H/K audio upgrade - VAST Improvment

[ny2az]

Don't bother with this one.
First time around I PACKED the sub box with polyfil. Made it worse.
Then I pulled most of the polyfil out and only left in the recommended volume. Still sucked.
Unplug the sub and be done. It's a pretty decent system this way.
I generally run Bass @4, Mid @0, and Treble @4 and get good results. Adjust to taste.
With this setup I can go to about 22 on the volume before it starts to deteriorate.
If you listen to satelite radio, then all bets are off.

sorry to hear your results were not good for you ... this is my 3rd Limited and have done the poly fill to all 3 vehicle ... can't see how it can make it worse ... l have experienced just the opposite ... just removing the sub from the enclosure you could hear the echoing and hollowness of the exclosure and after the fill a total difference ... l have been nothing but very please with my HK and doing just the poly fill made it that much better ...

just an update .... l dont lightly fill the enclodure ... l over fill it and stuff it in all crevices of the enclosure ... l think in turn it reduces the amount of sub movement due to the reduced air volume moved ... but, you definitely hear the sub and it's tight ... just my 2 cents ...

 

[Buz]

sorry to hear your results were not good for you ... this is my 3rd Limited and have done the poly fill to all 3 vehicle ... can't see how it can make it worse ... l have experienced just the opposite ... just removing the sub from the enclosure you could hear the echoing and hollowness of the exclosure and after the fill a total difference ... l have been nothing but very please with my HK and doing just the poly fill made it that much better ...

just an update .... l dont lightly fill the enclodure ... l over fill it and stuff it in all crevices of the enclosure ... l think in turn it reduces the amount of sub movement due to the reduced air volume moved ... but, you definitely hear the sub and it's tight ... just my 2 cents ...

I was excited when I first packed it with the polyfil. I did what you did and stuffed all the corners, etc. To me the overbearing bass was still there, just more of a 'dead thud' sound.
I prefer a clean, balanced sound system, and even with the polyfil stuffed in there I found the sound was light years away from clean and balanced.

 

[german88]

I was excited when I first packed it with the polyfil. I did what you did and stuffed all the corners, etc. To me the overbearing bass was still there, just more of a 'dead thud' sound.
I prefer a clean, balanced sound system, and even with the polyfil stuffed in there I found the sound was light years away from clean and balanced.

I agree with this. If your looking for more bass performance I wouldn't waste time and effort on the stock setup. You'll get far better results going with something aftermarket. I was happy with my setup after swapping out the door 6X9's which gave the system a much cleaner/tighter mid bass response. Don't notice the shortcomings of the stock subwoofer as much now.

 

[RHeller1]

Installed the cdt slim 6x9's today. Already have the Faital speakers in the dash. I also did some sound deadening on the doors with some Noico sound deadener. I am pleasantly surprised how much brighter and tighter the CDT speakers are. Alot of the muddy midbass dissapeared, now I just have the muddy subwoofer. Havent disconnected it yet, but will do soon to see the difference.

 

[Scap]

Just installed the CDT CL69S.
Reversed the reverse polarity back to normal.
FYI, a paper clip tapped flat with a hammer works like a champ for depinning the Metra adapters if you don't want to cut and solder.

Fired it up and it was so clear. Ran and grabbed my wife, and as soon as she shut the door she demanded I put these speakers in her _next_ car!! Lol.

FYI, reversing polarity required me to disable ANC.

Totally worth the money.

 

[german88]

Nice work! Odd you had to disable ANC though. Didn't do that with mine.

 

[Scap]

Nice work! Odd you had to disable ANC though. Didn't do that with mine.

The drone was immediate and overwhelming.
Not sure why, but it makes me wonder if that was why my OE speakers sounded so muddy.

 

[RHeller1]

I didnt disable ANC either. No issues with CDT speakers in the doors creating any drone.

 

[Scap]

I didnt disable ANC either. No issues with CDT speakers in the doors creating any drone.

Well that is certainly interesting.

 

[german88]

Just a thought but have you had the update done to the audio system?

 

[Scap]

Just a thought but have you had the update done to the audio system?

I haven't.

 

[Scap]

Curious, any thoughts on what would happen if I reversed polarity on the ANC mics?

 

[Scap]

Last night I put the pins back in for the ANC and reversed the Metra adapters back to the factory setting for the 6x9's

Not sure how or why, but the ANC and reverse polarity feels better to my head.

The bass is clear and tight. However, it does slightly overpower the 3.5's, so I'll likely start looking that direction pretty soon.

Overall, I really like how the CDTs cleaned up the factory sound.

 

[FloridaMan87]

Are the CDT 6x9’s a pretty easy swap for the factory front and rear door speakers? Is the harness plug and play and do I need to do any of this crazy reversing polarity or anything else?
Sorry, I’m a big newbie at car audio stuff…


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[Scap]

Are the CDT 6x9’s a pretty easy swap for the factory front and rear door speakers? Is the harness plug and play and do I need to do any of this crazy reversing polarity or anything else?
Sorry, I’m a big newbie at car audio stuff…


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Super easy swap

 

[german88]

Are the CDT 6x9’s a pretty easy swap for the factory front and rear door speakers? Is the harness plug and play and do I need to do any of this crazy reversing polarity or anything else?
Sorry, I’m a big newbie at car audio stuff…


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yes, you'll want to swap polarity on all 4.

 

[FloridaMan87]

Yes, you'll want to swap polarity on all 4.

Ok cool. And just for further clarity… it’s the same exact speakers for the front and rear doors correct?


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[Scap]

Ok cool. And just for further clarity… it’s the same exact speakers for the front and rear doors correct?


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Yes CDT CL69S 4ohm.
I much prefer mine wired as the factory intended. But mine is a 21 and may have a different program than some of the others.

Get the Metra adapter 72-6514 for factory polarity. If you want reversed polarity, you can get 72-6515 or repin the 6514's with a tapered paperclip.

 

[JDHarris]

I swapped the polarity on mine when installing and it drove me nuts. The drone was obnoxious, particularly with MDS active. It would pulse in time with the exhaust sounds in a way that was almost physically uncomfortable to my ears. I pulled the pins on the microphones for the ANC to disable it next. It was a little better, but still significantly more exhaust drone than when using ANC. I ended up reattaching the microphones to re-enable the ANC and swapping the polarity back to stock. Much nicer experience in the cab that way to my ears. I like the CDT speakers, but didn’t like the swapped polarity and the resulting impact to ANC. I have the B2 moderate muffler on my truck, not stock.

 

[Scap]

I swapped the polarity on mine when installing and it drove me nuts. The drone was obnoxious, particularly with MDS active. It would pulse in time with the exhaust sounds in a way that was almost physically uncomfortable to my ears. I pulled the pins on the microphones for the ANC to disable it next. It was a little better, but still significantly more exhaust drone than when using ANC. I ended up reattaching the microphones to re-enable the ANC and swapping the polarity back to stock. Much nicer experience in the cab that way to my ears. I like the CDT speakers, but didn’t like the swapped polarity and the resulting impact to ANC. I have the B2 moderate muffler on my truck, not stock.

I'm bone stock, and had a similar experience.
Since we both have 21's, I wonder if there's something that changed for 21 that others aren't experiencing.