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Poll: CD Player - ever use it ?

Do you use the in-dash disc player ?


  • Total voters
    179

jmrtsus

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I think you're giving your mustang audio system a little too much credit.
I love music and I love a good sound system. Savagegeese a YouTube reviewer has a sound/audio engineer test basically every audio system and Fords don't do very well including the premium audio system.

I promise you the lexicon 15 speaker audio system in my g70 is better than anything Ford has ever put in a Ford vehicle. Now Lincoln may be completely different.

Bowers and Wilkins in the Volvos are probably some of the best automotive audio systems you can get.

Don't get me started on the Fiesta ST sound system because it sucks and it mostly comes down to the terrible tweeter location, and the fact they said hey no subwoofer for you.

Sent from my LG-LS997 using Tapatalk
Anybody familiar with audio technology can probably come up with an audio test that most cars cannot duplicate. The B&O is still the best factory audio I have ever heard.........not saying "the best" ever, I haven't heard them all, LOL! The B&O is the best (and only) available in a factory upgrade system for the Mustang and very good for the money. The fact is unlike the '70's, '80's and '90's upgrading a stock system is no longer buy a new high end head unit, amps and speakers installed at Circuit City or a store front car audio store. (dinosaur now)

The ST system serves its purpose and an under seat powered sub is a cheap improvement for some. I did not expect much in a $22K car.

With 55 years in audio I take "reviews" with a wheelbarrow of salt. Way too much snake oil in audio sales. Anyone that knows audio does not need a "test" to tell us a car is the absolutely worst place in the world for good audio. Every audio parameter is a compromise in a car. Even moving a seat forward or back 8 inches will change the audio.

I don't know who would buy a car based on arbitrary audio tests or brand name audio systems. My wife bought a Mustang GT/CS not a B&O system. She would have bought the upgrade no matter what big name was on it. What I do believe is B&O and the others audio providers for high end cars do the best they can given the space (car) and budget and I am sure all do much more extensive and expensive testing than any reviewer does. The are putting their well respected name on the product with the hope of expanding the brand. All humans have differing hearing even in each ear. We adjust our systems to our ears not what test equipment says. I have a midrange loss in my right ear but left is ok meaning without a L/R channel EQ in the FiST I can only adjust the right channel volume upward to compensate. All designers can do is give the customer a good starting point and expect the system will be adjusted to please the end users which is why we now have more than a Bass and Treble control. My daughter is perfectly happy with the CD audio in her FiST and sees no reason for a sub or any other changes. Said it is much better than the audio in her twice as expensive Honda Pilot she dumped.

This is the reason brand name systems are now the big thing in a new cars. The necessity of integrating the electronics interface in new cars and new interiors every 3 years or so means the days of "stock" generic 3rd party units (Pioneer, JVC, Alpine, ect) being available for most cars are totally gone.You can't buy a stock audio system in a Mustang and pay to "upgrade" it to the level of the B&O system for the $1000 cost. Almost nobody will buy a $1000 audio upgrade in a $22K car, in a $50K and up car it is expected to be offered or stock and makes a profit. The only audio changes my FiST needs is a Mountune exhaust system.

BTW...Harman International owns Lexicon, B&O automotive audio (not home/professional audio), Infinity, JBL, Mark Levinson, Harman Kardon. Revel and Selenium also, they make automotive and home speakers. Lexicon is primarily involved in digital processing/home theater not so much in home or auto audio, they did a Rolls and the Korean cars audio, I suspect the other brands were in exclusive use by other car companies so Lexicon was drafted by Harman for the those cars. Harman is very big ($$) in "high end" auto audio. I know 6 of their companies offer audio systems in various cars and all excellent quality for the costs according to what I read.
 


Ford ST

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Not trying to be rude but you wrote all of that without even understanding what the person is testing for.

The test is for automotive audio systems and every vehicle is treated the same.

The Fiesta ST is definitely not the worst not even close, and I consider it an exception anyway based on what the car is. The tweeter location still sucks and plenty of people agree with that.
The reality is there are plenty of people like me who do care. I personally feel these companies have sold out their name and don't really care about the quality. There are a few companies that have said nope we're not going to do that our system has to be at a certain level no matter what.
Example some people drink Folgers coffee and think it's acceptable. We all have different standards and expectations.

So I would say for me personally my wife included an audio system is definitely a decision in the purchasing of a vehicle.
I would like to add I would probably not purchase a vehicle if it did not have manual control knobs for the climate system.

Anyway we'll just agree to disagree on this one. I should add if you are happy with it that's all that matters.

Very much aware basically everything is owned by one giant company.

Sent from my LG-LS997 using Tapatalk
 


Last edited:

M-Sport fan

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So, ALL of the (HOME, not automotive) indie 'esoteric' ultra high end/top tier/'elite' hi-fi companies have been swallowed up by the 'majors' now?? [:(]
 


jmrtsus

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The traditional home audio market is all but dead. Most home audio has deteriorated to multichannel Chinese garbage with a booming sub and a shitpot of tiny speakers. Powered by a so called 1500W amp that only consumes 180W of input power to output the magical 1500W. Bottom line is we get good audio and a good price in our Fords with upgraded audio systems. We all want what sounds good to us and if you want a CD player or better than stock audio you are pretty much stuck with what Ford provides. I'm happy with their choices.
 




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