Lucid Air aftermarket Hifi upgrade summary (and quality / configuration of the factory audio)

[nautchilous]

I can’t wait to see the final product….Just out of Curiosity, where and what size sub did they install for you? I plan to do a full audio upgrade next month since I am not planning to keep the SSPRO after the 90 day trial . Any info I can pass on to my installer would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Bunnylebowski]

I’m proudly having the first Lucid Air upgrade performed by Reus Audio in Anaheim. Last week, they installed my subwoofer and the whole thing already sounds astonishingly better than the stock system. Very deep, clean bass inside the cabin with no noise outside. As for the mids/highs, they sound good now, but the team at Reus knew they could be better! They took several audio measurements which they are currently having their software analyze, to determine the best drivers/crossovers to be used for the cabin. I’ll be posting a full review once the system takes on its final form, but have been so pleased so far that I wanted to share with other SoCal owners who may be considering an upgrade!

When they put things back together make sure they discuss with a Lucid tech the correct approach/parts as if they do anything with the A pillar assembly the curtain airbags may not function.

 

[ebr]

Just out of Curiosity, where and what size sub did they install for you?

You didn't ask me but I put a fairly compact 10" sub in the lower compartment of my trunk and it filled in the only thing I thought was missing from the SSPro system in my GT. I think it sounds great now. Its been a while but I think on par with the Burmeister I had in my E450 and definitely better than what was in my BMW M440.

 

[MalosAires]

Too rich for my blood, but thank you. I know Reus Audio have done a lot of work for early, wealthy Tesla owners.

Hi there, while it’s true that Reus do a lot of very high-end exotics and restomods (with proportionally high audio budgets!), they have been very reasonable in my personal experience. Definitely far less than the budget described by OP. They did my old Model S in ~May 2013 and at that time they charged me about $4k. At that time others were charging over double that for similarly rated systems. I had a great experience over the 9+ years in between (minor issues came up, they were always quick to fix and would never accept a dime)!

 

[nautchilous]

You didn't ask me but I put a fairly compact 10" sub in the lower compartment of my trunk and it filled in the only thing I thought was missing from the SSPro system in my GT. I think it sounds great now. Its been a while but I think on par with the Burmeister I had in my E450 and definitely better than what was in my BMW M440.

A single 10” should be enough…Did they build a custom enclosure? What about amplification for the Sub? I would love to see a pic of the setup once it’s done…I am doing the total opposite next month….I plan to completely redo the front stage except for the center channel and rear deck components and a single 12” sub.

 

[ebr]

A single 10” should be enough…Did they build a custom enclosure? What about amplification for the Sub?

Mine was DIY. Simple setup - integrated amp/enclosure for the 10". Fits perfectly in the bottom right half of the sub-compartment in the trunk with space on top for storage if needed.

All I was looking to do was fill in the bottom end that is missing with that little woofer on the rear deck. Didn't want/need to spend the kind of dollars these other guys are to truly audiophile it (been there, done that in a different phase of my life).

 

[LucidvsTeslaS]

The corrected sub looks so much better than the original sub. It reassures me that my complaints about the bass in Lucid are justified. Is so far from being flat to 30 Hz. 20 Hz would be even better. If I remove the sub, just leave a hole in there, and replace it with a 12-inch high-end sub with the same impedance in its own sealed or ported box placed in the trunk, will the improvement be huge?

I would not replace the amp. Or maybe use a high-level to the low-level converter and use a higher-power amp with the better sub.

Or use 2 of these wired in the correct configuration. I have them brand new

TS-W2502D2|D4 - 10" Champion Series PRO Subwoofer with 3000 Watts Max. (800 Watts Nom.)

10" Champion Series PRO Subwoofer with 3000 Watts Max. (800 Watts Nom.)

www.pioneerelectronics.com

Not planning to upgrade the whole sound system since I am so disappointed with the car

 

[LucidvsTeslaS]

Hey, great and informative thread. Keep it coming. However, regarding the above, the sound waves involved with the subwoofer are plenty large enough to penetrate the trunk enclosure so adding a sub back there will provide a much needed enhancement to the low end. No need to put the seats down or anything.

