USLEX

I hope your friend's father is doing better. Life is cruel... one starts out a helpless infant then wanes as an invalid adult.
Not to be coarse but does your friend have any answers on cost of repairing the ML amp?

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

I suspect any failures in a United Radio-repaired amp is more a reflection of the design of the amp, rather than a deficiency in the UR repair job. Seems to be a "feature" of the '07 - '12 ML system. Not a fan of Class D amps if that's what they use in the 460, but they should be no less reliable that their AB cousins. I guess Mark Levinson dropped the ball on this one!

brendapark

Do anyone know if there is an off brand or after market that I can use instead of mark Levinson ??

roadfrog

no.

Let me rephrase that....NO.

Ok....ANYTHING is possible, but it will never be as good as ML and would cost thousands. Far better to replace the amp as required. FWIW, I've never had any issues with mine and I play it loud and hard (routinely over 40 and often over 50). Never skips a beat.

lsdave

did they say what they had to repair?

LillaGubbo

I also have a problem with the ML amp in my LS600h 2007, but I haven't found this in any other post.. Quite often the volume **** stop working - no matter how you turn it, the sound is unchanged. Sometimes pressing the **** to switch the sound off and then on again fixes the problem, but often not. However, the volume buttons on the steering wheel always works, so this is not a big problem for me, but I'm afraid it could be the start of something worse?
Strange that ML can't make reliable equipment! Had to replace (at huge cost) ML in my previous LS430 and LS400...

Arfox2000

Did you ever find your issue, I'm going through the same ordeal with my 2003 sc430

kb89

Just wanted to give some input here on this thread.

About a week and a half ago I purchased a 2004 LS430 UL. I tested the audio during a test drive at a relatively low volume to verify that it was working, all seemed ok. Of course, 5 minutes after buying the car and driving away and tweaking some of the audio settings, I adjusted bass to level 4/6 then set master volume to 30-35 & it played for about 5-10 minutes before completely cutting off. I would then have to turn off car and back on to get volume back working.

I also noticed that some speakers will randomly cut in and out during playing music & I also have to turn up master volume to 40-50 to get even a medium level listening volume.

I verified through Lexus service records that the headunit was replaced relatively recently, 3-4 years ago/30K miles, so the headunit is fairly new. The amp has never been serviced & is 14 years old/94K miles. Much reading suggested these amps are known to go bad over time. I read lots of great reviews about United Radio in NY & decided to contact them and see what they say.

I ended up speaking with Joe at United Radio & he told me that the LS430 ML amps were the most unreliable of all ML produced amps. He said there isn't a single one that comes to them that there isn't a problem with. Joe said he's fairly certain the amp is having some issues, such as where it cuts out completely, but the speakers randomly fading in and out may or may not be related to the amp, but I wanted to have the amp repaired first to rule that out before tearing any further into my sound system. They are actually very fair in there assessment I feel. He told me I could send it in, they would inspect it free of charge to first determine if they could see any issues with it & only then would they contact me to let me know if it needs repair or they could simply ship it back to me. He advised me that they are the official authorized repair center for ML amps. He said if you walk into a Lexus dealer & request a new replacement ML amp for your car, your going to get a refurbished one from them. So they definitely know what they're doing. TBH I wouldn't risk going with another company. These are very complex custom amps & these people work on them by the boat load.

For the LS430 ML amp, he advised me it's a flat $475 repair fee which includes return shipping. My car is down for about a week anyways while I'm replacing valve cover gaskets, spark plug gaskets, spark plugs, & a couple PCV hoses. So I just decided to go ahead & rip out the ML amp & get that mailed in so that hopefully I can get my entire car finished up and back together all on the same day.

Tom58

Did you end up getting it fixed?

Has anyone found a cheaper repair than UR?

jdanielca

I find it hard to believe if ML is so unreliable that there is not a better alternative out there. What about Focal? So where is this amp located exactly? Nothing wrong with mine but I have been toying with the idea of changing out my whole dash system.

Tom58

What the best way to stop the constant thumbing sound coming form the speakers even with the sound turned off, without impacting the navigation unit etc? Take out a fuse, or disconnect a speaker cable? Which one?

kb89

Yup, I talked to Joe at UR. The 2 most common problems to tell if the ML amp is the problem is a hard circuit trip on the amp, in which case ALL speakers will shut off and you will hear no noise from any of them. The second, is popping noises when the car is started. He told me if you have either 1 of those 2 problems, your amp definitely is in need of repair.

ML amps are hard to find spares of on ebay and even then that's a gamble. AFAIK UR seems like they have different set flat rate fees for different amp repair. LS430 ML amp they want a flat $475 fee. They said years ago it use to be $450 (which is what I saw in older threads here. Just pay the money to UR to repair the amp & live with it for another 6-8+ years. I heard some people trying to avoid doing this because of cost and taking gambles with other companies and sometimes having issues.

So it's not so much poor QC by Lexus. I believe from reading these ML amps were produced by Harmon-Kardon. It wasn't like this was a part Toyota/Lexus built in house that was just a piece of ****. HK isn't know for some super duper quality product. They were contracted to make an amp that would usually last at least the Lexus warranty period, while doing so for the cheapest price possible. That's just how business works. TBH though, most of these amps seem to be seeing 6-8+ years of use before they have issues. Hell mine has made it to 14. That's a fairly good service life for a electronic in the trunk, behind a liner, with a tiny 20mm or so fan as it's only cooling source.


While my car was down last week, I went ahead and pulled mine and sent it in to United Radio so I could get it back ASAP. I will hopefully have it back by the end of the week. You can possibly find cheaper places, but your not going to find a better one. I spoke with there technician directly. He stated they perform ALL the factory repairs for these ML amps for Lexus. He said if you walked into a Lexus dealer & requested a "new" amp, they would sell you a refurbished amp done by UR. 99% of people I see that have had amp repairs by UR are getting an additional 4+ years out of them. They come with a 1yr warranty on the work, but it should far exceed that.


I'm sure there is a fuse somewhere that you can pull that goes to the amp to completely disable it until you can get it fixed.

kb89

Hey guys just wanted to post back that I got my amp back from UR. Got it all put back together & everything wonky going on before is totally fixed. No amp cutting off, no random speakers fading in and out, and no static during FM radio playing. Wouldn't hesitate to recommend UR for Lexus/Toyota repairs.

Now onto my next project, adding a vaistech unit.

Vtallysx4

Off topic but I have used United radio before for a hard to find (no one else had it, anywhere) wiring harness for an Eclipse head unit. It took weeks to track down but I was able to get their number directly from eclipse. They are a great company to deal with.

russola73

I had mine repaired there and it only lasted two years. It's dead again. They only offer a one year warranty.