McIntosh.....m'eh!

[DocSkip]

VERY disappointed with the McIntosh "premium" sound! 19 speaker setup in W/III - and I have had better sound from an old Technic boom box!

After 3 weeks - I feel I am proficient where 99% of settings are at and have adjusted equalizer and still not happy 'tAll with the sound! Perhaps its because of the sheer size of the interior.

Anyone have advice or similar experience to share?

My vehicle is my personal stereo space - so looking forward to thoughts/ideas; lessons learned. ~Skipper

 

[MiloX]

This is interesting to me. I listened to the Mc system in the GCL and was very impressed… at least as far as factory systems go. I am not an audio engineer, but I do have a pile of IASCA and MECA trophies for Sound Quality competition. you may be on to something with the space. A whole lot more cabin to pressurize in the Wagoneer.

what seemed off? Tonality? Spectral balance, linearity, dynamics, staging/imaging?

Test driving a GW SI tomorrow. Will leave my impressions too!

 

[DocSkip]

@MiloX - thanks for the info.

Overall - its clarity/tonality. The balance is good. Equalizer settings are fine. The overall sound volume is lackluster. Perhaps because of the cabin size - but with 19 "premium" speakers - I've heard better sound from a retail store Muzak speaker IMHO.

 

[Randyv]

@MiloX - thanks for the info.

Overall - its clarity/tonality. The balance is good. Equalizer settings are fine. The overall sound volume is lackluster. Perhaps because of the cabin size - but with 19 "premium" speakers - I've heard better sound from a retail store Muzak speaker IMHO.

The Grand Cherokee L loaner we had (before they downgraded us this week) had an Alpine system in it. And I could swear the sound quality seemed better than the Mc in our Wagoneer S3

 

[Steve stiller]

You must have gotten a bad one. This is the best system I’ve ever had in a factory vehicle by far. Extremely happy with it. I always buy the higher end system in my new vehicle. This by far is the best one to date.

 

[DocSkip]

Thanks, @Steve stiller - perhaps I've got some settings incorrect - though I consider myself pretty tech savvy and intuitive. Any thoughts on how to get it evaluated to know for sure?

 

[Gatzu]

VERY disappointed with the McIntosh "premium" sound! 19 speaker setup in W/III - and I have had better sound from an old Technic boom box!

After 3 weeks - I feel I am proficient where 99% of settings are at and have adjusted equalizer and still not happy 'tAll with the sound! Perhaps its because of the sheer size of the interior.

Anyone have advice or similar experience to share?

My vehicle is my personal stereo space - so looking forward to thoughts/ideas; lessons learned. ~Skipper

I am with you 100%. It’s very lackluster. My Benz had a much better fuller sound and this is too bright even when tweaking with the settings. Possibly because of the interior but most of the sound just feels like it comes from the front by the windshield and doesn’t surround you that well.

 

[WagoneerWayne]

I have a Wagoneer III and the McIntosh sound system is definitely better than the one I had in my BMW 750. Not high end home system good, didn’t expect that. The mid-bass is solid, without being boomy or mushy. Low bass is limited, but reasonable for the size and power of the system. Check out organ music by E. Power Biggs. I don’t find the high end too bright (perhaps due to the frequency roll off in my older ears!). Female vocalists (e.g., Judy Collins) are natural and open. Good dynamic range without clipping. The counter is that it doesn’t get as loud as I’d like!

i will note 2 observations: I was disappointed initially, too high expectations and low quality sources, but it seemed it got better as it “broke in.” Second, quality is highly dependent on the source! Sirius XM, which I started with, is not a good test. 😀 Some Apple Music and Tidal material “sing” (to make a pun). 😂

Yes as set up the sound stage centers on the windshield (just as my home stereo centers on my front wall) but left-right separation is fairly good (depending again on the material). People in the second row of the car say it’s better than what they’ve experienced in that location. I prefer not using the surround setting. I haven’t really tried the graphical setting where you can move the “center” around, but I may give that a try just to see what it does.

I would like to hear the 23 speaker system in the GW for comparison. Also the Escalade, which has a 36-speaker I think, is supposed to be among the best.
So my impressIon after a month is that it’s the best auto system I’ve had, but not high end home system quality. Fairly neutral, appreciate the non boomy bass. No rattles. Very enjoyable to listen to over long drives. But want more volume! 😂😂

 

[bigdlife86]

@MiloX - thanks for the info.

Overall - its clarity/tonality. The balance is good. Equalizer settings are fine. The overall sound volume is lackluster. Perhaps because of the cabin size - but with 19 "premium" speakers - I've heard better sound from a retail store Muzak speaker IMHO.

I 100% agree. It's not that my WS3 sounds bad, and it definitely has power, but the clarity and crispness is just not there, and it's naturally Bass heavy.

Sounds good. But before this, I had a 2021 GX460 with Mark Levinson that was SOOO crisp & clean, and powerful, and 4 days before I bought the Wagoneer, I bought a 2021 Acura TLX Type-S with the ELS audio system and it sounds immediately sharper, clearer, powerful and non distorted. I drive them back to back daily, and it's always interesting the difference.

