Rank your car HiFi ;-)

[BIRMA]

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.

Totally agree about the Phaeton, I had a LWB V10 with the Dynaudio upgrade with it being a big car the sound/bass had space to really work.
My current Lexus RCF has the upgraded Mark Levinson system and for a car it's pretty good.
Being a hifi fanatic with both a headphone and a speaker based system at home that is really high end you can't really get true hifi in a car but it's not bad when it's good.

[craigjm]

Legacywr said:

I see ‘Beats’ stereo across quite a few cars, any good?

Can’t possibly say. Just like all of these premium audio options, the Beats part is just the speakers. What lies behind that in terms of wire, amps and sources varies from car to car.

You are buying a set of speakers. Some will be better than others, some will be mounted in more optimal places that others, some will handle the sound better than others. The problem is that you have no idea what’s driving them when you tick the option box. It could be exactly the same source, amps and wire as the standard system, it could be something better, it could be something much better. As with any home system, you can stick the most amazing speakers on the most basic source and then place them in a crazy way and they will sound rubbish

[Craikeybaby]

It may not necessarily be the speakers, the only "Beats" part is the name, someone from Beats (or whichever audio brand) may have been involved in the tuning, but usually, they just sign it off.

The upgraded system could be better speakers, usually more of them too, and a better amp, although these days, the race for the most powerful amps is dying, because it is at odds with electric cars.

[Bonefish Blues]

BIRMA said:

Totally agree about the Phaeton, I had a LWB V10 with the Dynaudio upgrade with it being a big car the sound/bass had space to really work.
My current Lexus RCF has the upgraded Mark Levinson system and for a car it's pretty good.
Being a hifi fanatic with both a headphone and a speaker based system at home that is really high end you can't really get true hifi in a car but it's not bad when it's good.

Agree - but it can be quite immersive, done well.

[Legacywr]

According to some on Ford forums, the B&O systems in the Fiesta/Puma uses the same speakers as the standard setup, with just an amplified sub, no wonder it’s a bit pants.

[Harry Flashman]

2018 Audi SQ7. Bose, loud, bassy but really lacks decent mid-range attack and bass finesse. The sub is powerful, bit unsubtle when pushed into complex bass. And no control for mids on the equaliser. It's far better at non-electronic music though 5/10 on electronic music, 7/10 on other stuff.

The Meridian hifi in a 2015 Range Rover I once ran for a bit was far better.

I shall do something about it one day, once the car is out of warranty and I can mess around with it.

[Miserablegit]

Focal 4 speaker system in Alpine A110 is very good indeed. Interface is shockingly bad but the sound is great.

Much better than the logic 7 HK system in wife’s car and the other multi-speaker systems in the other cars.

[TameRacingDriver]

Bose system in 2005 NC MX5 - 3/10. Rubbish.

[Legacywr]

Just bought a Golf Gti, I’d give the Dynaudio 8/10.

[AB]

911 - Burmeister 7/10
Taycan - Bose 7/10
X5 - H/K 7/10

In conclusion, I can't tell the difference between any of them!

[craigjm]

AB said:

911 - Burmeister 7/10
Taycan - Bose 7/10
X5 - H/K 7/10

In conclusion, I can't tell the difference between any of them!

That’s rather worrying considering the price difference of the burmester.

[anonymous-user]

craigjm said:

AB said:

911 - Burmeister 7/10
Taycan - Bose 7/10
X5 - H/K 7/10

In conclusion, I can't tell the difference between any of them!

That’s rather worrying considering the price difference of the burmester.

Sometimes it's like feeding a donkey strawberries

[craigjm]

stickleback123 said:

craigjm said:

AB said:

911 - Burmeister 7/10
Taycan - Bose 7/10
X5 - H/K 7/10

In conclusion, I can't tell the difference between any of them!

That’s rather worrying considering the price difference of the burmester.

Sometimes it's like feeding a donkey strawberries

True. These will all be compromised compared to what one might have at home due to the environment but you really should be able to tell the difference certainly in the three above.

The biggest limiting factor of any of these ratings of HIFI systems, and I’m not picking on anyone for this, is the limitation of your ears

[Castrol for a knave]

2007 A5 B&O - superb, nice and crisp

2x Jag XF Portfolios - both Meridian system with B&O speaker, a step up from the Audi, just brilliant even if the interface is very much 2004.

B&O in the Disco - meh

Tesla M3LR - very very good, Great imaging and real detail. Probably the best to date

My upgraded system in the 928. Stock, with a Blaupunkt Toronto is very light on bass so sub in spare wheel, JBL's / Crisp Audio replacing all the mids and tweeters and into the BP46 retro head unit. It's a little rear focused, but sounds very good

Stock in my Guilia Veloce - ste. Really ste. Polly Harvey sounds like Henry Rollins shouting at me through a pair of wet underpants, in tunnel, with a sinus infection, on a damp Wednesday, in Slough.

Edited by Castrol for a knave on Thursday 2nd February 13:15

[AB]

craigjm said:

stickleback123 said:

craigjm said:

AB said:

911 - Burmeister 7/10
Taycan - Bose 7/10
X5 - H/K 7/10

In conclusion, I can't tell the difference between any of them!

That’s rather worrying considering the price difference of the burmester.

Sometimes it's like feeding a donkey strawberries

True. These will all be compromised compared to what one might have at home due to the environment but you really should be able to tell the difference certainly in the three above.

The biggest limiting factor of any of these ratings of HIFI systems, and I’m not picking on anyone for this, is the limitation of your ears

Mostly listen to Radio 4

But I guess the Burmester is in a 2015 car and the Bose in a 2021 which must make a difference. I also didn't spec the 911, if I had then mine wouldn't have it. Maybe I do need my ears syringing.

[gmaz]

My latest car, a Hyundai Kona EV has "Krell" branded speakers. Surprising that a brand that makes very high end home hifi, e.g. £13,000 amps https://www.audiovenue.uk/product/k-300i/ ... is putting their name on a Hyundai. Sound quality isn't great but then neither is my hearing.

Then again you have to wonder how much is just licensing a brand name. Kia, Hyundai and Genesis are all part of the same group but Kia has Harman Kardon audio, Genesis has Bang & Olfsen and Hyundai has Krell.

[craigjm]

gmaz said:

My latest car, a Hyundai Kona EV has "Krell" branded speakers. Surprising that a brand that makes very high end home hifi, e.g. £13,000 amps https://www.audiovenue.uk/product/k-300i/ ... is putting their name on a Hyundai. Sound quality isn't great but then neither is my hearing.

Then again you have to wonder how much is just licensing a brand name. Kia, Hyundai and Genesis are all part of the same group but Kia has Harman Kardon audio, Genesis has Bang & Olfsen and Hyundai has Krell.

They are also just speakers so there could be any old crap behind them. That to me is the crux of the issue with the modern fascination in cars of “premium audio”. They all just talk about the speakers and number of them. What about the rest of it.

[Craikeybaby]

The branding is only branding, not even speakers. There may be a rubber stamp on the final tune, but no hardware is involved.

The reason that some of the extremely premium/more obscure hifi brands are appearing in cars is that one of the automotive infotainment companies has signed exclusivity agreements with the more common hifi brands.

[swisstoni]

Personally I would’t pay a penny more for anything over the standard fitted car system.

You may convince yourself of the difference that your ££££ has made but you are very likely to be kidding yourself.

[ZX10R NIN]

The thing with all these stero upgrades is they all lack depth bass line wise & the mids/mid bass are average at best which is why I always add amps a 10/12 sunwoofer & change the speakers on every car I've owned.