I don’t believe that your screen doesn’t buzz

[Mirak]

And yet, for all the quibbles with testing methodology, here we are 9 pages deep and still nobody has produced a video without screen buzz.

The naysayers are going around in circles. We’ve heard it all before, repeatedly.

1. “The testing isn’t precise enough.” No, it’s fine for these purposes, which is simply to determine whether some screens don’t emit a buzz.

2. “The testing doesn’t depict what your ears hear.” See above.

3. “Somebody could just cover their mic.” Sure, they could be a jerk. I’m not publishing this study for peer review. It’s a casual message board inquiry - not a scientific study.

4. “Put your phone close enough to any screen and of course it will pick up a buzz.” Nope, our videos specifically include taking the cam directly up to the infotainment screen, and nothing. A well-designed screen does not emit this buzz.

5. “My screen doesn’t buzz if I don’t hear it.” And if a tree falls in the forest…. That’s very zen of you. But no, your screen either buzzes or not. Whether you can hear it is irrelevant. Some of us can hear the buzz, so we want to know if this is truly a “normal operating characteristic” as Ford says.

So many excuses and deflections, and yet not a single silent video. If you don’t want to share a video, you don’t have to participate in this thread.

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[JamieGeek]

And yet, for all the quibbles with testing methodology, here we are 9 pages deep and still nobody has produced a video without screen buzz.

The naysayers are going around in circles. We’ve heard it all before, repeatedly.

1. “The testing isn’t precise enough.” No, it’s fine for these purposes, which is simply to determine whether some screens don’t emit a buzz.

2. “The testing doesn’t depict what your ears hear.” See above.

3. “Somebody could just cover their mic.” Sure, they could be a jerk. I’m not publishing this study for peer review. It’s a casual message board inquiry - not a scientific study.

4. “Put your phone close enough to any screen and of course it will pick up a buzz.” Nope, our videos specifically include taking the cam directly up to the infotainment screen, and nothing. A well-designed screen does not emit this buzz.

5. “My screen doesn’t buzz if I don’t hear it.” And if a tree falls in the forest…. That’s very zen of you. But no, your screen either buzzes or not. Whether you can hear it is irrelevant. Some of us can hear the buzz, so we want to know if this is truly a “normal operating characteristic” as Ford says.

So many excuses and deflections, and yet not a single silent video. If you don’t want to share a video, you don’t have to participate in this thread.

If you aren't interested in a level playing field then sure.....

 

[agoldman]

my screen makes no noise. the car's fake motor noise is what I hear.

 

[RonTCat]

And yet, for all the quibbles with testing methodology, here we are 9 pages deep and still nobody has produced a video without screen buzz.

The naysayers are going around in circles. We’ve heard it all before, repeatedly.

1. “The testing isn’t precise enough.” No, it’s fine for these purposes, which is simply to determine whether some screens don’t emit a buzz.

2. “The testing doesn’t depict what your ears hear.” See above.

3. “Somebody could just cover their mic.” Sure, they could be a jerk. I’m not publishing this study for peer review. It’s a casual message board inquiry - not a scientific study.

4. “Put your phone close enough to any screen and of course it will pick up a buzz.” Nope, our videos specifically include taking the cam directly up to the infotainment screen, and nothing. A well-designed screen does not emit this buzz.

5. “My screen doesn’t buzz if I don’t hear it.” And if a tree falls in the forest…. That’s very zen of you. But no, your screen either buzzes or not. Whether you can hear it is irrelevant. Some of us can hear the buzz, so we want to know if this is truly a “normal operating characteristic” as Ford says.

So many excuses and deflections, and yet not a single silent video. If you don’t want to share a video, you don’t have to participate in this thread.

I'm sure all screens "buzz" to some extent, just like all foods are poisonous. It's all about the dosage.

But we don't ban all foods, just as 99.9% of forum members won't care about their screens. Some people likely have a combination of really good hearing, and perhaps a screen on the high side of tolerance, along with a sensitivity to that particular frequency sound. It likely will be an issue to them... it would be to me if I was in that group. If I was honest, likely ANY vehicle with that type of display would be a problem. Kinda like if I was allergic to peanuts, and the seats were made of a material which contained peanuts. I'd be out.

I suppose I could start a similar thread about "Ford needs to stop the BlueCruise display LEDs from flashing" and show them flashing with my iPhone video. Problem is no one can see them... maybe your cat or some animal with better IR vision can (I defer to Kamuela on this one, lol). They will have to ride in the back seat, or not ride at all, or accept that the flashing is a thing and move on. I'm guessing this is the reason people question recording the sound with a phone.

Does this mean the issue shouldn't be added to the design requirements for new vehicles?
No.

I would say it absolutely should be added. Will it? The smart money says a resounding yes.

 

[Garbone]

Yesterday I leaned up next to my laptop and heard a screen buzz. Damn you Dell!!!

?

 

[dbsb3233]

So many excuses and deflections, and yet not a single silent video. If you don’t want to share a video, you don’t have to participate in this thread.

When you post a thread with a confrontational "I don't believe your screen doesn't buzz" title, it's automatically gonna invite a lot of negative response, because it kinda pisses people off. Not the way to go about it if looking for sympathetic responses.

Having said that, yes, it appears many driver displays are making the buzzing sound, to different degrees. Mine does. There's something different about the driver display, because the large center screen doesn't do it - only the smaller driver display. But, it's very faint on mine. I'm one that hears those screen buzzes more than most. I was worried about it when reading about it in these forums before I got my MME in Feb. But then I checked it when I got home that night. I could only hear it with the car in the garage, not moving, with the radio off and my ear near the display. Which I never normally do, meaning it's irrelevant to me. Any other sound drowns it out.

