Artificially enhanced engine sounds..yes or no?
Discussion
http://business.financialpost.com/2015/01/22/the-a...
It appears as if this is unstoppable. I recall a novelty plug-in device you could get yers ago so your three-cylinder Smart could sound like an AMG,and it seemed like a good joke. I never for a second thought it would become a widely adopted feature of even performance cars.
Now,listening to a sound sample of a different engine seems to me to be complete deception. I can understand piping some engine noise in, if its actually from the actual engine, but I do not want to have my car lip-synching to a recording or sound generator.
It appears as if this is unstoppable. I recall a novelty plug-in device you could get yers ago so your three-cylinder Smart could sound like an AMG,and it seemed like a good joke. I never for a second thought it would become a widely adopted feature of even performance cars.
Now,listening to a sound sample of a different engine seems to me to be complete deception. I can understand piping some engine noise in, if its actually from the actual engine, but I do not want to have my car lip-synching to a recording or sound generator.
It depends on the car e.g.
1. BMW M3/M4 - should be the sound of the car not fake.
2. BMW i8 - fake sound fine as not an M car and a 1.5
My new 640d has this and to be fair diesels sound totally s
t so I am happy that my car sounds a little better inside.
My last C63 certainly didn't need it
1. BMW M3/M4 - should be the sound of the car not fake.
2. BMW i8 - fake sound fine as not an M car and a 1.5
My new 640d has this and to be fair diesels sound totally s
t so I am happy that my car sounds a little better inside.My last C63 certainly didn't need it
I guess the point is that YOU, who doesn't want it, can have it switched off and listen to the anodyne 4 pot noise that the car makes. Perfect! Meanwhile, someone who would love a rumbling V8, or a screaming V12 soundtrack can have that. It won't affect you, but they may derive some joy from it, it might make their day a wee bit better, and it might allow someone to experience something they otherwise couldn't. No harm done is there?
I've never experienced a car with faked sound but I have to say I hate the idea of it. Especially things like the Renaultsport Clio with the choice of which car you would like it to sound like. Really? I think it would drive me nuts if I had to live with that. I don't mind active exhausts so much, the sound is at least sort of coming from the engine, but any sort of electronic sounds, through the stereo or similar...just no.
Surely it's actually easier for manufacturers to design an exhaust system that sounds half decent than it is to do all the necessary programming to have a digital version through the speakers, matched to the engine revs and so on. Isn't it?
Surely it's actually easier for manufacturers to design an exhaust system that sounds half decent than it is to do all the necessary programming to have a digital version through the speakers, matched to the engine revs and so on. Isn't it?
Cylinder 8 said:
I've never experienced a car with faked sound but I have to say I hate the idea of it. Especially things like the Renaultsport Clio with the choice of which car you would like it to sound like. Really? I think it would drive me nuts if I had to live with that. I don't mind active exhausts so much, the sound is at least sort of coming from the engine, but any sort of electronic sounds, through the stereo or similar...just no.
Surely it's actually easier for manufacturers to design an exhaust system that sounds half decent than it is to do all the necessary programming to have a digital version through the speakers, matched to the engine revs and so on. Isn't it?
Software and code are cheap and can be switched on and off, a noisy exhaust or (more relevant really) induction system is less switchable, more expensive on a piece basis if it is switchable, and won't appeal to the wider market.Surely it's actually easier for manufacturers to design an exhaust system that sounds half decent than it is to do all the necessary programming to have a digital version through the speakers, matched to the engine revs and so on. Isn't it?
If the sound waves hitting your eardrums are the same (big if I guess!) then what difference does it make how that sound wave is generated?
jmcc500 said:
I guess the point is that YOU, who doesn't want it, can have it switched off and listen to the anodyne 4 pot noise that the car makes. Perfect! Meanwhile, someone who would love a rumbling V8, or a screaming V12 soundtrack can have that. It won't affect you, but they may derive some joy from it, it might make their day a wee bit better, and it might allow someone to experience something they otherwise couldn't. No harm done is there?
Of course people should order exactly what they want. I am not entirely sure that there is always an off switch for this stuff though. I personally want to hear what is really going on, whether its in a three cylinder or a V8. I suspect that as this becomes the norm, nobody will actually know what the authentic sound is. If there were a button saying "artificial engine sound', that might be more informative.
jmcc500 said:
Software and code are cheap and can be switched on and off, a noisy exhaust or (more relevant really) induction system is less switchable, more expensive on a piece basis if it is switchable, and won't appeal to the wider market.
If the sound waves hitting your eardrums are the same (big if I guess!) then what difference does it make how that sound wave is generated?
Good point, I suppose it's just that I wouldn't be happy knowing that what I was hearing wasn't the real noise of the car. If the sound waves hitting your eardrums are the same (big if I guess!) then what difference does it make how that sound wave is generated?
Hooli said:
No, just make the damn thing sound right to start with. It's like stability control rather than a chassis that is actually safe to drive.
Right for who? PHers who want a fruity noise or Joe Public who wants peace and quiet? Everything's a compromise and this is one technology that removes some compromise. jmcc500 said:
Hooli said:
No, just make the damn thing sound right to start with. It's like stability control rather than a chassis that is actually safe to drive.
Right for who? PHers who want a fruity noise or Joe Public who wants peace and quiet? Everything's a compromise and this is one technology that removes some compromise. My mindset was always that I'd try and embrace it for what it was - an attempt to improve an otherwise dull sound. That was until I got a car that does it - and I hate it. It's not that it doesn't enhance the sound, it's just that it's so predictable. Over 2500rpm and there it is. It's just annoying.
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