CT5-V Getting Rid of Fake Engine Noise

[shbox]

Anyone else tried pulling F26 yet? Curious to hear what others think of the car’s true sound. I’ll say it again, pulling that fuse does away with the weird strange-pitch blenderesque sound these cars (and ZL1s) make at WOT inside the cabin… With the fuse pulled, it’s quieter at WOT, but finally sounds “real.”

Wish we could turn this crap off via a menu and still have the stereo work. My car is fake loud inside again.

I tried it on my 5V TT for grins. Cabin seemed quieter overall and exhaust sound was definitely noted coming from the pipes in the rear. Stereo still worked, though (at least when I turned up the volume knob for a moment). My research indicated the ANC mics are in the headliner above each front, door and rear center.

 

[sleepys4]

This is wild. I had no idea, and I Imagine most don't know about this.

 

[Daijoubu]

OK, I did some testing, found the fuse, and did a test drive. TL;DR: the piped in audio makes a TON of difference. In fact, all the weird, higher-pitched-than-it-should-be sound we hear at WOT is piped in through the speakers. WOT sounds a lot more natural (and, sadly, quieter in the cabin) with the F26 amp fuse pulled.

@Mirza Grebovic *please* see if you can get them to let us turn this crap off with an OTA update.

Detail, if you want to replicate this for yourselves:
1) open your hood and get the fuse puller from the underhood fusebox
2) open your trunk and access the trunk fusebox:View attachment 17041

2) Use that fuse puller to pull 40A fuse F26, which is near the top (the diagram on the back of the cover is upside down):
View attachment 17043
View attachment 17042
* note, as you can see above I initially did both F26 and F42 as they were both labeled AMP. You can ignore F42; I'm not sure what it does but pulling it doesn't block the piped-in engine noise.

3) Go for a drive and hear for the first time what your Blackwing really sounds like at WOT.

[edit] 4) put the fuse back in because there's no radio/audio at all with the fuse pulled.

Cheers

Interesting. However, you not only disabled the fake engine noise, but also the ANC. It'd be interesting to see if you can tell the difference by isolating the ANC from the ESE and toggling them on and off. I have the ANC disabled in my car by disconnecting the 3 microphones (aftermarket amp and sub). I honestly couldn't tell the difference, but maybe someone could. I'm still not convinced this car for sure has the engine sound enhancement installed, but maybe @Mirza Grebovic could confirm?

 

[joeldid]

So I know the CT5-V Blackwing has some kind of fake engine noise from the speakers for some absurd reason I'll never understand.

Does anyone know how to disable this? Is there a fuse we can pull or something? I think it sounds terrible and I'd like to be able to just turn it off if its easy enough to do. I don't think there's a setting for this that I've been able to find within the infotainment.

What year is your Blackwing? I have a 2022 and do not have that problem.

 

[Andi]

Interesting. However, you not only disabled the fake engine noise, but also the ANC. It'd be interesting to see if you can tell the difference by isolating the ANC from the ESE and toggling them on and off. I have the ANC disabled in my car by disconnecting the 3 microphones (aftermarket amp and sub). I honestly couldn't tell the difference, but maybe someone could. I'm still not convinced this car for sure has the engine sound enhancement installed, but maybe @Mirza Grebovic could confirm?

It’s a drastic difference. The “blender” type noise we’re all used to completely goes away with the fuse pulled. The engine sounds totally different:

Try it.

 

[Andi]

What year is your Blackwing? I have a 2022 and do not have that problem.

Yeah you do.

 

[Exia]

What year is your Blackwing? I have a 2022 and do not have that problem.

You absolutely do.

People can argue it isn't "Fake" but to me, sound pumped in through speakers even if the sound is "real" is fake because the speakers can only do much to replicate the sound.

Go listen to any Blackwing video on Youtube, the interior exhaust noise sounds synthetic and not actual exhaust noise.

Does it sound worse on video? Yes, is it really that bad? No.

All I know is my C7 Z06 and my prior ZL1 1LE were all exhaust, I know what an LT4 sounds like inside the car and the Blackwing is definitely missing something because they tried to make it "luxury" using sound deadening and nobody buying this car cares. I want to hear actually exhaust, not sound through a speaker, even if its "real".

Is this nitpicky? Yes, again it isn't that bad but it is there and I'd like if it wasn't. Maybe a future OTA update will make it available.

 

[sps4runner]

You absolutely do.

People can argue it isn't "Fake" but to me, sound pumped in through speakers even if the sound is "real" is fake because the speakers can only do much to replicate the sound.

Go listen to any Blackwing video on Youtube, the interior exhaust noise sounds synthetic and not actual exhaust noise.

Does it sound worse on video? Yes, is it really that bad? No.

All I know is my C7 Z06 and my prior ZL1 1LE were all exhaust, I know what an LT4 sounds like inside the car and the Blackwing is definitely missing something because they tried to make it "luxury" using sound deadening and nobody buying this car cares. I want to hear actually exhaust, not sound through a speaker, even if its "real".

Is this nitpicky? Yes, again it isn't that bad but it is there and I'd like if it wasn't. Maybe a future OTA update will make it available.

No, it's not nitpicky. I don't want FAKE engine sounds, I'm not stuffing a tube sock down the front of my pants, and I don't want my wife's bra stuffed with Kleenex. Too much to ask?

 

[BPR1337]

I'm assuming the Ct4 has the same issue?

 

[Vigster]

Maybe I'm crazy (or my little 4BW engine is too quiet) but I feel like I hear the transmission/clutch more at low speed than anything else. I don't get much if any exhaust noise with the windows up in track mode.

Envy you V8 boiz and your big vroomz

 

[MDM]

The description of it sounding like a blender is spot on. Total B.S that Cadillac would incorporate crap like this, especially when the quality of the sound inside is so poor. This type of mindset fits for the foreign Jap-crap, but should never be used in product like a Supercharger V8 Blackwing.

 

[jbawden]

Not to turn this into a GMA comment section nitpicking the minutia of an amazing car, but the extreme sound deadening is an odd choice in this car. I think a better choice would have been an investment in targeted suppression of road noise, but leave the analog goodness of the LT4 symphony without the fakery. I guess those of us in the fake noise haters club are the focus group outliers in a world obsessed NVH isolation.

 

[rubberduck]

Good thing my hearing is degraded from my younger days. I can’t tell much of what’s going on with the car sound and I saved at least $50K buying an expensive home stereo system.

 

[MDM]

Hopefully the fake noise is turned off in stealth mode. Then when we fabricate and install the exhaust, we can just leave it in stealth with zero fake noise and enjoy the real thing.

 

[Jameson's Viggen]

You absolutely do.

People can argue it isn't "Fake" but to me, sound pumped in through speakers even if the sound is "real" is fake because the speakers can only do much to replicate the sound.

It's the difference between a padded bra and a pushup bra.

When she looks good in that push up bra, it's an enhancement of what she's got.

When it's a padded bra...it's not.
Anyone remember that scene in Animal House? Lol

 

[rubberduck]

All well and good, but seems many are not satisfied and want Double D sound from the exhaust.

 

[shbox]

It's the difference between a padded bra and a pushup bra.

When she looks good in that push up bra, it's an enhancement of what she's got.

When it's a padded bra...it's not.
Anyone remember that scene in Animal House? Lol

Apparently, consensus is that people would like/enjoy the bra off, rather than on.