You want to listen to the stereo while driving, but there’s a fact that the road and wind noises while speeding up bother your enjoyment.
Don’t worry. The speed compensated volume is a great feature accompanied by the sophisticated sound system in your car that will help you deal with the problem.
But what is speed compensated volume exactly?
The feature creates convenience and safety while sitting behind the steering wheel as you don’t need to pay attention to the difference in volume level.
It’s automatically adjusted based on your pace changes.
What is speed sensitive volume? If you ponder, you’ve come to the right place, as the article has all the explanation you need. Let’s dig into it!
What Is Speed Compensated Volume Feature?
Speed compensated volume is a car feature that turns the stereo loudness up and down based on your driving pace.
It means when your car runs at ultra-fast speed with more engine, wind, and road noise, the amplification of your stereo is automatically adjusted louder so you still can hear it.
What Does Speed Compensated Volume Mean?
What is speed volume compensation? When you press the throttle, there can be more road and wind noise; the feature amplifies the sound system louder, so you can hear.
One of the great audio technologies is the speed sensitive volume. Again, the noise accompanied by the fast pace of your car leads to difficulty in hearing without the speed adjusted volume.
It can eliminate the background noise and provide a clear audio quality. The setting of the feature is simple and easy to use. Find in your manual if your car features this control function.
How Does It Work?
The speed sensitive volume control can sense the ambient noise from the road, wind, engine, etc.
Then, it monitors the level of the sound system to compensate for the unwanted noise. Therefore, it allows you to hear the stereo clearly.
If your car has this feature, you may see the indicated button on the audio system’s menu. When the feature is on, the audio, bass, and treble levels are automatically adjusted when you change the pace.
It’s an amazing feature as you don’t need to adjust by yourself but focus on your driving only.
It doesn’t matter if you travel fast or slow, the loudness is kept consistent, creating convenience and relaxation while operating your vehicle.
The Difference Between Speed Compensated Volume And Automatic Sound Leveling
Both of them are features of the sound system. The speed volume is controlled according to your acceleration or deceleration.
Meanwhile, with Automatic sound leveling, you can hear road noises when you reach 20 miles per hour.
How To Adjust The Speed Compensated Volume?
The setting is simple and easy, including five steps: turn on the dashboard display control, select the setting, select sound, find the speed compensated volume, choose among none (off), low, medium, and high options to enable or disable the vehicle system.
5 Steps
What does speed sensitive volume mean? Now you have the answer to this question. Let’s keep reading the detailed instructions on how to use the feature.
Though the process may not be the same on different vehicle models and depends on the type of the stereo system, according to the most popular vehicle manufacturers, the general five steps are similar.
Step 1. Turn on the dashboard screen. Wait for a while until it’s fully displayed.
Step 2. Click on the menu bar. It’s usually on the second row.
Step 3. Choose Audio/ Sound. The button is usually under the app option or on the left-second slide if your car is a Ford truck.
Step 4. After choosing the sound bar, you’ll see these options: rest all, treble, midrange, bass, balance/ fade, SCV, occupancy mode, and sound setting. Next, select the SCV.
A list will be shown on the screen: none (to turn off the mode), low (to lower the sound), medium, and high (to increase the sound).
If you want to activate the control function, choose Low, Medium, or High. The higher level, the more stereo will compensate.
Remember, be patient to wait for all the options to appear and press to choose carefully because anything you do wrong with the control area network can cause error mode, and you will not be able to use it.
Step 5. Adjust the speed compensated volume 1-7 to select your desired level. Use the “mute” button (if there’s any) to adjust to reach the optimum listening level.
After deciding which level fits your need, press the volume setting button for five seconds for the final selection. Now, you’re good to go and enjoy the sound system.
Note: it’s possible to select the options by tapping on the touchscreen or using the up and down buttons on your steering wheel.
How To Turn Off The Speed Sensitive Control Volume?
