Rank your car HiFi ;-)
Discussion
La Liga said:
Z3M sound system was 1/10.
HK in my e92 M3 was really good. (It was a 13 plate and I believe they upgraded the later systems) 7.5/10AshBurrows said:
Harmon Kardon in my M3 is absolutely rubbish. 3/10.
Which generation? E90 H&K is pretty good. Was looking forward to the HK system in the 4 series and what an absolute disappointment. It would be OK for a standard system but it's crap for the top option - miles worse than the e92. 4/10
Love the harmon kardon in my F30 330d. It's a 2016 MY and therefore has the functionality to control and navigate through Spotify menus once you plug your phone into the USB. For the total package I'd give it a 10/10
Came from a RR Evoque before which had a B&W set up. Sounded good, but the music interface was clunky, I also found myself worrying that the vibrations when playing music loud would cause a rattle somewhere. 7/10.
Came from a RR Evoque before which had a B&W set up. Sounded good, but the music interface was clunky, I also found myself worrying that the vibrations when playing music loud would cause a rattle somewhere. 7/10.
dickieboy28 said:
Love the harmon kardon in my F30 330d. It's a 2016 MY and therefore has the functionality to control and navigate through Spotify menus once you plug your phone into the USB. For the total package I'd give it a 10/10
Came from a RR Evoque before which had a B&W set up. Sounded good, but the music interface was clunky, I also found myself worrying that the vibrations when playing music loud would cause a rattle somewhere. 7/10.
The connectivity is great I'll give it that and very easy to use. But the amp / speaker combo is relatively poorCame from a RR Evoque before which had a B&W set up. Sounded good, but the music interface was clunky, I also found myself worrying that the vibrations when playing music loud would cause a rattle somewhere. 7/10.
I am an audiophile and serial car tester and can affirm that the Becker Hifis installed on the likes of the Merc 560 SEC/SEL and laterly the Alfa 166 were excellent and some of the best set ups I've encountered.
And agree that the Volvos (at least on the V70s of the later 2000s) had accomplished standard set ups.
The Bose on my current Maserati 4.7S is inferior to all of the above..... Strange when you think that you could buy the complete cars for the cost of some of the hifi "upgrades" on offer on current cars....
And agree that the Volvos (at least on the V70s of the later 2000s) had accomplished standard set ups.
The Bose on my current Maserati 4.7S is inferior to all of the above..... Strange when you think that you could buy the complete cars for the cost of some of the hifi "upgrades" on offer on current cars....
Edited by Yarlsberg on Thursday 1st September 21:44
ratty6464 said:
The connectivity is great I'll give it that and very easy to use. But the amp / speaker combo is relatively poor
If you check out F30 Bimmer Posts forum, there are a bunch of posts who have played around with the settings. I followed the below and it made a big difference Treble flat
Bass flat
L7 on
100Hz +5
200Hz -5
500Hz +1
1kHz flat
2kHz flat
5kHz -1
10kHz -1
Not sure this really fits in here as the car is hardly current... but, the Alpine system in my Bentley is superb! Standard fit for the final model year (98) and has about 20 speakers (3 in each door) two amps, crossover and various other bits behind the blanking panel in the boot, multi disc player in the armrest (along with the original carphone... which still works!)and it sounds superb. However, when the old head unit had a slight attack of the wobbles, getting a replacement was not what you'd call 'easy' as the head unit was expensive when new and no one has stocks of them anymore, even though Crewe showed a dozen on their system.
Finally, got one from a car stereo collector in the USA (yes, there really are car stereo collectors!) as he had four of them brand new in boxes... used in 'sound offs' still as this unit has a lovely tone.
Finally, got one from a car stereo collector in the USA (yes, there really are car stereo collectors!) as he had four of them brand new in boxes... used in 'sound offs' still as this unit has a lovely tone.
As a musician, I'm a bit picky....
986 Boxster std - 1/10 atrocious for a convertible - major aftermarket upgrade went into this car
996's- same as boxster - 1/10
997 - better but synthetic sounding 4/10
Cayenne gen 1 - Bose - not bad 6/10
Cayenne Gen 2 - Bose - great 8/10
Panamera - Bose - pretty good but not great - 7/10
Panamera - B&W - better than Bose, but worth the ££? 8/10
991 GT3 - sound plus - bloody brilliant 10/10 - oh wait - are you supposed to be listening to the stereo ?! to be fair it does cope very well given the NVH on this car
997 Cup - sorry ? what ? - I'm deaf...
2003 Impreza WRX STi std fit minus10/10 - not even worth turning on !
986 Boxster std - 1/10 atrocious for a convertible - major aftermarket upgrade went into this car
996's- same as boxster - 1/10
997 - better but synthetic sounding 4/10
Cayenne gen 1 - Bose - not bad 6/10
Cayenne Gen 2 - Bose - great 8/10
Panamera - Bose - pretty good but not great - 7/10
Panamera - B&W - better than Bose, but worth the ££? 8/10
991 GT3 - sound plus - bloody brilliant 10/10 - oh wait - are you supposed to be listening to the stereo ?! to be fair it does cope very well given the NVH on this car
997 Cup - sorry ? what ? - I'm deaf...
2003 Impreza WRX STi std fit minus10/10 - not even worth turning on !
swisstoni said:
I'd go as far to say that most are very acceptable for a noisy box on wheels. But HiFi they aint.
