[johnnny]

I am driving maxima with bose system.
Comparing to my current bose system, e90's stock will be horrible???
If they are about to same quality, I don't mind having a stock audio.......

[DHC]

Bose is generally inferior to other makes. It's amazing what a mammoth advertising budget can do for one's reputation.

The stock BMW system is superior to a Bose.

Of course, the above is simply my (educated) opinion. For others' view on the matter, check out any audiophile website and post your query. www.audiogon.com has some good forums.

[johnnny]

Really???? BMW stock is better than Bose in maxima???
Then I'll have no problem w/o logic 7...........

[vivid]

Johnny, I have an FX45 with a Bose system, I ripped it out as soon as I could; it was god awful... The only thing the Bose had was fairly loud base but the base was not tight nor responsive, the mids and highs were nearly non existent... To my ear it was painful to hear music massacred like the Bose system did... That being said I have not heard the logic 7 system but many have compared it to the Mark Levinson systems in Lexus which is, in my book, the best system out there.

PS Logic 7 is made by Lexicon (a division of HK) who only makes audiophile level equipment... So it should be damn good.

[frothboy]

I brought a Rage Against the Machine CD too my test drive, as suggested on this board. The stock 330 system is absolutely amazing. Not sure the salesman liked my choice of music.

[spikes111]

LOL nice choice for music frothboy! Do they have a new CD out? Anyways, that's good music to test the bass/treble.

[DHC]

Frothboy,

So you blasted the poor sales guy's ears with a little Rage? Nicely done.

Almost without exception, car stereos and speakers are the bottom of the barrel. Horribly cheap components for the tweeters, speaker surrounds, dustcovers, amps and wiring. I'll give the benefit of the doubt to the Lexus since Mark Levinson is one the great American audio brands (even though Mr. Levinson isn't involved with the company anymore).

But Bose takes it to the next level of mediocrity.

Compare the quality of Bose components to the selection at your local Radio Shack. Rat Shack's speakers use the same quality materials yet cost significantly less.

If you want quality audio in your car, I recommend you look at aftermarket speakers. That's where, for a nominal investment, you can drastically improve sound quality.

Sorry if I come off as some sort of snob. My second favorite obsession (next to my soon-to-arrive E90) is audio and I love talking stereos. Check out the forums on www.audiogon.com. There are some serious audiophiles on that site and will give better advice than I can.

[Armen52]

The guys at bimmerfest chewed my head off when I suggested that the for the money of the Logic7 upgrade on the 325 you should be able to get a better system aftermarket.

Something about MOST fiber optics and DSP. Man I don't know I'm not an expert. I just know that usually that's the case. I also know Logic7 is more than I'll ever want.

[AidenL]

Is everyone with the stock 10 speaker system happy, or do you have any regrets in not specifying Logic 7?

Over here, we get 6 speakers as standard, upgrading to Hi Fi gives us the 10 speakers and amp of your stock system, and Logic 7 is a further upgrade - I've gone with the middle option, wondering if I should cough up the extra for L7?

[Broken1]

AdienL - I upgraded to the 10 speaker system, and while it's not as good as the logic 7- I am happy! The sound is clear, and the bass is enough...although not thudd thudd bass!

The sound doesn't distort...even at quite high listening volumes! That's just my oppinion... I'm not such an audiophile...just someone who likes music...and likes music to sound good - it does!

[billgti]

marketing has done wonders for bose's brand and reputation but every audiophile will tell u they suck.

[AidenL]

Originally Posted by Broken1

AdienL - I upgraded to the 10 speaker system, and while it's not as good as the logic 7- I am happy! The sound is clear, and the bass is enough...although not thudd thudd bass!

The sound doesn't distort...even at quite high listening volumes! That's just my oppinion... I'm not such an audiophile...just someone who likes music...and likes music to sound good - it does!

Thank you Seems you probably have the same options as we have here, in that the 10 speaker system is an upgrade for us......

The thought of processing on the Logic 7 is actually deterring me, I usually don't use any effects modes while listening to music....

[HRC]

I wonder how much better the Logic 7 would sound if the speakers alone were upgraded.