You can turn off this detecting sound system with some simple steps. However, make sure your car has this advanced function by checking in the owner’s manual or confirming with the dealership.
Once you know the system is there, follow the guide above until step 4. When the four options display, choose “off” to deactivate it.
From this moment, the mode is off, and you need to adjust the sound manually when driving to compensate for the road, wind, and other unwanted noises, such as thumping noise while driving.
What To Do If You Can’t Adjust?
Sometimes, the feature is available in your vehicle model (the brands vehicles such as Escape, Edge, Fusion, and F150), but you can’t use it or it goes off by itself.
In this case, you may follow the above instruction to turn it on again. If it still doesn’t work, take some minutes to keep reading our simple and effective suggestions.
The reasons for an unfunctional volume speed control include ACM (Audio Control Module), bad module, and too fast choosing the ok option on the truck control system.
To deal with the problem for the first two reasons, check your ACM and your modules to see what is malfunctioning, repair the function or do a module reprogramming function if needed.
If you face the error, but it’s not because of the vehicle modules, pay attention while you do the audio setting steps.
The four options (Off, Low, Medium, and High) will take some time to be displayed fully on the screen, so patiently wait for a while before you select and hit the Ok button.
In addition, have a look at your vehicle catalog to understand the possible error that happens during the enabling and disabling process.
If you still can not solve the error, bring your car to the repair shop for vehicle diagnosis, which may require complicated vehicle repairs.
Pros And Cons Of The Speed Volume Compensation?
The feature may not be available in the ancient control system of the vehicle but exists in many modern cars.
The automatic default setting is in use without the drivers’ acknowledgment. It is a critical design function that has both advantages and disadvantages.
Pros
The most obvious benefit of the speed compensated volume is it lets you free from adjusting the stereo after one set.
First, it allows you to choose a specific loudness level, which will then raise up or down depending on the car’s pace.
For example, if you normally drive at 50 mph (miles per hour) and use the function, the radio will play at the normal amplification.
When you press the pedal to 60 mph, the volume is changed to higher to compensate for the detected surrounding noise.
It’s actually a way of providing drivers safety while driving.
There’s no need for the drivers to be distracted by tricky vehicle issues and monitor the loudness of the music or audio as it changes by itself. It’s louder while you accelerate and quieter when you decelerate.
Cons
Though the purpose of this feature is safety and convenience, some drivers may not feel satisfied and consider it an annoying function.
Some people prefer loud music over ambient noises, and the level of amplification after automatically raising can’t meet their requirements.
Thus, they still adjust it by themselves, causing a distraction while driving. Even sometimes they turn up the music more than they need, which is not safe and against the primary purpose of the feature.
FAQs
What Does SSV Mean?
SSV is the abbreviation of speed-sensitive volume. It means the amplification of the sound system will change based on the difference in speed.
When you accelerate, there will be more ambient noises, including the humming noise while accelerating if your car has some problems.
Thus, the amplification is higher. When you slow down, it gets lower. All is automatic.
What Is Nissan Speed Sensitive Volume?
It’s the feature that increases the music when you drive your Nissan at a fast pace.
The speed sensitive volume Nissan is activated; it can detect your acceleration and background noise, then adjust the Juke’s radio.
The sound increases and decreases based on the driving pace. If you select level 0, the sound will not turn up, while choosing level 5 means it will increase significantly.
How To Understand Speed Dependent Volume Increase?
The speed-dependent volume adjustment allows you to hear the stereo clearly at any pace.
The system is connected with the CAN data bus or receives the speedometer signal. Thus, controlling the sound.
Final Thoughts
What is speed compensated volume? Now you see how amazing it is. Find in your manual book to see if you have this feature in your car. Maybe, you’ve been using it for a long time but just don’t notice.
If you can’t find any information, call your dealership service department, and they’ll answer you. If they have no idea about the feature, it’s likely that your vehicle model doesn’t obtain one.
Remember this feature to consider when purchasing a car next time, as it will bring you lots of conveniences.