I have a Elect Pkg(w/Nav) on my 13 GT Premium, I'm guessing it's Shaker500. With all the settings by default - the Fader/Balance being set to middle - the sound system on Mustangs are focused mostly on front stage (door subs..etc), kind of like listening to stereo headphones: most of the sound coming from the front end, unless it's Shaker1000 w/subwoofer in trunk.

I'd try to set the Fader(balance is left to right... isn' it?) to back a little bit from time to time so I get better overall sound stage, but the loudness of rear speakers is so TINY (like old radio tiny) I can barely hear them. Doing this only decreases the volume from front end, in which I'd eventually go back to factory default.

A friend of mine recently got 13 GT Premium w/o Elect Pkg, and I was in a passenger seat. Surprisingly the sound stage on this car felt different so I immediately sent faders all the way back to rear speakers. The sound was not as tiny and they even had some bass to it.

Now, my concern is not the sound quality of stock speakers. I think my rear ones have been this way from day 1, but... until I heard it from another GT. Although I always thought the loudness was small.

Could this be that he was playing CD and I play mostly from IPOD? But I have some songs copied from CD onto my HDD (wav files? = similar quality to cd) but rear speakers still behave the same?

Or Do I have defective speakers...?
Any ideas?

 

That could depend on how you ripped the CDs or what quality you have on your iPod. The default settings usually have compression set pretty high so that more songs fit on the device. One of the first things done is to filter out highs and lows and then compress what remains.

I have noticed this with sirius on mine as well. It is mostly midrange, highly compressed music. The higher quality you can put on your iPod the better it will sound played in the car.

 

Thanks for the reply. My concern is not the quality of the sound though, I know the stock speakers are not the best sounding especially with compressed music files like mp3. The Rear Speakers, are they relatively loud enough?

 

I upgraded my rear speakers, wouldn't do it again, because of the same reason you describe, I even went with a lower OHM to get more power to the rear.. I can't hear the rear, and if I set the fader it just makes the front quieter

 

mine are very quiet in the back. I have a convertible so i don't mind most of the sound up front though. I thought it was a bit weird too but chalked it up to convertible design.

 

I believe the stock head unit 'rolls off' the rear channel as you increase the volume to make the most of the cheap amplifier. It's even worse with Recaros, as most of the sound is blocked by the high back seats. I'm going whole hog on a powerful front door setup with 8" woofer down low and 6.5" components up top.

Will post a review w/pix when it's done.

 

They possible have the Shaker Pro. You can also set the stage a bit. I know my rear speakers perk up when I have it set to "convertible"

 

x2!

I look forward to seeing your set up!