Went out in the Mk2 and every time I do it upsets me that the audio quality is so much better.

 

Our Mk2 SE only has basic Bolero and can only do MP3 on the SD card but sounds rich and full and you can really turn it up without it sounding harsh. The Treble/Mid/Bass settings only need a slight tweek for preference and there's some real depth to the music.

 

Our Mk3 Elegance has Columbus with the latest firmware, it was a very expensive option and has lots of functionality. But I can play the same track in MP3, FLAC or CD and the music sounds thin in comparison with very little bass. Push the volume and it just sounds harsh. 

 

Why did Skoda take a step back?

 

 

No idea but it's the first thing I noticed as well.  I don't know if the front drivers are smaller or if it's due to them being in a different position.  I'm considering sound proofing the front doors to see if it makes any difference.  It's almost like they forgot to put any audio in!

For sure I can say that my 2018 VRS (w/Canton) sounds much better than 2014 Elegance (w/Canton), perhaps it's due to the newer Headunit.

 

In any case I plan to swap the cheap, rubbish elco tweeter cap with a MKP cap, but accessing the tweeter seems really a lot of work, while on the MkII it has been very easy!

turn off the automatic loudness changes. 

 

Then reset the settings on bass & treble to zero. Push the sound to the front. Turn the DSP off ("all", not "driver"). 

Go find a decent FLAC track on an SD card and work through that, preferably something that's well recorded (florence and the machine springs to mind, as does Leftfield, Sting, much Prince, the Bad reissue, maybe Charlie Puth...) and have another listen. 

 

To a certain extent you corrupt your own ears with the systems you usually listen to. Especially if you're listening to gear with overaccentuated bass or suboptimal resolution much of the time.

I'd also make sure any BT device is at nearly full volume as it makes a signficant difference to the sound. If you've got both cars available to you, I'd drop everything to flat and then listen. 

 

2014 model radios also sound much worse than 2016 ones, I believe it was MIB 1 vs 2; the difference is significant.

 

 - Bret

 

I must be one of the very few that thinks the sound in the Mk3 is pretty good. I've just the Amunsden with no Canton and I am pretty happy with the sound.

Even when cranked up it's clear.  I have BASS set to max and have brought the TREBLE down a fair bit because that is how I like the sound.

 

Granted, the MK2 was pretty good in the sound department (with the standard STREAM unit) but at high volumes the two front doors vibrated and rattled too much. At least in the MK3 they don't.....yet

The rear speakers also ceased and after I put decent speakers in there it was never quite as good...which was annoying!

 

Is the Colubus much different in sound quality then? In the Amunsden you hardly have any audio settings to tweak.

 

 

1 hour ago, brettikivi said:

turn off the automatic loudness changes. 

 

Then reset the settings on bass & treble to zero. Push the sound to the front. Turn the DSP off ("all", not "driver"). 

Go find a decent FLAC track on an SD card and work through that, preferably something that's well recorded (florence and the machine springs to mind, as does Leftfield, Sting, much Prince, the Bad reissue, maybe Charlie Puth...) and have another listen. 

 

To a certain extent you corrupt your own ears with the systems you usually listen to. Especially if you're listening to gear with overaccentuated bass or suboptimal resolution much of the time.

I'd also make sure any BT device is at nearly full volume as it makes a signficant difference to the sound. If you've got both cars available to you, I'd drop everything to flat and then listen. 

 

2014 model radios also sound much worse than 2016 ones, I believe it was MIB 1 vs 2; the difference is significant.

 

 - Bret

 

 

My usual listening is via a £5000 Denon/Bowers and Wilkins system or via £2000 source/headphone amp/headphones.

My entire music library is FLAC on synology NAS, and some Hi-Res Audio. I don't buy or use MP3 as a rule unless I'm forced into it by device limitation. 

I have my home system professionally calibrated by an Audyssey engineer for a flat response.

 

As a rule I have the Bolero on the Mk2 with a flat response, on the Mk3 I try and add a bit of bass but it doesn't improve the depth. Flat response in the Mk3 just sounds thin and the tweeters sounds harsh.

 

Lee

ooookay, that relativises it some. 

