JS116

Greetings All,

I recently bought a 2004 LS430 a few weeks ago. Car is very well maintained and only has a few minor cosmetic issues. One isssue I ran into is that the ML speaker system sounds very distorted. I figured they were blown and could be replaced very easily. However after viewing this forum, I found the opposite is true. After browsing the forum for any related issues that current/previous owners had, I found that the factory ML amp is known for failing.

My question is how do I perform a self diagnostic to see if the speakers need to be replaced or if the amp or another component needs to be replaced? I've played around with the sound settings and the sound worsens as I increase the base,mid range, and treble settings? Please feel to refer me to another thread just in case I missed one dealing with a similar issue. Fyi..I already viewed the sticky for ls430 audio issues and didn't find useful.

Thanks in advance!

Daspyda

iTrader: (1)

The failure of the amp causes sound to go out on channels/speakers.

The speakers are getting sound - that's your digital signal which is either there or not - but the speakers are probably blown - or it could be just your subwoofer (which is quite common)

JS116

Thank you for your response! I did consider since the speakers are getting sound, my amp seems to be working as it should. I was looking through the thread called Mark Levinson Everything I might try to give my sub a look this weekend. I usually troubleshoot my vehicles on my own however, I'm just nervous about taking apart anything the LS since everything is so expensive to replace if you break it lol.

Thanks again for the input!

JS116

Update: 22 Jun 2019

Before diving into the car to troubleshoot, I decided to take few trips to car shops. I visted two different audio shops, who just perfomed a audible diagnostic to see if they could hear anything prescribing my speakers/sub as blown. Both shops seem to believe that it is not my speakers/subwoofer blown and believe the issue to be found relating to my amplifier.

After consulting with the audio shops I decided to play around with my audio system some more to see what I could find. Ive noticed that upon startup, the volume seems to be very faint and distorted even when the control has it at max. Additionally, I've noticed the longer I drive it. The longer I drive it, the better the the clarity the sound has. I'm thinking this could be a power problem in the amp or a wiring problem to the amp.

Today I removed the amp and will check the wires, and if they seem good, I'll send my amp in for repair. I'll keep you all updated as I find more info. Lesson learned so far NEVER BUY ANY USED LS with the MARK LEVINSON SYSTEM UNLESS it is under warranty!

Edward2109

So, what's the update? We've been waiting 2.5 years. Did you send it in for repair?

YoshiMan

Looks like he hasn't posted anything since 2020, and his last posts were about taking his LS on aroad trip across the country. Must be a really REALLY long trip!

Yamae

I worry that your amplifier's voltage booster is not working right due to the aged QAS (quaternary ammonium salt) capacitors.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...l#post11019432

05ls430518

iTrader: (1)

Send the amp to oem audio in in NY they fix all sorts of lexus bmw/Mercedes/ electronics. The owner Joe is a great guy and is incredibly knowledgeable.

BigBoomer

Incredibly unlikely it was the amp. If the amp was being driven to distortion at normal volume levels it would have been overheating and cutting out.
Far more likely he just had speakers with ripped foams like most of us have/had.

As for the audio "specialists", most of them just want to sell you a nice expensive install so they will always tell you that your system is fubar.
I know there are good ones, but they are few and far between.

05ls430518

iTrader: (1)

If the amp has water damage it will not do the same thing everytime it may have intermittent issues, also oem audio inc is a very good specialist, I have referred quite a few Lx570 people to him for bad amps or headunits, they have all been fixed and beyond happy.

Madmarcsa

So, I replaced foam on two of the speakers in front and the subwoofer of my 2005 ls430.
it stopped the loud vibration from the sub woofer.
the distortion goes away when you disconnect and reconnect the amp. One thing that helped was cleaning contacts on the map and radio. (Although it might be temporary)

BigBoomer

That does sound like it could be a bad solder joint in the Amp.
If the distortion comes back, consider sending your amp off for repair.
Lexus used lead-free solder in the LS430 for the first time and their early solder formulations are prone to cracking with age.
Reflowing with newer solder (or old lead solder) fixes the problem.