Further to my post yesterday asking about the basics of the Mk3 Focus (which I'm slowly getting used to) I need some advice on how to improve the sound system. Compared to the Titanium Fiesta I had, the sound quality in this Zetec is pants. It really is...

If I upgrade the speakers, will it give me the same (ish) sound quality, or is it the fault of the header unit, and if that is the case, am I screwed?

If it is the speakers, which ones are comparable with the ones in the Titaniums? Would I have to do back and front?

Thanks

Mark.

I would say the speakers and the enclosures make the biggest difference to sound quality, more than the head unit

Sound quality/ music can be a very subjective thing - if you like your music loud, for example, you might favor a louder setup over one with better quality at lower volumes, if you like a lot of bass, one that produces a lot of bass rather than one that has a better mid/treble but lack of bass etc, etc

So its not just the speakers but the enclosures they are fittid into (like the rigidity/ damping panels/ insulation and their placement) that make a big difference to sound, at higher volumes the actual interior of the car can influence the sound (eg lack of sound deadening on "base" models etc)

Cheaper speakers may not have tweeters so can be a bit dull at the top end (lacking treble)

So you are best to address the problem (lack of bass, lack of treble, poor volume, overall poor quality etc) - if its lack of bass(and volume) then adding a sub (you can get under-seat ones that work well, dont take up un-nessesary space, and are realatively light, and easy to set-up)

Lack of treble may mean a front speaker change (ones with concentric tweeters built-in)

Adding a sub will give you a lot more bass and can make the overall sound "dull" so you have to add front speakers with tweeters to bring the treble up to compensate, the sub can make the overall sound louder, but ultimately you may have to change the whole lot (including the head unit) to get the volume/ quality you want, a modern head unit will have more features than an "OEM" one

Further to my post yesterday asking about the basics of the Mk3 Focus (which I'm slowly getting used to) I need some advice on how to improve the sound system. Compared to the Titanium Fiesta I had, the sound quality in this Zetec is pants. It really is...

 

If I upgrade the speakers, will it give me the same (ish) sound quality, or is it the fault of the header unit, and if that is the case, am I screwed?

 

If it is the speakers, which ones are comparable with the ones in the Titaniums? Would I have to do back and front? 

 

Thanks

 

Mark. 

Drove an mk3 back to back with my mk2.5 and my first real thought was how awful the audio system is compared to mine. The speakers are weak and the head unit fades out anything after 50% of the volume max, making sound no louder at 50% or 80% volume I said to myself ford went backwards.

I'm not the biggest fan of the mk2.5 audio system either but it's alot better by far. I would suggest new head unit and speakers, a decent head unit isn't super expensive nor is a set of speakers from halfords

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Ford OC mobile app

I always say that a bad stereo with good speakers is better than a good stereo with bad ones.

How about the ones on the accessories website?

http://www.ford-accessories.co.uk/productgrouplisting.htm?marketId=GB&languageId=en&modelId=10&categoryId=27&articleNameId=552

I wonder if the mk3 has different levels of speakers. I know etis said my

2.5 had 'high end' speakers or something like that which indicates there could be normal and high end or whatever. To be fair they are ace, everyone comments on how good the sound system sounds. Maybe see if etis says anything about the speakers that were fitted at the factory.