title of this thread is misleading...I mean come on..would you seriously not buy a car just because it didn't work that well with your ipod? Tunes are great and a car should have a great sound system, nothing thats going to boom pictures off the wall in my house, but something that sounds decent, but I'm not buying a car for that reason..I want a car cause its a car! You want your ipod to work....get out of your awesome benz and stick the ear buds in your ear!

In all seriousness..MB has always been slow to the game when it came to audio. My 02 C class didn't even have a cd player!

I agree, but I think they got most things right on the 08 C-Class. The Bose system in my 03 C230 Coupe may have sounded better than the HK Logic7 system in my new 08 C300 though.

Point well taken. However I look at it in a different way. I want my $40,000 car to at least have the capability of my $20,000 Jeep. The Benz I have now is my "wifes" car. She loves it, but usually drives my Jeep because she says "her music" just sounds so much better in it. She is no audiophile, but she sure can tell the difference. It just adds so much to the driving experience. I know some people just don't care about stuff like that.

I will concede that good music means more to me than to most people. I just want to have both - good tunes and a great car!

I spend 90% of my commute listening to music and was really looking forward to the H/K system in mine.....(I agree the base system isn't up to the old Bose system I had in my old Mustang)

I'm going to assume they've got the MM system configured properly and just suggest that maybe the acoustics are better with the layout of the jeep (more square). Or maybe you were listening to it with one of the doors, windows or sunroof open? Or maybe I've just never really heard a great car audio system so I assume it can't get better than this one.

I used to have to have an ipod kit in the car. But I made the switch away from mp3 to apple lossless, and all of the kits I've ever tried have problems with it. Usually will play for a few songs and then lock up.

The mp3 cd interface is very nice (and displays on the main screen, not the speedo) so I've reverted to just burning 320kbps VBR mp3 cds from my apple lossless files. No playlist support though.

That was my plan B - burn to disc. I have all my files in 320kbps. Unfortunately it adds up to 20 GB for my entire collection. Does the CD mp3 interface show album art, have shuffle mode?

Don't have MM, just base stereo, so I don't know about album art ... highly doubt it. Never seen an ipod interface that does either, but I could be wrong there.

Shuffle mode, definitely.

That makes perfect sense as well - for $40,000 you should get the audio you want! I don't intend to contradict myself with the first post I made, but sometimes I'm stuck in traffic with 268 HP and all... and I certainly wish I had the multimedia package to blast my ear drums to numbness...

The MM gives you a DVD changer. Is it possible to burn your MP3's to DVD instead? Would it even read DVD-A? Or just DVD video?

That's a great question. I didn't know it was a DVD changer. If it will read mp3 files on the DVD I could have all my music on only four discs. WOW! I already burned some mp3s on a CD to test out at the dealer. Now I will burn some more on a DVD and see if it works. If it does, that would be really nice. I never thought about that...

Your supposed to be listening to the engine not the radio. Ha ha I'm pulling your legs again. I haven't heard the HK system, but its supposed to be 7.1 yeah I realize you would have to have a DVD audio disk to get this, which are hard to find! But even so, one would think the sound would be pretty good without the DVD audio disks..this is sad. Least its not $7k like the Lexus Mark Levinson package, but its still a good chunk of change it should sound great.

I understand what you guys are saying about the ipod
i too was not happy when i saw that i could not see it on the MM screen
so, i copied 4gb of mp3 to a 4gb SDHC memory card and you can see all info and control from ther MM and sounds great

yes, you can do both Mp3 to DVD and also DVD-A
can also do the same thing with a 4gb SDHC memory card
the card is really quick and can use same voice commands as if it were a CD

Nice demo of MM Voice Control here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XBMKOiHOuw