I added a relatively small 10" integrated sub in my sub-trunk space and it made a world of difference - just filling in that bottom end punch that isn't there with the small "sub" they have in the rear deck. The system sounds awesome now.

Please post some pictures and more details. What kind of sub /amp combo? I guess you did get a signal from the existing 8-inch sub, and the 10-inch augmented the 8. Is the eight still working, or is it disconnected? I am kind of ok with the rest of the system, but I desperately need better bass. Thank you. Tesla Model S has a ported 8-inch that blows away the Lucid

 

[Bobby]

Please post some pictures and more details. What kind of sub /amp combo? I guess you did get a signal from the existing 8-inch sub, and the 10-inch augmented the 8. Is the eight still working, or is it disconnected? I am kind of ok with the rest of the system, but I desperately need better bass. Thank you. Tesla Model S has a ported 8-inch that blows away the Lucid

Please reduce your “Tesla is better” narrative. In the past day, you’ve peppered numerous threads with this opinion, and I’m getting tired of it.

 

[LucidvsTeslaS]

Please reduce your “Tesla is better” narrative. In the past day, you’ve peppered numerous threads with this opinion, and I’m getting tired of it.

I will do that, and I never imagined it would be an issue, though. It is meant as constructive criticism. I also stated Lucid sounds better in the midrange

 

[borski]

I will do that, and I never imagined it would be an issue, though. It is meant as constructive criticism. I also stated Lucid sounds better in the midrange

I feel many people could benefit in taking a class on how to provide useful and constructive criticism; this is also what separates good managers from bad managers, incidentally.

It honestly might be worth reading Dale Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People" - it's a classic, and is very interesting.

YMMV, and this isn't advice meant to attack you, just a side comment I think may be useful to you and others.

 

[ebr]

Please post some pictures and more details. What kind of sub /amp combo? I guess you did get a signal from the existing 8-inch sub, and the 10-inch augmented the 8. Is the eight still working, or is it disconnected? I am kind of ok with the rest of the system, but I desperately need better bass. Thank you. Tesla Model S has a ported 8-inch that blows away the Lucid

Both are still active. Basically I'm just using the 10" to fill in the energy in the bottom end that is missing from the other low drivers - which provide pretty good definition in the higher bass range.

I'm not with the car now and I'm not sure I should hijack this guy's great thread with my DIY sub install but can perhaps post pics in a different thread when I get back home...

 

[SaaSManKS]

Fantastic overview! I’ve debated going down this road (specifically with focal as well) I used to be huge into car stereos, my apprehension is two fold: A: modifying a $100k car could go either way depending on the buyer, and B: once you open this can, it’s hard to stop, there’s always something you can enhance or upgrade it just never stops! and I’m not sure I’ll be able to contain myself! But I’ve thought about this a lot and regardless what side you’re on, there’s a whole section of low end audio that has been left out/tuned out of this system and I’m trying to decide if I’m gonna chase it!

 

[off]

It honestly might be worth reading Dale Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People" - it's a classic, and is very interesting.

Haha required reading in the business programme I went too, but indeed a short, but very useful read, "Don’t criticize, condemn or complain."

 

[darrenwyatt]

Like the original post here, I too embarked on the same journey with Sound Innovations and opted for the entire front stage replacement with Focal speakers, including the front footwells and rear deck replacements with 8" Focal Woofers. All I can say is WOW. What a dramatic impact this made to the staging and low end output.

I have had many high end audio systems in the past (factory optioned) such as Bang and Olufsen, B & W etc and I can say unequivocally this upgraded system blows them all away.

I actually would have been happy just matching the last B&O system I had, however this system comfortably outperforms it in vocal clarity and low end bass . While I contemplated a sub woofer, I felt that I wanted to keep things stock and actually prefer clean bass anyway, rather than heavy bass that some subwoofers provide.

