Harmon Kardon Sound System

[Stinger305]

I’ve found that clari-fi over boosts certain frequency and sounds artificial. Sometimes this isnt very noticeable but other times it distorts the sound so I just turned it off.

OMG, thank you!

I turned it off when I first tried it when I bought the car. With this thread being resurrected I took an honest stab at it again.

EDIT: I misunderstood. I have Clari-Fi off for sure but the following statement is about the Quantum Logic Surround, which I HATE.

2/10. Do Not Like.

First thing, it actually hurts my ears a little, like on volume 6 even. I don't know what it is but it pounds my ear drums a bit. I also hate turning my head for a head check and the sound all switching places on me... I don't know how to describe it but it's a positional sound fail that relies on listener orientation. But most of all, it sound artificial and digitized to all hell. Yes, there's a "boost" to the volume and sound, and some sections of music absolutely sound more full, but usually I'm left with a fake metallic sound to my music. (This is with the On Stage setting too.)

For the record, I don't want crazy bass and have always preferred a treble->mid sound in my rock. I have Clari-Fi off too since I use high quality FLACs. I believe my ballpark settings are TREBLE -2 MID +2 BASS +3 or 4. It sounds great for my music.

 

[me&stinger]

One of the issues with the HK (15 speaker system) is that the frequencies bleed into each other. The result is muddled sound. The Bass, Mid, and Treble settings are not adequate to counter this.

I wish there was a way to adjust frequencies with greater control. I want the ability to set the cut-offs and slopes. A 30-band EQ would be a nice start. I wonder if Kia provides software updates for our systems?

But then again I did say in my first post that I'm ok with the HK system. That doesn't mean though that I can't want some improvements.

 

[7Andrei7]

Hi! Quick question: can you connect a usb stick through your rear usb (back of the console)? In mine only the one on the dash works and I use that for apple carplay. I was hoping to not have to keep plugging and unplugging stuff..

 

[MerlintheMad]

Hi! Quick question: can you connect a usb stick through your rear usb (back of the console)? In mine only the one on the dash works and I use that for apple carplay. I was hoping to not have to keep plugging and unplugging stuff..

Nope. Sorry. That is one of the few really annoying things people complain about: the lack of at least a second Medía USB port.

 

[7Andrei7]

Thanks for the quick reply! It would have also been helpful to have internal storage or space for an SD card. You really have very limited options for audio sources..

 

[MerlintheMad]

Thanks for the quick reply! It would have also been helpful to have internal storage or space for an SD card. You really have very limited options for audio sources..

I haven't noticed, because I just leave my USB stick in; never used a phone for music. The radio, of course, is entirely isolated; and I do listen to the local classical FM station once in a while, especially at Xmas time.

 

[7Andrei7]

My problem is I use carplay quite often so I bought a special short cable that sits in the little tray, always plugged into the car.
So if I want to plug in another audio source other than my phone (for high quality audio) I need to unplug that and plug the usb stick. A little inconvenient

 

[StungBlueGT2]

Most of the time a stereo system just needs good bass and the rest of it will sound much better what are people doing for subwoofers on this are they replacing them can they be replaced and replaced with what?

Unless you’re adding separate subs in the trunk it would be very difficult to replace the under seat HK subs. They are downward firing and have very limited room for speaker travel. They were also designed to use the frame of the car to help reproduce the omnidirectional bass and think changing that specific design would completely change bass response & overall sound.

 

[me&stinger]

Personally I like the firing down subs. It's out of the way, less chance of rattling, and it saves me cargo space. The response is quick which is for the most part aligned with the other speakers.

Heh, now imagine putting one of these in your car.

It's a working (yes, working!) 60" sub-woofer designed by Richard Clark, David Navone, and Mark Eldridge. Anyone in the car audio back in the days will know these names very well.

Worlds loudest subwoofers - crank up the bass

 

[Stinger305]

Nope. Sorry. That is one of the few really annoying things people complain about: the lack of at least a second Medía USB port.

I wonder if anyone has tried using a USB splitter to plug both into the media port at once?

 

[me&stinger]

I wonder if anyone has tried using a USB splitter to plug both into the media port at once?

I was going to try using a USB (4-port) hub lol.

Not for my daily ride since I keep the cover closed. Just to see if it works, then I'd know my options.

 

[MerlintheMad]

I wonder if anyone has tried using a USB splitter to plug both into the media port at once?

You risk giving your Stinger a split personality. But go ahead, for science …

I was going to try using a USB (4-port) hub lol.

