Second Generation 17 Speaker Lexicon Stereo System

[thymer]

The system is poor. The biggest issue I see is the stage. There is no separation of left and right channel, just one flat boring poorly decoded mess. Turning on the "surround sound" BS helps a little but it destroys all the hard work the sound engineers did creating the music.

 

[Bmos]

I'm no audophile, but why would you need a tablet? Wouldn't the same software work on a larger phone? Admittedly not as well as on a tablet.

Actually - as the software is the same on both platforms - the end results & "how it works" would be the same.

1. I'm not aware of any apps on IOS or Android that allow you to use plugins such as WhiteLabel EQ
2. Really doubtful that a phone would have enough horsepower for applying sophisticated DSP in realtime.

 

[ksoze]

The system is poor.

Compared to what? A home system with audiophile components? To an after market car system with multiple amps, subs and high end DSP?

For a stock auto stereo it is very good and the soundstage is fine. Sound is subjective, but in no way can the Lexicon system in the Ultimate be deemed "poor". The lack of booming bass and relatively flat sound may seem foreign to some ears used to overly boosted bass and EQ with suspect MP3 sources, but this system is more than suitable to a car audio system.

 

[srobak]

1. Really doubtful that a phone would have enough horsepower for applying sophisticated DSP in realtime.

With high-speed, quad & octa core, 64bit procs approaching 3GHz, plenty of RAM and fast storage - most of today's phones are on-par in the horsepower departments of their larger, tablet cousins in the realm of performance. The majority of the difference is only in size.

For a stock auto stereo it is very good and the soundstage is fine.

I will preface my statement by saying that I really do like the 17 speaker system in my G2 Ultimate. That being said - the soundstage COULD be a little bit better. It is leaps and bounds ahead of the 14 speaker that was in my 2011 Azera - where everything was thrown at the front and merged together due to a very overpowering center channel. The G2 also has this problem - but not nearly as bad. I am very curious as to why there is so much emphasis on the centers in so many Hyundai systems though - it's not like we are watching movies where the dialogue channel (center) needs to be pronounced.

The 8in free-air sub does a very respectable job - but is missing the very bottom end that would give kick drums and bass guitars just the right amount of thud. This is quite different from boom - of which I have no interest in. I am probably going to add a 10in JBL or Dayton with it's own 250w amp, crossed at about 40Hz to tackle that task. The 8in rolls off steeply at 38Hz according to the measurements I have taken.

 

[Bmos]

With high-speed, quad & octa core, 64bit procs approaching 3GHz, plenty of RAM and fast storage - most of today's phones are on-par in the horsepower departments of their larger, tablet cousins in the realm of performance. The majority of the difference is only in size.

That misses the point though unless you're aware of an Android (in my case) or IOS App which offers all of the features available on Windows based device [Or have the patience/skill/unlocked device to compile a Linux based app].

You would also still be dependent on phone DAC unless you can get external USB DAC to work with USB OTG which is hit or miss.

 

[BeastMaster]

You would also still be dependent on phone DAC unless you can get external USB DAC to work with USB OTG which is hit or miss.

I have a Sony PHA-3 headphone DAC that works flawlessly with my LG V10 phone. The days of USB DACs being hit or miss are gone. The V10 has a fine DAC built in, but I still prefer the dedicated unit in the PHA-3.

 

[greekgeek]

Does anyone else find that setting fade to de emphasize the front helps tremendously?

 

[brimcg]

I also owned the G1, and I've been bothered by the lack of low end on the G2. I finally got off my ass and did something about it. I didn't want "boom," so I installed a JL Audio 10" sub. I found out a few things:
1. The G2 is TIGHT, as in well-sealed. Installer's been doing this for decades, and told me that it takes twice as long to work on Genesis than almost any other car. Better sealed than the German luxuries. In fact, they pulled the old sub out of the car to push some sound in.
2. The old subwoofer looks like a joke. I'll attach a few pics, but it was painfully clear that this wasn't designed to do any heavy lifting... 2 ohm, thinner than the Genny key fob (seriously!), about 2 pounds. For those who mentioned that the speakers got better with wear, I propose that you just got used to the sound. The only thing this speaker will do in time is wear out.

If you're troubled with the lack of response, go ahead and take the leap of faith. Not only did it bring my music back to life (I can finally hear the upright bass on Peggy Lee's "Fever," and the awesome synthesizer growl on the opening of Rush's "Tom Sawyer"), but it also subdued the "midrangey-ness" that also bothered me about the system.

 

[Mark_888]

I installed a JL Audio 10" sub.

Did you install a new subwoofer amp, or just the speaker driver to replace the existing one?

 

[shredx44]

Did you install a new subwoofer amp, or just the speaker driver to replace the existing one?

+1

Did you just put a sub/box in the trunk and remove the OEM woofer?

I was going back & forth between upgrading/replacing the open air woofer with a Pioneer unit + amp ... or just putting sub/box in the trunk.

