2025 Ford F150 Platinum Plus B&O Unleashed (the leash broke again) - System Upgrade - The Sequel

Yep... I remember a couple of systems ago I said that was it. But then I broke the promise to myself and upgraded my 2023 F150. While I did skip upgrading my 2024 Ram Limited, here comes the 2025 F150... the sequel to the 2023. Just one more time... just one more time... just one more time... this is it, the final chapter of car stereo system upgrades.

I've got all the goods ordered. I went back to Jon at All Things Aquatic for the bulk of what I need. I already have all the acoustic treatment material from ResoNix. I've ordered some door panels from SoundSkinz for additional treatment, as I liked those I used on my previous F150. The sub box for under the rear seat is coming from MTI Acoustics. I've used one of their boxes in the past. I was not all that crazy about it, but I think it had more to do with the wrong drivers. It was okay, but I always felt the JL Audio Stealthbox was better. This time around, I'll try the Hertz MPS 300 S2 Mille Pro Series 12" shallow-mount 2-ohm drivers in the MTI Stage 1 box and hope for the best.

This is a before and after pic of my Carbonized Gray 2025 Platinum Plus. Second pic is after removing rear blocks to lower the rear some (too much rake)... and OCD Tinting and Wraps wrapped it in the Xpel Stealth Matte PPF, as well as tinted the windows with the Xpel XR Plus ceramic tint.



I have all the acoustic treatment, so I'll be starting on that part of the install soon.

I'm a huge miniDSP/Dirac Live fan, but this time around, I'm going a different route. I'll be using the Audison Forza AF M12.14 bit DSP amplifier. This will power the three dash speakers, the front and rear door speakers, and handle the DSP duties. 160 watts to each front door speaker and 60 watts to each of the other speakers. I don't plan to use the tweeters or the overhead speakers. The rear door factory speakers will be used for rear fill. The M12.14 includes the bit Drive 3.0 software with the Accordo 2.0 program similar to what Dirac Live does. It will no doubt be interesting how it compares. The one extra feature this system will have is the ability to create a center channel, thus, no more tuning for only one seat... both front drivers enjoy a tuned front stage. We'll see how it turns out.

Audison Forza AF M12.14 bit DSP Amp


The Audison Forza AF M1D Amp will be a companion amp to the M12.14 to provide 1200 watts to the Hertz subs. This will be connected using the Audison link cable.



The Audison DRC AC will allow adjustment of master volume, subwoofer level, and DSP presets.



The PAC AP4 FD32 will pass off the factory system to the M12.14... connected via digital optical cable. No RCA cables in this install.



The Blam MEDIUM S 3.55 wideband mids with a frequency response of 200Hz to 27kHz will be mounted across the front dash. These are the same as what I used in my 2023.



For the front doors, the Helix Ci5 S200FM - 8" Shallow Midbass drivers will be installed using a custom 3D designed adapter (by Jon at ATA). I'm eager to see how these work on the front doors, although from what few I've learned were using them, they performed very well.




I'll include more photos and details after I get started in a few weeks.

The dash brackets allow me to know exactly what to trim in the dash. Remove the dash speakers, attach the brackets and trim the factory dash with my Dremel.

Like a kid at Christmas!




Got the front of the amp board finished... mounting the PAC on the back.



Ferrules... great accessory to have handy for all this wiring.

I ended up changing up the distribution in the back with the amps. This was some kind of tight fit here. I would probably have been better off using the full amp board across the back and mounting the amps a little lower on the right side instead of trying to cram it all in on the left side like below, but it all worked out in the end.



John at All Things Aquatic designed and printed this adapter that installs in place of the pro trailer knob, which I never use.



Here are some of the doors with the CLD, Guardian, SoundSkin, and block-off plates. I also put more of the sound absorption material in the back of the door panel where possible... as well as applied CLD to the rear and stuffed holes except for the vented area in the back (didn't want to mess up my AC and cabin pressure).



Blam dash speakers mounted - left side and center. Drop in except the center grill had to be removed from the speaker for the center cover to go back on... and on the right dash I had to remove part of the heat duct and reseal it. Maybe could have heated it and shaped it, but I was too worried about the heat melting some of the dash accidentally. I was able to control the Dremel tool much more easily.



Sub box. Secured with screws thru the back of the seat brackets on each side and the middle.

I'll share more about the bit Drive software with Accordo and how it compares to the miniDSP and Dirac Live a bit later when I have time to write it up appropriately.

Audison Accordo: Real World Evaluation and Limitations

After numerous attempts, I was unable to achieve satisfactory results using Accordo in my system. As a result, I have ordered my fifth miniDSP C-DSP 8x12 DL to replace it. I guess you could say I'm spoiled, and maybe even biased. I tried not to be, I think.