And if a split personality could occur from a splitter, yours will be schizophrenic. In electronic terms, I think that would result in something like a fried system. If Kia's single USB port is all we get, obviously only one media source can access the system at a time. What happens if you hook up two or more to ONE access point and turn two or more on at the same time? Do you want to also experiment (for science) and return and report to the team? (assuming you survive, of course)

 

[me&stinger]

And if a split personality could occur from a splitter, yours will be schizophrenic. In electronic terms, I think that would result in something like a fried system. If Kia's single USB port is all we get, obviously only one media source can access the system at a time. What happens if you hook up two or more to ONE access point and turn two or more on at the same time? Do you want to also experiment (for science) and return and report to the team? (assuming you survive, of course)

I guess that will be an expensive experiment, for science or otherwise.

I was only planning to test with 2 USB flash drives as an experiment. Assuming that the Kia's media port is a standard USB port it should handle 2 USB flash drives without issues. At worst, my expectation is that either flash drive won't work. However, I read in another thread somewhere that members tried but were not successful. No circuit issues, just their devices did not work.

 

[Scott Curry]

Unless you’re adding separate subs in the trunk it would be very difficult to replace the under seat HK subs. They are downward firing and have very limited room for speaker travel. They were also designed to use the frame of the car to help reproduce the omnidirectional bass and think changing that specific design would completely change bass response & overall sound.

You're saying there are subwoofers under the driver and passenger seat?

 

[SteveCo]

I wonder if anyone has tried using a USB splitter to plug both into the media port at once?

Splitters/hubs won't work - they're not supported. I simply store my lossless flac audio files on my (Android) phone - both the native audio player in the car and my Android Auto music player apps access and play them seamlessly.

I originally ripped all the flac files to a nano USB stick as well, as I wasn't sure how well it would work using the phone. After a quick test I found I didn't need to use it. Never had a need for a second media input - plug in the phone, and it's one stop shopping!

 

[MerlintheMad]

You're saying there are subwoofers under the driver and passenger seat?

Lol. Even the factory (nine speaker) system in the GT has subs under the front seats. If I were to return to buying a Stinger, today, probably I'd be scared off by the rattling sunroof incidents (which I only found out about on the forum long after I had my car), accept the very good factory sound system and buy a GT. I didn't know, from the promo book, that the factory system had subwoofers; again, I only discovered that on the forum. Armed with the knowledge that the nine speaker system has subs, and the GT1 and GT2 might have noisy sunroofs, I'd have been looking only at the GT trim. The factory sound system with subs would have satisfied me: but I was shopping under the assumption that only the Harman Kardon surround sound 15 speaker system had subs.

 

[Scott Curry]

I see

 

[MerlintheMad]

… said the blind man, as he picked up his hammer and saw.

 

[Kimberly Lazarski]

Responding to a comment very early in this thread: "I suppose people, myself included, are just looking for a 10 thousand dollar stereo sound, which is completely unreasonable of course haha."

Sure, that's unreasonable, but it's reasonable to expect it to sound at least as good as an aftermarket $3,000 sound system, which is about what auto makers charge for these integrated systems, especially considering that you cannot upgrade the head unit without majorly hacking the dash and losing a lot of the car's functionality.

... It doesn't sound as good as an aftermarket $3,000 system. It's pretty good for a factory system, but not great. There are few truly great stock audio systems, and auto makers have seen fit to go out of their way to make them as nonupgradable as humanly possible.

 

[Revvdmedia]

Responding to a comment very early in this thread: "I suppose people, myself included, are just looking for a 10 thousand dollar stereo sound, which is completely unreasonable of course haha."

Sure, that's unreasonable, but it's reasonable to expect it to sound at least as good as an aftermarket $3,000 sound system, which is about what auto makers charge for these integrated systems, especially considering that you cannot upgrade the head unit without majorly hacking the dash and losing a lot of the car's functionality.

... It doesn't sound as good as an aftermarket $3,000 system. It's pretty good for a factory system, but not great. There are few truly great stock audio systems, and auto makers have seen fit to go out of their way to make them as nonupgradable as humanly possible.

I'm not going to defend inferior quality sound systems, but it's not just Kia's HK system that falls a little short of anticipation, apparently the Bang and Olufsen systems in some Fords is markedly bad, a stain on that brand's name.

The quality of sound systems is also reflected in materials used. I've seen disassembly of various "premium" audio systems including Bose, Kia's HK system, etc, only to find what appear to be cheap paper speakers installed. I've read from more than one source that many of these premium systems are simply the named company's oversight of the audio integration, primarily with equalization and suggestions on how to get the most out of the system. Science can only take you so far when cheap physical materials are used.

This is a common pain point for true audiophiles and Bose. Bose uses equalization to achieve their signature sound, not material quality, and this seems blasphemous to true enthusiasts.

So the TL ; DR is don't arbitrarily expect a certain level of quality out of a branded audio system, it is completely variable to each make and model. Test it out and see how you feel. I find the HK system good enough that I don't need to change the whole system out, but I will admit I have heard better systems.