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HK system Bass

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DVYRAY

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Does anyone else feel the Harman Kardon system is over-driving the bass? Even when I turn the bass down all the way, it seems like it is over-driving. My 2017 Ram Sport had the Alpine and is was nice!!! The HK will not go louder than highway noise with windows down. Not impressed at all. Appreciate any thoughts.
 
DVYRAY said:
Does anyone else feel the Harman Kardon system is over-driving the bass? Even when I turn the bass down all the way, it seems like it is over-driving. My 2017 Ram Sport had the Alpine and is was nice!!! The HK will not go louder than highway noise with windows down. Not impressed at all. Appreciate any thoughts.
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Lots of threads/comments that express exactly that, after the amp firmware update. Many waiting on another update from Ram to address and add more EQ tuning ability.

You can search for opinions but only fixes so far are to turn bass down to -5 or so, and/or add some polyfill inside the sub enclosure.
 
When an update comes out, how are we notified/how do we update? I have only owned my truck for a week now so I have not gone through any previous updates.

Thanks!
 
klail said:
When an update comes out, how are we notified/how do we update? I have only owned my truck for a week now so I have not gone through any previous updates.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

There are two different types of updates, OTA and dealer flashes. There is supposed to be an Over The Air update coming in February. You'll know when that comes as you'll be notified on your system.
Dealer updates are only known about if your dealer tells you, or ideally, when they are reported on this forum. That's where so many learned about the amp update that made the HK system deliver on 900w.

We suspect that a bass fix at the amp level will have to be a dealer flash but an OTA update might give more EQ frequency adjustment. Just unknown at this point.
 
Edwards said:
There are two different types of updates, OTA and dealer flashes. There is supposed to be an Over The Air update coming in February. You'll know when that comes as you'll be notified on your system.
Dealer updates are only known about if your dealer tells you, or ideally, when they are reported on this forum. That's where so many learned about the amp update that made the HK system deliver on 900w.

We suspect that a bass fix at the amp level will have to be a dealer flash but an OTA update might give more EQ frequency adjustment. Just unknown at this point.
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Interesting interesting
 
My bass is pretty booming I think. Honestly, I used to be an audiophile and most of my music I can't have past 25 points or my ears fall off, but I think the bass may be a little shallow despite it being at +6 lol
 
Edwards said:
There are two different types of updates, OTA and dealer flashes. There is supposed to be an Over The Air update coming in February. You'll know when that comes as you'll be notified on your system.
Dealer updates are only known about if your dealer tells you, or ideally, when they are reported on this forum. That's where so many learned about the amp update that made the HK system deliver on 900w.

We suspect that a bass fix at the amp level will have to be a dealer flash but an OTA update might give more EQ frequency adjustment. Just unknown at this point.
Click to expand...
Thanks! That’s great info!!
 
klail said:
Thanks! That’s great info!!
Click to expand...
Switch between surround sound on/off. find which one sounds best. For my truck, surround sound on sounds really good. I have no problem hearing my system clearly while cruising 75mph with sunroof and rear window open. Others have reported that surround sound is worse in their trucks. With mine off, bass is overwhelming on most music.
 
I for one always thought factory systems lacked, and usually added aftermarket. This is the first one i feel absolutely rocks ! From the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Bassnectar, i am completely satisfied. Now i generally listen to it loud and with all the windows closed.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
 
Yeah it's very boomy. Especially around 60-80 hz. I've been slowly replacing the speakers which is upgrading the sound each time. Better bass response. Smoother highs and mids.

The factory tuning is a challenge though. More adjustability on the midbass would be helpful.

Nonetheless it'd not a bad system and could be pretty easily remedied with a software fix.
 
I am noticing the bass rattle when it's a certain frequency of bass. If it's a really low, longated bass that has a little bit if overdrive to it, you will get rattling. If it's a deep punchy bass you will get a solid hit without rattle.
 
This might help a couple people out there although I have not tried it since I am hopefully going to order my RAM soon...

If using Spotify, Spotify actually has an embedded equalizer in the options menu under "Playback". If running music through your phones Spotify, perhaps that equalizer could help the bass a bit in the meantime until a hopeful software fix is applied to the uconnect.
 
The sub in this vehicle has a lot to be desired. At times it’s just okay, other times it’s worse; it’s nothing more than an inadequate filler. Not only does it rattle against the bulkhead it sounds like someone hitting deadened cardboard - there’s absolutely no resonance.