In my opinion, Accordo is not ready for prime time in a more complex, higher-resolution system. While it improves on the factory configuration, it did not perform well in my setup and produced inconsistent, unpredictable results.

All measurement files are referenced in the link below... including REW mdat files and bit Drive configuration files. They have been uploaded for anyone who wishes to review the data directly:


Accordo differs fundamentally from Dirac Live in its measurement and correction approach. Accordo uses a single microphone position for measurement, and processing resolution appears relatively low, especially compared to processors with Dirac Live. I guess that this is why it only takes one measurement, with the microphone remaining fixed throughout the entire process. This approach places significant weight on the raw response at that one location, with no spatial averaging or multi-mic position validation. Not that I assume this is always required, but it's likely preferred by most professionals who tune car audio for a living... I do not (tune for a living). I do prefer measuring multiple locations around the head.

I'll share some examples with you, but not all, since it was relatively uneventful.

Initially, I entered the speaker distances, did not level-match the speakers, did not apply any manual PEQ filters, and let Accordo perform all processing. The results were poor... imaging was off, speaker levels were inconsistent, and the overall presentation sounded flat and unfocused. At that point, it appeared Accordo was performing level matching based on raw response amplitude, allowing response peaks to skew the level settings.

To eliminate obvious variables, I restarted the process and manually measured and entered the mic-to-speaker distances, and reduced major peaks using 1-3 PEQ filters per front dash and door speaker. I applied no filters to the rear speakers or subs (not needed), and manually level-matched all channels before running Accordo again. This was a controlled, minimal intervention intended to give Accordo a clean baseline to work with, similar to what many of us have done with the miniDSP and Dirac Live.

Only three PEQ filters were required to remove dominant peaks in the left front dash speaker.


Accordo’s processing afterward did not smooth the response and introduced additional irregularities, particularly above ~10 kHz.


Only two PEQ filters were used for the right front dash. Accordo again degraded the corrected response rather than improving it. Don't confuse the responses here... red is the Accordo result.


After Accordo processing, the left and right dash speakers were not frequency-matched within a reasonable tolerance. This alone guarantees compromised imaging.


The mismatch was clearly visible in the combined L/R measurements. When the left and right speakers differ by more than a few dB across a wide frequency range, stable center imaging is not achievable... regardless of delay settings.


You can download the .mdat file and compare the before-and-after for each speaker, or any combination thereof.

The subwoofer response remained unchanged, as expected, since Accordo does not apply EQ to the sub channel. Ironically, the subwoofer was the only channel that Accordo did not negatively affect, although it did not require correction in the first place.

Rear door speakers, which required no correction initially, were nonetheless altered... and not for the better. Again... check out the mdat file and you can see it.

Accordo was run multiple times, producing different results each time, despite no meaningful changes to setup or measurements. At one point, center imaging seemed acceptable, but mid-bass was severely lacking, and sub-bass integration was off. The variability was disappointing. Results should be repeatable when inputs remain constant. Instead, outcomes were unpredictable... a “box of chocolates” experience.

To be clear: Accordo is not terrible. It's just "almost" terrible. Admittedly, it is an improvement over the factory system, if that is any consolation. Yet much of that improvement comes from the addition of subwoofers, which sounded pretty good, short of what appeared to be a brick-wall filter at about 27Hz, which was not to be overcome. I'm curious whether that is present with the miniDSP, as I did not experience it in my previous 2023 Platinum with similar dual-sub placement. Bass also does not localize forward as effectively as it does with Dirac Live. Furthermore, imaging is smeared across the front stage. Bottom line... the system never achieved the coherence or focus I am accustomed to with Dirac-based processing.

Yes, this is an unequal comparison. The miniDSP C-DSP 8x12 DL is significantly more expensive, has been on the market longer, and Dirac Live is far more mature and sophisticated. Bananas to grapefruits, if you will. That said, expectations should scale with claims. Accordo positions itself as an automated solution, yet it requires substantial manual intervention and still fails to deliver consistent, predictable results, or at least it did for me. Maybe I got a bum DSP in my 12.14 Forza... or perhaps I just completely botched it somehow... dunno. Either way, the miniDSP is on the way!

I attempted to contact Audison through their website to discuss setup instructions for the center channel (I haven't found any), but they never responded. I thought that if they responded, I'd discuss these shortcomings with them, but I never heard back. Perhaps they are on an extended holiday break, although they did ship a replacement cable for the DRC-AC to John at ATA after I submitted my support request. They were responsive to him, so someone was around.

Accordo may improve over time, and it may be suitable for simpler systems or users with modest expectations. In my setup, however, results were inconsistent, channel matching was poor, imaging and integration fell short, and manual tuning was still required... and ongoing. For these reasons, I cannot recommend Accordo at this time.