# Poor audio fidelity. 2017 Hatch LT, standard sound system



## 17Hatch6MT (Dec 28, 2015)

I don't think I'm a fussy listener. Had a 1989 Accord LXi that I owned for 12 years that had a very good sound system. The 2001 Sentra GXE that I had for 15 years was OK, not quite as good as the Accord, but tolerable.

I thought that anything better than the tinny 1950s-80s AM radio dash speaker would be satisfactory for me. The Cruze's sound system has adequate bass, unlike the old AM radio dash speakers. But it's downhill from there. It seems like the speakers are transmitting highly and unpleasantly compressed digital sounds. There seem to be completely missing ranges of tones. For example, mid to treble piano seems to be greatly muffled, as if you have to strain to hear it. Anything else including a cheap transistor radio would make that piano more forward in the mix. And, the treble has an unpleasant hiss/sibilance.

Anybody else notice this? Any recommendations aside from buying a complete new sound system for the thing?

Not just the sound. The FM reception fades out 20 miles sooner too. Very disappointed. I really miss the Accord's FM, in particular. Chicago has a great station, WXRT, and I could sometimes get it in Madison, Wisconsin, over 100 miles away, depending on the weather.

GM, you simply must do better. Too many annoyances with this car. (See my other posts if you care to.) The solution for me will not be to pay more for a higher-trim GM car. This one cost too much as it is. It will probably be to defect to another brand. Japanese or Korean, likely. It hasn't committed a deadly sin (leaving me stranded even though low miles) yet. But lots of little sins.


----------



## sillysleeper (Jan 6, 2018)

Is it the 4 or 6 speaker setup? I'm assuming you've played with tone settings for the bass/mid/treble and zone adjustments. I've noticed the standard FM signal sounds a little funky to me but not That bad. I prefer plugging my phone directly or using Bluetooth.


----------



## 17Hatch6MT (Dec 28, 2015)

I have played with the tone controls. I'll try harder. It isn't all mid that's muffled, just seems to be certain instruments or tonal ranges.

The FM issue may be attributable in part to the absence of a whip antenna. Don't know, just speculating.

For people in the Milwaukee area... I used to be able to receive WXRT all the way to Rawson Ave. on 94. In the Cruze, it fades out before hitting the Kenosha-Racine county line. If you're driving other late model cars, can you receive WXRT all the way to Rawson...?


----------



## nightfallgrey2018 (Nov 15, 2017)

I agree to a certain point. But I almost never listen to FM radio and always have my phone on bluetooth streaming music. I too was shocked when I turned the volume up for the first time. My wife has a 2012 Kia Optima SXT turbo and it came with the Infinity sound system and compared to the Cruze, there is no comparison. I know the Optima was $12,000 more than what I paid for the Cruze in 2017 but anyway...For example, on the Optima, if we want a normal conversation, I have to set the volume at 3. At 8 it is impossible to hear each other and the sound quality is imo awesome. On the Cruze, I need to crank the volume to 8 to hear the **** thing and to about 30 to have any sense of power at all plus the quality is not the best but I can live with that since it's not mediocre by any means.


----------



## Kygood247 (Jan 26, 2018)

Regarding the range you can always buy a piece of hardware that can extend the range for about $30 or so. I did it on a 93 honda prelude and it extended the range anywhere between 50 and 100 miles depending on the quality of the signal. As far as the sound quality not sure the speakers you have (mine is the LT Hatchback with bose), but some car companues are still putting those "paper" speakers in their cars especially in base models to cut cost. If that is the case you can't expect a lot put of those speakers. Your local car audio shop or best buy should carry a decent pair of coaxial speakers for around $100. Is it worth it to you to have a better stereo system for $200 to $250?


----------



## 2015LT2 (Jan 20, 2017)

Is it possible that you have a faulty audio system from the factory? I have the base model stereo in my 2015, and I did not think it was _terrible_.


----------



## IPhantom (Aug 22, 2017)

I have the exact same feeling. Very hard to describe only certain frequencies missing. It is really kind of muffled. I bought replacements but didn't have time to install them yet.


----------



## 17Hatch6MT (Dec 28, 2015)

The fidelity problem is with all sources. Bluetooth and satellite, not just FM.



IPhantom said:


> I have the exact same feeling. Very hard to describe only certain frequencies missing. It is really kind of muffled. I bought replacements but didn't have time to install them yet.


Would new speakers do it? 

Could there be a digital 'missing link' that would take more than new speakers to cure? I'd hate to spend money on speakers and have it not solve the problem.

