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Interesting. There's a dramatic difference. I would prefer simple tone controls but this is what we have. Weather permitting on Sunday I may have an hour or so in the seat, I should have a chance to mess with it. Thank you.
If you want better quality, ignore the direct Bluetooth connection to the car, instead connect to a USB Bluetooth adaptor that plugs into the Aux in the center console. Much better audio quality, unseen and out of the way. Unfortunately it's $40.
I looked into this device. To fully realize LDAC quality, your phone must be LDAC compatible. I activated the developer settings on my Motorola G-something and found that LDAC was "grayed-out" on this phone model. As a side note, Visible wireless is telling me I need to upgrade my phone for their new service, so.......here's to NOT spending any money!
I expected more from my Meridian Surround 770w but found it's true that Sirius/XM sounds better when streamed from a phone app vs. onboard XM receiver. Also, overpasses don't cause dropped signal with that method.
There's way too much whining about the stereo. I think it sounds just fine but most of the time I have it turned off because I'd much rather listen the engine and exhaust symphony. Go get an EV or a civil car with a great stereo if that's what you're into. Me, I'll stick with the sound of 575, supercharged V8 horses.
I snapped this pic a couple Mondays ago. It doesn't look like what I would call a traditional tone setting. It seems to work for most music.
I'm not trying to make it perfect. I mess with it when the mrs. is inside Homegoods, Ulta, Cosmoprof, etc. Although Ulta is growing on me...
My next phone will have LDAC compatibility, and I'll try a Tunai bluetooth firefly.
My experience with the 770w Meridian system was varied, too. The thing that really made a HUGE difference for me was using the digital thumb drive in the center console as a source for my music files -- every other source (XM Radio, etc.) was just so-so. After using the best source, I experimented with the different processers (Dolby, DTS, Meridian, etc.) -- Dolby worked best for me and my music preferences. I've got to admit that after spending some time with the system, I'm really happy with it -- but using the correct source for input is the first step in getting the system to sound good.
Yes, and I've found that using the SiriusXM app on my phone (via Bluetooth) yields far better sound than the in-car system and eliminates audio drops caused by overpasses, though that's much less convenient.
Took me a bit to figure out the 'virtual' cd player that's in my 2017, but got it going. Car didn't like being in ACC mode to upload, so any suggestions for better way to do that gladly accepted.
I am so happy to see that others have had a similar experience with the Meridian system at low volumes. It sounds to me like the low freq. drivers are out of phase and that may be due to the lack of effective enclosures for the woofers. They sound blown as they make a weird plopping (not popping) noise at low volume. The bass is anemic and has zero definition. It can be considered boomy at times as well depending on settings. When compared to the Bose surround system in my Chevy Colorado, the Meridian gives me impression that there was zero acoustic engineering development in the sound system designed by Meridian (if they actually had a hand in it's design). It's as if their name was just slapped on the grills for marketing purposes only. As someone who has spent over 25years in the consumer electronics/audio industry, there didn't appear to be much emphasis on making this system sound decent rather than just fitting speakers any way they could to call it the 11 speaker 770w Meridian marketing exercise they produced. Sure it sounds better at high volume but that can be attributed to pushing the speaker harder to overcome the lack of acoustic efficiency in the design. This could have been somewhat compensated with DSP tuning but that can be considered a band aid for a poorly executed design. It's a good thing that the exhaust sounds soooooooo good in the F-Type that it becomes the addictive candy for our ears over anything else. Still no excuse for the lack of engineering effort for a branded sound system in a $100k car. I blame Meridian but still can't let Jaguar off the hook for letting Meridian design such a mediocre system and tarnish the experience of such a beautiful machine.
There's way too much whining about the stereo. I think it sounds just fine but most of the time
The 2016 Surround 770w sounded good though dependent on source quality. CDs sounded great. You can upload/rip ten CDs to the vehicle's CD changer storage drive which creates lossless high quality copies. For more recent F-types, there is no CD player/changer but wired CarPlay also supports lossless audio and will charge the phone at the same time. There have been improvements in Jaguar's surround audio system over the years—the 2024 F-type offers greater clarity and deeper bass along with some harshness in the upper mid-range which can be mitigated in the audio setting.
It seems to this observer that complaining about the sound system in an F Type would be like having a problem with your absolutely gorgeous wife [who just happens to earn mid-six figures, is sweet as can be, cooks like a French gourmet, loves to watch sports, drinks beer, loves your friends, and is absolutely crazy in bed], because she leaves the bathroom a bit messy.
I agree on both, the audio is not that great, and it’s not the end of the world. My rather simple solution was just to add a small powered sub in the boot/trunk (yes I know if you have the vert you’re out of luck), fade the system mainly to the front speakers, and use a decent source like Apple Music…sounds plenty great to me now…when I’m not listening to the engine that is ☺️
