Is there a way to replace 2001 LX470 Mark Levinson stereo system? (6 Viewers)

[95Fantasma80]

Yep, this reported to be good. For the price though I'd rather go with aftermarket setup

just seems easier to plug and play and all my speakers function and sound good since its Mark Levinson, the reviews that same sound is maintained is worth the extra dough, but if didnt care about price definitely would consider replacing it all.

I'm already looking at 500 for decent wireless android auto and 340 for harness..

how much would an overhaul of sound system run?

 

[katit]

I'm already looking at 500 for decent wireless android auto and 340 for harness..

how much would an overhaul of sound system run?

Which android auto you got? I paid $260 for mine + $30 for backup light camera.

When I did research for "complete" overhaul - here is what I came up with:
1. No need to bother with rear doors. Good set of components in front doors all is needed. Something like Infinity 60CSX $220
2. Amp. Something like Pioneer GM-D8704 $125
3. Wires - $50 or so
4. If sub will be needed - it can be added later on, ways to put 8 inch into stock location, little fabrication will be needed, can be powered by same amp.

This is what I wanted to do initially. But I will see how this TYTO thing works.. and I got speakers refoamed already

 

[Pyrenees]

I read it. But you didn't retain stock amp/speakers so not much help for my scenario

yep all but one of my factory speakers had degraded cones so I replaced them all.

 

[trdcorolla]

just seems easier to plug and play and all my speakers function and sound good since its Mark Levinson, the reviews that same sound is maintained is worth the extra dough, but if didnt care about price definitely would consider replacing it all.

I'm already looking at 500 for decent wireless android auto and 340 for harness..

how much would an overhaul of sound system run?

I was thinking of buying the Beatsonic kit but it's $$$. The price and the loss of fader pushed me to the TYTO-01. If the Beatsonic kit kept the bass level like the stock head unit, I would have bought it in a heartbeat back then. Knowing the ML amp can be removed and not mess with the head unit power like @Pyrenees figured out, I would have went his way from the start. I don't have any hiss on my radio with the TYTO-01.

 

[LX4MMTH]

Glad I came across the youtube video posted for BeatSonic SLA 100/82AAD which then led me this thread.....got super excited until I realized it's $300! Pioneer headunit $300 = so new DIN ~$600 plus speakers & amp ??

Time for me to slap in the airpods and be that dude.

 

[MotoLx]

See the DIY in my signature.

where is this DIY?

 

[95Fantasma80]

Glad I came across the youtube video posted for BeatSonic SLA 100/82AAD which then led me this thread.....got super excited until I realized it's $300! Pioneer headunit $300 = so new DIN ~$600 plus speakers & amp ??

Time for me to slap in the airpods and be that dude.

i just went that route beatsonic was 300 shipped from sonic electronix using coupons and got the flagship pioneer double din 4500 nex for 480 shipped using abt.com

i should be in at 800 to take this lx470 non nav to the next level with android auto which is even wireless can't wait!

I may add a cheap $30 backup camera from amazon as well.. still debating if i want to deal with wiring and routing wires from trunk.

the only reason i caved in was my cd player died and can no longer use the 6 disc cd chager full of my favorite albums. Was actually ok using an FM transmitter and phone for navigation but the cd failing kicked me over edge.

speakers and sub remaiming stock i refoamed and happy with them.

 

[Pyrenees]

@MotoLx DIY: 2001 LX 470 Apple CarPlay stereo install, Mark Levinson Amp Removal, Speaker Replacement

 

[ramangain]

where is this DIY?

 

[ramangain]

I figured I'd chime in with my experience on my first post in this forum. I also have a question will help me complete the install, so thank you in advance. Primarily, I wanted to see how the adapters work with the Auto-EQ and Time Alignment functions.

First, my question. On the LX, what do I tap for the vehicle speed sensor wire? I believe it is for the NAV function.

I got the Pioneer AVIC-W8500NEX and both the Beatsonic and TYTO-01 adapters. Before removing my OEM head unit, I put the volume at 0 and centered all of the audio options (fade, balance, bass, mid, treble, your mom's panties, etc).

I started with the TYTO-01 adapter. Note: I ended up connecting the ebrake lead from the 8500 directly to the TYTO-01 ground, and also connected the power antenna lead from the TYTO-01 to the +12V ACC lead. (When I replaced my antenna mast, I trimmed the plastic ribbed lead so that the antenna comes up no more than 2" when it receives power). After doing the wire connections, I connected the power connections to the head unit but did not connect the speaker connections to the TYTO-01 adapter. I did this so I could power on the 8500 and put the volume to 0. Why? I wanted to match the output of the 8500 with the last known volume setting for the ML amp - zero is zero regardless of max and range graduations, so it seemed like the logical option. (Keep in mind disconnecting and reconnecting always happened with the key out so the 8500 was off). I then connected the speaker harness to the TYTO-01 adapter, found a radio station, and set the volume on the head unit to 3/4 of max. I had to dial down the gain setting on the TYTO-01 adapter to get rid of distortion (not much, and there is a time delay on the gain adjustment, so be patient and take your time). All of the speakers receive signal, the sub works, and there is no hiss.