So it's an easy one for me to just write off with an "eh".

 

[Mirak]

So many deflections, so few videos. Nobody is forcing you to participate. Please stop trolling this thread unless you would like to share video evidence.

 

[Gimme_my_MME]

 

[imstriker]

I'll play along. Here is my video. I cannot hear anything in person or in the video personally.

 

[BadgerGreg]

I could take a video and my screen would emit an audible buzz, but only if I place my phone within a couple of inches of the screen. If I shove my head into the steering wheel and turn my ear into the screen, I can just barely hear* the buzz IF I'm motionless and every other system is turned off.

Since I really never intend to drive in that configuration, this is a non-issue for me.

* I'm in my late 40s and my hearing is pretty good. I can detect sounds up to 13 kHz, which is normal for someone my age. Younger people can easily detect sounds well above 15 kHz, so I can understand why some others (say, those younger than 30 or 40) may be impacted by this more than others. I don't know what the frequency of that sound is, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's in the range (11 kHz - 13 kHz) where people older than 50 can no longer detect it.

 

[jeffdawgfan]

We’re already discussing this here, but I’m starting this thread in the general area to hopefully get more participation.

This board continues to debate whether all or just some some Mach E instrument display screens buzz - a debate that that has recently taken on new life thanks to Ford’s “eff you - this is a Normal Operating Characteristic” SSM.

So here is my challenge: if you say your screen doesn’t buzz, prove it. Take a short 30-second video following the format below and post it here.

Format:

1. Doesn’t need to be long
2. No unfair ambient noise. Windows up, no AC, no driving, no radio.
3. Set screens to dark mode.
4. Perch the phone on top of the airbag (about 6 inches from the screen).
5. While it’s perched there, slowly toggle screen brightness up/down a few times.
6. Move camera over to the infotainment screen to collect a useful comparison (no buzz there)

Here’s my video. On an iPhone, setting the volume to around 60% closely approximates what I hear with my ears while sitting in the driver seat. Can you take the same video in your car without a buzz? I’d very much like to see it!

And bonus content, look what happens when I turn on my hazard lights with the car off.

And what the heck, if your screen does buzz the same as mine, let us know.

Thanks for participating in this experiment!

 

[SpacePony]

I mentioned a couple of pages back my brightness gauge never shows up when the headlights are off and always shows up when they are on. Is this not how it is in your car?

So...I tried it this morning and the brightness graphic overlay also displays when the headlights are off too. But again it seems like kind of a crapshoot getting it to display. It seems if I HELD DOWN the button (rather than individually clicking it) it was more likely to display.

I'm a UX Designer the inconsistency with which it displays (and I can't fully nail down the conditions either) is KILLING ME!

 

[markboris]

So...I tried it this morning and the brightness graphic overlay also displays when the headlights are off too. But again it seems like kind of a crapshoot getting it to display. It seems if I HELD DOWN the button (rather than individually clicking it) it was more likely to display.

I'm a UX Designer the inconsistency with which it displays (and I can't fully nail down the conditions either) is KILLING ME!

I guess it is more inconsistent than I thought. I only saw the display come on when the headlights were on but then I have never changed the brightness of the display prior to making the video for this noise issue. I keep it at the highest brightness setting and never touch it.

 

[fayt349]

my screen makes no noise. the car's fake motor noise is what I hear.

Yes it does, post a video using the hazards method the entire car is off that way except for the screen.

I'll paypal you cash if I'm wrong.

 

[ARK]

All kidding aside, yes the car makes some noise. It still makes less noise when I am driving (MUCH LESS noise) than my ICE Escape. I guess my point was that the nature of machines is that they do in fact produce sounds and noise - even the Enterprise. I kind of expect that as a given, and do not expect total acoustical silence in my vehicle. I did hear a slight buzz or hum when the car was on, but that literally disappears for me unless I am in a tightly controlled environment - essentially sitting in the car, not moving, with nothing else that would make it totally irrelevant (like tire noise, wind or the sound system). Maybe I am just not as sensitive. Maybe I am just older and losing my hearing. I asked my wife the same thing, and she feels the same way.

I really don't think it is practical for Ford to be able to give you total acoustical silence in a machine. That's just my opinion, and you are welcome to yours. I feel my car is fine, and well within tolerable limits - especially compared to an ICE alternative.

I get it that for some of you this may be intolerable. If that is the case, and we all truly have the same environmental acoustical experience in this car, then perhaps this car is not suited for you. I am fine with it, and my opinion is just as valid.

I would say that the problem isn’t the volume of the noise per se, but what it sounds like. For example wind noise doesn’t bother me, I often drive with all four windows fully down and enjoy it very much, that noise is orders of magnitude louder than this. Same with my 2006 Mustang GT, the engine is quite loud, even at idle, no issue with its volume for me (actually sounds really good in my opinion).

The problem is this type of buzzing noise is just very grating. Like if you could imagine someone playing a recording of fingernails going down a chalkboard constantly playing through the stereo at a volume of around 1.5, no way to turn it off, that is my experience with the buzzing noise in my Mach-E. It’s low enough that it can often be masked, usually it is for me because I have adjusted to try and take steps to do this, but it’s just one of those things that gets really old, really fast because it is always there even if it’s not like a siren blasting through the radio.

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