Rank your car HiFi ;-)
Discussion
Craikeybaby said:
I agree the whole system needs to be good, but in my experience, based on working for an automotive sound system company, the home audio brands don't make the hardware for automotive.
No, you are right. 99% of the speaker systems are made by the electronics company behind the whole system and are branded B&W / Meridian etc under license based on prior consultancy. Its all one big con really. People are not getting anything like they think they are but then you only need to look at the home costs of the likes of Burmester kit to know the price differential wouldn't support it.
Craikeybaby said:
I agree the whole system needs to be good, but in my experience, based on working for an automotive sound system company, the home audio brands don't make the hardware for automotive.
Absolutely. I've some experience of premium audio systems in cars and it was mostly true in that case.The head unit electronics were off-the-shelf standard with a different faceplate, the amps were ours and some of the speakers, but we were extremely constrained by the nasty head unit/inherited speakers, the power supply (a huge issue when trying to drive large speakers properly), and the limited influence we had over the acoustics.
The resulting system (it has been mentioned on this thread
) could have sounded great but ultimately was a bit disappointing to both parties.VW Phaeton upgrade sound system - one of the best I've heard. 8/10
Also Naim for Bentley 9/10 (one point knocked off for the obscene price)
VW sound systems (Passat, etc.) are generally very good.
Seat Ibiza (2009 onward) - the best bass in a non-upgrade factory sound system I've heard
BMW 1 series - terrible, 2/10.
Also Naim for Bentley 9/10 (one point knocked off for the obscene price)
VW sound systems (Passat, etc.) are generally very good.
Seat Ibiza (2009 onward) - the best bass in a non-upgrade factory sound system I've heard
BMW 1 series - terrible, 2/10.
motoroller said:
VW Phaeton upgrade sound system - one of the best I've heard. 8/10
Also Naim for Bentley 9/10 (one point knocked off for the obscene price)
VW sound systems (Passat, etc.) are generally very good.
Seat Ibiza (2009 onward) - the best bass in a non-upgrade factory sound system I've heard
BMW 1 series - terrible, 2/10.
But the BMW will drive infinitely better than the Vag (hole) and the seat. I'd rather a car that drives better than the music as opposed to the other way around.Also Naim for Bentley 9/10 (one point knocked off for the obscene price)
VW sound systems (Passat, etc.) are generally very good.
Seat Ibiza (2009 onward) - the best bass in a non-upgrade factory sound system I've heard
BMW 1 series - terrible, 2/10.
Interesting you mention the Phaeton, I was tempted to buy one a few years back until I sat in one at the showroom. It was beyond dreary. I could have been more excited sat naked on a rainy slag heap in Wales. Horrid box with great tech and no soul. So I walked away without even turning the key!
Miles Hardy said:
But the BMW will drive infinitely better than the Vag (hole) and the seat. I'd rather a car that drives better than the music as opposed to the other way around.
Interesting you mention the Phaeton, I was tempted to buy one a few years back until I sat in one at the showroom. It was beyond dreary. I could have been more excited sat naked on a rainy slag heap in Wales. Horrid box with great tech and no soul. So I walked away without even turning the key!
I'm guessing you tried the 3.2 V6 or 3.0 V6 TDi then. It needs a V8, V10 or W12 to make it a proper luxo-bargeInteresting you mention the Phaeton, I was tempted to buy one a few years back until I sat in one at the showroom. It was beyond dreary. I could have been more excited sat naked on a rainy slag heap in Wales. Horrid box with great tech and no soul. So I walked away without even turning the key!
My two pennies worth for my recent cars or those I have spent a fair bit of time in lately.;
Dynaudio branded system in MK7 Golf GTI; 8/10 (in context of a hatch I would give it a 9.5) Plenty of speakers, decent sub mounted fairly solidly with what I understand are Dynaudio speakers. Good customisation of the sound stage is possible. Broad range of sound, I think it is well balanced and will play all genres of music well. The system I have has SD, Hard Disc and USB inputs so can work off uncompressed files using the DAC in the car rather than phone/ipod etc - noticeably better than through bluetooth off an iPhone. Good value for money as well. If you really go nuts with the bass it can tie itself in knots at high volumes but I think that is more to do with the car rather than the stereo system - e.g. doors shaking etc. By all accounts the standard Golf system isn’t the worst in its class either.
