The Standard Stereo in a 2011 X5

Originally Posted by 335i

I'll give this a test - My home equipment was calibrated by the company I purchased it from as part of the purchase/delivery, so I don't own any of this (though I should). I do have the premium sound/eq.

I'm curious, what home equipment do you have?

The BMW equalizer only covers 100, 200, 500, 1K, 2k, 5k and 10k. You can also use the bass and treble to help out a little but I doubt it will do much.

Originally Posted by Jim E.

I'm curious, what home equipment do you have?

I have B&W 803d's (current version, bought slightly used) and a Classe 2300 AMP for the stereo side - I'd really like to get my hands on some 802d's.. I have to wait a while though..

I came from ML's, and though they sounded great, I ended up going away from the stats.. I guess just a change of taste.. probably why this "hole" in the X5 is driving me nuts LOL

Originally Posted by onefish2

Just picked up a X5 35i Premium today. I will keep this short and sweet. I am am music fanatic. I have over 1500 CDs, 65,000 songs in iTunes, been to over 100 concerts, 10+ ipods over the years, 3 stereos in my house and iPod docks all over my house too. I am a music perfectionist. Maybe even an audiophile.

The standard stereo in the X5 is just fine. If you listen to mp3s, Sirius or FM radio... well all of those are poor sources to begin with. If you only listen to CDs while the car is parked then maybe, just maybe you won't like the stereo.

Its a good car stereo. Its in your car. Not in your living room.

There's no doubt you really enjoy listening to music; but with all the music, ipods, and other stuff you have, I don't think you are actually listening TO the music. As a sound engineer, I can guarantee you that the standard sound system is not just fine and far from perfect. It really is horrible to be honest...especially for their top of the line suv. The mids seem to be absent, the bass is muddy, and the high are thin. There is no clarity or balance whatsoever, and the adjusting the eq is a joke. The base audio in my sister's entry level Lexus IS is far better.
I'm not pulling my hair out, because I don't buy cars for their audio; but it kinda sucks that for all the thought they put into the idrive, they fell short by putting in the cheapest speakers they could find.

Originally Posted by 335i

I have B&W 803d's (current version, bought slightly used) and a Classe 2300 AMP for the stereo side - I'd really like to get my hands on some 802d's.. I have to wait a while though..

I came from ML's, and though they sounded great, I ended up going away from the stats.. I guess just a change of taste.. probably why this "hole" in the X5 is driving me nuts LOL

Nice setup. Which processor do you use?

I think given the quality of your equipment at home (not sure if you have any acoustic room treatment), you might have preferred the enhanced premium sound option (752) in the X5.

I have it and it is quite good. Clarity (at all volumes) and separation is excellent. Bass is good. Some "holes" but overall a damn fine system for a car/suv.

Originally Posted by Jim E.

Nice setup. Which processor do you use?

I think given the quality of your equipment at home (not sure if you have any acoustic room treatment), you might have preferred the enhanced premium sound option (752) in the X5.

I have it and it is quite good. Clarity (at all volumes) and separation is excellent. Bass is good. Some "holes" but overall a damn fine system for a car/suv.

Thanks. Is that the BMW individual system? I'd definitely pay the $ for it.. but I've heard that getting individual options is kind of a big deal LOL. One of the members on here ended up getting that system, along with some other individual options - would definitely enjoy it.

I've got the premium system for the diesel, 16 speakers, 600W, 9 channels - no complaints on clarity - but there are some "holes". I'm looking forward to getting this CD and doing a little more tinkering. I've chalked it up to "it's an SUV" with a bigger interior.

Right now I've got a Parasound C2 for the controller.

Originally Posted by jimmy08awd

There's no doubt you really enjoy listening to music; but with all the music, ipods, and other stuff you have, I don't think you are actually listening TO the music. As a sound engineer, I can guarantee you that the standard sound system is not just fine and far from perfect. It really is horrible to be honest...especially for their top of the line suv. The mids seem to be absent, the bass is muddy, and the high are thin. There is no clarity or balance whatsoever, and the adjusting the eq is a joke. The base audio in my sister's entry level Lexus IS is far better.
I'm not pulling my hair out, because I don't buy cars for their audio; but it kinda sucks that for all the thought they put into the idrive, they fell short by putting in the cheapest speakers they could find.

One more time. I am a big music fan and listener. The base stereo sounds fine for me. Just wanted this post to exist on this forum to state that its not necessary to spend another $1200 for the premium system.

To each their own. What sounds bad to the rest of you sounds fine to me. Not great. Not wonderful but its OK for what it is.

And the point of listing the mp3s, CDs, iPods, home stereos and concerts was to demonstrate that I am constantly listening to music in my house, in my car, with headphones or at concerts. I know what sounds good to me. I am a very critical listener.

Let this post and it comments stand so that others considering the X5 and the base stereo/premium stereo will be able to make an educated decision based on these opinions.

There's a lot to be said for enjoying what you have.

My first audio setup was circa 1970: a "Hi Fi" console record player (33, 45 and 78), to which I attached a Radio Shack cassette player using an RCA-out jack and alligator clips. I thought it was awesome - partly because it had a tube amp, but mostly because it was "mine" and I could control the source material.

My first personal stereo was a Sony Walkman - anyone else old enough to remember those? The sounds it made were equally awesome to my teenage ears.

Though I never really became an audophile, I did eventually evolve to McIntosh electronics (no, this McIntosh is not made by Apple), a Linn Sondek with an Itok, Snells and other semi-serious toys. I snapped up Teldec, half speed mastered and direct-to-disc recordings and even had a DBX decoder (props to anyone who remembers those, and or who has Jazz at the Pawnshop in their vinyl collection). Truth be told, it all got to be pretty silly after a while.

