Sound quality?

[GT_Dave]

I swapped out the rear speakers on my Tech Pack car with 6.5 Hertz units and got some improvement. Not nearly as good as my wife's MDX with the 7 channel system, but in a car the size of the GT350, it sounds OK.

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[65sohc]

If everyone's opinion is based on how Sirius sounds I agree. But before spending a bunch of money try streaming Spotify in "Extreme" (320 kbit/s) mode with the Spotify equalizer set on Rock or R&B. The difference is massive.

 

[Macstang]

Is this true of the 2017 models as well?

 

[Hack]

The sound system is perfectly fine IMO. But then again I wasn't looking for a quiet car with a great sound system. If that's what you want, pick something else.

 

[bdub85]

The sound quality is fantastic at 8k rpm.

 

[Minn19]

The sound system is perfectly fine IMO. But then again I wasn't looking for a quiet car with a great sound system. If that's what you want, pick something else.

Thanks Mr. Walt Kowalski, very helpful.

I've been there done that and have the car I want. What's wrong with improving a couple of things to my own liking to my car I paid with my money? See a theme here? ;)

 

[Donkey]

The sound system is perfectly fine IMO. But then again I wasn't looking for a quiet car with a great sound system. If that's what you want, pick something else.

What if he wasn't looking for a quiet car and wanted a great sound system? It's 2016 not 1966.

I have the track package, so to directly answer your question OP I have to compare both the track package, to a 2016 GT that has the same package as the tech package car that a good friend owns. First of all, the radio in the track package is pretty bad.. But considering I would be cool with the car if it didn't come with a radio it is certainly no deal breaker for me. The only time I miss a good sound system is A.after riding in a vehicle that has one (my buddies 2016 Tundra blows it out of the water) or B. When cruising on road trips in 6th, since the car automatically closes the exhaust valves while in 6th it is pretty quiet actually and you're left with the radio to fill that void, and it does so... just doesn't excel at it.

I recently rode in my buddies 2016 GT, it has the 9 speaker system which I believe is 2nd only to the 12 speaker system. The 9 speaker had better quality sound but not exactly a night and day difference as I kind of expected, even the overall volume on the highway with windows down wasn't that great and required the volume to be cranked up significantly and this is in a GT which is quite a bit more quiet than a 350.

Overall I would say a real audio enthusiast is going to look for an aftermarket solution to meet their needs as far as sound quality, especially in the bass and mid department and overall volume. But that's just my opinion, the car delivers it's value in other areas and that's what makes me happy.

 

[pinero61]

Ford's systems have been horrid since they paired with Sony.

I did some sound deadening, Cerwin components, and two alpine power packs. Sounds great now.

I may have 600 invested, and my car is most certainly louder than the OE 350/R exhaust setups.

 

[Hashmatt]

What if he wasn't looking for a quiet car and wanted a great sound system? It's 2016 not 1966.

I have the track package, so to directly answer your question OP I have to compare both the track package, to a 2016 GT that has the same package as the tech package car that a good friend owns. First of all, the radio in the track package is pretty bad.. But considering I would be cool with the car if it didn't come with a radio it is certainly no deal breaker for me. The only time I miss a good sound system is A.after riding in a vehicle that has one (my buddies 2016 Tundra blows it out of the water) or B. When cruising on road trips in 6th, since the car automatically closes the exhaust valves while in 6th it is pretty quiet actually and you're left with the radio to fill that void, and it does so... just doesn't excel at it.

I recently rode in my buddies 2016 GT, it has the 9 speaker system which I believe is 2nd only to the 12 speaker system. The 9 speaker had better quality sound but not exactly a night and day difference as I kind of expected, even the overall volume on the highway with windows down wasn't that great and required the volume to be cranked up significantly and this is in a GT which is quite a bit more quiet than a 350.

Overall I would say a real audio enthusiast is going to look for an aftermarket solution to meet their needs as far as sound quality, especially in the bass and mid department and overall volume. But that's just my opinion, the car delivers it's value in other areas and that's what makes me happy.