 

I find the system in the mk2 is boomy and yes, the tweets on the system in the 2016 really are quite harsh. I personally don't go quite that far for a decent experience at home, I tend to use Shure in-ears or Beyer Custom Ones, preferably off of one of my AG06s... in the car, I find the SD card sounds better than USB. The GALA system to adapt volume to speed seems to limit bass response as an attempt to limit driver excursion. Practically, I think I'm at full front (and it makes a difference for me), +3 or 4 on bass and +1 on treble. The mids are incredibly harsh and the tweeters lack air, even if positioning is good. I also found a significant negative change with the DSP on driver-focussed or not... and I don't know that there's much point in playing without investing the effort in the drivers and adding some form of DSP / EQ.

 

You could try measuring the car with something like REW and then convoluting a couple of FLAC tracks to see if that is better? It's going to be hard to get better without using something like a minidsp, damping the doors and probably a rigid mount of a better 6.5" driver. A sub would also probably help. 

 

 - Bret

2 hours ago, Plantman said:

I must be one of the very few that thinks the sound in the Mk3 is pretty good. I've just the Amunsden with no Canton and I am pretty happy with the sound.

Even when cranked up it's clear.  I have BASS set to max and have brought the TREBLE down a fair bit because that is how I like the sound.

 

Granted, the MK2 was pretty good in the sound department (with the standard STREAM unit) but at high volumes the two front doors vibrated and rattled too much. At least in the MK3 they don't.....yet

The rear speakers also ceased and after I put decent speakers in there it was never quite as good...which was annoying!

 

Is the Colubus much different in sound quality then? In the Amunsden you hardly have any audio settings to tweak.

 

I have to agree with you, I actually find my Columbus MIB1 pretty good in terms of sound quality after the last firmware update to decrease the clipping.

I also have bass set to MAX & a little reduction in the trebble (-1 or-2) & I get a good sound even when listening at volume to my liking.

 

I am a musician so would like to say I understand what is a good sound but I dont have an expensive audio system even at home.

 

 

I think part of the problem with the weak bass on the Mk3 is to try to avoid cstomer complaints because of the door vibration as it seemed there was on the mk2.

My basic set up sounds ok to me at about 50% volume set to mid-high bass because I only listen to Planet Rock. ROCK ON DUDES!

Columbus/Canton in my MK3 sounds far better than the Columbus/Stock combination that was in my MK2 facelift.

 

No idea how bad standard MK3 audio is, Canton was a must have for me.

1 hour ago, ahenners said:

Columbus/Canton in my MK3 sounds far better than the Columbus/Stock combination that was in my MK2 facelift.

 

No idea how bad standard MK3 audio is, Canton was a must have for me.

I was lucky to find Columbus and Pano 2nd hand, so would have been greedy to expect Canton too, but I would have loved to have had it as well!

 

Still, the kids love the standard system via Spotify and, if they are content, all is well with the world! 

 

(Besides, it still sounds great when compared to the Citigo!!) 

Edited 4 September, 20187 yr by dunc69

You HiFi aficionados are doing it all wrong.

You are being impatient. Wait several years and those high notes will become inaudible anyway. 

Your principal home listening should be a Roberts DAB tranny with a massive 0.5watts music power out of the 1.5 inch speaker. Don't worry about the lack of bass, mid range or high notes because age will have bestowed you with a constant  'white noise' type Tinnitus to replace it.

Near every car system sounds fantastic if you are coming from that low point  

 

More seriously I usually find good recordings with the human voice as the principal performer are best for showing flaws in any system, followed by classical music but not necessarily full orchestral.

 

Edited 5 September, 20187 yr by Gerrycan

@Gerrycan, it really depends on the quality along the whole recording/production chain!

 

At typical recording levels (not commercially equalized to , I mean) I'm pretty sure my latest MkIII Bolero and Canton won't hurt anybody ears, especially when travelling at highway speeds and there's a certain wind&engine noise floor. Indeed I seem to recall my MkII VRS (Amundsen & Canton) was much mor e powerful, as @Gabbo reports.

 

Then I did the cheap cap exchanging tweak, and the sound improved considerably.

 

Mine only has the Swing  with 8 speakers and I have seriously thought about the capacitor change but we spend less time in the car than we used to and the sound it produces is not offensive and accurate enough for us.

 

Oddly the bluetooth telephone link is oustanding and better than many friends far more expensive vehicles. Music through the bluetooth link is relatively poor though.

Edited 5 September, 20187 yr by Gerrycan

4 hours ago, Genoa1893 said:

it really depends on the quality along the whole recording/production chain!

 

 

 

 

 

Yes modern dynamic range compression is a travesty.