This.Unless you're sitting in it without moving and with the engine switched off.
And better even than Hi-fi if you crave musical involvement? Learn to play an instrument.
STILL cheaper than ticking those option boxes.
Unless it's a Harp or a Piano.
The B&O in my S8 is simply stunning when listening to CDs, MP3's are still lossy so they suffer a little quality wise but still better than anything I've hear before in a car. I wouldn't have paid the £6000 option from new, but it was an "essential" when buying secondhand and the difference between cars with and without is about £500.
I can see how a high end system in a poorly isolated car is a little pointless, but in the S8, with its double glazing and solid rattle free interior (you barely hear the car up to about 70mph) the sound is just sublime.
I can see how a high end system in a poorly isolated car is a little pointless, but in the S8, with its double glazing and solid rattle free interior (you barely hear the car up to about 70mph) the sound is just sublime.
I have a BOSE in my S4. The mid range is lame,and it turns out that in audiophile circles, BOSE is an acronym - Buy Other Sound Equipment. 4/10.
My previous E90 BMs with 'premium sat nav and business stereo' were a bit better but still no proper grunt. 6/10
I prefer the standard system in my wife's 2014 Fiesta which is not pretentious and does the job, DAB and bluetooth. 7/10
While the average standard of stereos has gone up quite a bit over the last 20 years, the user upgradability has gone right down. It would be nice to be able to just plug in a generic amp upgrade, or replace the speakers with something better.
Plumbing in a markedly better stereo system as a standard fitment would probably cost £100 per car extra, but most manufacturers don't do it because it would prevent them selling it as a overpriced upgrade. It sounds like Volvo may have bucked this trend - possibly because their drivers are too stingy to upgrade and they didn't want a load of cars with crap stereos out there. Who knows?
My previous E90 BMs with 'premium sat nav and business stereo' were a bit better but still no proper grunt. 6/10
I prefer the standard system in my wife's 2014 Fiesta which is not pretentious and does the job, DAB and bluetooth. 7/10
While the average standard of stereos has gone up quite a bit over the last 20 years, the user upgradability has gone right down. It would be nice to be able to just plug in a generic amp upgrade, or replace the speakers with something better.
Plumbing in a markedly better stereo system as a standard fitment would probably cost £100 per car extra, but most manufacturers don't do it because it would prevent them selling it as a overpriced upgrade. It sounds like Volvo may have bucked this trend - possibly because their drivers are too stingy to upgrade and they didn't want a load of cars with crap stereos out there. Who knows?
I have the 1,700W Meridian Signature Reference Audio System (29 speakers) and it is excellent. But you would expect it to be good for £4.5k!
L405 Range Rover Autobiography
8/10
The most disappointing brand name upgrade hifi options i've ever had:
E46 M3 Conv - Harmon Karden - 3/10 - Terrible
Aston Martin DB9 260w Linn Audio - 2/10 even with a further upgraded sub - Appalling for a £100k+ car but the V12 howl meant you didn't have to listen to it!
L405 Range Rover Autobiography
8/10
The most disappointing brand name upgrade hifi options i've ever had:
E46 M3 Conv - Harmon Karden - 3/10 - Terrible
Aston Martin DB9 260w Linn Audio - 2/10 even with a further upgraded sub - Appalling for a £100k+ car but the V12 howl meant you didn't have to listen to it!
Edited by keegs111 on Friday 2nd September 08:32
Interesting thread. It would be good, as some have done, to list what you listen with at home so we can get some kind of baseline.
I agree about the sound insulation thing, little point in pushing things beyond a certain point in most cars.
I have a Linn Aktiv system at home FWIW and I'd consider most cars I've experienced to be pretty non-descript as far as audio goes.
The exceptions being a 2012 C-Class with the standard Audio 20 system which was actually surprisingly OK and certainly not worth whatever it would have cost for the 'premium' badges on the speaker grilles, and a Volvo V60 which again was quite pleasant to listen to.
I'm excluding systems in Range Rovers, S-Classes etc. which sounded excellent on initial impression but which I've only listened to in passing.
I agree about the sound insulation thing, little point in pushing things beyond a certain point in most cars.
I have a Linn Aktiv system at home FWIW and I'd consider most cars I've experienced to be pretty non-descript as far as audio goes.
The exceptions being a 2012 C-Class with the standard Audio 20 system which was actually surprisingly OK and certainly not worth whatever it would have cost for the 'premium' badges on the speaker grilles, and a Volvo V60 which again was quite pleasant to listen to.