Let me first start by saying thanks to everyone for their responses. But honestly this is exactly what I expected. I don't care if the car even has a radio because the sound of the motor is all I need. Used to make my wife crazy because my last two mustangs were so loud that a radio was pointless. My wife loves my Lexus for its amenities and she loves music so she was the one asking about it and it peaked my curiosity. But for me, a screaming V8 is a sweet symphony.

 

[Ronp]

Ford's systems have been horrid since they paired with Sony.

I did some sound deadening, Cerwin components, and two alpine power packs. Sounds great now.

I may have 600 invested, and my car is most certainly louder than the OE 350/R exhaust setups.

The Sony system with subwoofer in my F150 sounds really good for the volume level I like to listen at. The system in my tech pack sounds ok listening to FM radio but is lacking in bass. It sounds horrible on sirius xm radio though. Just awful. The F150 is awful too on sirius.

 

[Minn19]

Ford's systems have been horrid since they paired with Sony.

I did some sound deadening, Cerwin components, and two alpine power packs. Sounds great now.

I may have 600 invested, and my car is most certainly louder than the OE 350/R exhaust setups.

I briefly had a Focus ST with the Sony system with subwoofer and it was terrible. This is not nearly that bad and actually sounds decent sometimes depending on the signal.

 

[pinero61]

The Sony system with subwoofer in my F150 sounds really good for the volume level I like to listen at. The system in my tech pack sounds ok listening to FM radio but is lacking in bass. It sounds horrible on sirius xm radio though. Just awful. The F150 is awful too on sirius.

I have an f150 with the premium sound too. Mid-bass was non-existent, highs were good, volume level was okay, and the factory sub had poor response.

Quick fix:

Dynamat extreme on doors (creates a proper enclosure for the door speakers)
Rockford co-ax 5x7's
Rockford p3 12" shallow mount in sealed box w/500w mono.

Again, very little spent with a huge improvement in sound quality inside the truck. The dynamat cut road noise drastically, and made a serious improvement in mid-bass. I plan on installing power packs on this one too.

 

[Hack]

Thanks Mr. Walt Kowalski, very helpful.

I've been there done that and have the car I want. What's wrong with improving a couple of things to my own liking to my car I paid with my money? See a theme here? ;)

The reference is lost on me. Maybe you can explain so I'll feel properly insulted. Nothing is wrong with improving the car. I didn't say there was, either. I was just telling the OP that if he wants a car with a great system from the factory - the GT350 shouldn't be his first choice.

What if he wasn't looking for a quiet car and wanted a great sound system? It's 2016 not 1966.

I think the sound system is fine, but I also would never spend a bunch of money on a sound system for a car. I'm glad Ford saved money on the sound system and put more money into the drivetrain. Maybe for you it's different.

 

[Minn19]

The reference is lost on me. Maybe you can explain so I'll feel properly insulted. Nothing is wrong with improving the car. I didn't say there was, either. I was just telling the OP that if he wants a car with a great system from the factory - the GT350 shouldn't be his first choice.



I think the sound system is fine, but I also would never spend a bunch of money on a sound system for a car. I'm glad Ford saved money on the sound system and put more money into the drivetrain. Maybe for you it's different.

It's the main character in the movie Gran Torino.

All cars are compromises and stereo is generally an easier thing to upgrade then other shortcomings. I say generally because some are a serious pain in the ass. It sounds like this one can be decently upgraded fairly cheaply from what I'm reading.

A bunch of money is relative to the person. I know a lot of people that wouldn't spend 60k plus on a "Mustang" because they can't look past the badge. I love cars and got this one for the way it drives and the Voodoo power plant. But, I also love music. I wasn't going to let a relatively easy fix keep me from buying this car.

 

[SpursFan]

I was shocked how much better streaming audio sounds over satellite and FM. That leads me to belive they could do some sort of update to clean up the audio balance if Ford so desired. Short of it all don't by the tech Pak for the stereo.

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