New BMW M5 (F10) fake engine noise
New BMW M5 (F10) fake engine noise
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Carfolio

Original Poster:

1,124 posts

201 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
Something that's really got me today is the fact that BMW have given the new M5 engine sound effects that get played, real-time, through the car's audio system. It's sheer lunacy. They've actually gone a step further and dubbed it "Active Sound". Nuts!

Anyway, here's the PR fluff about it:

BMW Media Release said:
Active Sound Design delivers precise feedback.

M5 drivers will be given an even more direct reminder of their car’s
performance capability by technology that brings the distinctive sound of the
high-performance V8 – in all its glory – into the cabin of the new BMW M5.
The Active Sound Design technology specially developed for the new
BMW M5 takes its cues from the driving situation at any one time to deliver an
accurate reproduction of the engine’s sound through the car’s audio system.
The system’s digital signal processing exchanges data directly with the engine
management, allowing it to reflect the engine’s revs and torque, and the car’s
speed over the road. The result over a smoothly driven journey is a discreet
soundtrack in keeping with the harmonious and assured characteristics of the
V8 powerplant. A stamp on the accelerator, meanwhile, prompts an immediate
audible response to match the instantaneous – and typically M – burst of
power from beneath the bonnet.
In generating its signals, Active Sound Design takes its cues from the firing
sequence of the eight-cylinder engine and the frequency range of the exhaust
system. This gives the driver an extremely accurate impression of current
engine load and an even more intense sensation of the V8’s high-performance
characteristics. At the same time the Active Sound Design control unit
ensures an even spread of sound across all five seats of the new BMW M5,
while observing the legal guidelines governing noise emissions inside and
outside the car. The characteristics of the sound produced by the technology
also adjust to the engine settings selected by the driver. For example,
switching to “Sport” or “Sport+” mode sharpens not only the engine’s
responsiveness but also the acoustic experience inside the car.
Edited by Carfolio on Thursday 29th September 16:40

Zod

35,295 posts

278 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
It's not quite fake - it is the actual sound of the engine amplified, but it's ridiculous. Why not just have less soundproofing?

paulmoonraker

2,850 posts

183 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
st idea.

Hugo a Gogo

23,417 posts

253 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
Zod said:
It's not quite fake - it is the actual sound of the engine amplified, but it's ridiculous. Why not just have less soundproofing?
"The system’s digital signal processing exchanges data directly with the engine
management, allowing it to reflect the engine’s revs and torque, and the car’s
speed over the road. The result over a smoothly driven journey is a discreet
soundtrack in keeping with the harmonious and assured characteristics of the
V8 powerplant."

sounds like it's fake sound to me

T84

6,941 posts

214 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
I just checked the date of the post to see if it was April.

Soovy

35,829 posts

291 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all


What utter c ntery.

Carfolio

Original Poster:

1,124 posts

201 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
T84 said:
I just checked the date of the post to see if it was April.
Unfortunately the PR kit that this was snipped from is dated September 2011 frown

Laird

26,140 posts

234 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
T84 said:
I just checked the date of the post to see if it was April.
Indeed.

Not very 'Motorsport' is it?

>sigh<

nabby

17 posts

172 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
Could you not just open the window and listen

mig25_foxbat2003

5,426 posts

231 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
What a bizarre idea. That's like booking a top act for a gig, then making them sing in a soundproof box, have the songs analysed by speech recognition software, then played back through a text-to-speech system! Wouldn't be that bad in the case of Bieber.

VeeDub Geezer

461 posts

174 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
My cars do this already on the AM waveband. Kind of.

The Nur

9,168 posts

205 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
Surely adding weight, complexity and unnecessary expense is the anti-thesis of an M car?

T84

6,941 posts

214 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
I'm all for modern technology advancement but if you want to hear the sound from your big V8 just fit a sodding massive pipe to it and enjoy... Surely?

Twincam16

27,647 posts

278 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
mig25_foxbat2003 said:
What a bizarre idea. That's like booking a top act for a gig, then making them sing in a soundproof box, have the songs analysed by speech recognition software, then played back through a text-to-speech system! Wouldn't be that bad in the case of Bieber.
It would. It's also yet another example of this let's-make-computers-do-everything-even-though-they-don't-really-have-to-but-because-we-can culture that infests any given project whenever IT nerds get involved.

I'd far rather they didn't bother and simply added the option of a big, loud sports exhaust. Simpler, cheaper, less complex, more effective, and although it's anathema to the computer-nerd plague, just more 'real'.

But no, let's do everything virtually, via screens and synthesisers. Let's just pretend to be alive rolleyes.

EDLT

15,421 posts

226 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
The Nur said:
Surely adding weight, complexity and unnecessary expense is the anti-thesis of an M car?
Every M car has been heavier and more complicated than the last.

NiceCupOfTea

25,510 posts

271 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
It's all a long way from the e30 M3 isn't it?

Laird

26,140 posts

234 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
NiceCupOfTea said:
It's all a long way from the e30 M3 isn't it?
yes

Or the E28 M5 for that matter.

Major Fallout

5,278 posts

251 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
quotequote all
This is getting silly now! banghead

Mazdarese

21,131 posts

207 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
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Premise ridiculous.

Dids444

419 posts

240 months

Thursday 29th September 2011
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Is this a standard feature or is it on the options list scratchchin