2020 Chevy Silverado w/Bose stock system. Let me preface this and say, I know some things about car audio but I am far from a professional and will do my best to explain.
Wanted to replace front stage and add a sub. Decided to go with a local shop, very high rated with what appears to be many satisfied customers (audio installs). I am aware of how the Bose systems work in GM vehicles, and how much of a PITA they are to work with when going aftermarket. PAC and NAV-TV make the devices that allow you to 'intercept' the signal from the Bose amp allowing you to bypass and start with a flat tune without all the nonsense that comes along with the Bose amp however due to availability and price, this was not an option on my install.
I can't speak on model specifics, but I told the shop owner I preferred sound quality over SPL. This is why I opted for 1 10" JL 10w6 and not something more/bigger like 2 w7's or something. Shop owner said their choice for sound quality, even at higher levels, are Beyma brand speakers and tweeters. The demo sounded very nice with demo music, such as instrumental music.
Fast forward to install and the current issues I face. Shop had a custom box built for the sub, and used the same amp to power both the sub as well as the front stage. If I recall correctly, this was a sound digital brand amp the shop owner swore by and said it is one of the best. After install, sat in the truck and listened to various music with the owner. First thing I immediately noticed was a loud 'hiss' coming from the tweeters along with other weird noises, like a low high pitched squeal almost, but it was intermittent. Other odd electrical-like noises were heard and this is with the car on, head unit on (factory), but no music playing. He immediately said it might be an issue with the amp itself. When the car is turned off, the hiss/noises go away (head unit still on until door is opened).
This was my first major concern, and I went back a second time because the owner thought maybe a gain setting was too high or something like that. It wasn't and any adjustments he made, made no difference. Hiss still audibly present. I can turn the volume up about 10% and hear the hiss over the music. He showed me the Beyma demo again, and at idle there is a low audible hiss and he said this is normal for high sensitivity tweeters but this is absolutely aggravating as the hiss is constantly there whether music is playing or not and at times is heard over the music itself. I have had plenty of setups in my life and never experienced this. Shop owner is going to replace the amp next week with a 'new' amp, but the same one/model. While driving the truck around I have come to the conclusion that quality of the sound is pretty terrible across different genres of music. They get VERY loud, but at lower/regular listening volumes the quality is just not there and it sounds like you need to turn the treble up, which helps somewhat, but overall a very muffled/tinny sound quality and quite honestly I prefer the quality of the stock Bose speakers over these despite the slight boost in range on the Beyma's. Shop owner states Beyma's 'notoriety' comes from being loud and accurate at loud volumes but I specifically said I don't listen to things very loud and want sound quality - yet here we are.
I listen to country, rock, rap, classical, gospel, you name it. I have 100gb of music and my tastes vary drastically, so I went through about 50 songs in different genres and can point out specifics to what I am hearing. For example, during vocals, "S" sounds sound like "Sh", almost as if the vocals are being muddied in some way and not entirely clear. Many songs sound very 'tinny' and muffled, which leads me to want to turn the treble up. Songs I have heard 100x do not sound the same even when compared to my AirPods. When I returned last week shop owner sat with his laptop and adjusted the treble through the DSP, raised it 1/2db which seemed to make some difference, but not much when paired with the loud audible hiss. I've now spent 4-5 hours of straight listening and am very disappointed in these speakers. When volume is about 20-30% the tweeters are so harsh and overpowering it feels like my ears pop and I just squint and it's very unpleasant. The stock Bose system sounded WAY better at these volume levels. Shop owner thinks the amp may be the source of the high pitched squealing noise that comes and goes but doesn't think the very loud hiss has anything to do with it and told me that's what he expects from the Beyma's. He suggested a signal sensor to stop the hiss when no audio is being played, but I feel like this is a bandaid and not a solution.
So the amp will be swapped next week in an attempt to solve the weird interference-like noises being heard. Again he did 'prep' me to accept the fact the hiss will always be there even when no music is being played and at low volume levels. This isn't a low audible hiss where you put your ear to the speaker to hear, it is loud and noticeable by everyone in the vehicle even in back seats where there are no speakers. This all being said, the main issue at hand is the overall sound quality which is more apparent in genres like country or rock, but in rap where it's mostly bass it's not as noticeable. I am 100% happy with the performance of the subwoofer - I am only disappointed in the front stage. It's almost like the pronunciation of words during vocals are off - S's sound weird, B's sound weird, songs I've listened to 100x overall sound different (worse) as I mentioned above; again tinny, muffled, midbass sounds weak and metallic. This should not be the case with 'performance' aftermarket speakers.
When the amp is swapped, if there is a night and day different in the sound quality I will re-evaluate and go from there. Assuming it does not get any better, I need to look to other solutions which most likely will result in me changing the entire front stage and going with brand/models the shop doesn't usually deal with (they are heavy on the Beymas). I am looking at component sets like Focal Performance, JL C3-600s or 650s, etc. However, another concern is that no matter what brand I buy I am worried that ultimately the Bose amp could be interfering, but with a DSP I'm not sure how much it could truly affect sound quality. I am also wondering if the DSP is necessary or could be causing some of the issues at hand - I know I generally prefer more trebel and bass in my EQ presets, but I find it hard to believe that an EQ preset will solve the sound quality issue with the Beymas as I've tried many different presets through Apple Music for example, and everything just sounds worse (i.e., treble boost makes things sound like you're in a metallic dome and very fake/tinny).
Anyone who has the time to listen to my situation and provide some insight, I greatly appreciate it. I'm not sure which direction to go with this shop because ultimately it may result in me demanding they remove the Beymas (refund me) and install a different brand but I want to educate myself enough to understand what could be going wrong here so I know what the best solution will be.
