TheVon Posted August 5, 2003 Report Share Posted August 5, 2003 What does Bose sound system consists of? Is there an amp and where if so? Is there a sub? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drillslinger Posted August 5, 2003 Report Share Posted August 5, 2003 Bose (Supposedly) consists of.... Uprated Speakers, an Amp (Back in hatch on right side) and an uprated Sub (2 speakers as opposed to std 1) There are also some internal settings, (i.e. equalizer stuff) that are different as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bison1379134007 Posted August 5, 2003 Report Share Posted August 5, 2003 presuming you mean on an audi? i always had the bose and its really good. (compared to VW systems and my TVR ice anyhow!!) it has an amp and a sub yes. I don't know where the amp gets installed though... the sub lives in the left compartment in the boot where the cd stack goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drillslinger Posted August 5, 2003 Report Share Posted August 5, 2003 Amp's on the opposite side of the Sub, I'm just an idiot and wrote it down backwards Fixed now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuncS3 Posted August 5, 2003 Report Share Posted August 5, 2003 dont forget cornflakes box in the boot as well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drillslinger Posted August 5, 2003 Report Share Posted August 5, 2003 Sorry Dude, I got Raisin Bran. Might be the German Spec Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mollox Posted August 5, 2003 Report Share Posted August 5, 2003 I don't rate Bose! Sorry to play 's advocate but you can't beat an aftermarket head unit, good amp and component speakers. The more of the last 2 the merrier (to a point!) but even a basic system built to this design will sound so so much better than Bose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drillslinger Posted August 5, 2003 Report Share Posted August 5, 2003 Dude, it depends on what you want. I wanted a factory system which was good enough that I wouldn't want to mess with it right away. The Bose worked. I've had my car now for almost 4 years now, and the Bose is still working fine. Now if you're an Audiophile, and simply MUST have the best quality sound, then you're right, nothing'll beat an aftermarket system designed to your own tastes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheVon Posted August 5, 2003 Author Report Share Posted August 5, 2003 Well, here's my story: I haven't order the Bose soundsystem and not even a HU with the new car (actually you can't order the soundsystem without at list the basic original HU), cos' I wanted an mp3 player. Now I have an mp3 player with pretty good front speakers and ok back speakers, but the sound seems to be better in a Bose soundsystem equipped A6 than in my S3. (a) So I just wanted to know where's the trick, if there 's an amp a sub etc. I am not very thrilled about installing an amp - don't know where to put it (probably won't fit on the side in the trunk) and don't want to tear my car down to much (hate the rattle that usually follows) - but in the end that's probably the best solution. (b) Another option is replacing the HU . But I have doubts that that'll improve my sound much. © Definitely don't want ot put the SUB in my car - there's not much space already. Well, I know about car hi-fi, so maybe I'm wrong. Any suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seadweller Posted August 5, 2003 Report Share Posted August 5, 2003 I think Drill's summed it up, unless you know exactly what you want and are happy to rip a brand new car apart, going with the Bose is a good initial move. It's a shame car manufacturers equipement is at least half as good and twice the price of even average aftermarket stuff but that's the way it is. The Bose is very good for the money and will keep me from upgrading for a while if at all. My advice to you Von if you didn't get the Bose, is to stick with what you have or if it's so bad go to a really good installer and spend thousands on a custom install! You have pretty much got to have a sub in a car, I think the Bose is custom made for each model so it fit's really well. You won't easily match/recreate it's sound/cost/convenience so you may as well break the bank and trounce the Bose to make any space sacrifices worthwhile..........Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A3Floyd Posted August 6, 2003 Report Share Posted August 6, 2003 I too am not a lover of the BOSE setup on the A3/S3 but i've heard it in other models and it sounds great. if you're not too fussed about soundstaging and just want a loud system that sounds sounds good then i'd recommend going for bose as fitting aftermarket systems is always a pain in the butt and more often than not, creates creaks and rattles cos the trim has been removed, etc. I've not got bose in my S3 cos i hated the way the soundstaging was biased to the rear on my bose equipped A3. The sound quality isn't anywhere near as good as the bose of course but at least the sound is now coming from the right direction! I'm gonna stick with my current HU and just upgrade the speakers and maybe (if i really need too) slot an amp on somewhere. My main gripe about the setup in my S3 is the the tweeters dont seem to do much tweeting! so i'm gonna replace the fronts with a decent set of components. Also you need to bear in mind that the sound quality from a good MP3 player is not going to up to the standard of a reasonable CD player. It's more noticeable in car systems too. I had a minidisk player (kinda similar to mp3) in my old mx5 and replaced it with a cd player and the difference in sound quality was amazing. just something to maybe keep in mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spearcey Posted August 6, 2003 Report Share Posted August 6, 2003 I has the BOSE system and CD-changer on my first S3, but I came to the conclusion that although the sound was okay, it didn't match up to the £900 you have to spend in the UK to get it. Especially as it was out-performed by my old pioneer unit which now resides in my wife's car. My new S3 doesn't have it, especially as you have to pay even more extra to get the