Standard BMW system in current model 3 series; -1/10. One word- terrible. Same opinion for the standard 1 series unit, think the old Matsui ghetto blaster in my Dad’s garage sounds better. Makes me angry just thinking about how bad it is.
Harman/Kardon branded system in current 430d; 6-7/10 not the worst and seems to have a decent mid-range but I could only find tweeters and woofers when nosing around the car and it didn’t seem to handle lower frequencies as well as the Dynaudio in my GTI. In my mind I would call it crispish but lacking depth. Sounded a bit better than the M140i system but that could be down to the structure of the car or different hardware driving the speakers. Have just ordered a 340i with this system but without going aftermarket the Harman/Kardon is the best available in the 3 series.
Harman/Kardon branded system in M140i; 6/10 not bad, similar to the above but with a few less speakers it doesn’t really fill the car and always seems like it is working very hard. Seemed best playing modern music rather than anything classical/jazz/reggae/rock etc.
Last model Mercedes E-class standard system; 4/10. Pretty weak really, I always quite liked E-class/S-class systems of the past 10 years but the just replaced E-class’ standard system is pretty weak - not BMW weak but going downhill.
Last model Audi TT Roadster - 5/10 lots of speakers, lots of volume, not much quality.
Linn System in the original Aston Vanquish; 9/10 - very impressive, ironic really considering the 12 cylinders in front of you make music redundant.
Dynaudio branded system in MK7 Golf GTI; 8/10 (in context of a hatch I would give it a 9.5) Plenty of speakers, decent sub mounted fairly solidly with what I understand are Dynaudio speakers. Good customisation of the sound stage is possible. Broad range of sound, I think it is well balanced and will play all genres of music well. The system I have has SD, Hard Disc and USB inputs so can work off uncompressed files using the DAC in the car rather than phone/ipod etc - noticeably better than through bluetooth off an iPhone. Good value for money as well. If you really go nuts with the bass it can tie itself in knots at high volumes but I think that is more to do with the car rather than the stereo system - e.g. doors shaking etc. By all accounts the standard Golf system isn’t the worst in its class either.
Standard BMW system in current model 3 series; -1/10. One word- terrible. Same opinion for the standard 1 series unit, think the old Matsui ghetto blaster in my Dad’s garage sounds better. Makes me angry just thinking about how bad it is.
Harman/Kardon branded system in current 430d; 6-7/10 not the worst and seems to have a decent mid-range but I could only find tweeters and woofers when nosing around the car and it didn’t seem to handle lower frequencies as well as the Dynaudio in my GTI. In my mind I would call it crispish but lacking depth. Sounded a bit better than the M140i system but that could be down to the structure of the car or different hardware driving the speakers. Have just ordered a 340i with this system but without going aftermarket the Harman/Kardon is the best available in the 3 series.
Harman/Kardon branded system in M140i; 6/10 not bad, similar to the above but with a few less speakers it doesn’t really fill the car and always seems like it is working very hard. Seemed best playing modern music rather than anything classical/jazz/reggae/rock etc.
Last model Mercedes E-class standard system; 4/10. Pretty weak really, I always quite liked E-class/S-class systems of the past 10 years but the just replaced E-class’ standard system is pretty weak - not BMW weak but going downhill.
Last model Audi TT Roadster - 5/10 lots of speakers, lots of volume, not much quality.
Linn System in the original Aston Vanquish; 9/10 - very impressive, ironic really considering the 12 cylinders in front of you make music redundant.
Going through some of the cars I've had I'd say...
Renault Megane Coupe with the 'Cabasse' stereo - 5/10 I remember being blown away by this when I first bought the car, though I did come from an old civic with a feeble sound system, overall though I'd say it was adequate.
Peugeot 407SW - 4/10 It did the job I suppose but was a bit weaker sounding than the Megane iirc.
Mini Countryman Cooper D with Harmon/Kardon - 7/10 My first new car and I'd added it as an option as part of the nav package, it was very clear and tight sounding, It wasn't massively punchy in the bass department but overall I thought it was pretty impressive.
