VAMike
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I have no problem with B&O being dependent on speakers--that's the whole point of B&O. Having that somehow tie into HD radio makes no sense.
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Richard Conley
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Speakers can go lots of places....I would assume that the heart of the B/O is the electronics - amp(s), etc. I really couldn't care about HD radio...even HD radio IMO wouldn't be the best audio sources.
VAMike
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No, the heart of B&O is the subwoofer which literally does not fit in a scab. (It's behind the back seat in the screw, and behind the back seat in the scab is the bed.)
Richard Conley
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Agree to disagree - my Lexus has a Mark Levinsen audio system with more speakers and of course a sub woofer which will make the B/O sound like a 1 transistor radio, so I can appreciate the concept of a sub. There a plenty of subs that could have been fit in the scab. I spent 400 highway miles in this truck without the B/O and listened to music from my phone, from Sirius and from Pandora and concluded that I could easily live without the B/O since I wanted the 6' bed and did not want the extra two doors. Often in vehicles like Lexus, the head units are the same and the "high end" options just adds better amps and more/better speakers. Not sure we know if this follows with the Ranger I am researching but B/O site only has some details on the application in F-150, there are some summary details on the amp and the speaker layout looks similar to the Ranger. and amp appears the same. Exception may be the microphone monitoring background noise. Research continues. As far as HD radio, I'll take Sirius, which I can use in both my cars with one subscription, is available all over the continent, I have only a handful of HD stations in my area, etc. One can easily get Sirius fairly cheap and the variety and availability is not rivaled by HD...just try to get the Chicago Bears on radio in Alabama without Sirius
If I'm spending any money upgrading mine audio is way down the list.
VAMike
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I don't listen to the radio much at all, definitely won't pay for radio. It's just annoying that Ford intentionally removed a feature that's fairly common these days even in low end trims just to artificially segment their product line--and in a way that leaves their highest trim scab unable to get the feature. Also, FWIW, I think worrying about sounds fidelity in a car generally and a truck specifically is a waste of time. I don't care about how hd radio sounds, I'd just like to see the song info and access the secondary channels. (But, realistically, I'm really only going to be listening to stuff via my phone or a thumbdrive most of the time so this is an annoyance rather than a real problem.)
It's just annoying that Ford intentionally removed a feature that's fairly common these days even in low end trims just to artificially segment their product line--and in a way that leaves their highest trim scab unable to get the feature. Also, FWIW, I think worrying about sounds fidelity in a car generally and a truck specifically is a waste of time. I don't care about how hd radio sounds, I'd just like to see the song info and access the secondary channels. (But, realistically, I'm really only going to be listening to stuff via my phone or a thumbdrive most of the time so this is an annoyance rather than a real problem.)
Richard Conley
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There are the only 3 parts I can find listed by Ford in audio - three systems attch 1. Looks like the higher end head unit is only $100 more. If you search on B&O Sound System all you get are "insulators" which correspond to speaker locations. I had an unsatisfactory online chat with the Ford parts people. Look at the attachment - I gave them the part # and they can't tell what it replaces, since my VIN is not built, that threw them also. It seems that they might not even be able to tell if I had a VIN for a CC that supported B/O what would replace the factory unit. It seems to me that it would be the middle one. They suggested calling marketing. I am not giving up if only out of curiosity. In the list of related parts no speakers are listed, but if separately searched none of the ones listed are expensive enough but are for 8 speakers in the right locations with a "woofer" (not called sub) attch 2. Amazing that an owner can get more info than most Ford people - knowledge very compartmentalized I guess.
Geoff
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The B&O system is tuned for each individual vehicle. There is a listening panel that fine tunes the sound using the B&O Digital Signal Processing Amp. So far most of the Ford B&O systems have 10 drivers (8 speakers) including a dual channel Sub that are all powered from a 675W DSP Amp.
I usually listen to my iPhone music but I do like HD radio as well. Personally, I could do without Sirius and will no doubt grow tired of their "offers" trying to keep me signed up after the 6 mo free trial expires (I don't think I've even tried Sirius since I got my Ranger).
EDIT: This article explains how the B&O system is tuned for each vehicle....
I usually listen to my iPhone music but I do like HD radio as well. Personally, I could do without Sirius and will no doubt grow tired of their "offers" trying to keep me signed up after the 6 mo free trial expires (I don't think I've even tried Sirius since I got my Ranger).
EDIT: This article explains how the B&O system is tuned for each vehicle....
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Richard Conley
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I have to laugh - the secret Ford police know my vehicle will be a SC and when I search to price the speakers I get a warning that they will not fit my vehicle
Its really hard to tell details of parts specs. It seems like the head unit for the 6 speaker (non B/O) has the same part number as for 8 speaker system (B/O?), In the diagrams you can see the amp associated with 8 speaker system that does not appear on the 6 speaker. I see a microphone that I believe is what the voice control for the nav - can id the part or how the B/O monitors sound for adjustment. Once you re-up on Sirius all you get is annoying suggestions for listening
VAMike
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I would not be suprised if the hardware was the same but they turned features off in software.I have to laugh - the secret Ford police know my vehicle will be a SC and when I search to price the speakers I get a warning that they will not fit my vehicle
t4thfavor
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I turned it on in Forscan, but that did nothing. I am betting that the APIM is different. I've seen "Sync3 retrofit kits" and there is an HD and non-HD option, so sounds plausible.
ControlNode
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My RS has HD Radio with it's older Sync3. I was expecting it on the Ranger, but from the test menus I noticed "HD Radio: not available". I didn't use it much, but when I did user the radio I liked the quality.
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