Harmon Kardon 19 speaker system sound quality

[jdspartan117]

The most disappointing aspect of my 2022 Ram Limited is the Harmon Kardon sound system. I honestly got better sound in my 1976 Oldsmobile stock radio system. Seriously. Front loaded, no separation, cannot get sound spread around truck, even songs where the drums should travel around the speakers sounds all front loaded coming right in front of me rather than in surround. Sounds muddy and cheap. The rear upper speakers have no clarity or oomph. The real lower door speakers are muted, muddy, no clarity. No amount of adjusting of speaker location or surround settings in my audio set up fixes it.
Dealer just says it sounds great and that is the way it was designed and I should just turn the treble all the way up and the bass all the way down... What the..........
I had a Harmon Kardon sound system in the Hyundai Palisade I traded for the truck and it sounded awesome with none of the issues above.

Anyone else dissatisfied with the Harmon Kardon 19 speaker system and anyone found a way to improve it?

 

[BNeal]

Do a search. There are a million threads on this topic.

 

[OutlawHemi22]

I had a charger and challenger hellcats with the HK system and thought they sounded amazing. Meanwhile everyone on the Hellcat forums would **** on the HK saying it wasn’t worth it and sound quality wasn’t there. I had zero complaints with both of mine.

Just picked up my 22 Limited with the HK on Monday and I think it sounds better than both of my Hellcats. Everything is loud and crisp without overwhelming bass. The Limited I ordered did not have the HK and I happy I got this one with it. Everything I play on it sounds great.

 

[66Fuelie]

So you have a total of 3 post, two of them identical but in different sections.
Call me skeptical
Tom

 

[Dunga]

I think the HK 19 speaker system is excellent. Compares favorably to several higher end car systems I have experience with including B&O in Audi, base Bermeister in Mercedes and Base HK in Mercedes’ as well. It’s up there with my high end Bermeister in my current ‘21 GLE63s. The latter is a $5K option if I might add.

 

[thedream829]

The HK system on our Rams is an absolute abomination. Without a doubt the worst sound system I have ever listened to in my 40 years on this planet. My 2003 Honda Civic had a better sound system than this supposedly high end system Dodge has put into our Rams. Whoever approved this system from the factory needs one slug to the back of the head and then be used as cattle feed.

 

[392DCGC]

99% of music is recorded in stereo and it's supposed to sound like it's coming from in front of you. Play with the fade/balance settings if you want a "surround" gimmick.

 

[Cbty2050]

The HK system on our Rams is an absolute abomination. Without a doubt the worst sound system I have ever listened to in my 40 years on this planet. My 2003 Honda Civic had a better sound system than this supposedly high end system Dodge has put into our Rams. Whoever approved this system from the factory needs one slug to the back of the head and then be used as cattle feed.

Dodge didn't put anything in the Ram.

 

[OutlawHemi22]

The HK system on our Rams is an absolute abomination. Without a doubt the worst sound system I have ever listened to in my 40 years on this planet. My 2003 Honda Civic had a better sound system than this supposedly high end system Dodge has put into our Rams. Whoever approved this system from the factory needs one slug to the back of the head and then be used as cattle feed.

Just curious what you have your eq settings at?
I have mine set at
Bass -2
Mids +7
Treble +7
Have no complaints at these settings

 

[jjklongisland]

After trading in my 2019 Escalade which had the higher end Bose I am extremely disappointed with the quality of the HK. I knew this going into the purchase and decided it wasnt enough for me to not buy the truck since the other positives outweigh the stereo negatives. The speakers can always be upgraded. I also find the factory sub rattles too much in the back of the truck. There is a youtuber who reviews factory car audio systems and as a novice audiofile I agree with most of his reviews. The Stellantis group altogether has some of the worst audio systems on the market. Just because it says 19 speakers and 1 million watts doesnt mean its going to sound good. The jeep grand cherokees now have Macintosh in them and I dont find them to sound that spectacular. Unfortunately the only way around this is an audio upgrade with a at least a $2,500 budget.

