Hey all.
Excited to be getting a new XC40 in the next couple of weeks. Heard a few horror stories about the stock stereo. I mainly listen to techno / d&b / edm. I like my bass! Understand the dash sub isn't the best. I've seen rear subs for sale that I think are fitted in the HK system. My question is can I plug and play? Is the wiring already there for me to add to the stock system?
Thanks in advance!
Xc40 subwoofer
No, you can’t. If you ordered the HK system, than you can try changing the factory speakers. See more details on this thread: viewtopic.php?f=8&t=2468Grick_Rimes wrote: ↑Tue Mar 16, 2021 9:13 pm I've seen rear subs for sale that I think are fitted in the HK system. My question is can I plug and play? Is the wiring already there for me to add to the stock system?
The big problem you are going to have here is that the HK system is more than just a set of fancy speakers.
The subs for example are special air woofers mounded on the "outside" of the car (at the base of the windscreen) but then this is tied in with a special DSP for the rest.
As an example, instead of the music getting louder when you drive faster (a common feature in many cars) the active noise cancelling is increased as well to remove the noise level so you can still hear the music. This requires some careful balancing so if you were to swap out some of the speakers, you will struggle to balance everything again.
If you really want something better, you would be better speaking with a specialist so can do the required modifications to your cars interior to fit something
The subs for example are special air woofers mounded on the "outside" of the car (at the base of the windscreen) but then this is tied in with a special DSP for the rest.
As an example, instead of the music getting louder when you drive faster (a common feature in many cars) the active noise cancelling is increased as well to remove the noise level so you can still hear the music. This requires some careful balancing so if you were to swap out some of the speakers, you will struggle to balance everything again.
If you really want something better, you would be better speaking with a specialist so can do the required modifications to your cars interior to fit something
XC40 T5 Recharge Inscription Pro - Denim & Blonde
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Grick_Rimes
- Posts: 5
- Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2021 9:06 pm
Thanks, appreciate the advice. I'm leasing so I don't want any external tinkering. I was hoping the rear sub might just plug in if the existing wiring was available.
I'm having HK in my XC40 and I wanted it desperately because I'm used to have a good HiFi (not just "Stereo") in my car. The best one I've heard was Bang&Olufsen in Audi Q3 and the Harman-Kardon in my Xc40 is just a small step below that.
The bass is pretty good even if you raise its volume via equalizer just a little bit (like I do). The active noice cancelling works well and there's no need for you to push the volume up to 11 because you can hear all the frequencies and sounds pretty well even if the volume's on half and you are going 80 on a motorway. Of course, if you want to feel like you are on the concert and in front of the speakers, not being able to hear what your passengers are sayin, perhaps you actually don't need a car but a club?
Give HK a try and don't try to plug any additional speakers in this precious vehicle. HK is not the state of the art but is doing pretty good job for the CX40 and you might end up ruin it. Good luck and let us know what do you think of this sound system (and I can write about hours of testing it).
The bass is pretty good even if you raise its volume via equalizer just a little bit (like I do). The active noice cancelling works well and there's no need for you to push the volume up to 11 because you can hear all the frequencies and sounds pretty well even if the volume's on half and you are going 80 on a motorway. Of course, if you want to feel like you are on the concert and in front of the speakers, not being able to hear what your passengers are sayin, perhaps you actually don't need a car but a club?
Give HK a try and don't try to plug any additional speakers in this precious vehicle. HK is not the state of the art but is doing pretty good job for the CX40 and you might end up ruin it. Good luck and let us know what do you think of this sound system (and I can write about hours of testing it).
XC40 D4 AWD R-Design 140 kW 2018
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Littletaffia
- Posts: 41
- Joined: Sun Oct 11, 2020 4:41 pm
I find the stock audio pretty good, better than that found in VWs and Audi. Don't need bass with Joni Mitchell or Laura Marling. I rather spend £500 on my home HiFi or buy some music. Why do they want a sub in an old man's car?
I listened to the HK system and though the bass was well presented but certainly not deep. I think you may get a better response if listening to FLAC files but certainly not 320kps files.
I listened to the HK system and though the bass was well presented but certainly not deep. I think you may get a better response if listening to FLAC files but certainly not 320kps files.
B4 Inscription Pro Auto. Pebble Grey.
I don’t think you’ll be able to distinguish FLAC from 320 Kbps MP3 files while going 70 mph. I’m not even sure you’ll be able to tell 192 Kbps files aren’t those of 320
I prefer 320 for my MP3, for my Spotify and for TuneIn, although I do have some FLAC albums on the USB in the car. All of them sounds decent and the overall feel is very good, no matter if that’s Sting, Pink Floyd, Springsteen, Adele or similar rock-pop artist. Even Celeste and Billie Eilish with their modern production sounds very good with decent bass (especially Billie Eilish and her lower noises).
I’ve been recording music for a while and I know music studio is the only place where you can hear all the sounds. I also know what to expect from the speakers in my living room and what to expect from a decent HiFi in the car. XC40 has well balanced Harman Kardon, especially if you disable all the “surround effects”. I’ve tried many cars in the last couple of years and tested their enhanced stereo systems and I can say XC40 HK is not the best, but is near the top. The active noise cancelling is that good that you can drive at 70 mph, listening to some music with half the volume, hear most of the sounds and still be able to understand every word your passenger is saying to you. Sounds fine with me
I prefer 320 for my MP3, for my Spotify and for TuneIn, although I do have some FLAC albums on the USB in the car. All of them sounds decent and the overall feel is very good, no matter if that’s Sting, Pink Floyd, Springsteen, Adele or similar rock-pop artist. Even Celeste and Billie Eilish with their modern production sounds very good with decent bass (especially Billie Eilish and her lower noises).
I’ve been recording music for a while and I know music studio is the only place where you can hear all the sounds. I also know what to expect from the speakers in my living room and what to expect from a decent HiFi in the car. XC40 has well balanced Harman Kardon, especially if you disable all the “surround effects”. I’ve tried many cars in the last couple of years and tested their enhanced stereo systems and I can say XC40 HK is not the best, but is near the top. The active noise cancelling is that good that you can drive at 70 mph, listening to some music with half the volume, hear most of the sounds and still be able to understand every word your passenger is saying to you. Sounds fine with me
XC40 D4 AWD R-Design 140 kW 2018
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Littletaffia
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I'm just playing albums from a thumb drive and usually Radio 2. Good enough for the car as music, unless I'm sitting waiting is good enough for me. When I'm driving it's just in the background. Changing albums while on the move is a right pain in the butt, as is most things on touch screens in any make of car. I've got Celestes ablum, pretty good recording for a modern release, dynamic range not as flat as hammered poop
B4 Inscription Pro Auto. Pebble Grey.
I didn't get if you're having Harman Kardon or not but as long as we are OK with the sound of music inside the car, we're fineLittletaffia wrote: ↑Sun Mar 21, 2021 2:58 pm I'm just playing albums from a thumb drive and usually Radio 2. Good enough for the car as music, unless I'm sitting waiting is good enough for me. When I'm driving it's just in the background. Changing albums while on the move is a right pain in the butt, as is most things on touch screens in any make of car. I've got Celestes ablum, pretty good recording for a modern release, dynamic range not as flat as hammered poop
I'm Ok with changing albums, because I used to change them on a 13-yrs old monochrome USB interface in my old car, so everything is better than that. BTW, did you know you can play some album using voice command? You can even tell your Volvo to "Play Celeste" and it will play all the tracks from a stick, by that performer
Live albums always sounds good in the car, because you can pretend that the road noise is just crowd
XC40 D4 AWD R-Design 140 kW 2018