Wanted to replace front stage and add a sub. Decided to go with a local shop, very high rated with what appears to be many satisfied customers (audio installs). I am aware of how the Bose systems work in GM vehicles, and how much of a PITA they are to work with when going aftermarket. PAC and NAV-TV make the devices that allow you to 'intercept' the signal from the Bose amp allowing you to bypass and start with a flat tune without all the nonsense that comes along with the Bose amp however due to availability and price, this was not an option on my install.
I can't speak on model specifics, but I told the shop owner I preferred sound quality over SPL. This is why I opted for 1 10" JL 10w6 and not something more/bigger like 2 w7's or something. Shop owner said their choice for sound quality, even at higher levels, are Beyma brand speakers and tweeters. The demo sounded very nice with demo music, such as instrumental music.
Fast forward to install and the current issues I face. Shop had a custom box built for the sub, and used the same amp to power both the sub as well as the front stage. If I recall correctly, this was a sound digital brand amp the shop owner swore by and said it is one of the best. After install, sat in the truck and listened to various music with the owner. First thing I immediately noticed was a loud 'hiss' coming from the tweeters along with other weird noises, like a low high pitched squeal almost, but it was intermittent. Other odd electrical-like noises were heard and this is with the car on, head unit on (factory), but no music playing. He immediately said it might be an issue with the amp itself. When the car is turned off, the hiss/noises go away (head unit still on until door is opened).
This was my first major concern, and I went back a second time because the owner thought maybe a gain setting was too high or something like that. It wasn't and any adjustments he made, made no difference. Hiss still audibly present. I can turn the volume up about 10% and hear the hiss over the music. He showed me the Beyma demo again, and at idle there is a low audible hiss and he said this is normal for high sensitivity tweeters but this is absolutely aggravating as the hiss is constantly there whether music is playing or not and at times is heard over the music itself. I have had plenty of setups in my life and never experienced this. Shop owner is going to replace the amp next week with a 'new' amp, but the same one/model. While driving the truck around I have come to the conclusion that quality of the sound is pretty terrible across different genres of music. They get VERY loud, but at lower/regular listening volumes the quality is just not there and it sounds like you need to turn the treble up, which helps somewhat, but overall a very muffled/tinny sound quality and quite honestly I prefer the quality of the stock Bose speakers over these despite the slight boost in range on the Beyma's. Shop owner states Beyma's 'notoriety' comes from being loud and accurate at loud volumes but I specifically said I don't listen to things very loud and want sound quality - yet here we are.
I listen to country, rock, rap, classical, gospel, you name it. I have 100gb of music and my tastes vary drastically, so I went through about 50 songs in different genres and can point out specifics to what I am hearing. For example, during vocals, "S" sounds sound like "Sh", almost as if the vocals are being muddied in some way and not entirely clear. Many songs sound very 'tinny' and muffled, which leads me to want to turn the treble up. Songs I have heard 100x do not sound the same even when compared to my AirPods. When I returned last week shop owner sat with his laptop and adjusted the treble through the DSP, raised it 1/2db which seemed to make some difference, but not much when paired with the loud audible hiss. I've now spent 4-5 hours of straight listening and am very disappointed in these speakers. When volume is about 20-30% the tweeters are so harsh and overpowering it feels like my ears pop and I just squint and it's very unpleasant. The stock Bose system sounded WAY better at these volume levels. Shop owner thinks the amp may be the source of the high pitched squealing noise that comes and goes but doesn't think the very loud hiss has anything to do with it and told me that's what he expects from the Beyma's. He suggested a signal sensor to stop the hiss when no audio is being played, but I feel like this is a bandaid and not a solution.
So the amp will be swapped next week in an attempt to solve the weird interference-like noises being heard. Again he did 'prep' me to accept the fact the hiss will always be there even when no music is being played and at low volume levels. This isn't a low audible hiss where you put your ear to the speaker to hear, it is loud and noticeable by everyone in the vehicle even in back seats where there are no speakers. This all being said, the main issue at hand is the overall sound quality which is more apparent in genres like country or rock, but in rap where it's mostly bass it's not as noticeable. I am 100% happy with the performance of the subwoofer - I am only disappointed in the front stage. It's almost like the pronunciation of words during vocals are off - S's sound weird, B's sound weird, songs I've listened to 100x overall sound different (worse) as I mentioned above; again tinny, muffled, midbass sounds weak and metallic. This should not be the case with 'performance' aftermarket speakers.
When the amp is swapped, if there is a night and day different in the sound quality I will re-evaluate and go from there. Assuming it does not get any better, I need to look to other solutions which most likely will result in me changing the entire front stage and going with brand/models the shop doesn't usually deal with (they are heavy on the Beymas). I am looking at component sets like Focal Performance, JL C3-600s or 650s, etc. However, another concern is that no matter what brand I buy I am worried that ultimately the Bose amp could be interfering, but with a DSP I'm not sure how much it could truly affect sound quality. I am also wondering if the DSP is necessary or could be causing some of the issues at hand - I know I generally prefer more trebel and bass in my EQ presets, but I find it hard to believe that an EQ preset will solve the sound quality issue with the Beymas as I've tried many different presets through Apple Music for example, and everything just sounds worse (i.e., treble boost makes things sound like you're in a metallic dome and very fake/tinny).
Anyone who has the time to listen to my situation and provide some insight, I greatly appreciate it. I'm not sure which direction to go with this shop because ultimately it may result in me demanding they remove the Beymas (refund me) and install a different brand but I want to educate myself enough to understand what could be going wrong here so I know what the best solution will be.
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