[TheChairGuy]

....it sucks like their home speakers and systems

I bought the car anyhooch - it had over-riding virtues other than sound system.

John

[thunderbrick]

Black out the Bose logos.  It won't piss you off as much.

[srb]

Does Bose use midbass drivers and tweeters in their car systems, or is it "full range" drivers + subwoofers only, as in their home systems?
 
Steve

[krikor]

Conversely... the sound system in my Subaru Outback was the deciding factor that sold me on the vehicle - McIntosh!

[srb]

Not real familiar with Bose are you?

It's a legitimate question, but thank you for that helpful response.
 
While many people might be very happy with the sound of full range drivers in the home, IMO that doesn't work as well in an automobile environment due to the masking effect of additional road and mechanical noise as well as the often encountered sub-optimal driver placement.
 
Steve

[Pez]

....it sucks like their home speakers and systems

I bought the car anyhooch - it had over-riding virtues other than sound system.

John

BAH! you just don't know what's good. Bose knows how to make exciting sound. You see, frequency response should be like a roller coaster; it should have lots of scary peaks and valleys and make you nauseous.

[Berto]

If you have money to blow , best bet is go to a shop like a friend of mine owns and have him design you a system that has won him awards at various shows. Plus you will have some coin to put towards it since you didnt get ripped off on the so called upgraded stereo. Of course most luxury cars come with there best effort or just group it together with alot of stuff you might want.

Ive got a bose stereo in my infiniti truck and the sound sux, but thankfully ony for only 5minutes til i get to the train station

[chrisby]

Conversely... the sound system in my Subaru Outback was the deciding factor that sold me on the vehicle - McIntosh!

you mean Clarion?   


http://www.clarion.com/jp/en/company/profile/enterprise/mcintosh/index.html

[Cheerwino]

....it sucks like their home speakers and systems

I bought the car anyhooch - it had over-riding virtues other than sound system.

John

What make and model car? I recall some Bose factory systems sound decent for factory car audio--the older Maxima's for one.

I replaced my 02 Acura MDX's Bose with an Alpine head and amp, Polk speakers, and JL sub. It sounds way better but has been problematic/erratic. I'd rather have all that money back to spend on home audio where it is easier to make adjustments and changes.  In future cars, I'm just going to make do or do a minimally invasive upgrade instead of a full tear out. Of course, I can shame the wannabe gansta cars round here, so there's that. 

My wife's Lexus 430 SC has a wonderful sounding Mark Levinson factory system. Repaired a degraded speaker surround, I saw the actual speakers were nothing fancy looking. But, it was obviously well tuned to the car with very nice sound. I realize this is just a marketing rebadge but someone at least put some thought into the factory design. Can't say the same for the MDX Bose.

Just my two cents. Best to ya. Rock on! 

[bregez]

Does Bose use midbass drivers and tweeters in their car systems, or is it "full range" drivers + subwoofers only, as in their home systems?
 
Steve

The Bose system in my car has A-pillar mounted tweeters and I am assuming 6-1/2" full range drivers in all four doors.  It also has two 6"x9" deck mounted speakers and a sub in the trunk.  There is an amplifier in the trunk and one under the dash plus the head unit.  It is not soo bad, probably better than the standard radio option.  The best factory units I have heard were those Monsoon systems that GM used to put in some of their their late 90's cars. 

[bregez]

My wife's Lexus 430 SC has a wonderful sounding Mark Levinson factory system.

Did it have a tape deck?
I think this was the last production vehicle in the United States that had a tape deck as an option.  Lexus finally discontinued the option in 2010.

[eclein]

John Congrats on the new wheels!!!!and those speakers

[Bemopti123]

Conversely... the sound system in my Subaru Outback was the deciding factor that sold me on the vehicle - McIntosh!

Dude, that must have been an after factory system right?  I chose to upgrade trims on my Outback 2011 in order to get leather and an HK system, which is not bad at all. 

[werd]

....it sucks like their home speakers and systems

I bought the car anyhooch - it had over-riding virtues other than sound system.

John

So you buy a bose stereo now and you get a car built around it....lol

[lonewolfny42]

Congrats John....

Let me know if you need any 8 Tracks....

[TheChairGuy]

Does Bose use midbass drivers and tweeters in their car systems, or is it "full range" drivers + subwoofers only, as in their home systems?
 
Steve

I don't know Steve - I only have the car 2 days and haven't delved into the sound system other than to say I'm underwhelmed

I'll try to report back when I get a handle on it.

My prior SAAB '99 9-3 5-door hatchback had 4 gawd awful speakers, very little power and a tape deck (!)....so although I'm underwhelmed with the system here, it's actually leagues better than the system my old car had. 

This is what I bought....a SAAB 9-3 again, only updated by a decade and in AERO form now.  It has grey leather (white not offered in US it appears), exactly this color Fusion Blue Metallic with the roof rails and no NAVI (not needed - it's on my iPhone now). 

It's a 2008 (SAAB went bankrupt in late 2008 and didn't produce any 2009's while GM tried to dispose of them) with 15,500 miles so 45% of the sticker got whacked in so few miles (still on warranty) .  It has a twin-scroll turbo V6 sourced from GM's Aussie Holden division...good for 250HP+.  It's a helluva' lot more refined than SAAB's normal 4 cylinder offerings, but comes with precious little mpg penalty 'cause it has an automatic 6 speed tranny. 

Don't ask me to translate this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATkMpXHTh_k

I gots me a Johnson every time I start her up   Def the most fun driving I've had since 1991 and my long lamented VW GTI 8 valve. In between was a totally forgettable Honda Accord and the aforementioned '99 9-3...which I tried dearly to love in 11 years but it's had too many handling issues.

In the end I liked it a lot, but it gave me no Johnson's 

John

[JakeJ]

Congrats John....

Let me know if you need any 8 Tracks....

That sure brings back a bunch of smoke-filled memories!

Congrats, John.  I snagged an '00 BMW 7 series recently that has a Harmon Kardon "premium" sound system that, IMO, sucks the big rutabaga!  It has some sort of DSP eq that I just don't get.  Playing around with it I set all the eq flat and it sounded just like a '60s pocket transistor radio!  I soon learned that all the eq setting needed to be maxed out for it to sound any less than cringing.  Oh, and it's got hall effects!  What the...  If it wasn't so heavily integrated I'd have the head yanked and put in something aftermarket.  But it ain't worth it.

Now when it comes to spirited driving and the associated "wood" that results, well, let's just say I can relate, brother!

Oh yeah,  pics or it isn't real!

[TheChairGuy]

Now when it comes to spirited driving and the associated "wood" that results, well, let's just say I can relate, brother!

Oh yeah,  pics or it isn't real!

A-okay, Big Jake...pics from the prior owner, not me (but they're good)

[JakeJ]

Very nice, John.  Me likey the color!  Oh and a white leather interior is so gay, be glad it's gray.

My beast -
 

[TomS]

Lovely ride John.  GM did their best to suck the soul out of them, but that one looks (and must sound) very cool.  Sport wagons rule!