Mark Levinson Audio Loss? Fuse?

[davehayes2204]

Hi,

Around 10 minutes into a 2 hour long journey today my stereo cut off? I was listening to a cd, then i heard a pop/crack from all speakers and lost all sound. After a few seconds it came back on but went back off just as quick. I assumed it was my cd worn out so changed to another disc but got the same result. It also happens when listening to the radio. After trying some different things ( to no avail) i realised that this only happens if the volume is higher than around 28. Has anybody experienced similar problems? I pulled over to turn the engine off and back on to check if the amplifier was "clipping" but thats not the case. Have i blown a fuse? or is it knackered?

Any help would be appreciated as listening to the radio below 28 with the road noise in an IS250 is impossible!

I dont want to take it to Lexus if its just a fuse etc.

[davehayes2204]

nobody has experienced or has any advice on this topic?? all fuses checked, mark levinson amp dosent seem to have a fuse that could have popped. this is starting to look like an expensive problem :-(

[colbecoz]

Hi,

Around 10 minutes into a 2 hour long journey today my stereo cut off? I was listening to a cd, then i heard a pop/crack from all speakers and lost all sound. After a few seconds it came back on but went back off just as quick. I assumed it was my cd worn out so changed to another disc but got the same result. It also happens when listening to the radio. After trying some different things ( to no avail) i realised that this only happens if the volume is higher than around 28. Has anybody experienced similar problems? I pulled over to turn the engine off and back on to check if the amplifier was "clipping" but thats not the case. Have i blown a fuse? or is it knackered?

Any help would be appreciated as listening to the radio below 28 with the road noise in an IS250 is impossible!

I dont want to take it to Lexus if its just a fuse etc.

Amplifier "Clipping" only causes distorted sound. It waon't cause cut out. This sounds very much like a heat related problem. One of the componenets is not performing above a certain temperature, probably on the output/drive stage of the amp', or the power supply/regualtor is faulty. If it were a fuse blown, it would stay blown and the amp' would be completely dead and not power up again. Suggest a visit to the dealer as this is a repair/replace job.

Col.. (Electronics Engineer)

[davehayes2204]

Hi,

Around 10 minutes into a 2 hour long journey today my stereo cut off? I was listening to a cd, then i heard a pop/crack from all speakers and lost all sound. After a few seconds it came back on but went back off just as quick. I assumed it was my cd worn out so changed to another disc but got the same result. It also happens when listening to the radio. After trying some different things ( to no avail) i realised that this only happens if the volume is higher than around 28. Has anybody experienced similar problems? I pulled over to turn the engine off and back on to check if the amplifier was "clipping" but thats not the case. Have i blown a fuse? or is it knackered?

Any help would be appreciated as listening to the radio below 28 with the road noise in an IS250 is impossible!

I dont want to take it to Lexus if its just a fuse etc.

Amplifier "Clipping" only causes distorted sound. It waon't cause cut out. This sounds very much like a heat related problem. One of the componenets is not performing above a certain temperature, probably on the output/drive stage of the amp', or the power supply/regualtor is faulty. If it were a fuse blown, it would stay blown and the amp' would be completely dead and not power up again. Suggest a visit to the dealer as this is a repair/replace job.

Col.. (Electronics Engineer)

cheers for the reply pal, im going to book it in tomorrow. my warranty is up so i dread to think what this is going to cost if the amp needs replacing.

[BLACKHAWK]

Hi,

Around 10 minutes into a 2 hour long journey today my stereo cut off? I was listening to a cd, then i heard a pop/crack from all speakers and lost all sound. After a few seconds it came back on but went back off just as quick. I assumed it was my cd worn out so changed to another disc but got the same result. It also happens when listening to the radio. After trying some different things ( to no avail) i realised that this only happens if the volume is higher than around 28. Has anybody experienced similar problems? I pulled over to turn the engine off and back on to check if the amplifier was "clipping" but thats not the case. Have i blown a fuse? or is it knackered?

Any help would be appreciated as listening to the radio below 28 with the road noise in an IS250 is impossible!

I dont want to take it to Lexus if its just a fuse etc.

Amplifier "Clipping" only causes distorted sound. It waon't cause cut out. This sounds very much like a heat related problem. One of the componenets is not performing above a certain temperature, probably on the output/drive stage of the amp', or the power supply/regualtor is faulty. If it were a fuse blown, it would stay blown and the amp' would be completely dead and not power up again. Suggest a visit to the dealer as this is a repair/replace job.

Col.. (Electronics Engineer)

cheers for the reply pal, im going to book it in tomorrow. my warranty is up so i dread to think what this is going to cost if the amp needs replacing.

