Ford Fusion Audio Upgrade On A Budget For Hanover Client

A client from Hanover, Pennsylvania came to WSS Westminster Speed & Sound looking to improve the sound quality of his 2014 Ford Fusion. He had a few major goals in mind:

• Spend the majority of the budget focused on a great sound rather than a flashy installation and over the top output.
• Have a compact subwoofer enclosure in the trunk to preserve as much space as possible.
• Install a digital sound processor to maximize the sound quality gains.

We sat him in one of our demo cars to give him a good idea as to how a properly installed and tuned car audio system should sound. Unlike some of our clients who don’t already have a good point of reference for what good audio should sound like, this client did.  He knows his stuff when it comes to audio as he is a sound engineer and videographer.

He loved the sound of our demo vehicle and, after a listen, we went out to his Ford Fusion and looked it over from front to back. We like to look over the vehicles we work on to see what space we have to work with, and what spaces in the vehicle the client needs to keep.  After some discussion, we decided to keep the Ford factory radio since he liked the fit and finish, and the simplicity of its operation.  He also wanted to keep the vehicle trunk space useable, so any large enclosures were out of the question.

Hand-Tailored, Exacting Sound With The Help Of Audison’s bitTenD Processor

In a car audio system, it all begins with the source, and in this case, it is the factory Ford Fusion unit, as mentioned earlier. From there the audio signal travels to an Audison bitTenD processor.  We chose a bitTenD digital sound processor for several reasons. For starters, it allows us to de-equalize the signal coming from the stock stereo. Huh? In simple terms, car manufacturers modify the sound coming out of the radio to try and take inexpensive, tinny sounding speakers and make them sound better. Now, when you install great sounding speakers, this equalization curve hurts the sound quality. The Audison processor can strip the sound of the additives, so we end up with the music in its original form, just as the artist intended.

From there, this processor has five dedicated output channels, one for each of the five speakers we installed. We use a sophisticated piece of testing and tuning hardware and software called a BitTune to analyze the interior of the vehicle. We take the data from the BitTune and then create a unique tuning curve specific to that vehicle with the new equipment installed. Having a 31 band equalizer for each of the five speakers, along with crossovers and digital delay, allow us to give the driver the best seat in the vehicle. No longer will the driver’s side speakers play louder than the passenger side, or the sound stage come from the left door. The sound now stages across the top of the dash with startling clarity and depth.

The Bit10D comes with a remote control that we installed in a convenient spot in front of the shifter. The controller allows the client to vary the output level of the subwoofer and to change between two different sound quality presets as well as control the overall volume of the system.

Ford Fusion Audio System Front Stage Includes Audison Speakers, FAST Rings, And Hushmat Damping Material

The passenger side door with the panel removed, in stock form.

One fully prepped door read for reassembly of the door panel. Hushmat is applied to reduce resonances and FAST foam rings are attached around the speaker to maximize the midbass output.

Our goal is always to keep client’s vehicles clean and factory looking. With the door card installed, our work on the doors is done.

For the front speakers, we chose Audison AVK6’s installed in the factory door locations. This package comes with a 6.5” woofer and a 1.1” tweeter. We did not use the passive crossover network supplied with the speaker system, but rather ran them active on their own dedicated channels, resulting in much better sound quality and output. The doors were treated with Hushmat to eliminate the possibility of any resonances and to help reduce road noise. Foam FAST Rings were installed around the door woofers to improve their mid-bass output. At the top of the door, the tweeters were installed behind the factory grills at a slight angle to improve the imaging.

JL Audio Subwoofer Provides Low End Reinforcement While Taking Up Minimal Space

In the rear of the vehicle we chose a JL Audio 10W1 woofer for its great value, small box requirement, and fabulous sound quality. A small, sealed box was chosen, and extra speaker wire was used so the customer could move the box around, depending upon what he was carrying that day.  As you can see there was plenty of trunk space left AND the client got plenty of bass, win-WIN!

 Audison SR Amplifier Powers The Whole System

With the seat back locked in the upright position the amp sits cleanly wired and takes up almost no room.

Audison SR5 amplifier securely attached to rear seat with all wiring neatly secured.

For amplification, an Audison SR5 was the perfect choice. This amplifier is an incredible value from a sound quality perspective, utilizing a Class A/B design on all channels, which many people prefer for the smooth, clean output. It is a five channel design, delivering 55 watts per channel to each of the four front speakers and 260 watts of power to the subwoofer. The amplifier is larger than some of its competitors, so it was mounted on the back of the back seat. The seat can still be folded down when additional storage is needed, and it takes up very little usable space.

Great Sounding System Has Client Smiling From Ear To Ear

When the client came to pick up the vehicle, he was smiling from ear to ear. The sound quality improvement was incredible. The low frequencies came through with authority and impact, and the musical clarity and staging left you always wanting more. This was a system that you could spend hours listening to, just sitting there getting wrapped up in the music. We could tell that he was going to be spending lots of time listening to his music sitting in a parking spot, going nowhere. And that is what it’s all about to us. Sure, we could have done a much flashier installation, but at that point we would have needed to step down considerably on the equipment. The entire installation was done to exacting standards and no corners were cut.  We just didn’t spend much of our client’s budget on bells and whistles.

The vehicle represents what we consider an audiophile sound upgrade on a budget. If you would like your vehicle to sound like a concert on wheels, we invite you to stop by our facility with your vehicle and get to know us better. WSS Westminster Speed & Sound has been awarded one of the Top Mobile Electronics Retailers in the Nation by Mobile Electronics Magazine four years in a row. We promise to take all the time needed to help you achieve the car audio system you have always wanted. Feel free to send us an email here as well.