Missing speakers from Ultra Fidelity Sound System?

[ddawn]

Just picked up my 70D last Friday from the Tysons VA service center.

Everything has been great other than the sound system-which sounded so bad
my wife even mentioned it to me.

Coming from a Mark Levinson that was in my LS 460, i expected some come down
but not to this extent.

I though at first it was the quality of the inputs-slacker etc and maybe some tuning of the system added to be performed. I played with the settings and got some minor improvement. On Saturday I had SiriusXM activated, (transferred from LS 460.) Now I could compare with a consistent source. It sounded bad as well.

I've been having so much fun driving the vehicle I hadn't been focusing as much on the sound system, but it was still nagging me. Tonight i thought maybe the trunk cover might be impacting the subwoofer output so i took it off and looked for the subwoofer. Couldn't find one and also couldn't find the two speakers in the lift gate door. Been checking internet for what they look like but all pics I have found are for after market upgrades. But since there are no grills, not may options exist other than maybe they are there but covered up (not likely)

At delivery the only thing i checked on the sound system was that it worked and that it was SiriusXM capable (only the upgraded system is) Also noted speakers in front and back seat areas-but didn't check the trunk area for speakers.

Tomorrow I'm going in to see if I am crazy or speakers are missing. Also having all the speakers checked for correct size.

Anyone ever have anything like this happen?

Maybe a new item for the pre- delivery checklist.

 

[Tdriver]

The sub is in the right rear corner of the trunk. I am sure the lift speakers are there. They do not play a big part in the sound level.
You say it sounds bad.......can you define that a little better......is it distortion, low level, etc. I have a LS also and i would rate the S system down a notch from that. You could have an amp problem. Take it in for a check and listen to a similar model while your there.

 

[Spidy]

Did you ever do a test drive or sit in a car that had the upgraded sound system?

Otherwise I suspect that it will turn out that the sound system correctly installed and the sad reality for you will be that it's simply not on par with upgraded sound systems on other premium cars.

Disappointed with sound system...

"Ultra High Fidelity Sound" option - worth it?

 

[jerry33]

What type of music are you playing? If it's not lossless from the thumb drive, it won't sound that good. The Tesla system is strictly garbage in garbage out. It's accurate but has nothing to help lossy compression or poor recording at the studio.

 

[zambono]

Let us know if your sub is there, but I am with your wife. When I did my test drive in downtown DC with UHFS having just gotten off my Range Rover the sound system in the S is a joke and definitely not worth the $2500. Just imagine the rubbish the standard one must be.

 

[cgiGuy]

I remember the upgraded sound system being worse with Dolby activated. May want to play with those settings. I was very happy with it, overall. It had decent bass.

Check fuses? My manual says fuse 9 is for the "Base Audio System" and 18 is "Premium Audio Amplifier."

 

[zambono]

I remember the upgraded sound system being worse with Dolby activated. May want to play with those settings. I was very happy with it, overall. It had decent bass.

Check fuses? My manual says fuse 9 is for the "Base Audio System" and 18 is "Premium Audio Amplifier."

@cgi I see that on your second purchase you skipped the premium sound. Any regrets, do you normally listen to music while driving but at a lower volume? That is my case.

 

[cgiGuy]

@cgi I see that on your second purchase you skipped the premium sound. Any regrets, do you normally listen to music while driving but at a lower volume? That is my case.

I bought an inventory vehicle that matched everything I was looking for, but lacked the UHF. I listen to a wide spectrum of music, from George Winston to 50 Cent. The lower volume music sounded fine on the basic system. But, when I wanted more volume, the bass was lacking. Spent around $400 on a sub/amp and the bass sounds way better than the UHF system.

So, short answer.. had regrets, but now I'm glad I went with the basic and added my own sub.

 

[ddawn]

Just picked up my 70D last Friday from the Tysons VA service center.

Everything has been great other than the sound system-which sounded so bad
my wife even mentioned it to me.

Coming from a Mark Levinson that was in my LS 460, i expected some come down
but not to this extent.

