[avocado876]

My apologies if any of these have been asked and answered! Here goes - all questions related to ANC (I have a 2019 Touring, if that matters):

1. Lots of talk in these forums about disabling ANC. My question is, why do people disable it? Does ANC mess with the quality of the audio system (or cause other audio-related issues which people don't like)? Are there other adverse effects which make disabling it advantageous? For people who have disabled it, is cabin noise very noticeably louder?
2. I've heard stories of people disabling ANC but also accidentally disabling other sound-related stuff (the stereo; Siri or similar "assistants"; etc.). Is there a particular method of disabling ANC which avoids these pitfalls?
3. Can someone shed light on what actually happens with ANC when in "Sport" mode? The engine noise gets louder, almost as if it's being amplified (!!!), and this seems related to ANC based on what I've read. But I've read two conflicting things: a) that ANC cuts out when in Sport mode (or at least, when hard-accelerating); or b) that the sound system actually adds "powerful-engine sounds" to the mix (via the ANC system or some other way). ADDING real or pretend engine sounds like this may be one of the stupidest ideas I've ever heard of, which tells me I must be missing something. (Or not.)

Thanks!

 

[insightfully]

1. Lots of talk in these forums about disabling ANC. My question is, why do people disable it? Does ANC mess with the quality of the audio system (or cause other audio-related issues which people don't like)? Are there other adverse effects which make disabling it advantageous? For people who have disabled it, is cabin noise very noticeably louder?

So far, most people who have disabled ANC do so after upgrading the stereo or trying to improve the Touring "premium audio" quality. As @INSIGHT_OUTTASIGHT put it after EX stereo upgrade, "the Active Noise Cancellation system detects the subwoofer notes and thinks it's road noise and then puts out an opposing sound wave in an attempt to cancel it out and it sounds atrocious."

2. I've heard stories of people disabling ANC but also accidentally disabling other sound-related stuff (the stereo; Siri or similar "assistants"; etc.). Is there a particular method of disabling ANC which avoids these pitfalls?

The ANC module itself is located above/behind the glove box compartment. @romeoog shared a brief video on how to access the ANC area. It's standalone and can be unplugged from wiring harness.

3. Can someone shed light on what actually happens with ANC when in "Sport" mode? The engine noise gets louder, almost as if it's being amplified (!!!), and this seems related to ANC based on what I've read. But I've read two conflicting things: a) that ANC cuts out when in Sport mode (or at least, when hard-accelerating); or b) that the sound system actually adds "powerful-engine sounds" to the mix (via the ANC system or some other way). ADDING real or pretend engine sounds like this may be one of the stupidest ideas I've ever heard of, which tells me I must be missing something. (Or not.)

Below is how Honda describes Active Noise Cancellation (and Active Sound Control) in the 2019 Insight Press Kit. (No info on ANC nor ASC in the Owners Manual.) In theory, it's Active Sound Control that is 'enhancing' the engine sound with a more aggressive note/tone while in Sport mode:

Key contributors to Insight's quiet, refined interior are Active Noise Control (ANC) and Active Sound Control (ASC). The two systems are comprised of dual overhead microphones, an ANC/ASC electronic processor, and the audio system's speakers. ASC/ANC operates whenever Insight is running, even if the audio system is turned off.

ANC is designed to reduce low frequency sound in the cabin caused mainly by the roughness of the road surface. The overhead microphones pick up sound waves and send them to the ANC/ASC processor, which then creates and sends a precisely timed "reverse phase" audio signal to a special amplifier. In turn, the amplifier drives the speakers to cancel the original noise signal.

ASC is a related technology designed to improve the engine sound quality by making the sound pressure level more linear as the engine revs increase. Typically, engine noise doesn't increase in a linear way with rising revs; instead there can be many resonances that create peaks and valleys in the sound pressure level and an uneven sound. From idle to redline, ASC helps smooth out the engine sound by reforming the sound signal as needed and sending it to the speakers. In SPORT mode, ASC provides Insight with a more dynamic engine sound profile.

 

[avocado876]

In SPORT mode, ASC provides Insight with a more dynamic engine sound profile.

Thanks very much for all of this. Touring ofc comes with a subwoofer; wondering if my (OEM) stereo might sound better without ANC; it's never sounded great, but i've always assumed it's just not a great stereo; probably isn't... The bit i quoted (your quote from the manual) sounds suspiciously like "making the engine sound cooler in an attempt to enhance the Sport experience with more noise"... Too bad there's no way to disable that. Anyway, thanks again!

 

[Verdier]

Thanks very much for all of this. Touring ofc comes with a subwoofer; wondering if my (OEM) stereo might sound better without ANC; it's never sounded great, but i've always assumed it's just not a great stereo; probably isn't... The bit i quoted (your quote from the manual) sounds suspiciously like "making the engine sound cooler in an attempt to enhance the Sport experience with more noise"... Too bad there's no way to disable that. Anyway, thanks again!

Probably the biggest problem with the Touring's sound system is the equalization curves Honda (Pioneer) employ in the system. It leads to over aggressive highs and a tiny 3.5" center blasting 75% of the sound of music. The only real way to fix this is to either use your phone as the sound source and run programs in it to change some of the equalization curves, or better yet, get a DSP installed in the car so you can tune the frequencies to something more palatable.

 

[avocado876]

Probably the biggest problem with the Touring's sound system is the equalization curves Honda (Pioneer) employ in the system. It leads to over aggressive highs and a tiny 3.5" center blasting 75% of the sound of music. The only real way to fix this is to either use your phone as the sound source and run programs in it to change some of the equalization curves, or better yet, get a DSP installed in the car so you can tune the frequencies to something more palatable.

Yes, it's a shame, that brashness in the midrange (or that's what it sounds like to me anyway) - and I wonder, even, if adjusting EQ curves (if that were possible from within the sound system as opposed to a phone or other input) would fix things? Maybe it would - have you tried that? You'd still be stuck with what I imagine are pretty average speakers and no matter how you slice it, that 3.5" is still left doing a lot of the work, right? (I'm not an expert on this stuff though, so maybe I'm missing something.)

 

[Verdier]

Yes, it's a shame, that brashness in the midrange (or that's what it sounds like to me anyway) - and I wonder, even, if adjusting EQ curves (if that were possible from within the sound system as opposed to a phone or other input) would fix things? Maybe it would - have you tried that? You'd still be stuck with what I imagine are pretty average speakers and no matter how you slice it, that 3.5" is still left doing a lot of the work, right? (I'm not an expert on this stuff though, so maybe I'm missing something.)

Yes I have done a huge amount on my stereo. If you check out my YouTube channel there is a section devoted to it. The only thing that actually worked well for me was installing a DSP to have the system re tuned. In the end I did an entire system make over and it sounds fantastic now.