Danny

[Squawks]

I am surprised that nobody has mentioned, as all true audiophiles would mention, that in the world of car stereos, the utmost consequential piece of the stereo system would be, hands-down, the amplifier.

I am riding in a crappy Honda Civic right now with stock speakers. I just loaded a 12" woofer for added bass but besides that, added a decent 200W amplifier. Now, in this case power rating is not an issue, as I don't usually listen to loud music. Distortion is key here and most amplifiers in stock cars are horrid. The amplifier I added into my jalopy makes my system sound better than most car systems I've listened to! That includes all the Bose systems from the G35s, Maximas, and Audis I have sat in. Hell, sounded good enough I didn't bother upgrading speakers.

I'm from the audiophile world, and there is nothing that tops a forum like avs (www.avsforum.com). Any other forums are doggerel. Many of those guys on avs are pure geniuses who know what they are doing.

The funny thing about how overrated "speakers" are compared to "amplifiers" is exemplified at avsforum - is it no coincidence that the amps forum has many more posts than the speakers forum?

Moral of the day: if you buy $1,000 worth of speakers and installed them onto your car, they won't end up sounding half as good as buying a $300 amplifier with the stock speakers.

EDIT: I made a typo. The amplifier is not the consequential piece of equipment in just car stereos, but ALL audiophile stereos.

[HRC]

I guess that means your a "TRUE" audiophile and I am not...read "big dummy". Happy?

Danny

[Squawks]

I wasn't targeting anyone. Just surprised that no one has really shed any useful or pertinent information. Nothing but bilge here. You don't have to focus on a BMW forum in order to find good audio advice for your ride. Pretty much any audio forum will work.

[CC 330i]

Well I had a Bose system in my last car, and the Logic7 in my 330i is at least as good. Better for some things, but maybe not as crisp in the high range as the Bose was. If you are really into hip-hop, you might be disappointed with the bass response, but I find it fine.

It seems very good for most types of music. Maybe not thumpy enough for those who like 15 inch subwoofers, but very good for most different types of music. And the amount of shaping you can do to the frequency range is very good. There is a very comprehensive equalizer (which can help disguise some of the amp and speaker's shortcomings).

[younghov85]

the stock 325i sound system is good, it has two subwoofers, one under each seat, the only problem i have is that BMW states there is ten speakers stock when its really eight

[E90 Enthusiast]

Originally Posted by younghov85

the stock 325i sound system is good, it has two subwoofers, one under each seat, the only problem i have is that BMW states there is ten speakers stock when its really eight

I think they count the rear deck speakers as four, even though there are two grill covers - a separate mid range and tweeter for each side...

[egtlover74]

Originally Posted by E90 Enthusiast

I think they count the rear deck speakers as four, even though there are two grill covers - a separate mid range and tweeter for each side...

There are two speakers on dashboard, two on side mirrors, two on the lower part of the doors, two subwoofers under the seats, and two speakers in the back seat area.

[nawtyxes]

went to the dealership on Saturday to specifically ask my salesman to let me hear the stock system stereo in the 325i. He said no problem, walked me over to the car, we got in, I pulled out my cd, apologized in advance for the references to hoes, pimps, guns and bling that he was about to hear and then proceeded to play the disc. I adjusted the bass to 0 and the treble to 5. Everything sounded great. Sound was coming from all angles, and it was clear. My CA even commented that he had never really heard the speakers sound so good and was encouring me to take it up more, he wanted to see when distortion would occur. In all I was truly impressed with the sound and now I really can't wait for my first drive. Hopefully it will be at the end of the week.

[MonacoBlueNJ]

Squawks, don't want to start a fight here but drivers are by far the most important aspect of a quality setup. If you were forced to skimp on one part of your system, amps should be the first. With quality signal processing(head unit, crossovers) and quality drivers, its really diminishing returns for money spent on "reference" amps as long as you have a quality with a low distortion level.
In your example, obviously anything powered by an outboard amp is going to sound a hell of a lot better than something ran off the head unit. Also, you are right amp wattage(and speaker sensativity) is directly related to distortion-but I'll take average amps and good drivers and sound processing over average drivers and good amps anyday.