2003 Disco Stereo bugged?

I bought a 2003 Disco about 3 weeks ago, the only real issue I have with it is the radio included with the SE model, the "Premium audio system with Alpine® head unit on. Phillips Lear 220-watt audio system with 12 speakers, including amplified subwoofer."

I'm convinced that that phasing of the rear speakers are backwards, or that the amplifier doesn't have enough juice going to it and loses efficiency when the F/R fader is at 0.

The front speakers sound good when the fader is all the way forward. Some nice low-end response.

The rear speakers (and the door mounted sub) sound okay when the fader is all the way to the rear.

But, as soon as I start mixing the front or back, or worse, setting the fader at 0, almost all low-end disappears (I would expect the typical compounding effect of low frequencies), and the overall sound quality becomes somewhat harsh, stereo separation is nil and its just not pleasent to listen to at anything but a whispering volume. Just as one would expect in a system where speaker phasing is out of wack, OR if the DC power to the amplifier was weak.

Has anyone else experienced this with the standard SE audio system? Is it just not as good as I expected, or do you think there's a problem that needs to be serviced? I'm not the complaining type--I'd feel lame taking my rover in to the service guys and telling them the radio sounds "less than stellar", unless this is a known problem, or if I should be getting better results.

Reply to
Scott Smith
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You need to get out more, my Stereo sounds like a bag of nails.

A
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Andrew Renshaw

Reply to
Tim Bott

Reply to
Tim Bott

It does sound like a phase problem although I've only come across this left to right rather than front to back. I've "experienced" the sound systems in a couple of SE's - my own 1996 and a friends 2001. Both of them sound great with good response throughout the range and the sub woofer making sure you "feel" the bass too. It's one of the best production model sound systems I've come across in fact. (assuming you don't use the load space cover !)

It could be the subwoofer I suppose, as this is driven seperately from the front and rear speakers and would produce just the right frequency range to counteract any bass response. If you wanted to investingate it yourself you could rule that out by disconnecting it at the head unit or at the sub woofer itself. If it's mounted the same as mine it's just a case of undoing a few screws to take it off the back door.

cheers

Dave W.

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Reply to
Dave White

"It could be the subwoofer I suppose, as this is driven seperately from the front and rear speakers and would produce just the right frequency range to counteract any bass response. "

I agree-and I thought this might be the case--honestly, I'm not sure how a forward-firing subwoofer should be phased in an system with 4 other side-firing speakers. It looks like the amplifer is built in to the sub enclosure (as usually is the case with factory car systems these days), so it's probably almost impossible that it's wired wrong--speaker terminals are usually "keyed" by having one terminal larger than the other. And I assume the wiring to the sub is part of a harness, making an incorrect connection nearly impossible.

It could be L-R phasing I guess, and fading the rear channel in would exaggerate the problem. I'll play with some different balance settings.

I did a speaker-by-speaker test, to confirm none of them are blown. They each sound great individually.

Maybe the 4 main speakers need a low-frequency attenuator of some sort to reduce crosstalk? This seems like a natural design consideration. Also, The sub is only active with the rear channel... this surprises me, as most other factory audio systems in cars I've owned don't fade the sub with the other speakers.

I do know for sure that bass response is best when the system is faded

100% front or 100% rear, and almost all low-end goes away when at 0. I've put together a few decent 130db+ systems in my younger days and have a pretty good ear for these things.

Going to try to disconnect the sub and see how it goes. I think I'll also stop by the dealer tomorrow and listen to a few other systems in other identical models.

It would really surprise me if this is typcial audio quality in a $41K vehicle.

Regarding the comment about hearing the radio at all; I'm a bit of an audiophile and a perfectionist, and if it's not perfect it bugs me. As it is, it's hard to hear with the 4 windows down and sunroof(s) open at 70MPH. With a 220 watt system I expect somewhat better performance.

PS-the rest of the car is perfect, and a joy to drive. I'm looking forward to the first big Nebraska winter with 4' of snow, and 6' snow drifts. I'll be the only one on my block to get out and about.

Reply to
Scott Smith

In article , Scott Smith writes

It sounds like front is OOP with back. Try swapping both cables on the easiest pair to get to. Failing that, it could be the entire set with the sub. As you point out elsewhere, the sub's probably not easy to change either :( so your best bet might be to swap all four.

Cheer up - I've zero speakers working in the landy at the moment. The other wagon's an Alhambra though, which has about 2^10 speakers covering every square inch of the door panels. Heaven forfend having to sort out phase problems with that lot (and it doesn't sound all that special anyway!).

Regards,

Simonm.

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