Are you looking to add a subwoofer or upgrade the car audio in your vehicle but have been told your vehicle has ANC (Active Noise Cancellation) and it needs to be disabled?
Here we describe what ANC is, how it works, and why you need to bypass it (disable it) when adding aftermarket car audio to your vehicle.
Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) microphones in a car listen to ambient low-frequency sounds—like road rumble, exhaust, and engine drone. A digital signal processor then instantly generates an inverted "anti-noise" audio signal, playing it through the car’s speakers to create a quieter cabin.
Unlike standard microphones used for phone calls, ANC microphones are specifically tuned to monitor the acoustics of your vehicle's cabin. See the image at the top of this page for an idea of where the microphones are placed.
Important Considerations for Upgrades
If you are planning to upgrade your car’s stereo system, replace the factory speakers, or add an aftermarket subwoofer, ANC presents a major hurdle.
Audio Feedback: Because ANC uses your car’s factory speakers to cancel noise, aftermarket equipment can confuse the system.
The "Boom" Effect: Changing the speakers or adding bass can cause the ANC microphones to pick up the new sounds and amplify them. This creates a bizarre, pulsing "whooping" or loud humming bass feedback, especially when accelerating.
The Fix: When we (Lockdown Security) are evaluating your vehicle for your car audio upgrade, we will advise whether or not your vehicle is equipped with an ANC system and then proceed with a plan to disable it, whether that be through physical disconnection of all microphones or via programming the feature off via our vehicle scan tool or advising you to bring your vehicle to your vehicle brand dealership. Please note that an ANC system CANNOT be retained, disabling it is mandatory when upgrading the car audio system in your vehicle (if equipped).
