Equinox Audio Dead: No Sound from Any Source

I had a similar issue with my 2019 Chevy Traverse Diesel last year. From my experience working on basic car audio setups, this sounded familiar right away. Initially thought it was the volume control module or auxiliary input connection, but after diagnosis, turned out the bass speaker was defective and somehow impacted the entire sound system. Weird how one component can shut everything down! Had it fixed at a workshop for 280 Euro, they replaced the speaker and recalibrated the system. Before you head to a shop though, couple quick questions: Have you checked if the audio connectivity works with different phones/devices? Does the radio silence happen right at startup or after driving for a while? Any recent software updates to your infotainment system? These details would help narrow down if you're facing the same problem I did. The Equinox and Traverse share similar audio system architecture, so there's a good chance it could be related. BTW, your fuse check was smart. That's usually the first thing to look at with sudden audio failures.

Thanks for the detailed response. My Equinox has 117378 KM and was just serviced last month. Sound distortion started gradually before complete failure, something I forgot to mention in my initial post. Tried connecting multiple phones via Bluetooth to rule out device issues. The radio silence happens immediately at startup, and I've confirmed the auxiliary input isn't working either. No recent software updates installed. The bass speaker theory makes sense, noticed some weird vibrations from the front left speaker area before everything went quiet. Guess I'll need to get it checked professionally since none of the basic troubleshooting worked.

Yeah, those symptoms definitely match what I experienced with my Traverse! The gradual sound quality deterioration followed by complete failure is exactly how mine went. When you mentioned the vibrations from the front left speaker, that really clicked, it's the same pattern. In my case, the bass speaker deterioration created a cascade effect on the entire sound system. The amp was shutting down to protect itself from the faulty speaker load. That's why nothing worked, not even the auxiliary input or USB audio connections. After my repair, the technician explained that these integrated sound systems are pretty sensitive to speaker impedance issues. One bad component can trigger the system's protection mode, killing all audio output. Quick tip from my experience, when you take it in, ask them to check the amplifier too. While my main issue was the speaker, they found the amp had some minor damage from trying to drive the failing speaker. Getting both fixed prevented any repeat problems. The repair should be similar cost-wise since our vehicles use almost identical sound system components. Definitely worth fixing properly rather than trying partial repairs that might not solve the underlying issue.

Thanks for that helpful explanation. You've convinced me to get both the speaker and amp checked out when I take it in. The similar failure pattern in your Traverse really helps confirm what I'm dealing with. This sound system failure is definitely behaving the same way yours did, from the initial distortion to complete audio dropout. I'll mention the bass speaker and amp connection when I schedule the service appointment. Better to have everything inspected properly rather than risk another failure later. Hopefully the repair costs stay around what you paid. I'll update this thread once I get it fixed in case anyone else runs into similar Bluetooth issues or complete sound system failures. These car speakers seem more interconnected than I realized, so it's good to know about the potential cascade effect from one bad component.