concert which used to be standard, and the stock base chorus unit really is rubbish. Instead I am going to spend the money on aftermarket stuff. I have an Alpine 9812RR arriving this week, which as well as having red illumination, has MP3 and WMA support. I'm going to see how it fares, before spending any other money on the car. I don't need a mobile dance studio, just want reasonable sound for my money. I'm not sure whether burning MP3 disks and swapping them around in the car is going to get on my wick, if it does then a changer will go in the boot in the same cubby hole as the factory unit. As for the stock speakers, we'll see. I am concerned that having the active rear speakers and stock sub in the boot cubby hole will compromise the potential performance of the Alpine unit, and if it does then I'll run speaker level input to the rear speakers and swap 'em for a decent set of components in the rear. If the sub has it's own amplifier then I'll wire this to the dedicated sub pre-out on the HU, or put in a small mono-block amp in the rear cubby hole (I reckon there's still room even with a changer for a small one). I can't lose an inch from the boot space as this gets crammed full every weekend, though I *might* play with an active sub-tube thing that I can leave in the garage at the weekend and swap the cable back to the stock unit. I may get an installer to do the rear speaker install as the panels are reputed to be a pain to get off, but I'm not scared of doing it myself and that way I know which clips were broken doing it. If the panels do come off (front or rear) then additional sound deadening is going in while they're off - as tyre noise will ruin any of the best sound even from the bose system anyway. The only thing I know that will get on my wick is having to pop off the front of the stereo again but I'll just keep thinking of the money I've saved. I agree that it's hassle to do all of the above, but I do feel the price tag of the BOSE system is outrageous for a totally average sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drillslinger Posted August 6, 2003 Report Share Posted August 6, 2003 Dude, 900 GBP I only paid IIRC 700 DM more for my Bose Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo-S3 Posted August 6, 2003 Report Share Posted August 6, 2003 Listening to BOSE on the standrad factory head unit isnt a wonderful experience well actually its a bit boring. I fitted a DVD Sat nav system in my car and used the line outputs from the display head unit to the BOSE amp and speakers and sub. The transformation in sound is unbelievable, so much more clarity in the sound and the bass has again been vastly improved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bison1379134007 Posted August 6, 2003 Report Share Posted August 6, 2003 thevon... unfortunatly that IS the trick. An amp and sub. See ya sub frees up your speakers for playing mid range... i have no sub on the r32 (did on my s3) and its noticable that the bass steals away from the mids. I think to run a sub you need an amp... and also using a pre amplified output on your head unit then amplifiying (providing your speakers are up to it) is gonna give you a much nicer quality sound at volume. I do rate the bose setup on the audio... however after listeing to inigo's setup in his s3 last night i think next time i'd save the cash and put another 400 quid to it and get a really nice setup. I guess the bose if really for people who want nice sound but don't want that hassle or cost of aftermarket setups.. and for that it works well - i bought it twice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted August 6, 2003 Report Share Posted August 6, 2003 Drill - the £900 was for Bose and the CD changer in the UK (Bose is £500) One thing not considered so far is resale, most people (myself included) want a reasonable sounding system that deosn't involve after-market hassles, making holes in expensive trim and a non-std HU looking really out of place (as 99% of them do). Another consideration is theft-deterrent of extra wide Audi units. I ordered with Bose (for £200 import price this is a no-brainer) and would not buy one second hand without it. The 3 options that affect resale are sunroof, Bose and CD (changer or Symphony) IMHO better to spec your car with Bose, carefully replace it with your expensive stuff and put back to std when you sell (can migrate expensive stuff to new car) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spearcey Posted August 8, 2003 Report Share Posted August 8, 2003 All good points, not convinced they make much difference to the resale price, more the ability to shift it quicker when you do need to sell. Drop from parkers by the price you saved on the bose and you've probably got a winner. Difficult to say though my first one had them and only took three days to sell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted August 8, 2003 Report Share Posted August 8, 2003 quite - I said resale not price. If I was looking for another S3 I would not buy one without Bose. Having spoken to some friends who were looking, that was also a must-have. ergo S3 without Bose - harder to sell on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danksy Posted August 9, 2003 Report Share Posted August 9, 2003 Thevon, you can get some nice subs that sit in the spare wheel holder, but also allow the wheel to be put in, you lose about 5cm's of depth in your boot floor! I think boston acoustics make them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ari Posted August 9, 2003 Report Share Posted August 9, 2003 Depends what car it is in too. I went Bose in my A4 cabrio and it (apparently) has six amplifiers and 10 speakers and I have to say, it sounds awesome! Also, sat in the new A8 which has surround sound Bose and thats mind blowing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheVon Posted August 10, 2003 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2003 ...I've been away for couple of days! Ari, I think it's much harder to get a good sound out of a cabrio, so there probably is more equipment in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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