C’mon engineers, quit designing audio in a vacuum.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I don't know about that, if it sounds like hitting cardboard then you need to update for it.
 
I feel that the bass is really boomy. It sounds to me like the bass is centered around 250 Hz. I also have the subwoofer rattle. I have the eq set flat.

Both my Samsung Note 9 and S9+ have an eq feature for Bluetooth streaming under the sound menu. I’ll have to play around with it and see if I can improve the sound. The Infinity system in my 2011 Hyundai Santa Fe is much better.

I wish someone could come up with a hack to add a 32 band 1/3 octave eq. We’d probably be able to better tune the sound then.

I like the bass to be pronounced around 50 and 100 Hz. Above 100 Hz, in my opinion, it gets very boomy. 50 and 100 Hz adds some nice low end punch, but then again, these systems resonate badly somewhere in the rear wall of the truck.

Did they really listen to these things when they were designing the system before releasing it? How could they release it with all the resonance rattles? I don’t expect the truck to be an anechoic chamber, but they really could have done a much better job.
 
I've felt this way about nearly every 'premium' auto audio system. For the charge on them, it's always frustrating to me.

But that said, 95% of buyers don't care, notice, or are very happy. For the other 5% who are used to after market or know, they're probably going to make modifications anyway.

That said, I agree they should at least give more adjustability to the software. It's really not that hard.
 
wildh24 said:
I've felt this way about nearly every 'premium' auto audio system. For the charge on them, it's always frustrating to me.

But that said, 95% of buyers don't care, notice, or are very happy. For the other 5% who are used to after market or know, they're probably going to make modifications anyway.

That said, I agree they should at least give more adjustability to the software. It's really not that hard.
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You're exactly right! More adjustability would help out immensely with this system.

They put a 3 band equalizer in it. Why? With software, they could have given us much more with very little effort.

With a 10 band eq or even a 1/3 octave eq, it would be worlds different.

I've heard this HK sub reproduce some really low frequencies. So the capability is there. With the current way they have the system eq'd, the bass is boomy and muddy. If it were boosted or attenuated at the correct frequencies, we'd have a much better sounding system.

I just bought a Klipsch "The Three", bluetooth speaker. It actually sounds better than the HK system in my truck.
 
Last edited:
JAGITA said:
Does anyone else feel the Harman Kardon system is over-driving the bass? Even when I turn the bass down all the way, it seems like it is over-driving. My 2017 Ram Sport had the Alpine and is was nice!!! The HK will not go louder than highway noise with windows down. Not impressed at all. Appreciate any thoughts.
Click to expand...
I have no issues with overall volume. Even at highway speeds, with wind noise, I think the HK has way more than enough volume.

My issue with the system is the frequency (or frequencies) at which they boost the bass. To me, it is very muddy and boomy. For my taste in sound, I would prefer the bass boosted at a much lower frequency. It sounds to me like they have it boosted somewhere around 250 Hz. I would like a low end boost at 50 and 100 Hz.

I don't want a boombox sound, just tight accurate bass with low end punch. I'm thinking the sub is capable or reproducing correctly, it's just a matter of better equalization. Right now I have the 3 band eq set flat.

Then we also have the issue of resonance rattles in the rear wall of the cab. It's not isolated or dampened properly. It would have only cost a few dollars more to correctly deaden the rear wall of the cab at the factory, but they chose not to.

If it were me, and I was a test listener to this system during the design phases, I would not have released it for sale until it was correctly done. I'm sure it's a bean counter thing...
 
I think you're right. I'm sure it comes down to cost. If you even look at the speakers used in door 6x9, they're really low end paper cones. It would have cost and extra$75 to put 4 good ones in. A contract but with Harman (samsung) would be even less.

I don't know how these are tested. I'd like to think they have a solid audio engineer or enthusiast come in and say "yeah that's pretty good... Or that's horrendous". But like you said, they probably have a small budget for audio because not many buyers are going to make that the deciding reason to buy or not. Those that really want high end will buy after market the way they want. I get it from a business standpoint.

That said #ramcares please provide feedback to the project managers that a little more user adjustability via EQ would really set your the HK system apart! People like to customize.... You can even market it that way. This is customization just like the themes. It's really nice for the end user.
 
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