Is there really not a way to individually adjust the subwoofer level? I know you can adjust bass, but I think it's crazy Ford doesn't have a separate adjustment for the subwoofer?!
While we are on the topic, has anyone upgraded their stock sub? I'm wanting a little more thump from the sub, so I can turn the bass level down on the door speakers for improved quality. But I would also like to retain the stock look/location.

 

Crutchfield has some low-profile and truck subs that look like they would fit. It is a tight space, and tighter than it was on the 2016 generation.

There is no separate sub level control. It is actually rare to have that as a separate adjustment these days. Our Lincoln with the 16-speaker THX system (which sounds awesome) does not have this adjustment either. My old 1992 and 1997 Range Rovers did have separate sub adjustment.

I've noticed at higher volumes there is quite a bit of soft clipping. I'm starting to think the 2016 stereo was superior, at least at higher volumes.

The amp is decent sized; not sure if it just runs the sub or all the speakers and the sub.

 

I'm holding out for Kicker to make a sub that replaces the stock speaker like in the F150.

Vehicle Specific Solutions (VSS) | KICKER®

 

I agree. My 2014 stereo sounded better. I've done all kinds of tweaking and can't get this one to sound near as good. Less bass, more muddy in the middle and way too much high.

 

ya my 2016 Platinum had a way better system! i have been noticing the music/amp powering out at high volume a lot on my 17 platinum but on my 16 i could max everything out and no problems!

 

This is primarily what I notice, as well. Once you turn up a bass-heavy track beyond a certain point (seems to be around 15), soft-clipping occurs...which slightly delays and reduces bass. I never thought the stereo in my 2015 and 2016 trucks was that great, but it did seem to be able to be turned up to a higher volume without distortion or clipping.

 

Based on what I'm reading here and what I experienced in my couple of test drives, I'll be doing an upgrade as soon as my truck lands. On my 12 I was able to get away with just a sub and amp to replace the OEM sum/amp. On this one I'm thinking of going a step further with JL separates in the front doors, 2 ways in the rear doors, and a 4 channel JL amp to drive them. I'm hoping not to have to go the signal summing/eq route as there should be no clipping if the gain on the amp allows you to keep the system at what it thinks is a low/speaker protecting level.

 

Has anyone been able to figure out what they changed? Did they just cheep out on the amp this time or did they change the speakers too?

 

The front tweeters are in the A-pillar aimed at the windshield. Previously they aimed at the front passengers. The rear upper door tweeters in the previous generation have been eliminated. Instead, the lower rear door speakers are "two-way" with a cheesy tweet incorporated into the main driver. I actually believe the front door speakers are improvements over the previous generation. The sub seemed to be larger in the new truck. The amp is a decent size, but I'm going to point most of the blame at the new amp not being able to cleanly supply high power across the range.

 

So a upgraded amp should solve most of the problem? Possibly rears? I wouldn't mind fixing this problem but I don't want to spend to much as I have alrdy put so much into this truck :s

 

If you upgrade the amp only, you'll blow the OEM speakers.

 

Most likely true. If you can control volume levels, it would probably be fine. But speaker upgrades would make it that much better.

For the $, the stereo should be better. XLT stereos definitely improved; Lariat+ stereos got worse.

I think Platinum should have a special stereo all to its own.

 

On my xlt the stereo is ok up until volume 15 and then it is terrible. Adding amps on these new trucks might be a pain due to the ground points, will probably have to drill a hole through the cab to the frame for best option.

On that note though I will be adding an alpine pdx amp, replacing factory front door and tweeters with some components (Stereo Integrity 6.5" and tweeter which I highly recommend), adding a jl sub that fits nicely under the middle rear seat without sticking out (CS110TG-TW3), and adding a rockford 360.3 to eq everything.

I am trying to figure out a way to incorporate the center channel speaker in the center of the dash, that is a nice option to have and I would highly suggest upgrading it too if you are not going to be using an EQ device. The 360.3 will make the use of the center channel difficult for me.

I will be also pulling all of the interior and soundproofing beyond the factory with mass loaded vinyl, closed cell foam, and sound deadener tiles. When Everything is done it will look as much like factory as possible but will sound so much better than stock.

I wish companies would spend more time actually tuning their stereos better and not just throwing more speakers at the issue. More speakers = harder to get everything playing nicely together. A simple 4 speaker arrangement will sound much better than the 10 speaker factory option if Ford would just tune it.

 

My take is that the less of the factory stereo you keep, the better it will sound.

The 2003 GMC that our 2017 F350 XLT will replace has JL separates up front and some coaxials in back (the rears contribute little to the sound stage), powered by a 320W 4-channel JL amp. Have a single 10-in JL sub, powered by a 225W JL amp. Alpine head unit. The only thing left of the factory system is the antenna. You can turn it up until it hurts with no distortion. The system has been running 7 years and sounds as good today as the day it went in.

The plan for the 2017 is to put in new JL separates up front and something more cost-effective in the rear cab. Transfer both JL amps from the current truck. Use the JL sub from the current truck, if it will fit (I suspect not, will probably need a lo-profile sub). If needed, add anything required to integrate the components with the factory head unit.

 

My local audio crowd installed a Mosconi D2 80.6 DSP and Focal flax FX in the front doors and pillars. Having a custom sub made up now, but what an amazing transformation. I was at the point that I wouldn't even listen to music in this truck.