I though at first it was the quality of the inputs-slacker etc and maybe some tuning of the system added to be performed. I played with the settings and got some minor improvement. On Saturday I had SiriusXM activated, (transferred from LS 460.) Now I could compare with a consistent source. It sounded bad as well.

I've been having so much fun driving the vehicle I hadn't been focusing as much on the sound system, but it was still nagging me. Tonight i thought maybe the trunk cover might be impacting the subwoofer output so i took it off and looked for the subwoofer. Couldn't find one and also couldn't find the two speakers in the lift gate door. Been checking internet for what they look like but all pics I have found are for after market upgrades. But since there are no grills, not may options exist other than maybe they are there but covered up (not likely)

At delivery the only thing i checked on the sound system was that it worked and that it was SiriusXM capable (only the upgraded system is) Also noted speakers in front and back seat areas-but didn't check the trunk area for speakers.

Tomorrow I'm going in to see if I am crazy or speakers are missing. Also having all the speakers checked for correct size.

Anyone ever have anything like this happen?

Maybe a new item for the pre- delivery checklist.

FOLLOW UP

Last night i did find the speakers in the lift gate and did verify that the sub was in the trunk,
but without a grill as i was expecting.

Took in to service today to see if they had any suggestions.

They recommended further boosting the tone adjustments and moving back the fade
slightly. I had already been playing with these adjustments-with marginal improvement.


some responses to the questions above-

By sounding bad I mean it is lacking overall definition and lower level substance, tinny and a seeming lack of adequate clean power. Actually it doesn't sound bad, maybe disappointing would be a better description.

I deactivated the Dolby surround during the delivery process.

I did test drive with both the standard and upgraded system. In my view, the upgraded system was slightly better. I decided to get the upgraded system anyway since I love listening to music.

On the GIGO issue, with the Lexus I listened to XM mostly, which sounded great-in the S, mediocre. I'm sure this system would sound better with a lossless source.

Bottom line for me-

I'm leasing so I won't do any aftermarket enhancements.

If I was doing it over again with a purchase, I would buy the standard and upgrade with an aftermarket solution.

Overall I love the car including the sound system front end with the various input alternatives. Like anything else
I will get used to the sound over time. I am not letting the fact that it doesn't measure up to the premium systems offered by other luxury vehicle providers, lesson my love for the car with all the other great features it provides.

 

[zambono]

I bought an inventory vehicle that matched everything I was looking for, but lacked the UHF. I listen to a wide spectrum of music, from George Winston to 50 Cent. The lower volume music sounded fine on the basic system. But, when I wanted more volume, the bass was lacking. Spent around $400 on a sub/amp and the bass sounds way better than the UHF system.

So, short answer.. had regrets, but now I'm glad I went with the basic and added my own sub.

Thanks, I might end up going that route.

 

[pete8314]

I'm also not going with the UHFS on my next S, but will have Reus upgrade it. Mine will be a lease as well, but they'll remove everything they add and move it to the next car, if applicable.

 

[EarlyAdopter]

Turn the Dolby on. Move the EQ back to flat, with a small boost in bass (1 to 3 dB, to taste).

Used to be the case that Dolby made things sound terrible, but after a software update last year it markedly improves the sound quality.

 

[uberanalyst]

I agree with the need to turn Dolby Surround ON, adjust the fader so that more sound comes from the rear (to 6 or 7), and boost the bass and treble just a little (no more than +2)

Then the best thing you can do is to feed the system decent audio content. XM sounds terrible because it's so bandwidth-limited (64 Kbps compressed), and compression is also used by Tesla's Bluetooth implementation if you use your phone as a source. Instead, get a tiny thumb USB drive and fill it with uncompressed files (WAV, AIFF, or FLAC) from your music collection, and you'll discover the Telsa UHFS actually sounds quite good.

 

[bhzmark]

Satellite source sound is horrible. Play flacs on usb as source and uhfs sounds great.

 

[zambono]

What about HD FM radio?

 

[FlatSix911]

Try using the Slacker internet radio as a source.