gregandnelly

I have a 2001 LX470 with a bad Mark Levinson Amplifier (after the recall period). Does anyone know where I could find one besides the dealer and the expensive ones on E-Bay? I've already missed out on two units on Craigslist. I've removed the bad one and been driving in silence for months! Please save me. Thank you very much. I can be reached at gregandnelly at hotmail dot com.

pretty sure you have to bypass the factory amp if the HU is aftermarket. ← So you think I should just take out the amp and get a new one? ← well from what i understand, the amplifier in the HU shoudl be enough for your stock speakers...but if you have aftermarket speakers and are looking for that extra "kick" then yes, amp them with an aftermarket amplifire. that factory amp has some kind of device on it that makes it so that it cant be used with anything except Lexus Factory Head units im pretty sure. it may even be a modulation or some kind of signal that the Lexus HU sends to the amp. obviously with an aftermarket HU, that signal is not present. i could be entirely wrong about this, but heres a quick way to find out. by come color matching wire that matches the wiring harness colors running into and out of the amp. cut the harnesses (if this doesnt work, they can be re spliced later) at either end of the amplifier. splice the wires together. this will bypass the amplifier. if your HU puts sound through the speakers when the amp is bypassed, then the issue was witht he amp. they make electrical connectors that will splice the wires back together in the event that it isnt the issue, but i think that it is. i am weary to cut the wires too my friend. LOL. i am also weary to put my HU in my car because my dash speakers in my ES250 are an odd size (something liek 3.8") and if i blow them, i wont be able to replace them with aftermarket ones...they just dont make them in that size LOL. so i would pretty much have to rewire and re speaker the entire car. ← Thanks Army! ← no problem, did you find the issue? If you plan to replace the ML Amplifier, I have been looking for one. My 2001 LX470 amp died a few months ago and it's getting old not having music in the car. Please let me know if you want to sell yours and for how much. I would really appreciate it. Thank you. I am at gregandnelly at hotmail dot com.