The Auto-EQ and Time Alignment (TA) accurately measured the distances from the speakers to the front headrest (TA). The Auto EQ significantly lowered the amount of bass from the whole system. With all sound processing off, I found the sound quality to be bass heavy and would get sloppy/muddy too fast. I will probably massage all of these settings over time to seek improvement, although I expect them to be minor. I'm picky when it comes to soundstage depth vs. width, and the OEM soundstage has depth but lacks the width to my ears.

The 8500 crossover function has a 100Hz, -12dB/oct HPF built-in. Enabling this on the front speakers severely cuts the bass to the whole system. It has no effect on the rear speakers.

I did not test the Beatsonic adapter. The lack of F/R fader function negates any time alignment benefit and doesn't allow rear fill manipulation for soundstage depth.

 

[AlabamaLX]

I just replaced the factory Mark Levinson non-nav in my 2001 LX470.

I wanted a cheap, simple solution. I just needed the radio, and iPhone connectivity, nothing to make the windows shake.

Went to Car Stereo: Stereos, Radios & Receivers They offer nothing for the 2001 LX470. Selected a 2001 Land Cruiser instead.

Ordered:

(1) Kenwood DPX304MBT
(1) Metra 70-8116 Amp Bypass Harness (I had Crutchfield go ahead wire up the harness)

Since they didn't offer anything for the LX, they didn't have the filler needed for stereo surround. Ordered the BeatSonic SLA-100FB. The BeatSonic fit great, but the brackets they sent with it didn't work. I re-used the mount brackets from the Mark Levinson unit.

Removed the amp under the driver's seat, and threaded the new harness from under the passengers seat to the dash.

My set up only runs (4) speakers. I had replaced the (4) main door speakers, removed all the other speakers, and the subwoofer, five years earlier due to cone rot. Installed (4) Infinity 6032si speakers in the doors at that time.

Set up sounds great, and wasn't too much hassle to install. Sounds so much better than the old original radio.

While I had everything apart, I swapped out the power antenna for a fixed-mast one from a Tundra.

Ordered:

(1) 86300-0C010 Tundra Antenna Assy
(1) 86309-0C020 Tundra Antenna Mast
(1) Metra 44-E18 Antenna Extension Cable
(1) 84656-60020 Switch Bezel (Replaces the antenna switch)

Also removed the antenna relay.

 

[ramangain]

Follow-up on my install ...

Rear doors need a 1/2" spacer for 6.5" coax found here: 6.5" speaker spacers. The opening in the door is odd, so I just attached the spacers to the door using screws and clips with the speakers mounted towards the hinge side of the door. Only two solid mounting points were used (holes drilled in metal of door, no big deal). The door can slam and everything is secure. The speakers I used are Infinity Kappa 62IX. The rears are just rear fill, so I'm not too concerned with lower frequency response.

Front doors are pretty straight forward. I bought Infinity Kappa 60CSX and added the Infinity Kappa 20MX to make the system a 3-way system. Tweeters attach to the stock mounting bracket with strong double sided tape, and the 2" midrange attaches to the stock mounting bracket with zip ties. The drivers door mounting location needs to be skewed towards the hinge side of the door by using one of the factory screw holes (the short leg on the bracket) and use a zip tie to secure the long leg on the bracket to the door mounting location. This is necessary for the 2" speaker to fit with the power door/window control in the door properly. I also put electrical tape around the speaker to wire connections since everything is very cramped with the door card installed and I didn't want any electrical shorts. The woofer driver installs fine with the included adapter to the OEM mounting plate. I put the main crossovers to the SW (on drivers side) of the woofers with double sided tape to the door metal, and they BARELY fit with the door card installed due to the location of the storage pocket in the bottom of the door. It fits, however. The 2" midrange crossover sits to the NE (on drivers side) of the woofer driver with double sided tape to the door metal, as there is a cavity in the door card with enough space. On the passenger side, main crossover goes SE of the woofer, and 2" midrange crossover goes NW of the woofer.