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[brimcg]

I installed a new JL audio powered subwoofer and removed the OEM altogether. You can't just replace the existing sub, as the stock amp isn't pushing much power to the sub channel. I also wanted to keep my trunk space! Here's my process:
1. JL Audio ACS110LG-TW1 gave impressive sound in a box that was only a foot tall, 1 1/2 feet wide, and 6" deep. I feel that I still have the trunk space to carry whatever I want.
2. We bypassed the stock amp completely and wired directly to the head unit. Added a bass control knob under the steering wheel, as I listen to all types of music and need to tame the bass beast at times (or release it). Added dynamat sound deadening to prevent any rattles. This was placed on the rear speaker deck where the factory sub is located.
3. My installer originally priced and installed the 10", but upgraded me at no charge to the 12" version, because he didn't think there was enough power to push through Genny's sealed-up trunk.
4. The 12" version thumped and damn near tore the rear view mirror off the car! Thought about toning it down and only occasionally gluing the mirror back on, but one wrong move and I might liquefy the insides of my back seat passengers...asked to hear the 10" sub.
5. Took 5 minutes to change out, so I recommend trying out a couple of boxes/sub sizes to get your preference.
6. The 10" was much better suited for the car and for my tastes. I can't stress enough how adding the bass and mid-bass really smoothed out the overall sound... subduing the mid-range and even slightly enhancing the highs. I was not expecting that. I know I'm not crazy, because I was only out of the car for 3 hours...I knew what I had going in, and what I had driving out with a big-ass smile on my face.

Hope this helps!

 

[ksoze]

Care to share costs - parts and labor? Thanks.

 

[Kp117]

I installed a new JL audio powered subwoofer and removed the OEM altogether. You can't just replace the existing sub, as the stock amp isn't pushing much power to the sub channel. I also wanted to keep my trunk space! Here's my process:
1. JL Audio ACS110LG-TW1 gave impressive sound in a box that was only a foot tall, 1 1/2 feet wide, and 6" deep. I feel that I still have the trunk space to carry whatever I want.
2. We bypassed the stock amp completely and wired directly to the head unit. Added a bass control knob under the steering wheel, as I listen to all types of music and need to tame the bass beast at times (or release it). Added dynamat sound deadening to prevent any rattles. This was placed on the rear speaker deck where the factory sub is located.
3. My installer originally priced and installed the 10", but upgraded me at no charge to the 12" version, because he didn't think there was enough power to push through Genny's sealed-up trunk.
4. The 12" version thumped and damn near tore the rear view mirror off the car! Thought about toning it down and only occasionally gluing the mirror back on, but one wrong move and I might liquefy the insides of my back seat passengers...asked to hear the 10" sub.
5. Took 5 minutes to change out, so I recommend trying out a couple of boxes/sub sizes to get your preference.
6. The 10" was much better suited for the car and for my tastes. I can't stress enough how adding the bass and mid-bass really smoothed out the overall sound... subduing the mid-range and even slightly enhancing the highs. I was not expecting that. I know I'm not crazy, because I was only out of the car for 3 hours...I knew what I had going in, and what I had driving out with a big-ass smile on my face.

Hope this helps!

Good for you! Did you consider the 8 inch version? Do you leave the trunk pass through open? Can you post pics of where you installed it?

 

[G530]

Care to share costs - parts and labor? Thanks.

+1. That's a nice compact solution. I'd also like to that info you want to share. Thanks!

 

[Dave_MacKinnon]

I spoke with a friend of mine who works for Harman International - the parent company of Lexicon, JBL, Infinity, etc. We where talking about my new car, and he asked 'does it sound better with the surround off'. My reply was yes. He laughed and said "OK, I know exactly who tuned it."

Bottom line, bass is atrociously inadequate in this car. I've had my 5.0 Ultimate for two weeks and have ordered a real subwoofer, amplifier and DSP to fix it.

I'll post electrical and acoustic measurements of the existing system before I start the installation.

 

[Dave_MacKinnon]

@brimcg - how did you get a signal before the amp? The connection between the 'radio' and the amp is balanced SP/DIF and volume control over the CAN network?

 

[cleex024]

I spoke with a friend of mine who works for Harman International - the parent company of Lexicon, JBL, Infinity, etc. We where talking about my new car, and he asked 'does it sound better with the surround off'. My reply was yes. He laughed and said "OK, I know exactly who tuned it."

Bottom line, bass is atrociously inadequate in this car. I've had my 5.0 Ultimate for two weeks and have ordered a real subwoofer, amplifier and DSP to fix it.

I'll post electrical and acoustic measurements of the existing system before I start the installation.

The sub is only slightly inadequate for me as I'm getting older...but I don't think it's sounds better with the surround off. With the surround off seems very dull and 2d...surround really brings the music to life.

I did however notice that certain songs bring out bass more than others so I'm guessing this system can't play certain lows? Otherwise the base is tight and not muddy so the system sounds alright to me.

 

[G530]

Bottom line, bass is atrociously inadequate in this car. .

Quite right. Got an amp and a 12 inch sub that produced more than enough bass! Draw back is loss some space in the trunk.

 

[Dave_MacKinnon]

The sub is only slightly inadequate for me as I'm getting older...but I don't think it's sounds better with the surround off. With the surround off seems very dull and 2d...surround really brings the music to life.

I did however notice that certain songs bring out bass more than others so I'm guessing this system can't play certain lows? Otherwise the base is tight and not muddy so the system sounds alright to me.

I agree, different sources result in different levels of bass, but none of it ever achieves what I would call "deep". Guessing, it plays down to around 40Hz. That leaves more than an octave of audible bass missing, and another of tactile bass completely lacking.

Between the standard and surround modes, listening exclusively to the front speakers, the surround does seem to increase the perceived soundstage size,but I feel it does so at the expense of focus. I'm sad that the Center image is shifted left from the drivers seat. It should not be. Especially with a wide-bandwidth Center channel.

 

[brimcg]

Care to share costs - parts and labor? Thanks.

About $800 installed. The sub/amp combo was $400, the control knob and other parts $175, and $225 labor. This also included the cost and install of dynamat sound deadening material.

If you go the 12" route, you only add $50 to your bill.