 

[ShenValley]

Wait. My just picked up off the lot 2022 Bighorn has the 9-amplified speakers with a subwoofer which is mediocre at best. Where is this 19 Harmon Kardon system on the Ram? I never even saw that as an option.

 

[jjklongisland]

Wait. My just picked up off the lot 2022 Bighorn has the 9-amplified speakers with a subwoofer which is mediocre at best. Where is this 19 Harmon Kardon system on the Ram? I never even saw that as an option.

I dont believe its available on the Big Horn. Laramie and up.

 

[Houstontiger]

One of the reasons why HK sounds terrible because of the subwoofer location. They placed it behind the rear seats rather than on the floor in order to gain storage. But it rattles against the back window and sounds horrible IMO.

 

[Steven666]

The most disappointing aspect of my 2022 Ram Limited is the Harmon Kardon sound system. I honestly got better sound in my 1976 Oldsmobile stock radio system. Seriously. Front loaded, no separation, cannot get sound spread around truck, even songs where the drums should travel around the speakers sounds all front loaded coming right in front of me rather than in surround. Sounds muddy and cheap. The rear upper speakers have no clarity or oomph. The real lower door speakers are muted, muddy, no clarity. No amount of adjusting of speaker location or surround settings in my audio set up fixes it.
Dealer just says it sounds great and that is the way it was designed and I should just turn the treble all the way up and the bass all the way down... What the..........
I had a Harmon Kardon sound system in the Hyundai Palisade I traded for the truck and it sounded awesome with none of the issues above.

Anyone else dissatisfied with the Harmon Kardon 19 speaker system and anyone found a way to improve it?

Ya, gotta say I’m not all that impressed either. The sound in my 2010 beemer makes this system sound like a clock radio and a bit of bass get the speakers buzzing. Expected far better for the price

 

[bucolic]

I'd be happy with an Am radio and a speaker in the dash rolling 1960s style. The ram has all the radio I ever need.

You can always take out the back seats and do it up good!

 

[Dunga]

I keep reading and wondering what everyone is talking about tbh. Maybe there’s inconsistencies unit to unit but my truck has a terrific stereo system. Bass is thumping and doesn’t buzz. I haven’t cranked it all to max because my ears can’t handle it but I thought it was crisp and very very good. My other vehicles are a ‘14 stingray with a crappy Bose stereo and a ‘21 Benz with a $5k Bermeister high end stereo that’s probably slightly better than the Ram HK in terms of balance. I did modify some settings in the HK fwiw.

 

[OutlawHemi22]

I keep reading and wondering what everyone is talking about tbh. Maybe there’s inconsistencies unit to unit but my truck has a terrific stereo system. Bass is thumping and doesn’t buzz. I haven’t cranked it all to max because my ears can’t handle it but I thought it was crisp and very very good. My other vehicles are a ‘14 stingray with a crappy Bose stereo and a ‘21 Benz with a $5k Bermeister high end stereo that’s probably slightly better than the Ram HK in terms of balance. I did modify some settings in the HK fwiw.

Same here. I’ve had zero complaints about the last 3 mopars I’ve had with the HK. In my opinion my Ram sounds the best out of all the ones I’ve had with HK. What do you have your settings at?

 

[Hurrigator]

While I'm no audiophile, I think the HK in my 2022 Limited sounds pretty f'ing good.

 

[Hemidakota]

I was disappointed with the HK in my 21 Limited. Really got bad after I put my Borla Atak exhaust on. Some days I couldn't hear my exhaust and see days I would hear a loud pop that sounded like plastic breaking. I ordered an active noise control bypass and I can hear my exhaust better and the HK sounds a lot better.

 

[Dunga]

Same here. I’ve had zero complaints about the last 3 mopars I’ve had with the HK. In my opinion my Ram sounds the best out of all the ones I’ve had with HK. What do you have your settings at?

I’ll check and get back to you.