BMW M3(E46) Convertible with Harmon/Kardon - 2/10 In complete contrast this was very poor, I didn't really have the car that long so didn't do anything with it, it was probably knackered as it just sounded hissy and weak.
Mazda RX8 with Bose - 6/10 This was similar to the Mini's Harmon/Kardon system but with a little less clarity.
Peugeot 208 GTI - 3/10 A little bit rubbish really, apparently they have 'Arkamys' sound processing but really...it was pretty poor, it just sounded flat and had no punch to it at all.
Saab 9-5 Aero 'Hot' Estate with the AS3 system (Harmon/Kardon & Kenwood Nav/headunit I think?) - 8/10 I've only had it a short while but already it sounds a step above everything I've had so far, it's very punchy and has had plenty of comments on how it sounds already, plus it's the only car system I can remember where you can adjust mid levels too, overall I'm impressed.
Renault Megane Coupe with the 'Cabasse' stereo - 5/10 I remember being blown away by this when I first bought the car, though I did come from an old civic with a feeble sound system, overall though I'd say it was adequate.
Peugeot 407SW - 4/10 It did the job I suppose but was a bit weaker sounding than the Megane iirc.
Mini Countryman Cooper D with Harmon/Kardon - 7/10 My first new car and I'd added it as an option as part of the nav package, it was very clear and tight sounding, It wasn't massively punchy in the bass department but overall I thought it was pretty impressive.
BMW M3(E46) Convertible with Harmon/Kardon - 2/10 In complete contrast this was very poor, I didn't really have the car that long so didn't do anything with it, it was probably knackered as it just sounded hissy and weak.
Mazda RX8 with Bose - 6/10 This was similar to the Mini's Harmon/Kardon system but with a little less clarity.
Peugeot 208 GTI - 3/10 A little bit rubbish really, apparently they have 'Arkamys' sound processing but really...it was pretty poor, it just sounded flat and had no punch to it at all.
Saab 9-5 Aero 'Hot' Estate with the AS3 system (Harmon/Kardon & Kenwood Nav/headunit I think?) - 8/10 I've only had it a short while but already it sounds a step above everything I've had so far, it's very punchy and has had plenty of comments on how it sounds already, plus it's the only car system I can remember where you can adjust mid levels too, overall I'm impressed.
Condi said:
Bang and Olson system in Audi A4 is okay. I would actually say its good for a car based system, but nothing compared to an average home system.
I appreciate a good sound although I'm no audiophile but the B&O system in my S4 sounds pretty good to me, it's probably better than what's in my house anyway.Audi S3 with the Bose stereo, 3/10, sounded like it was tuned by Beats Audio, just awful, gobs of ugly mid bass
Skoda Fabia factory system, 1/10, managed to blow the speakers while pratting around with it before I had the lot swapped out
BMW E61 Professional Audio - 4/10, better than the Bose in the Audi but only because it was better balanced
VW Golf R with Dynaudio - 5/10, with a bit of tweaking its livable
Tesla Model S with the premium audio - 7/10, really really clear and detailed, even better on the move as the car is so quiet
I used to have a custom Alpine/JL setup that utilised a 12" bi amped JL sub, 3 ways for the front, 6/9 for the rear and two amps that I moved between cars - 8/10, tons of low down bass, mid range and clear highs. I've not seen a factory system that can match the extension of a sub in a decent sized wooden enclosure.
Skoda Fabia factory system, 1/10, managed to blow the speakers while pratting around with it before I had the lot swapped out
BMW E61 Professional Audio - 4/10, better than the Bose in the Audi but only because it was better balanced
VW Golf R with Dynaudio - 5/10, with a bit of tweaking its livable
Tesla Model S with the premium audio - 7/10, really really clear and detailed, even better on the move as the car is so quiet
I used to have a custom Alpine/JL setup that utilised a 12" bi amped JL sub, 3 ways for the front, 6/9 for the rear and two amps that I moved between cars - 8/10, tons of low down bass, mid range and clear highs. I've not seen a factory system that can match the extension of a sub in a decent sized wooden enclosure.