I'm excluding systems in Range Rovers, S-Classes etc. which sounded excellent on initial impression but which I've only listened to in passing.
HK in E46 330i average, 5/10
Dynaudio in Sirocco slightly above average 6/10
Dynaudio in Sirocco with Alpine 10" sub and amp under the boot floor not bad at all 8/10
Burmester in 981 Cayman S 12 speakers including a sub somewhere in the front bulkhead and ribbon tweeters, DSP and plenty of Class A/B power for the mids/tweeters and Class D for the sub is the best car stereo I've ever heard. 10/10
Sound Package Plus in GT4 disappointing after the Burmester 6/10
Dynaudio in Sirocco slightly above average 6/10
Dynaudio in Sirocco with Alpine 10" sub and amp under the boot floor not bad at all 8/10
Burmester in 981 Cayman S 12 speakers including a sub somewhere in the front bulkhead and ribbon tweeters, DSP and plenty of Class A/B power for the mids/tweeters and Class D for the sub is the best car stereo I've ever heard. 10/10
Sound Package Plus in GT4 disappointing after the Burmester 6/10
I still regard the Bose system in my old 2002 Audi A4 as the best I've had in a car. The current newer A4 also has it but it doesn't sound as good for whatever reason.
Our Range Rover has a fancy-pants Logic 7 Harmon Kardon 14-speaker setup but it's not that good. With the factory settings at default there's too much bottom end and not enough punch in the mid-range. I would suggest the whole cabin acts as a bass box which doesn't help.
ETA: Honourable mention to whoever ticked the option box for the rear Nokia sub-speaker in a 2001 Audi 80/Coupe Cabriolet I used to have. I wasn't expecting the audio to be that great in a soft-top but that speaker, hidden behind the rear centre armrest made a world of difference. Didn't realise it was there until a year after owning the car.
Our Range Rover has a fancy-pants Logic 7 Harmon Kardon 14-speaker setup but it's not that good. With the factory settings at default there's too much bottom end and not enough punch in the mid-range. I would suggest the whole cabin acts as a bass box which doesn't help.
ETA: Honourable mention to whoever ticked the option box for the rear Nokia sub-speaker in a 2001 Audi 80/Coupe Cabriolet I used to have. I wasn't expecting the audio to be that great in a soft-top but that speaker, hidden behind the rear centre armrest made a world of difference. Didn't realise it was there until a year after owning the car.
Edited by DrSteveBrule on Friday 2nd September 09:06
2007 Defender - 2/10 - it makes a noise and you can just about make out what the DJ is saying on the radio and what song it is.
2008 Maserati GranTurismo - appallingly bad for what is a relatively high-end car, 4/10
2014 Maserati GranCabrio - optional Bose set-up - 6/10 i.e. acceptable
2014 Volvo V60 - surprisingly good - 7.5-8/10
2015 C63 - optional Burmester (it came with the car off the forecourt) - 8.5/10 - I would give it 9/10, but just occasionally you get a speaker with a rattle caused by firm suspension on crap roads, which then disappears. Worth noting that's nothing to do with the hifi, just perhaps could be slightly better put together, but I'm being picky and you can always turn the volume up!
2008 Maserati GranTurismo - appallingly bad for what is a relatively high-end car, 4/10
2014 Maserati GranCabrio - optional Bose set-up - 6/10 i.e. acceptable
2014 Volvo V60 - surprisingly good - 7.5-8/10
2015 C63 - optional Burmester (it came with the car off the forecourt) - 8.5/10 - I would give it 9/10, but just occasionally you get a speaker with a rattle caused by firm suspension on crap roads, which then disappears. Worth noting that's nothing to do with the hifi, just perhaps could be slightly better put together, but I'm being picky and you can always turn the volume up!
Audi Sound in 2012 A4, pretty good to my rock ears. 6/10. Not enough punch really, but only a £100 option at the time so pretty pleased.
Stock sounds in the wife's 500X, gutless waste of speaker space. Awful. 2/10. Should have tried to get Beats audio for some more oomph, but cracking deal on an already specced up car and I only have to listen to it on family holidays. Shame, otherwise fab car..
Harmon Kardon in my 2016 Mini JCW, yep that rocks. 9/10, love it. Very very sensitive to source and in-car setup (sounds s
te on low bitrate and too much fade) but get it right, best Ive ever had, cant see what more you'd ever want.
Stock sounds in the wife's 500X, gutless waste of speaker space. Awful. 2/10. Should have tried to get Beats audio for some more oomph, but cracking deal on an already specced up car and I only have to listen to it on family holidays. Shame, otherwise fab car..
Harmon Kardon in my 2016 Mini JCW, yep that rocks. 9/10, love it. Very very sensitive to source and in-car setup (sounds s
te on low bitrate and too much fade) but get it right, best Ive ever had, cant see what more you'd ever want.Gassing Station | In-Car Electronics | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff