Chrisb23

Hi all,

I'm a new member/ new owner and this is my first Lexus...love the car so far, but now its time to upgrade the sound system and finding detailed information seems to be a nightmare so far. The only semi-helpful info I've found was by redirects to ClubLexus so figured I might as well join up and see if I can get what I need.

(((Bottom Line Up Front)))
So what I'm basically looking for can be broken down into 3 main areas:
1 - Signal info on whats coming out of the factory amp speaker levels (RTA Freq Range info? Load Sensing Mute?, Active Noise Cancelling? Can two different channel outputs be spliced together {ie front right door woofer with front right dash speaker} to have a full signal for a component set?)
2 - Detailed wiring diagram for the OEM amp, to include pin #s, wire colors, which exact speaker they go to, remote on wire, etc, etc..
3 - Ideas/ opinions regarding what I'm looking to do [below] and examples of what has worked for others in the 13-15 GS350

OK, so I'm switching over from an Infiniti M35 that was fully built out with a factory integration system and I'm moving over all my equipment that I think will be suitable for install in the GS350, which includes:
JL12W7 Sub in JL ProWedge, JL HD 750/1 sub amp (with remote bass ****), JL HD 600/4 full range amp, Audio Control LC7i factory integration unit, AD Designs 2000 6.5" component set {also have the matching 6.5" coax set, but not planning to use them in the GS)

My plan is to move the 6.5" component set that I had in the front of M35 to the back in the GS since it already has perfect size speaker locations for both the woofer and tweeter, and get a set of 6x9 component woofers for the front doors since 1) the doors already have a 6x9 hole hidden behind that huge 6.5 adapter plate 2) I've always wanted a car where I could put 7 or 8 inch woofers in the front door and the 6x9 has the same cone space as a 7.5 woofer would 3) why the heck not?!?
I plan to use the LC7i to feed just the Sub and the front and rear door woofers (750rms to sub, 150rms to each door woofer), then get an additional 4 channel amp that accepts high level inputs (something in neighborhood of 4x45rms) and feed the rear door tweeters and the dash corner speakers directly into that, and maybe upgrade the dash center speaker slightly but let it keep running off factory amp. Thoughts...???

Questions...
-I have no idea what speakers I'm going to use for the front dash, and what I've looked at so far with them seems very rubix cube-ish. Example, I've seen it where is says that a particular 4" coax will fit in the center dash but a 3.5 mid with slightly less overall diameter will not, so what have you all found to be the most limiting factor(s) for finding speakers to fit those 3 locations?
-It would also help greatly if I knew the specific freq range the factory amp was sending to each speaker, to 1) determine if I want/ need to do any additional crossover action or just let what its sending pass unaltered through my amps 2) to pick speakers that fit that frequency range as closely as possible. I saw where someone posted RTA results for most of the speakers in a 3rd Gen IS, but I'm hoping someone can provide the same for a 4th Gen (2015 specifically) GS..?
-I have also been warned about a couple of potential problems that I 'might' run into 1) that this amp could have load sensing where it will mute the channel or whole amp if the outputs don't show they have a speaker load on them, ie the LC7i won't provide the 4ohm load those lines expect to see from the factory speakers. Has anyone had this problem with the '15 GS350 (and if so how did you deal with it)? 2) that Active Noise Cancellation mics in the car could cause load speaker reverberations from the sub-woofer, even when the car and system are turned completely off. Has anyone had this problem with the '15 GS350 (and if so how did you deal with it, remove/ disconnect the mics...where are they all at...did that cause any problems, etc..)?

Thanks in advance for any help or ideas,
Chris the new guy

Chrisb23

Bumping this in hopes of scaring off the crickets..

Cwang

No one's going to present the information you seek on a silver platter. These cars aren't bought by people fitting over the top sound systems.

Diagrams shouldn't be an issue, as for the other information I wouldn't hold your breath, getting an 2015 head unit into a 2013 is a feat in it's own right. As for the customisation of speakers and their placement, that's probably something you're going to have to experiment with.

Honestly, just buy another car with the ML system stock, it's good enough for anybody who falls in love with the GS

aachowhan

A lot of people don't mess with the sound system in these cars anymore due to how the integration is done now. You now have a "radio" with navigation, ac controls, and other functionality, plus you have a factory amp that you have to deal with, and all sound for calls, music, gps, ac, etc. are routed through the speakers. It's hard to retain all that factory functionality and improve sound.

Chrisb23

Ok, so I've got this thing about 95% figured out now and I didn't even have to sell my car and go buy another one with ML, which is nice because a pedestrian step up in audio performance like that is not what I'm looking for.

What I need help with now, is narrowed down to just these two things:

•Does anyone know if the factory amp in this car has load sensing outputs, that mute the amp if they sense the factory speakers are disconnected? I know there is a way to deal with this using some of these
https://www.crutchfield.com/p_161ACL...c-lgd&skipvs=T but it's a little bit pricey to do these for 10 channels without knowing if they are actually necessary or not.

•Does anyone know definitively if these cars have Active Noise Cancellation? If so, any documents showing where all the mics are hidden at?