Somehow, the ridiculously expensive virgin vinyl Teldec recordings never gave me as much joy as those first few cassettes I bought in Middle School - In A Gadda Da Vida and Live at Big Pink, in mono, with very limited dynamic range and tons of tape hiss. Which made me realize that at the end of the day, having source material that excites me is a lot more important than the analog or digital system it's played through.

Is the Premium Sound better than the base stereo? You betcha. Is it perfect? Hell no. Was it worth the extra money? Yes. But would I hate driving my X5 or M3 without it? Nope. I got the Roundels for their driving prowess, not for their audio.

As always, YMMV.

I posted a couple of weeks ago about the premium sound not being all that premium. I'm not an audiophile, but I know what sounds good to me - especially after owning a half dozen vehicles ( yes, I'm a little crazy and somewhat *****zo when it comes to cars ). All have been brand new and among them have been a Lexus 450h, ML350 Bluetec, ML550, E350c, Audi A5 and ... a Prius in the past 18 months or so ( I warned you that I'm a bit crazy ). I can honestly say that the base sound system in the 2010 X5 that I had was litterally no better than that of the Prius. In fact, the Prius may have been a bit better. The base sound systems in each of those vehicles was FAR superior to that of the base sound system in the X5.

I recently came to my senses and settled on what I should have gotten in the first place, which is a 2011X5d which I am completely in love with in spite of the " Premium " sound system which doesn't hold a candle to the Bang and Oleufson in the A5 which cost a full $20,000 less than the X5d. I took the advice of a couple of guys on here regarding the "C" setting on the "equalizer" ( which adds a needlessly complicated dimension for not much in the way of results ) and it does sound better - so thanks to you guys. With that said there was no equalizer on the A5 and it sounded like sitting in the front row of an orchestra as opposed to sound coming from a tin can in the X5 with base sound.

Just sayin', for 69 thousand bucks, I think that BMW can do a hell of a lot better in that department. They build great cars that handle like a dream, but a great handling car with a great sound system does NOT need to be mutually exclusive. With all that said I love and actually plan on keeping my X5d and I really enjoy and appreciate the opinions, input and help that bimmerfest members provide.

Originally Posted by Jim E.

Nice setup. Which processor do you use?

I think given the quality of your equipment at home (not sure if you have any acoustic room treatment), you might have preferred the enhanced premium sound option (752) in the X5.

I have it and it is quite good. Clarity (at all volumes) and separation is excellent. Bass is good. Some "holes" but overall a damn fine system for a car/suv.

I wish i had know about the EPS. It would have been a no brainer.

Originally Posted by 335i

I have B&W 803d's (current version, bought slightly used) and a Classe 2300 AMP for the stereo side - I'd really like to get my hands on some 802d's.. I have to wait a while though..

I came from ML's, and though they sounded great, I ended up going away from the stats.. I guess just a change of taste.. probably why this "hole" in the X5 is driving me nuts LOL

Nice system. Good to see people still running dedicated 2channel setup. An alternative to the 802s you might want to check out is the JM lab. I run the utopia and so far haven't had to upgrade.

Originally Posted by jimmy08awd

There's no doubt you really enjoy listening to music; but with all the music, ipods, and other stuff you have, I don't think you are actually listening TO the music. As a sound engineer, I can guarantee you that the standard sound system is not just fine and far from perfect. It really is horrible to be honest...especially for their top of the line suv. The mids seem to be absent, the bass is muddy, and the high are thin. There is no clarity or balance whatsoever, and the adjusting the eq is a joke. The base audio in my sister's entry level Lexus IS is far better.
I'm not pulling my hair out, because I don't buy cars for their audio; but it kinda sucks that for all the thought they put into the idrive, they fell short by putting in the cheapest speakers they could find.

I have to agree with this post. To me when you pay over 50k for a car AND you buy the technology package at the very least BMW should have a decent base system, maybe the one that they charge an arm and a leg to add to an already inflated navigation system. But they will continue to do this as long as people pay good money for something that should be already included.

Originally Posted by leetheway

Nice system. Good to see people still running dedicated 2channel setup. An alternative to the 802s you might want to check out is the JM lab. I run the utopia and so far haven't had to upgrade.

LOL - thanks. I wouldn't say I "have" to upgrade" - but rather.. they are a piece of art, and I prefer the looks over the 803's, plain and simple. I love the 803's, don't get me wrong - but there's just something about the 802's - if you could make a sexy speaker, that would be it. That, and they sound amazing as well.

Originally Posted by onefish2

One more time. I am a big music fan and listener. The base stereo sounds fine for me. Just wanted this post to exist on this forum to state that its not necessary to spend another $1200 for the premium system.

To each their own. What sounds bad to the rest of you sounds fine to me. Not great. Not wonderful but its OK for what it is.

And the point of listing the mp3s, CDs, iPods, home stereos and concerts was to demonstrate that I am constantly listening to music in my house, in my car, with headphones or at concerts. I know what sounds good to me. I am a very critical listener.

Let this post and it comments stand so that others considering the X5 and the base stereo/premium stereo will be able to make an educated decision based on these opinions.

I dont' think anyone is trying to tell you that you don't enjoy music or listen to is constantly - but you are one of very few people who thinks the "base" sound is "just fine". It really boils down to what you define as "just fine". There are folks who won't recognize the difference between a calibrated TV or monitor and one that isn't. Some just like a little more refinement before we say "just fine".