The amp sits in the cavity below the passenger front seat and I use the Infinity Kappa K4. I bought 2 amp connection kits as well and are Boss amp connection kits, one 8 gauge and one 4 gauge. For speaker wire routing, I poked a hole through the stock wire loom protectors (the part that seals to the door or car) and fed through the speaker wire. It was near impossible for me to push the speaker wire through the entire loom path, so the speaker wire is exposed between the door and the truck. As for the 4 gauge power wire, I poked a hole in the large rubber grommet near where the blower motor resides in the cabin on the passenger side. You can elect to seal all of the poked holes with silicone for waterproofing; I didn't bother. The 4 gauge breaks out into a distro block near the amp under the passenger seat to 4 gauge for the K4 amp and 8 gauge for the sub (next paragraph).

I wanted an easy quick disconnect sub and my bass heavy days are past me, so I bought an Infinity BassLink DC 10" powered sub. I mounted it with the cones firing forward/backward and almost flush against the back of the 2nd row when the seat backs are in place. NOTE: The third row seats will fold down and latch, but it takes some force and things get unhappily pinched. I don't use the 3rd row seats (I keep them in the garage for weight savings because race car) so it doesn't matter to me.

The head unit is the Pioneer AVIC-W8500NEX. I also bought a NAVICS double DIN surround plate and Metra amp bypass kit since I was unsure if I was going to run separate speaker wire, or tap into the OEM wiring from the K4 amp. I only used the separate adapter for power, ground, acc, and power antenna from the Metra kit. NOTE: The NAVICS surround plate prevents the head unit from opening to insert discs, memory cards, or the microphone for AutoEQ and Time Alignment. I am currently searching for another surround plate. I also ordered the Pioneer microphone to use the AutoEQ and Time Alignment feature of the head unit. I HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend this route for a baseline setting of speaker level settings (EQ, time delay, individual speaker volume level). With a proper stereo, it did an excellent job of flattening out the frequency response and provide excellent imaging and soundstaging.

Oh, and I did install an eRapta wired backup cam and routed it through the stock wiring looms from the tailgate to the left rear quarter panel to get in the cabin.

For $1650 I'm really pleased. The system sounds loud, clean, and clear (and thumpy if I change a few settings on the head unit), I have GPS/NAV without having to use data for GPS in Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, and a backup cam. The cost would be less if I wanted to sell each piece of the stock ML system on eBay or the like.

 

[ramangain]

One last update: since I chased down a broken power window wire that was in the loom of the LR door, I figured out how to pass the speaker wires through the factory looms between the doors and body.

For the rear doors, the plastic cover that hides the front seat belt needs to be removed and the plastic shielding piece gets removed (one was black and one was white; I didn't reinstall them). Unplug the two connectors from inside the car. Remove the rubber boot from the white plastic guard on the outside of the body, then pull the connectors through the white plastic guard so they are out of the body. You now have access to the body side of the loom rubber boot. On the door side, pull the rubber loom boot out of the door cavity for access to the other end of the wiring loom. I used a pointed end screwdriver 6" length, with the end of the speaker wire attached with electrical tape, to force the wire through the entire loom boot (the boot compresses which helps). Reassembly is in reverse order, and it helps to close the rear door to refit the rubber boot seal to the white plastic guard.

For the front doors, there are four electrical connectors that need to be disconnected in the kick panels; two orange, two black. The process is similar to the back doors, and patience is needed to pass the electrical connectors back into the body.

 

[TheBooth1984]

I used the TYTO-01 and am getting no sound. It sounds like the amp powers up but then stops. Any ideas?

 

[Longmark999]

I just finished installing an Alpine ILX-W650 head unit in my 2001 LX470 with the non-nav ML stereo. I decided to try to work with the existing amp and speakers (front speakers are fine, rear speakers and subwoofer are blown) and refoam the speakers later when I get more time. I used the Metra TYTO-01 harness and it was a reasonably simple and straightforward wiring exercise to the new HU. The sound is great out of the 2 front speakers so I'm hoping for good things after I refoam all the speakers. The one thing I did that is worth mentioning is I connected the "Parking Brake" wire from the HU to the "Illumination" wire from the TYTO-01 (orange white IIRC) and this allowed me to bypass the parking brake "feature" on the stereo by turning the headlights on or off to allow me to access the stereo's functions that would be disabled if the parking brake was not engaged. Also I left the power antennal wire disconnected as I plan to replace it with a static antenna and didn't see any point having the motor running needlessly. The final thing worth mentioning is that is was not clear or was not described which wire the "Amp" wire from the HU should be attached to on the harness so I ended up splicing it into the "Accessory" wire to power the amp. Oh, and on my system the wiring for the factory harness was the same as the wiring in the "LX 470 Alternate (Basic) Radio with 20 Pin Connector" section in this link Stereo Wiring: Land Cruiser / LX 470 (1998-02) - https://tlcfaq.com/main/2012/05/land-cruiser-lx-470-stereo-wiring/ . All the information posted on IH8MUD was extremely helpful so thanks to all who led the way here.