Meridian 825w 14 speaker in evoque is by far the best I've heard, would give it 9/10 - excellent quality andvolume
I am fussy, in the Granturismo the former owner spent 1.5k on improving and I'm about to drop 2.5k in further work
Bose in my 987 boxster was useless, maybe 3/10
In the 997 Bose was so poor (4/10, better than Boxster due to proper rear speakers and more space in cabin) I again spent 2.5k on aftermarket kit
The reality is that OEM systems are topically diabolical, with a few notable exceptions. The ones that seem to be best regarded are I think Levinson in Lexus, Burmeister in the new 911, B&W in the Jag XKR, and Meridian in RangeRover. In general Harmon Kardon, Bose and B&O are just ones where you pay for the name
I am fussy, in the Granturismo the former owner spent 1.5k on improving and I'm about to drop 2.5k in further work
Bose in my 987 boxster was useless, maybe 3/10
In the 997 Bose was so poor (4/10, better than Boxster due to proper rear speakers and more space in cabin) I again spent 2.5k on aftermarket kit
The reality is that OEM systems are topically diabolical, with a few notable exceptions. The ones that seem to be best regarded are I think Levinson in Lexus, Burmeister in the new 911, B&W in the Jag XKR, and Meridian in RangeRover. In general Harmon Kardon, Bose and B&O are just ones where you pay for the name
Edited by jakesmith on Thursday 3rd November 06:46
2004 Volvo S60 SE with the HU-803 and standard amp - 8/10
Sounds very good for the factory unit; certainly much better than my colleague's 2015 Audi A4 Bose system, which seems to equate fart-cannon bass with quality.
I added a GROM AUX-3 to the CD changer port, so I've now got an aux-in. Sounds excellent, not looking forward to replicating (or bettering) this system if I ever get a BMW, judging from the comments in this thread!
Sounds very good for the factory unit; certainly much better than my colleague's 2015 Audi A4 Bose system, which seems to equate fart-cannon bass with quality.
I added a GROM AUX-3 to the CD changer port, so I've now got an aux-in. Sounds excellent, not looking forward to replicating (or bettering) this system if I ever get a BMW, judging from the comments in this thread!
The thread has risen 
I’m in the process of looking for a new daily, around 20k, the criteria is pretty broad (almost a joke) the audio is pretty important to me though.
I’ve driven a Peugeot 208 GT, the audio wasn’t great, no upgrade available.
The Bose in the current Nissan Duke is pretty decent, as is the overall car.
My mind always wonders to a Mk7 Golf Gti, is the Dynaudio worth seeking out?
I see ‘Beats’ stereo across quite a few cars, any good?
I’m in the process of looking for a new daily, around 20k, the criteria is pretty broad (almost a joke) the audio is pretty important to me though.
I’ve driven a Peugeot 208 GT, the audio wasn’t great, no upgrade available.
The Bose in the current Nissan Duke is pretty decent, as is the overall car.
My mind always wonders to a Mk7 Golf Gti, is the Dynaudio worth seeking out?
I see ‘Beats’ stereo across quite a few cars, any good?
Well, since my last post on this thread quite a few cars have passed through my hands, a couple with "premium" audio systems.
2017 Audi A4, standard system - Garbage
2018 Jaguar E-Pace, standard system - Sound not as bad as you might think, but an antediluvian interface.
My current 2020 A6 Avant with Bang & Olufsen system - meh. Better than the standard system no doubt, but very poor vfm as it cost a fortune.
2017 Superb estate with the Canton upgrade - Simply the best OEM-fit audio I've heard in a car, even ones with six-figure price tags. A pleasure to listen to, and shows the B&O setup in the Audi up for what it is.
GR Yaris - Absolutely dreadful with the fake engine noise on, barely tolerable with it off.
2017 Audi A4, standard system - Garbage
2018 Jaguar E-Pace, standard system - Sound not as bad as you might think, but an antediluvian interface.
My current 2020 A6 Avant with Bang & Olufsen system - meh. Better than the standard system no doubt, but very poor vfm as it cost a fortune.
2017 Superb estate with the Canton upgrade - Simply the best OEM-fit audio I've heard in a car, even ones with six-figure price tags. A pleasure to listen to, and shows the B&O setup in the Audi up for what it is.
GR Yaris - Absolutely dreadful with the fake engine noise on, barely tolerable with it off.
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