Active Sound Generators in cars

Active Sound Generators in cars

Author
Discussion

wong

Original Poster:

1,295 posts

217 months

Thursday 14th March
quotequote all
Active/artifical sound generators are becoming more common in modern cars to add a bit of 'excitement'. These are generally disliked by pistonheaders. But why? - Yeah, it's fake noise.

Would something like an electric Mini (or Fiat 500) be able to carry it off? It could be switched off, have an inline 4 from a JCW; or an inline 6, V8 or V12 from BMW's back catalogue. You could even change the volume. In an electric car you'd have to somehow incorporate gearshifts or 'jerks ' to simulate them racing to the redline.

wong

Original Poster:

1,295 posts

217 months

Thursday 14th March
quotequote all
Hoofy said:
I'd select the clip clop sound. Might as well.
Ha...Ha... clap

wong

Original Poster:

1,295 posts

217 months

Friday 15th March
quotequote all
Good discussion with lots of interesting points made. It's a very divisive subject.

Robertb said:
The problem is the fake engine noises are awful, completely unconvincing. I’m astonished that with modern sound technology they can’t do a better job.

I like the sound the Taycan makes as it’s actually based on the motor sound.
Yes. Why can't the fake engine noises be much more realistic? It can't be that hard to take a decent recording. Most higher end cars have collaborations with audiophile companies and seem to play back decent music that will satisfy most people barring picky audiophiles.

brillomaster said:
fake noises arent for me. i love the real sounds my cars make, and if a car is hampered by modern noise regs then i'd very likely be fitting a induction kit and a sports exhaust. my 2005 boxster sounds absolutely glorious with just a sports exhaust on and its real noise.

my mate has a GR yaris and the fake engine noise was immediately obvious and grating. if it was my car i'd be turning off the fake noise and installing a decent exhaust instead.

as for fake noise in EVs, i wouldnt buy an EV for the noise, would rather sit in hushed comfort than pretending i'm in a ICE car? if i want a car with a nice noise, i'll buy a car with a nice noise!
I get this. However, upgrading to a 'sports' exhaust is also trying to enhance the sound and enjoyment. However, may require a premium on the insurance, and the cost of the exhaust. If this could be achieved by decent artificial sound (I know the word 'decent' doing a lot of heavy lifting here), it would be cheaper. And you could 'try' a Janspeed exhaust today, a Milltek tomorrow and an Akrapovic the next etc. if copyrights could be agreed.

Buy a car with a nice noise - Humans get bored easily. You could try a V6 one day, a V8 the next or a boxer 4/6 etc. And also switch it off on the motorway at constant speed. And when you get bored ....

shirt said:
piped noise is worse imho. removed it from our gt86.

for an ev, would be good to be able to dial in tie fighter noises, like the early ferrari f1 cars on kers regen, they sounded awesome.
Would space ship type noises be interesting for a while?

wong

Original Poster:

1,295 posts

217 months

Thursday 28th March
quotequote all
Any thoughts on the Ioniq 5 N? All the journos seem to like the active sound and e-gears thing. A playstation made real!!!

Fake noise and fake gears.