I've used the settings you provided for a few days now. Overall, I like the sound with them. I'll keep 'em.

I will add, however, that XM and FM/AM are still "weak" generally in terms of sound. Some channels on XM sound pretty good, tho. And some FM stations as well. I think that's the nature of the beast given the transmission mediums.

 

Thanks for the suggestions tlxsteve. One of the first things I did after taking delivery was to turn on the DTS Neural setting. For my ears, that made a significant improvement. I also noticed the issue with the center channel (as indicated by your DJ friend) and I dropped it to -3 within the first day or so. I will continue to experiment and hopefully find some ways to make it even better!

 

There is no reason technically why regular FM and XM cannot sound excellent. FM has a high frequency maximum of 15khz which is high enough - few adults can hear much above this and there is very little information of importance at this level, especially in a noisy car environment. There's 60db of stereo separation available and low enough distortion too. The problem with FM is that there's little care and attention given to audio fidelity by the broadcasters in North America (FM can sound excellent in Europe) and everything is horribly compressed to maintain an even volume level. XM could be even better but it is compromised by too many stations in a given bandwidth. so it too gets compressed and all the iife is taken out. Then it is all compounded further by low grade chip sets being used in cars these days. Many older vehicles sound far better on FM. It seems absurd to me that streaming internet radio via bluetooth sounds better than FM...

 

I ended up at -3 on the center too.

 

I came from the 4G TL and must say the ELS system rocks. Bass punch was sharp and distinctive. Mids and highs are crisp.

Jumped into the TLX and it feels like an entirely different system. Disappointed to say the least. I tried the ANC off and did improve some. But if it doesn't stay off then it's not an option. Don't need no annoying humming in my ear for 1 min everytime i start the car. I'll try the settings you guys are recommending. Hopefully it can bring back the enjoyment from my 4G TL.

 

could you give us some instructions on how to do this? Would be much appreciated thanks

 

Even with ANC off, im unsuccessful in getting my mirrors to vibrate. the bass is still terrible

 

I find it interesting that one user has stated that even in his Non ELS his mirror vibrates then people WITH ELS say even with ANC off they CANT get the mirror to vibrate.
People need to get their stories straight.
Not possible for a base level stereo with lower watts can vibrate the mirror where as a better louder system can't... unless your mirrors are attached differently that just doesnt make sense. I figure the guy saying his NON ELS vibrates is mistaken.

All I can provide is the thread I used.
https://acurazine.com/forums/acura-i...estion-905459/
The 9th post has a video where the guy shows what to unplug where. I just used his instructions but I did it without taking the glove box out. After seeing where his plug was I shinned a flashlight back there and saw it. Then reached in blind and unplugged it.

 

There are a few potential factors required for a reasonable comparison:
- model TLX (base is 7 speaker, Tech+ is 10 speaker - but same bass)
- audio settings
- same audio track and format

There are some tracks that I have that put out tons of bass, and others that are weak. More clean bass is always welcomed, but I am happy overall with my system.

 

Hi,

To me, the system sounds much better with ANC off... finally. some reasonable bass. Unfortunately the setting does not stick after stopping/starting the car (if I go back into the menu I see that it is on again). From reading the posts it seems that some people think the setting is not being reset like I am experiencing. Is there some trick here that I am missing to permanently commit the change or is there some kind of software version variation between the cars?

Thanks,

Keith

 

There is speculation that it is turned on aging by going into the menu, and not by stopping/starting the car. If you cannot tell the difference in actual use then it is all in your head (or your hearing).

 

I'm pretty sure 99% of the differences of opinion in this thread are explained by differences in how people perceive the placebo effect. Bottom line, the 8" woofer is only moderately powerful, and that's just too bad. Tweaking settings helps a little, as does making sure you have a good audio source. Turning ANC off is, obviously, a trade-off, not a solution. Another similar trade-off would be removing all sound deadening insulation from the trunk --ya, that would likely increase the bass's punch, but it would also increase road noise. Not worth it, IMO.


The only way to "solve" the problem is to buy a real subwoofer.

 

I would like to see Acura re-tune the ACS to not cutoff the bass and treble but still keep the car quiet. Seems like the ANC people did not work alongside the ELS people.

 

I've come to the conclusion today while driving into work that the bass from the 8" Subwoofer is indeed working as it should. There was one song with intense base and it was rattling my car. i could hear my items in the trunk shaking. I know this when i have random stuff in the compartments and it's hitting eachother making rattling noises in door side compartments too. I put my arm to the door and it's vibrating like hell. However in my seat i felt nothing. My conclusion? The TLX sound deadening features work too well. The leather seat i'm sitting on is absorbing like 25% of the vibrations. I noticed how plush these seats were when i first sat in them at the dealership. The trunk and rear seats eat up even more bass. I figure only some of that bass is making it into the cabin. I guess the only remedy is to have a bigger sub!
New ELS System with 10" or 12" Sub for near future?

 

Interesting.... I have a loaner Base MDX this weekend. The base is much better than my TLX Advance

 

My suggestion to everyone is report your issues officially. I reported this ANC cancelling Bass issue to my dealer a few weeks ago. At that time, my report which they discussed with Acura corporate was the first official report on this problem. If we want them to fix it, then we have to take the time to report it even if that means being without the car for a few days while they collect data (this is what happened with mine). In the meantime, I am living with ANC off.

Keith

 

I have only test driven the TLX 3-4 times, so haven"t noticed a major difference between my TSX ELS, which was 410 watts and the TLX ELS which is 490. I certainly has the crisp clear sound as the TSX. Have you tried DVD-Audio formats in the TLX?

Unlike the typical Bass heavy systems like BOSE and others, the ELS is not designed to be a thumping bass type of sound…rather you hear the instruments as played and the lyrics as sung. My TSX system was significantly superior to the BOSE Centre Point systems found in Infiniti vehicles like the Q50 i have driven. I don't listen to bass heavy music though, so perhaps i am not the best judge. Try classical music and you should notice the quality. I'll have to try listening with the ANC off…but I find it hard to believe they didn't tune the system with the ANC on.

 

There is no DVD Audio (DVD-A) in the TLX ELS, as I painfully learned. I was looking forward to it.

 

But there is a workaround. You can convert your DVD-As to DTSCDs and play them in the TLX. You will need to buy a $35 software program to do it. The details are in this thread. You can also use the program to extract the audio from DVDs and Blueray Discs to play in the TLX.

 

Yep, anyone who is using XM as a sound "barometer" may want to use the XM Watercolors channel that TLXSteve mentioned earlier. Many of SiriusXM's stations are encoded with an insane amount of compression compared to what things used to be back in the day. Remember how XM used to boast "CD quality audio"? No more though... That's the price we pay for Mel Karmazin giving every celebrity and their brother their own channel and clogging the spectrum.