Hi Davehayes2204,

How did you get on with your sound problem? I am experiencing the same prob with my IS 250. It only happend now and again but now its doing it all the time. I'd much appreciate your help in getting it fixed as my warranty has also expired.

Cheers, Tony

[Maddog]

Hi,

Around 10 minutes into a 2 hour long journey today my stereo cut off? I was listening to a cd, then i heard a pop/crack from all speakers and lost all sound. After a few seconds it came back on but went back off just as quick. I assumed it was my cd worn out so changed to another disc but got the same result. It also happens when listening to the radio. After trying some different things ( to no avail) i realised that this only happens if the volume is higher than around 28. Has anybody experienced similar problems? I pulled over to turn the engine off and back on to check if the amplifier was "clipping" but thats not the case. Have i blown a fuse? or is it knackered?

Any help would be appreciated as listening to the radio below 28 with the road noise in an IS250 is impossible!

I dont want to take it to Lexus if its just a fuse etc.

Amplifier "Clipping" only causes distorted sound. It waon't cause cut out. This sounds very much like a heat related problem. One of the componenets is not performing above a certain temperature, probably on the output/drive stage of the amp', or the power supply/regualtor is faulty. If it were a fuse blown, it would stay blown and the amp' would be completely dead and not power up again. Suggest a visit to the dealer as this is a repair/replace job.

Col.. (Electronics Engineer)

cheers for the reply pal, im going to book it in tomorrow. my warranty is up so i dread to think what this is going to cost if the amp needs replacing.

Hi Davehayes2204,

How did you get on with your sound problem? I am experiencing the same prob with my IS 250. It only happend now and again but now its doing it all the time. I'd much appreciate your help in getting it fixed as my warranty has also expired.

Cheers, Tony

I am experiencing the same issues. The radio cuts off for no reason and the cds eject without pressing any buttons. I have brought the car to the dealership and they replaced the cd player section but the problem still exists. The only way to turn the radio back on once it cuts off is with the button on the steering wheel. It works fine for a while than cuts out. I read another post that the radio cuts out when the volume is over 28. I will make note next time to see if this happens. I brought the car back to the dealership and they could not duplicate the problem. As soon as we left for the long journey back home, the radio started cutting up. This is pretty frustrating when the dealership says they cant's duplicate the problem. And the closest dealership in my area is 75 miles away.

[Roentgen]

Hi,

Around 10 minutes into a 2 hour long journey today my stereo cut off? I was listening to a cd, then i heard a pop/crack from all speakers and lost all sound. After a few seconds it came back on but went back off just as quick. I assumed it was my cd worn out so changed to another disc but got the same result. It also happens when listening to the radio. After trying some different things ( to no avail) i realised that this only happens if the volume is higher than around 28. Has anybody experienced similar problems? I pulled over to turn the engine off and back on to check if the amplifier was "clipping" but thats not the case. Have i blown a fuse? or is it knackered?

Any help would be appreciated as listening to the radio below 28 with the road noise in an IS250 is impossible!

I dont want to take it to Lexus if its just a fuse etc.

Amplifier "Clipping" only causes distorted sound. It waon't cause cut out. This sounds very much like a heat related problem. One of the componenets is not performing above a certain temperature, probably on the output/drive stage of the amp', or the power supply/regualtor is faulty. If it were a fuse blown, it would stay blown and the amp' would be completely dead and not power up again. Suggest a visit to the dealer as this is a repair/replace job.

Col.. (Electronics Engineer)

cheers for the reply pal, im going to book it in tomorrow. my warranty is up so i dread to think what this is going to cost if the amp needs replacing.

Hi Davehayes2204,

How did you get on with your sound problem? I am experiencing the same prob with my IS 250. It only happend now and again but now its doing it all the time. I'd much appreciate your help in getting it fixed as my warranty has also expired.

Cheers, Tony

[Roentgen]

The CD player on my now out of warranty 250 SEL has been hiccoughing for some time (Sat Nav, AM/FM function is perfect). I have cleaned the head and changed CDs to no avail. Initially re-booting the car cured it. Now it doesn't work at all!!! I have resorted to using my Iphone via a Griffin 'Auto Pilot' lead. Does the unit have a separate fuse? I will have to look at this.

Can anybody advise me; I think that it is time to go back to an Audi.

[Matt1980]

Hi, not sure if this has been answered but I had exactly the same problem in my 2007 IS220d like you I have the ML kit and thought it must be an amp problem. I had the amp swapped under warranty earlier this year due to a fault and was advised that it was this again. I took it to Lexus Coventry who replaced both amp and head unit in an attempt to resolve the issue but everytime the estero went above 40 it cut out. They advised me that it would require further investigation at £60 per half an hour, so I thought I would do it myself and the first thing I did was to send the sound into each corner, front right, back left etc. All worked ok and until I got to rear right and them it cut out. I removed the seats and rear shelf and disconnected the speaker and it worked fine. I then tested the offending speaker on the other side and it continued to trip the stereo. My advice check the speakers first, replacement part is £60 inc vat.