For anyone else looking to do a factory integration on theses cars, here is what I've found that will do the trick, if you're trying to keep all 10 channels active and not just throw a couple component sets in there.

•First you need a DSP that has speaker level inputs, with as close to 10 input channels as possible, but more importantly (if you want to keep all 10 channels active) you must have 10 output channels...the Audiocontrol DM-810 is what I've decided on for this (8 input channels|10 output channels)
•Now because it only has 8 input channels you have to be a little creative or you'll lose a couple channels. What I'm doing for this is using my Audiocontrol LC7i to sum 4 of the channels into 2 then run that to the DSP (ie the high levels for the Front Doors, the Dash Corners, the Center and the Sub will go directly to the DM-810 high level inputs, which will occupy 6 of the 8 inputs, while the high levels for the Rear Door woofers and tweeters will go to the 1-2 and 3-4 high level inputs on the LC7i and get internally summed and sent out as one set of RCA with the full range rear signal on it that will go to the RCA input on the DM-810 that matches the unused high level input
•Now you have the output from every channel of the factory amp into the DSP with the front doors, dash corners, center and sub being completely unaltered and only needing whatever EQ and crossover work you want to do with them, while the rear audio can be split up in the DM-810 from the full range signal however you see fit, and then you have 10 independent output channels.
•When it comes to the amps it's all pretty easy at this point except one thing. For the four doors (and dash corners) you basically need 2 four channel amps, 1 low power for the rear tweets and dash corners and 1 higher power for the front/rear door woofers (there are a plethora of these things that will fit the bill), then you need a mono amp for your sub (again easy stuff hear), but then comes the problem... finding a center channel amp is a chore for two reasons: 1) most mono amps are intended for subs and have non defeatable low pass filters that don't go anywhere near high enough for center channel freqs, or just have functional freq ranges that only go up to around 240hz 2) most mono amps are just way too much power for one lone 3.5 or 4" coax/mid (unless you get up into mid speakers that are $400-$1000 for a little 3.5-4 inch speaker.
•Here are the best center channel amps that I found: Rockford Fosgate Prime R150X2 (this is actually a two channel amp but bridgeable to 150x1rms@4 ohms), Kicker 43DXA125.2 (this is also a two channel amp but bridgeable to 125x1rms@4 ohms), Audiocontrol ACM-1.300 (175x1rms@4 ohms, true mono full range with defeatable crossovers) and JL Audio MX300/1 (160x1rms@4 ohms, true mono full range with defeatable crossovers)....if you find any other good ones, let me know (be sure to check rms power at 4 ohms, freq response of amp = full range, and that crossevers are defeatable/ selectable for Full Pass.


Thanks in advance for any help,
Chris

Cwang

Active Noise Cancellation?
Mine doesn't. Your manual would mention it if it did.

Chrisb23

My understanding from speaking to multiple car audio shops is that most newer cars have this and it's not an item that is typically listed in owner manuals as it's a behind the scene type thing. Basically they conceal these noise cancelling mics throughout the vehicle (out of sight) sometimes under the headliner and they are integrated with your factory sound system and use the speakers (even when system is off) to produce inverse sound waves to what the mics are picking up to cancel them and make it quiet in the cabin. Great idea right, except when you add high power aftermarket subwoofers... sometimes during hard acceleration it causes distortion in the sub bass, but the most common (and troubling) issue that brought it to the attention of the car audio community is when you park and turn the car off.

Many people were having problems where with the car parked and systems completely off, when they would get out and shut their car door, if they closed it just a little too hard the subwoofers would have reverberation that would literally shake the whole car because they were trying to cancel the sound of the door closing. Definitely something I'd like to avoid, so I kinda need feedback from people who have put systems in these cars to know if anyone has had to find/ disconnect noise cancelling mics in the GS350s.

Thanks,
Chris

Chrisb23

Also, still need to know if anyone has discovered through trail and error if the factory amp has load sensing outputs that require a false load to be generated so the amp doesn't shut down/ mute itself?

Cwang

Yes I'm aware of the common mode method used to decrease apparent noise, however our vehicles aren't equipped with such technology.

Re your other query, why not take the radio out and disconnect wires to see what happens?

Fasin8me

Can anyone confirm the loading sensing?

GSFSPORT21

GUY, GET A GIRLFRIEND! Or Boyfriend if you're into that type of stuff. Talk/write their ear off b/c all your posts having a laundry list of all the "upgrades" YOU did, but asking ANYONE & EVERYONE how to do what you're asking in these novelas is getting a bit redic. Also, once you find a significant other, you can ASK THEM all the questions you want about "how do I do xyz?" 🤦🏻‍♂️ I'd like to wish you & most importantly, your car, a Happy Thanksgiving! I'm sure Lexi is SO thankful for all the attention and time you give!

eddie420

Relax, friend! It's okay, we all start off with a bug to mod our cars, it tapers down eventually. Yes, it's a lot to digest, but there are a lot of drivers who like tinkering/experimenting and some of the CL users like helping others with their endevaours.