ch_47_doctor Posted September 30, 2011 Share Posted September 30, 2011 Any other 2008 LS460 or 460L owners had their amplifier gone out on them? Crazy as it sounds but I had mine just go out on my car and then the same week I was speaking to another 460L owner who his also went out...I was 52,000 and Lexus told me sorry but it's over the 50,000 warranty. I'm very upset since we pay huge $$$ for the "Great" Mark Levinson 19 spk system. OK Hold on to your seat for this one...a new Amplifier costs $2800.00. I would think there would be some sort of repair program available...take mine out, send it for repair, put it back in... Where is the quality...At the same time I had mine recalled for the valve spring replacement, and have had the water pump replaced. OK enough venting...back to my original question. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pj8708 Posted September 30, 2011 Share Posted September 30, 2011 Any other 2008 LS460 or 460L owners had their amplifier gone out on them? Crazy as it sounds but I had mine just go out on my car and then the same week I was speaking to another 460L owner who his also went out...I was 52,000 and Lexus told me sorry but it's over the 50,000 warranty. I'm very upset since we pay huge $$$ for the "Great" Mark Levinson 19 spk system. OK Hold on to your seat for this one...a new Amplifier costs $2800.00. I would think there would be some sort of repair program available...take mine out, send it for repair, put it back in... Where is the quality...At the same time I had mine recalled for the valve spring replacement, and have had the water pump replaced. OK enough venting...back to my original question. Thanks Clarification; did the dealer diagnose the amplifier as the problem, or did you or someone else determine that? The reason I ask, is that it is extremely unusual for an amplifier in a system only three years old to go bad. Whether it be in a Levinson, or a standard Lexus system. (It makes no difference whether the ML is in a LS460 or a ES350; an ML is an ML.) Unfortunately, to the best of my knowledge, if the amplifier is shot, there is no secondary market for parts. However, on this forum, we have a LOC approved vendor that specializes in Lexus audio parts and systems. His name is "dcfish". He may have an amp for you at a lesser price than the dealer. Otherwise, "ebay" would be your next best alternative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff in TX Posted October 1, 2011 Share Posted October 1, 2011 Failure of the ML amp in the LS460s is pervasive. Owners in other forums have reported getting their failed amps repaired by United Radio - http://www.unitedradio.com/automotive/ - for about $350. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ch_47_doctor Posted October 1, 2011 Author Share Posted October 1, 2011 Thank you both for your suggestions. I really do appreciate it!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aqualung Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 What's typically wrong with those amps? Blown out transistor(s) or dead caps? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff in TX Posted October 28, 2011 Share Posted October 28, 2011 What's typically wrong with those amps? Blown out transistor(s) or dead caps? This part has been cited in one of the other forums: 43CTQ100 - Schottky Rectifier, 2 x 20 A - Vishay Siliconix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apna garage Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 Any other 2008 LS460 or 460L owners had their amplifier gone out on them? Crazy as it sounds but I had mine just go out on my car and then the same week I was speaking to another 460L owner who his also went out...I was 52,000 and Lexus told me sorry but it's over the 50,000 warranty. I'm very upset since we pay huge $$$ for the "Great" Mark Levinson 19 spk system. OK Hold on to your seat for this one...a new Amplifier costs $2800.00. I would think there would be some sort of repair program available...take mine out, send it for repair, put it back in... Where is the quality...At the same time I had mine recalled for the valve spring replacement, and have had the water pump replaced. OK enough venting...back to my original question. Thanks A new one is your only choice at the moment. Or a junk yard one. Several of them have been replaced on both the regular and the L version. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pj8708 Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 I looked into this problem with the LS460 amplifiers a little further: I talked to the audio man at my Lexus dealer and asked him if there is a problem with the Mark Levinson amp in the LS460. He said that the amps in that system have a high rate of failure and they see it all the time. The problem is that Levinson will not share any knowledge, schematics, diagrams, parts, or technical assistance since it is all proprietary and Levinson just license the product to Lexus. Consequently the dealer hasn't got a clue as to what is wrong with the amp or how to repair it. The only fix is a replacement. To compound the problem, there are also no published specs. about the Levinson amp, even at the dealers. This means it is very difficult to even find an aftermarket amp for a replacement since you won't know the power draw, wattage, impedance(ohms) crossover, etc. And the amplifier in the LS460 is indeed diffrent from the amp in the ML systems in other Lexus models. It is more complex and powerfull than the others. Wish I could give all of you better news. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreatDane Posted March 31, 2013 Share Posted March 31, 2013 I took Jeff's advice and contacted United Radio. They fixed my ML amp for $700. Lexus wanted $2,800 for a new one (not including diagnosis and installation). It took a week and I live in CA and United is in NJ. Nice service and the amp works like new again! You will know that the amp is done if one of both of these situations are true: 1. You hear a click-click sound and/or high pitch sounds but no normal music/radio. It is otherwise dead. 2. Your 30A fuse on the passenger side is toast. The amp is placed in the trunk on the right side next to the spare wheel. Open the trunk floor lid, unhook the wires on the back and remove three screws. There's a small black box with a wire attached to it. Leave that in the car. Otherwise your key is not recognized as present. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray in Boston Posted May 20, 2013 Share Posted May 20, 2013 Can you offer some specifics on which screws to pull out and how? I accessed the amp, but it appears there are (2) in front - do they require a regular phillips or a special screwdriver? Where is the third? Thank you. Ray Boston, MA I took Jeff's advice and contacted United Radio. They fixed my ML amp for $700. Lexus wanted $2,800 for a new one (not including diagnosis and installation). It took a week and I live in CA and United is in NJ. Nice service and the amp works like new again! You will know that the amp is done if one of both of these situations are true: 1. You hear a click-click sound and/or high pitch sounds but no normal music/radio. It is otherwise dead. 2. Your 30A fuse on the passenger side is toast. The amp is placed in the trunk on the right side next to the spare wheel. Open the trunk floor lid, unhook the wires on the back and remove three screws. There's a small black box with a wire attached to it. Leave that in the car. Otherwise your key is not recognized as present. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreatDane Posted May 20, 2013 Share Posted May 20, 2013 I believe there are three screws holding the amp. One in the front one in the back and one in the back that is also holding a small black box. I may be wrong so if there's one more screw holding it losen that one too:-). You should not take the screws out of the brackets holding the amp but the screws holding the metal bracets to the car (i.e. leave the metal brackets on the amp). This part (taking the screws outgetting the amp out) is pretty straight forward. As said, take the amp out, after gently disconnecting all the wires on the back, and then reattach the small black box - otherwise your key is no longer recognized. Let me know if you still have a problem. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreatDane Posted May 20, 2013 Share Posted May 20, 2013 Oh, and they are just regular Phillips screws. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pj8708 Posted May 21, 2013 Share Posted May 21, 2013 Thanks for the additional information GreatDane. Others have had good luck with United Radio. They came highly recommende to me by a friend of mine who does car audio repair work. Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreatDane Posted May 21, 2013 Share Posted May 21, 2013 You are welcome. I learned of United Radio on this site. It was quick, simple and easy. They pre-quoted the price when I called and I had it back in a week. No sales talk. Just "What amp to you have? Here's your quote. Send it to us and we'll fix it and send it back to you for that price". They did exactly that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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