[Carl911]

There is quite a bit of mark levinson audio on eBay at the moment, stripped from an is250.

There are several amps around £200 each and all the speakers around £30 each. Type in mark levinson, worth taking a look first before buying new.

Carl

[Kiefels]

Dragging up an old, old, old old post but it was relevant to me and I found a fix (for me) so thought I would resurrect it.

Had the same, cutting it off sound at anything over 40 volume (Mark Levinson)  I had been having speaker distortion for some time and decided to investigate.

At first I thought it was the subwoofer, so I bought a repair kit. Took everything out to access the subwoofer, turned on some music to test it whilst I had it all uncovered, nothing, dead, not moving at all. OK, so removed it, took it apart, inspected it, found it the foam had just come adrift from the housing, a little adhesive from the kit site that out. I then ran a soldering iron over the connections and a quick test on my surround sound confirmed all is well.

Put it back in the motor, fired up the system and there it was, crackle then silence at anything over 39 on the volume. Could only be the subwoofer as everything was fine until I got that working. Dismantled it again, re soldered the copper braided wire across the rear of cone and made sure that when I put it back together, it was done correctly, and seated nicely.

Back in the motor again, connected up and all is well again. Subwoofer working, can crank it up to 59 and I now know that my rear left speaker is shot, probably because it had been taking more bass than it should have been. One on order, so hopefully back up to speed on the sound quality again.

Happy days

 

[H3XME]

On 8/27/2018 at 7:48 PM, Kiefels said:

Dragging up an old, old, old old post but it was relevant to me and I found a fix (for me) so thought I would resurrect it.

Had the same, cutting it off sound at anything over 40 volume (Mark Levinson)  I had been having speaker distortion for some time and decided to investigate.

At first I thought it was the subwoofer, so I bought a repair kit. Took everything out to access the subwoofer, turned on some music to test it whilst I had it all uncovered, nothing, dead, not moving at all. OK, so removed it, took it apart, inspected it, found it the foam had just come adrift from the housing, a little adhesive from the kit site that out. I then ran a soldering iron over the connections and a quick test on my surround sound confirmed all is well.

Put it back in the motor, fired up the system and there it was, crackle then silence at anything over 39 on the volume. Could only be the subwoofer as everything was fine until I got that working. Dismantled it again, re soldered the copper braided wire across the rear of cone and made sure that when I put it back together, it was done correctly, and seated nicely.

Back in the motor again, connected up and all is well again. Subwoofer working, can crank it up to 59 and I now know that my rear left speaker is shot, probably because it had been taking more bass than it should have been. One on order, so hopefully back up to speed on the sound quality again.

Happy days

 

Think im having a similar issue now. ML Audio works, every speaker seems to be working but the subwoofer is 95% of time dead. I got no bass. Sometimes it comes on. But for the most part it's off. I haven't had a chance to investigate further as it's still cold outside - don't fancy sitting out in the cold taking things apart. 

[Mr Vlad]

Kiefels hasn't been on this forum since 2018. In his profile there's an email address for him. Try emailing him to get more info on how he got the sub speaker out.

[Kiefels]

 

On 3/9/2021 at 12:54 PM, Mr Vlad said:

Kiefels hasn't been on this forum since 2018. In his profile there's an email address for him. Try emailing him to get more info on how he got the sub speaker out.

Yes, I appologise, that I don't get on here very often but what can I say, Lexus have been good to me and a very reliable

[Kiefels]

Getting the subwoofer out, was a little tricky.

It was quite some time ago but as far as I remember.

10mm bolts holding the lower part of the back seat. 2 or 3 of them, they need to be removed.

I think you have to either push the lower seat back or pull it forwards, as it has hooks the hook into brackets. Don't forget to push the lap belt through.Then it's a case of man-handling the seat out of the car. It's  not heavy, just large and you are in it's way.

Remove the rear headrests. Push in the tab and pull the headrest out

There are now, on the back part of the seat, metal brackets that are bolted to the boot partition. Remove those also.

The seat belts are clipped in at the top of the seat back. They are pretty tough to unclip, just persevere

You may need to remove the seat belt anchors, I think sometimes I did and sometimes I only required certain access.

With the rear, back seat, removed. The parcel shelf is clipped in, in several places, that I can't recall, they are quite tough to dislodge, I didn't use any tools as I didn't want to damage the material. Don't forget the ones right under the rear window.

