[robstraub]

Help! I have my 2020 Escape Titanium apart to get at the stero in the dash, but I can't find the colors of the wires I need to tap into for providing a line level signal to the line output converter. Can anyone help?

 

[robstraub]

So I gave up trying to figure out which wires to splice into at the head-unit. I then spliced into the front right and front left outputs from the B&O digtal processor back by the factory sub. Got everything together, but it kinda sounds crappy. Kinda sounds hollow, no thump. I'm wondering if Active Noise Cancelation is fouling it up? Any ideas?

Has anybody successfully added and extra amp and sub to a 2020 titanium with the 10 speaker B&O system? If so, whats the secret?

 

[jpohlman]

It's active noise control, not active noise cancellation and they're not the same as the purpose is to tone out the uniques noises of the Hybrid powertrain.
To get a line level output you'll need to change the ACM config using ForScan.

 

[robstraub]

So, I need to use ForScan to change the ACM to get line level outputs? It that out of the head-unit? What color wires? Any other tips?

 

[NeighborRob]

What do you want to install? A sub box? If polarity on speakers gets reversed the sound will cancel itself out (most noticeably on bass frequencies). I ran the sub wires directly from the factory sub to my amp as it has high level inputs (which it also uses to turn itself on without a remote wire). I have a ported box with 2 12's. The bass is a lot stronger than the factory sub. Only gripe is the box is tuned fairly low, it's a little out of proportion like that.

 

[robstraub]

Thank you. I tried that wiring set-up first, but the factory sub output was so high, that even with my amp gains on min, it was too loud relative to the rest of the system. Thats why I switched to the rf and lf outputs. Did you have that experience too?

 

[robstraub]

Does anyone know, do the front speaker outputs from the DSP have full frequency range? If not, do the rears?

 

[NeighborRob]

I tried the stereo with no sub attached and it sounds pretty pathetic, so I would assume the door speakers are not full range. They sell line output to low level converters for less than $10 at Bestbuy.

 

[NeighborRob]

Here are some harness kits if you want to go that route.

Search: 7 results found for "Ford Escape 2020"

Plug and play remote start starters and automotive accessories

plugnplaykits.com

Ford Radio Base Harness Connector 2018-2025

Our Ford Elite 2018-2025 audio harness for newer Ford radio Sync3 & up is designed to work with a variety of Ford vehicles from an F150,250, Mustang, Explorer, etc. It comes available in both style, T-Harness and a Loopback Harness. If you are planning on adding a sub to your Ford we offer our...

lljcustoms.com

 

[charris5923]

Low level outputs from Ford head units are balanced differential signals, not unbalanced single ended. If you’re not familiar with these engineering terms, what this means is there is not a ground return through a shield on a coaxial cable that’s common to the chassis of the car. There should be a two wire pair with a separate shield for each channel, and both wires share signal independent from chassis ground. If you ground one of those wires, you will cause significant distortion of the signal running to the amplifier, which can also cause damage to the head unit, depending on its design. If you are using a conventional aftermarket amplifier, the differential signal pair needs to be converted to an unbalanced single ended coaxial signal which allows the return to be grounded to the shield. There are processing units available that do this, but most are fairly expensive. The other way to do it is to ensure the aftermarket amplifier accepts a true differential input.

 

[DDS-029]

Just for my own future knowledge.

Is this the type of thing that going to Crutchfield may have prevented?

 

[charris5923]

Just for my own future knowledge.

Is this the type of thing that going to Crutchfield may have prevented?

No, because the only products Crutchfield carries are speaker level or unbalance coaxial line input converters. None of those products convert a low level differential input to a low level single ended unbalanced input.
What you need is a pro audio product like a ART CLEANBox Pro Dual Channel Level Converter or equivalent. This will convert a true differential signal via the XLR inputs and convert it to a unbalanced, coaxial output. You will need to make up a two conductor shielded cable with XLR connectors for each channel and a 12 V power cable with a barrel connector to provide power to the ART clean box.
This line converter is available from Amazon and Sweetwater - but just need to say, I have never used one before but going by its specifications it should do the job. You can of course call Sweetwater and verify or get a copy of the manual and check it out yourself.