By nature, Chrysler systems are always a bit more Bass heaby than others (similar comments in mom's Grand Cherokee & a friends older 2014 JGC with standard systems), and that seems part of it. I've adjusted it several times as well and its great, but missing that crisp clarity I'm used to in others.

Sounds powerful. Fills the interior. But it's not like a Mark Levinson, ELS, etc. in terms of clarity or clear detail, no. Interesting comment on breaking the speakers in, @WagoneerWayne, we'll see.

 

[WagoneerWayne]

I 100% agree. It's not that my WS3 sounds bad, and it definitely has power, but the clarity and crispness is just not there, and it's naturally Bass heavy.

Sounds good. But before this, I had a 2021 GX460 with Mark Levinson that was SOOO crisp & clean, and powerful, and 4 days before I bought the Wagoneer, I bought a 2021 Acura TLX Type-S with the ELS audio system and it sounds immediately sharper, clearer, powerful and non distorted. I drive them back to back daily, and it's always interesting the difference.

By nature, Chrysler systems are always a bit more Bass heaby than others (similar comments in mom's Grand Cherokee & a friends older 2014 JGC with standard systems), and that seems part of it. I've adjusted it several times as well and its great, but missing that crisp clarity I'm used to in others.

Sounds powerful. Fills the interior. But it's not like a Mark Levinson, ELS, etc. in terms of clarity or clear detail, no. Interesting comment on breaking the speakers in, @WagoneerWayne, we'll see.

Some things to try, if you use Apple CarPlay and Apple Music.

1. Use wired CarPlay. According to Apple, it supports lossless audio formats whereas wireless does not. I use a lightNing port to USB C Cable.
2. in Apple Music settings, set download and streaming quality to lossless or hi-res lossless. Peruse Apple Music and try their large selection of lossless music to your taste. I’m finding these two changes make a significant improvement
3. I’m told to Try setting Sound Check option to Off. Allows louder volume for some music (only Apple Music sources). I haven’t tried this yet.

 

[bigdlife86]

Some things to try, if you use Apple CarPlay and Apple Music.

1. Use wired CarPlay. According to Apple, it supports lossless audio formats whereas wireless does not. I use a lightNing port to USB C Cable.
2. in Apple Music settings, set download and streaming quality to lossless or hi-res lossless. Peruse Apple Music and try their large selection of lossless music to your taste. I’m finding these two changes make a significant improvement
3. I’m told to Try setting Sound Check option to Off. Allows louder volume for some music (only Apple Music sources). I haven’t tried this yet.

That's what I thought too, but the Bluetooth CarPlay connection is so instant and quick, I just left it as is. I'll tinker with that, if I can turn off bluetooth and test the wired connection instead.

 

[WagoneerWayne]

I agree, and the cable’s a little hassle. I’ll switch back and forth to see how much of a difference I can discern, but my initial reaction is that’s it’s significant at least on good quality material.

something interesting I found out recently is that Wireless CarPlay uses Wi-Fi not Bluetooth for connection. Bluetooth is used during the setup. Theoretically Wi-Fi music should be better than Bluetooth.

 

[DocSkip]

thanks for the recommendations. Agree - HATE (nay, LOATHE) cords! the bass is nice - but the sound is flat and I cannot buy the "its the size of the vehicle" rationale.....I'll keep playing with the settings in hope of finding the "sweet spot." Had never heard of Mark Levinson system(s). Interesting! Thanks for sharing!

 

[bigdlife86]

thanks for the recommendations. Agree - HATE (nay, LOATHE) cords! the bass is nice - but the sound is flat and I cannot buy the "its the size of the vehicle" rationale.....I'll keep playing with the settings in hope of finding the "sweet spot." Had never heard of Mark Levinson system(s). Interesting! Thanks for sharing!

I had a bluetooth glitch yesterday, so kept driving and switched to USB CarPlay. Tiny difference, maybe, but not really noticeable. I'd say one touch less interference, but not notably different. Not as clear or crisp as my Acura ELS system, either way, but remains powerful.

Just a different setup, and the McIntosh is good but not concert amazing. Enjoy it regardless.

 

[WagoneerWayne]

I got a Uconnect OTA update yesterday with several minor changes, but one unmentioned change was the Surround Sound option disappeared. No big deal, I didn’t notice a significant improvement with it, just wondering why? Hope they tell us.

 

[DocSkip]

The OTA today gave me a black/blank screen of death. NOTHING is coming out now. Ugh!

 

[WagoneerWayne]

That’s terrible! I depend a lot on my Infotainment system and would really miss it. Hope it recovers quickly.

 

[bigdlife86]

Mine isn't showing any update, and I'm hoping it stays that way. OTA updates are often super finnicky, as the connection can vary greatly.

Hope all get resolved soon.

 

[Qppwkdeiwb]

Would agree that the system has great bass but certainly lacks clarity.