Instead of an OEM amp, wouldn't it be cheaper, to go with something at Crutchfield or your local car audio store? At $1900 or 400 for that matter, is too expensive IMHO.

But check to make sure that it's the amp. not distributing sound though.

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-OGtbme2...car/mycar.aspx

 

You first reported that it played music for a short time, then made a static sound and went dead.. Are you saying that it is dead all the time now?

I would check the fuse to the amplifier.. I am not sure where it is located but I am sure that it is a separate fuse than the one for you radio and cd player. It may be at the amp itself..

 

I would rather go use an after market amp but i thought that we could not use after market amps in this car without any modifications. Yes the music worked for a couple of seconds then shut off but for the one day and now has completely no sound. Does anybody know where the fuse for the amp is located and where all the fuses for the radio is located? I know i am asking alot of questions but i just dont know what to do and it is really irritating to drive around with no music.

 

Its supposed to be your drivers side speaker only. But i THINK (if im not mistaken) that the navi runs on a separate power source.

There were a lot of issues with the 01's and the ML amp, even on the GS. So when you buy a newer amp, just make sure it came out of a '02+.

 

Which car are you having problems with? 400 or 430 ?

 

It will be fuse #49 in the trunk..
See page 7.. This is out of my 2005 LS 430 owners manual..

 

Here is the wiring schematic for the audio system. This will help you to identify the preamp signal wires that you will need if you go with an aftermarket amp...

 

I am having problems with the 430. I was looking at an 04 amp i believe but i talked to the lexus dealer and they told me that the 04-06 amp wont fit in my 01 is that true?

 

Finally found my amp and unpluged it so i can bring it to the shop to check it out and noticed that my navigation does not work Is this right? I also went to an audio shop near my house and they told me that its not possible to use an aftermarket amp unless i replace all my speakers and even if i did i can not use my stock unit ruld have to replight now i woace it with an after market head unit.

 

You need to go to a high end Audio shop that can do custom work. The audio wiring diagram that I posted shows all the color codes of wires and what speakers they go to. A high end audio shop will also have a tone generator that can find each speaker wire. This may cost you a little more but at least you won't have to buy new speakers..

Keep in mind the ML audio system is a very tuned system and getting an aftermarket amp that is too big could cause damage to them..

You are going to need a 6 channel amplifier or 1 four channel for front and rear speakers and 1 two channel for the dual voice coil sub..

I take it the fuse was not blown..

 

thanks. yeah the fuse was not blown. the only thing is when i unplugged my amp the navigation does not work without the amp being plugged in. does this mean that if i get the after market amp my navigation will not work as well only with the ML amp

 

You are right. Lexus audio system is IP-BUS connected to a few devices.
Namely these are phone (Bluetooth amp behind the dash), audio amplifier (trunk), AM/FM Tuner (separate in trunk), HDD navigation ECU (trunk), Body ECU.
So if any of these are disconnected it may or may not work.
The navigation equipped cars also have HVAC controller (heater/AC/Fan/Vent) and Vehicle Information Display built into the head unit as well.

The audio portion is separated into Amp, Head Unit, and Tuner. All of them are tied in with 2 channel analog audio signal with control enhancements traveling through IP-BUS, such as volume level, fade, and equalizations and DSP effects.
So aftermarket radio will only be able to use a speaker level output in two channels via a line-level audio line fed into the factory amplier. (with no ability to fade front to back) with an aftermarket radio.
Also, the tuner is responsible for feeding diversity FM antenna into the system so if you get an aftermarket system, you will also need a antenna gain controller and coupler adapter to mate the diversity glass antennas to standard FM/AM socket. And then run that all the way from the trunk to the head unit. (There is no antenna cable at the head unit in front of the LS430, it's in the trunk and ends with a Lexus OEM coupler, not a standard FM plug)

So with all that, it's quite an undertaking to install an aftermarket audio system. It basically entails you to wire the entire audio system from scratch short of power and grounds and few wires that are present in the dash. All speakers must be bypassed of the OEM amplifier and tapped in aft of the amplifier and crossed over correctly as OEM cross-over points are inside the OEM amp. So, no peeling doors, but you do have to run all speakers to the amp coupler in the trunk. This is true whether you have ML or standard Pioneer systems as both cases, the speaker leads are at the amplifier.

If you have a Navigation system, you still need a fully functioning OEM audio system to keep all the features and your AC controls!! So with a Navigation, you need to have a running system anyway, regardless of if you want an aftermarket radio or not. In the case you do want to run aftermarket, there is a 1 DIN space under the center pocket door (if you take out the CD changer) You can mount a 1DIN one there and add an inline adapter to intercept or add a input to your OEM system.

Adding a non-Navigation panel with external HVAC controller isn't really an option as Non-Navigation cars have a completely different wire harness in the dash even if the rest of the components are the same, short of the Navigation computer and GPS antenna.

So in the end, it's best to replace and repair your original system through diagnosis and fault checks. You need it working to keep everything else in your LS430 happy... even the rear heat, seats and radio remote control, if you have an Ultra, as well as XM and other doodads that all work together.

HINT: the AM/FM tuner is in the trunk and antenna wire leads right into the tuner box below the rear glass in the trunk right side. In the window tint install, water may have poured down the antenna lead from the glass and shorted something in the tuner? This may cause erratic operation of the radio as IP BUS signal may be corrupted throughout the system if this AM/FM tuner fails to work properly. Just an idea... I could be wrong but that's something I might suspect...

 

Also it's hard to damage speakers or wires going to them in the doors as it's pretty well sealed from water just coming from the glass area. It's in two different chambers within the door, glass on outside of the plastic sheets isolating interior electronics such as lamps, mirror control and speaker wires. Toyota does take rain seriously for inside and outside of the doors (if you see April in Japan, you know why...)

 

my car has the navigation system and if the wire leaks into the wiring will it also effect the cd player too because my radio and cd player does not work

 

Well the IP-BUS communicates with the Tuner, Amp, Bluetooth, Navigation and body computer... So if the tuner was damaged by water, it may possibly render the rest of the system to malfunction. But because these are digital signals traveling between them, it's merely a communication error presented by usually a single component and not a permanent damage to the rest of the system. On most of these digitally linked systems it's usually a single component causing everything to stop working.

Still, I have no way to say for sure over an internet connection... I mean if the amplifier or speaker was damaged from window tinting people blasting his favorite tunes for all the neighbors while working, it may be a whole different issue.