2015 ELantra SE - Stock Stereo(non Blue Tooth)- Polarity Issue:
Posted here because nobody in the Hyundai Forums seems to know what I'm talking about:
After several months of driving this vehicle, I noticed that sound from the stereo seemed kind of thin and vague, and placement of stereo effects was hard to hear. So I loaded a test CD, and played some "in-phase"-"out-of-phase" test tones. I made wavs of those same test tones, and played them through the Aux Input in the dash. Same results. The "out-of-phase" portions sounded centered and solid, while the in-phase sounded tinny and diffused.
BUT: Sound from monaural sources on the AM/FM tuner sound solidly from the center.
Conclusion: This polarity issue affects only external sources: CDs and line-input sources(phones, mp3 players).
What can be done other than simply having the head unit replaced? And - would a service rep even know what I'm talking about, and what to listen for? I'm in the audio business, so I know phase/polarity issues when I hear them.