The drivers were matched with Mosconi Class D amplifiers and provide more than enough power to drive these incredible speakers. I cannot compliment the Sound Innovations team enough. They took their time on every little detail, even fabricating mounting brackets no-one will ever see and etching LUCID into them. Attention to detail that is very rare these days.

So whats next....

Well, I am so happy with the front staging I think I will save up for phase 2 and do the same treatment on the rear staging to complete the build.

 

[DreamTour]

Hi All, Never got around to posting what the midbass upgrade process looks like. I would just say it's not for the faint of heart - better know what you are doing!. I will let the pictures speak for themselves.

This is the level of disassembly the dash needs to get to in order to access the mid-bass drivers.

Also the drivers themselves mount into a fairly complex adapter. Fitting aftermarket components is not straightforward. Below is the stock adapter into the frame.

So because the aftermarket components don't fit into the stock adapter, a scan was required and a 3d printed custom adapter was needed.

Custom 3d printed adapter with new mid-bass drivers compared to the stock adapter. Modifications were required to fit the deeper basket of the aftermarket components as you can see.

Final installation positions with sound treatment applied.

 

[Bunnylebowski]

Needless to say that is a massive project, and very impressive work. It’s kind of neat to see this spaceship disassembled, and I’m sure the Focals sound phenomenal. I can’t help but be concerned though, as in my discussion with a lucid engineer, there are very few things in the car that are off the shelf parts and certain things like clips are single use, and you’re risking all sorts of malfunctions (IE curtain airbags not deploying) by a disassembly/reassembly not supervised by a Lucid trained technician. Like if I was Lucid I’d say “wow, your sound system is going be absolutely incredible, and also your warranty is now void”.

 

[borski]

Like the original post here, I too embarked on the same journey with Sound Innovations and opted for the entire front stage replacement with Focal speakers, including the front footwells and rear deck replacements with 8" Focal Woofers. All I can say is WOW. What a dramatic impact this made to the staging and low end output.

I have had many high end audio systems in the past (factory optioned) such as Bang and Olufsen, B & W etc and I can say unequivocally this upgraded system blows them all away.

I actually would have been happy just matching the last B&O system I had, however this system comfortably outperforms it in vocal clarity and low end bass . While I contemplated a sub woofer, I felt that I wanted to keep things stock and actually prefer clean bass anyway, rather than heavy bass that some subwoofers provide.

The drivers were matched with Mosconi Class D amplifiers and provide more than enough power to drive these incredible speakers. I cannot compliment the Sound Innovations team enough. They took their time on every little detail, even fabricating mounting brackets no-one will ever see and etching LUCID into them. Attention to detail that is very rare these days.

So whats next....

Well, I am so happy with the front staging I think I will save up for phase 2 and do the same treatment on the rear staging to complete the build.

1) can I listen to your car at some point? I’m in Cupertino; SI did my radar/laser install.

2) how much did this run you?

 

[darrenwyatt]

Sure, I am located further south of you but will PM you with details for a catchup at some point.

 

[darrenwyatt]

Since I was so happy with what had been accomplished with the front staging, I took the plunge and completed the install with all remaining speakers. Sound Innovations somehow managed to take it to another level again. Replacing all remaining speakers in the rear, side doors and rear deck with Focal Utopias and the pièce de résistance, the 4 ATMOS speakers with wideband BRAX GL2 Midrange speakers. Driven with an extra Mosconi amplifier, for a total of 3.

The system is now complete with about 1800 watts of power and has been recalibrated to a higher maximum volume, now we have control of all speakers. It's actually quite hard to explain how good this system really sounds without hearing it. One thing that is very obvious to me is the clarity of the ATMOS tracks and the harmonies on certain tracks, which , while good before, are now truly exceptional. A good example is Dianna Ross in "Coming Out".

I have to commend Sound Innovations for what they have done here, the calibration of the system alone must have taken days to perfect. They showed me a picture running the software on 3 laptops simultaneously so they could balance everything perfectly in real time across all amplifiers.

If anyone is coming to car week in Monterey this and wants to hear it I will be around all week. Just PM me and we can meet up for a quick demo.