Or does that missing link include not enough amplifier power? My worry/thought is that maybe the speakers are super efficient, and something that has a flatter response also might have inadequate volume.



2015LT2 said:


> Is it possible that you have a faulty audio system from the factory? I have the base model stereo in my 2015, and I did not think it was _terrible_.


Not sure. I doubt the dealer would be any help, though. It makes noise that's recognizable. That's all it is warranted to do, I think.


----------



## IPhantom (Aug 22, 2017)

I went for Rockford Fosgate P 1675 in the back and P 1675-S in front. Im confident it will be a improvement anyhow. Should the source actually be the problem, that'l be a different cattle of fish. Maybe an amp in between could solve it (which would be my next step). Then again if you go further down that road and it turns out the output from the radio is just bad, you will end up replacing the head unit - which i'd hate to do and probably won't.
Like i said i hope it will be solved with speakers only.


----------



## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

It might be up there with the worst sounding Car Radio I've ever had? Reception however is fantastic and I love the MyLink features in the 2014 1LT


----------



## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

I was extremely unimpressed by the stock sound system in my '12 Cruze (muffled sound best describes it, and there wasn't much volume either), and as I recall from rental Gen 2's, the 16-17 stock system wasn't that much better. I'd rate it ahead of current Honda products, which I'd put at the very bottom of my list for a decent sounding audio system. 

FM reception is a non-issue for my sedan, and the Bose system was an upgrade that was very much worth the price tag. Not much bass, but the mids and lows are clear enough. The Pioneer "upgrade" in the 1st gens wasn't much of an upgrade either.

That said, the stock system in my Volvo S70 is among the best sounding audio systems I've ever heard in a car, and the Cruze's Bose system doesn't hold a candle to that.


----------



## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

My only other GM Car, a Buick Century had a plain Jane A/C Delco stereo and it sounded great, like you'd expect!


----------



## 17Hatch6MT (Dec 28, 2015)

We had a 1999 or 2000 Montana. Not great, but not awful like this one.


----------



## Fadclt (Jan 9, 2018)

If you have anything less than the 8in bose system there is a problem with the infotainment systems gm wide. Right now there is no fix and the dealers will pass it off as it is what it is. Mine has problems with audio jumping up and down like there is some sort of protection installed on it. It is very frustrating. And you can't put your own device in or it voids your warranty. Pm me for more info.


----------



## sillysleeper (Jan 6, 2018)

I have the "base" Premier 2017 sedan that has the random cutouts when a song is too powerful. Seems to lessen treble almost to the point where you don't hear the vocals when there's a larger bass hit or vice-versa. It's quite annoying but I've been planning on putting a single sub in the back then turning down the bass settings so the door speakers can withstand producing sound without tripping out.

I don't know about what voids what warranty sound-wise and would like to keep it intact since I have the bumper-bumper lifetime wrap minus tires/wheels. Tried PM'ing you Fadclt but I'm assuming since you're under 10 posts you aren't eligible for receipt.


----------



## Fadclt (Jan 9, 2018)

Sillysleeper pm was sent. If you don't get it here is the info. Installing anything non gm will void all your warranties except for things like window guards or hood protectors etc. Besides installing a sub will not correct the problem and may make it worse. It is a problem with the programming. Inform your dealer about the problem.


----------



## ProDigit (Aug 31, 2015)

I don't know how much the 2017 compares to my 2011 eco,
but I always thought they had balanced the sound well in their sonics, until they added 2 door style speakers in the Cruze.
These door style tweeters cross over in frequency with the door speakers.

If they're wired out of phase, what could happen is that you're missing some sounds.
if they're wired in phase (like in my case), they will add a lot of high-mids to highs to the sound.

I find my car has adequate bass and mids (40Hz to 2kHz),
Has too much high mids/highs (2-4kHz)
and has good brights (4kHz+).

I recently bought some capacitors to see if there's a way to solder them in series with the doorstyle tweeters, to see if I can create a cheap, but effective frequency cutoff; that hopefully won't affect the door speakers.


----------



## 17Hatch6MT (Dec 28, 2015)

Yep, exactly. Maybe you're right, speaker polarity reversed on one side, out of phase.


----------



## GEN2bluRS (May 16, 2018)

I HAVE THE SAME ISSUE WITH THE BOSE SYSTEM. Spoke to the dealer Sat May26th and he indicated that he just fix one earlier in the week. I have an appointment on Monday. Do play around with the balance it does help some. . Might just need reprogramed. May be a TSB on this issue. Mine sounds very good w/ the XM station tuned in and 25% louder with crips clear tones in all ranges.


