Forscan EQ disable issue

[Mike Pfeifer]

So I did make the change. When I changed it to a 0 the 33 change itself to 31. First impression is it sounds better but I'll need to spend some time in the car before I know for sure. I've already spent hours doing a spring cleaning on the car and the forecasts sucks for the next few days so I won't be taking it out for a while. I'll post back once I've listened to it for a while.

I’m interested in hearing your thoughts on this. Keep us posted. Also, what speakers did you change and how did that change the sound, in your opinion?

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[Cheo]

I made this change before and IMO it improved the overall sound of the 9 speaker system, however, you'll probably notice your vehicle chimes are louder (door open, ignition on, etc). But what got really loud is the shift tone (if activated), actually helps when wearing a helmet!

 

[PoCoBob]

I’m interested in hearing your thoughts on this. Keep us posted. Also, what speakers did you change and how did that change the sound, in your opinion?

I can answer some of this now. The speakers I put in are 6.5" Kenwood KFC-1666S and the 3.5" Kenwood Excelon KFC-X3C. This is what Crutchfield recommended for a speaker only upgrade for my car.

The picture is the rear deck speaker that came out along side the new speaker. The factory 6.5" speaker in the lower doors had a magnet equally as big as those on the Kenwoods. So I may not have gained much by replacing those speakers. But I changed them anyway.

I think that change actually made it sound worse, the sound quality was so much better it made it all the more obvious how much of the music was missing. From what I heard listening to it for a few minutes after turning off the EQ it does sound a lot fuller. It's not Home Theatre better by any means but it is noticeably better.

 

[Mike Pfeifer]

I can answer some of this now. The speakers I put in are 6.5" Kenwood KFC-1666S and the 3.5" Kenwood Excelon KFC-X3C. This is what Crutchfield recommended for a speaker only upgrade for my car.

The picture is the rear deck speaker that came out along side the new speaker. The factory 6.5" speaker in the lower doors had a magnet equally as big as those on the Kenwoods. So I may not have gained much by replacing those speakers. But I changed them anyway.

I think that change actually made it sound worse, the sound quality was so much better it made it all the more obvious how much of the music was missing. From what I heard listening to it for a few minutes after turning off the EQ it does sound a lot fuller. It's not Home Theatre better by any means but it is noticeably better.

I’m having a hard time getting past the idea that Ford purposely made the system sound bad or inferior by placing some weird processing on it, and the secret is to hack that out. Why would they do that? It can’t really be to protect the speakers. I think the system mostly sounds decent. I would change the 3.5 inch door speakers’ excessive 1.5 ish kHz spike, and I feel the tweeters are too subdued. Obv, a sub would help, too, but that’s not a system deficiency. It certainly has plenty of amp headroom, as far as I can tell- it seems to stay clean at a loud enough volume to be unsafe. I don’t have a problem with the center speaker being there. My last car had one and I enjoyed that system (Mini with Harmon Kardon) but maybe if it had a tweeter it would help. I intend to at least give the “EQ disable” thing a try, don’t get me wrong, but it will have to wait till I decide I have a reason spend the $50 on the OBD cable.

 

[FreePenguin]

toss a little subwoofer/amp in the car, or a self powered woofer. all in one set up, 12.

I’m having a hard time getting past the idea that Ford purposely made the system sound bad or inferior by placing some weird processing on it, and the secret is to hack that out. Why would they do that? It can’t really be to protect the speakers. I think the system mostly sounds decent. I would change the 3.5 inch door speakers’ excessive 1.5 ish kHz spike, and I feel the tweeters are too subdued. Obv, a sub would help, too, but that’s not a system deficiency. It certainly has plenty of amp headroom, as far as I can tell- it seems to stay clean at a loud enough volume to be unsafe. I don’t have a problem with the center speaker being there. My last car had one and I enjoyed that system (Mini with Harmon Kardon) but maybe if it had a tweeter it would help. I intend to at least give the “EQ disable” thing a try, don’t get me wrong, but it will have to wait till I decide I have a reason spend the $50 on the OBD cable.

It’s exactly that. The bass roll off alone is to limit rattling of plastic panels too. A lot of mfr’s do this.

 

[chowman90]

Hey PoCoBob,
If you need any further help, I'm just around the corner from you lol. I'm in Maple Ridge. I have done some Forscan changes as well, including disabling the EQ.

 

[Matthewstorm]

How do you open this file?

 

[VolsLover94]

Hey guys, please let me know what device/cable is needed to use Forscan on the OBD port. Sorry for my ignorance.

 

[Vlad Soare]

Hey, just checked mine, and they're 00s too (2019 Bullitt), but 0088 B9. So does that mean our EQs are already disabled? So there's nothing to change, right???

I don't know. It's either that, or they changed the ACM module in 2019 and the old code isn't valid anymore.
Considering that I have the surround option (which, as I understand, disappears when you turn off the equalizer), I believe the latter is more likely.

 

[Vlad Soare]

Hey guys, please let me know what device/cable is needed to use Forscan on the OBD port. Sorry for my ignorance.

This one's the best:
OBDLink EX

Its only drawback is that it requires a Windows computer. If you value convenience over functionality, you can also take a look at its brother, the OBDLink MX. It connects via bluetooth and can be used with an Android or iOS device. But it lacks some functions, and it's not as safe (imagine losing BT connectivity while doing an update).

 

[Matthewstorm]

I think this is the official hookup: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B081VQV...abc_2XW9YVF32ST5P51A0E68?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Vlad Soare]

Yup. That's the official one, and it's the best.
There are cheaper ones out there, but I can't recommend them. You get what you pay for. The market is awash with cheap Chinese knockoffs, which may or may not work with your car. Not worth the trouble. In the end you'll throw it away in frustration and will have to buy the proper stuff anyway, so why not save yourself some trouble and do it right the first time?

 

[PoCoBob]

This one's the best:
OBDLink EX

Its only drawback is that it requires a Windows computer. If you value convenience over functionality, you can also take a look at its brother, the OBDLink MX. It connects via bluetooth and can be used with an Android or iOS device. But it lacks some functions, and it's not as safe (imagine losing BT connectivity while doing an update).

I got the OBDLink_EX, I did have to go to their website and download the driver for it, so it wasn't plug n play in my case.

I do have another question about Forscan, what happens after the 2 month license expires? Can you generate another free license or do you need to buy a year license. It's not really clear about that on the Forscan website, I'm ok paying for a year but it sounds like they're not really equipped to handle payments of any kind.

 

[FreePenguin]

You can keep getting free ones

I bought lifetime though lol

 

[Vlad Soare]

I got the OBDLink_EX, I did have to go to their website and download the driver for it, so it wasn't plug n play in my case.

Indeed, you need to install a driver, but it's a quick and straightforward process. And the instructions were included in the package, if memory serves. No big deal.

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