- Fixing the faulty subwoofer requires replugging four wires in the trunk.
- Owners say the simple solution makes a big difference in sound quality.
- A similar issue was experienced by Hyundai Tiburon owners 20 years ago.
Do you own a Kia EV6 with the optional Meridian sound system? Well, if you do, it’s possible that your EV’s subwoofer may be out of phase and isn’t providing the kind of thumping bass that it should. However, thanks to one Reddit user, a simple fix has been discovered, and it’s easy enough for anyone to do.
The Redditor who discovered how to rectify the wonky subwoofer says he used to be a member of the Hyundai Tiburon forums. Roughly 20 years ago, members of those forums discovered that the stock subwoofer’s sound could be improved by reversing the positive and negative terminals. He decided to do the same with the Meridian sub on his EV6 and found that it worked, significantly improving bass and overall sound quality.
Read: Kia’s EV Sales Collapse As Shocking Drop Hits Key Models
To make the fix, owners first need to open up the trunk where the subwoofer is stored. They then need to remove a piece of rear trim to gain access to a plug running into the sub. Once they do so, all owners need to do is grab a tiny screwdriver and pull out each of the four wires, ordinarily arranged red, black, red, black from top-to-bottom, and then plug them back in, but now ordered black, red, black, red.
Shortly after the Reddit post gained traction, YouTuber Technically Jeff posted a clip of him performing the same fix, and he found it made a huge difference. Dozens of EV6 owners have jumped into the comments section to confirm that the fix transforms the subwoofer’s performance, making the listening experience much richer.
Speaking with The Drive, two audio experts said the issue is related to the EV’s sound cancellation system. According to them, the sound of the subwoofer is being cancelled out by equal and opposite frequencies of other speakers found throughout the cabin.
It’s not yet clear if the same issue is present on other Kia, Genesis, and/or Hyundai models with Meridian sound systems, but if you own one, it may be wise to take a look at the subwoofer to see if it, too, has been wired incorrectly.