----------



## anthonysmith93 (Jul 15, 2015)

FM and XM radio aren't going to sound good unless it's an HD radio. Most people don't notice the poor audio quality of FM and XM in lesser stereos but once they get a better stereo realize it sounds like crap. I suggest plugging in your phone rather than bluetoothing it to see if that makes a difference. Also, if you're streaming on the phone, ensure you have high quality streaming enabled in whatever app you use, and if it's songs you have on the phone, be sure you only get higher bitrate songs (160kbps or higher). That being said, I've NEVER heard a Bose stereo (home or car) with good highs/upper mids. They always sound like they have bassy rumble but no hard thump, and really high mids and muted treble, no matter how it's adjusted.

And to others mentioning treble/vocals reducing when the bass hits, almost any OEM stereo will do that at higher volumes. Unless you have some super high end factory upgraded stereo that comes with actual separate subs, it's going to do that. It's really really noticeable in Ford Fusions, without the Sony stereo.


----------



## GraySkies (Feb 6, 2018)

On the LT with base sound system, I also suspect that there are some issues with resonances and such. Have you ever noticed how bad the "THRUMMM" is when you close the doors? If you have an LT, put your ear next the door when you slam it, and listen for it.

I suspect that this thin floppy sheet metal resonance coincides closely with some of the wonky peaks and valleys in the frequency response of the factory system on these. When I get to installing my new door speakers, I am going with some heavy sound deadening material in the door skins, and using fast rings and stuff, to hopefully try and cut down on some of that.


----------



## Justa335i (Jun 7, 2018)

Let us know how it works! I just bought a 2018 Cruze Redline a week ago and replaced all the door speakers with Kicker DCS650's and the audio quality is somewhat better, but not night and day. Hoping that changing the dash speakers will help it a bit.


----------



## GraySkies (Feb 6, 2018)

Justa335i said:


> Let us know how it works! I just bought a 2018 Cruze Redline a week ago and replaced all the door speakers with Kicker DCS650's and the audio quality is somewhat better, but not night and day. Hoping that changing the dash speakers will help it a bit.


Might not notice much from that. The tweeters don't carry much of the audio load. If you have good door speakers in, what you really need is an amp to wake them up. Not enough power in the stock unit. Still won't cure the lack of low end. Need a sub for that. Also probably won't cure the "holes" or "dead spots" in the frequency response, but might improve them. I think those are "room problems" not "equipment problems", as I said above.

I will do a thread on my install when I'm done. I'm doing a lot of "making it up as I go along", so I don't want to post my install until I've at least finished the physical installation and reached the "tuning" phase.


----------



## blackbird (Nov 6, 2017)

To add a comment to the thread if anyone is searching in the future and curious how the old and new Cruze audio systems compare, I'd say the base system in my '18 hatch is a little better than my '14 sedan. While I normally like a somewhat flat equalization curve with a touch of bass and treble, the first gen system comes across to my ears as extremely flat and tone adjustments don't help much.

The frequency curves in the head unit and possibly slightly better speakers have the second gen car comes across as a little punchier with low and high-end frequency reproduction, but still somewhat flat and lacking for power compared to great factory sound systems. In addition to removing the CD player to save a couple bucks on the second gen cars, the tuner they're using for the AM radio has very narrow bandwidth. Reception is okay but it doesn't sound great.


----------



## japankow (11 mo ago)

17Hatch6MT said:


> I don't think I'm a fussy listener. Had a 1989 Accord LXi that I owned for 12 years that had a very good sound system. The 2001 Sentra GXE that I had for 15 years was OK, not quite as good as the Accord, but tolerable.
> 
> I thought that anything better than the tinny 1950s-80s AM radio dash speaker would be satisfactory for me. The Cruze's sound system has adequate bass, unlike the old AM radio dash speakers. But it's downhill from there. It seems like the speakers are transmitting highly and unpleasantly compressed digital sounds. There seem to be completely missing ranges of tones. For example, mid to treble piano seems to be greatly muffled, as if you have to strain to hear it. Anything else including a cheap transistor radio would make that piano more forward in the mix. And, the treble has an unpleasant hiss/sibilance.
> 
> ...


I replaced one original basic in rear (so far) . Boy orig speaker is paper cone paper tweeter...crap. New one sounds cleaner but much lower volume. Not sure if my scheme to replace rear speakers and have fade stting to 95% rear will work (as in provide loud enough sound). Is it natural for paper ones to be louder, or draw more power? New ones are 92 sensitivity rating.


----------