Now you have access to your sub-woofer, it's the little raised number in the centre of the window

[H3XME]

On 6/15/2021 at 5:13 PM, Kiefels said:

Getting the subwoofer out, was a little tricky.

It was quite some time ago but as far as I remember.

10mm bolts holding the lower part of the back seat. 2 or 3 of them, they need to be removed.

I think you have to either push the lower seat back or pull it forwards, as it has hooks the hook into brackets. Don't forget to push the lap belt through.Then it's a case of man-handling the seat out of the car. It's  not heavy, just large and you are in it's way.

Remove the rear headrests. Push in the tab and pull the headrest out

There are now, on the back part of the seat, metal brackets that are bolted to the boot partition. Remove those also.

The seat belts are clipped in at the top of the seat back. They are pretty tough to unclip, just persevere

You may need to remove the seat belt anchors, I think sometimes I did and sometimes I only required certain access.

With the rear, back seat, removed. The parcel shelf is clipped in, in several places, that I can't recall, they are quite tough to dislodge, I didn't use any tools as I didn't want to damage the material. Don't forget the ones right under the rear window.

Now you have access to your sub-woofer, it's the little raised number in the centre of the window

I have done it in the end. Got a replacement sub from a scrap yard. Funny thing is, I blew another one up a week ago.. I might have to get another sub and be more careful with the bass.

[Mr Vlad]

The chances are you'll blow the next sub you get from a scrapper. Best thing to do is buy a brand new sub speaker as close to spec as there is. I don't know the size of the sub speaker but I'm assuming it's about 6". If no 6" sub speakers exist then a good quality bass unit should do. I remember some years back I bought 2x 6" Denon mid bass units. By eck they thumped sub bass out. Those units don't exist anymore but similar do I'm sure.

[Kiefels]

On 6/17/2021 at 6:07 PM, Mr Vlad said:

The chances are you'll blow the next sub you get from a scrapper. Best thing to do is buy a brand new sub speaker as close to spec as there is. I don't know the size of the sub speaker but I'm assuming it's about 6". If no 6" sub speakers exist then a good quality bass unit should do. I remember some years back I bought 2x 6" Denon mid bass units. By eck they thumped sub bass out. Those units don't exist anymore but similar do I'm sure.

The trouble with finding a direct replacement is: The way the speaker actually mounts onto the parcel shelf. I think the ACTUAL speaker is not an exact size. It's a 5.5 or 6.5" and there is no way in hell that you are going to get it to fit the original Mark Levinson Mount. 

Getting a new Woofer from Lexus is around £500, so scrappies are the only direct replacement option. Or as Mr Vlad says, replace it with something completely different and mount them differently.

 

[H3XME]

3 minutes ago, Kiefels said:

The trouble with finding a direct replacement is: The way the speaker actually mounts onto the parcel shelf. I think the ACTUAL speaker is not an exact size. It's a 5.5 or 6.5" and there is no way in hell that you are going to get it to fit the original Mark Levinson Mount. 

Getting a new Woofer from Lexus is around £500, so scrappies are the only direct replacement option. Or as Mr Vlad says, replace it with something completely different and mount them differently.

 

I don't mind cutting into the car to mount it. That's not an issue. I'm just useless when it comes to anything electric. Wiring will be a challenge as it's not going to be plug n play. I saw a very nice solution to an aftermarket 8" sub in the is250. Guy just mounted it behind the rear arm rest.. I have mine down at all times anyway to use the cup holders as there's only 1 upfront (stupid). 

[Mr Vlad]

Kiefels. There's Always a method to mount a loudspeaker. From the videos I've seen regarding removal of the sub speaker I doubt very much there's an issue to mount a none ML speaker there. I'm not saying it's a straight plop in and screw it down. An MDF mount would have to be fabricated. 

[Kiefels]

On 6/20/2021 at 7:10 PM, Mr Vlad said:

Kiefels. There's Always a method to mount a loudspeaker. From the videos I've seen regarding removal of the sub speaker I doubt very much there's an issue to mount a none ML speaker there. I'm not saying it's a straight plop in and screw it down. An MDF mount would have to be fabricated. 

I never said there wasn't a way to mount the subwoofer.  I said "there is no way in hell that you are going to get it to fit the original Mark Levinson Mount" as the mount, physically, goes over the speaker. You could utilise the mount but you would be cutting parts off it, just to get the original speaker removed from it. 

I also said "replace it with something completely different and mount them differently" which is what you are saying and I totally agree.

I didn't just repair my speaker because I thought it would be the best option. I explored other options and decided that repair was the best option for "Myself", at that particular time.

I did, look into replacing the speaker with another sub but having looked under the parcel shelf, from inside the boot, it would have meant cutting away metal and metal brackets. So I went the way I thought best, without comprimising the originality of my vehicle or parcel shelf strength.