Sound system Macan EV standard, bose, burmester

[justan]

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[ros]

I got Bose on my Macan4. I don’t know about Burmester on MacanEV, but I have Burmester on GLC300. The difference is huge: Burmester on my GLC sounds so rich in all frequencies, while Bose on Macan4 is very rudimentary. It’s nowhere close to what Burmester can sound.

 

[MatC21]

Short summary for those who do not want to watch it: he thinks the Burmester is too expensive for the quality increase over Bose. However he recommends Bose over stock.

 

[AlanH]

I have the base sound system on my 4 and am very happy with it (also the extra room in the trunk). The bass is more punchy than I expected. I haven’t heard the other ones so can’t judge how much better they are.

 

[Awaz]

@AlanH
Agreed.
Same here.

 

[DTaxman]

I think a lot of this comes down to expectations and whether one is truly into HiFi. Most people that are overly critical of these systems are coming at it from a completely different standard of required fidelity from their audio system. If you've spent any time in this world, you'll soon realize that no system is perfect, there is a trade off for everything, and it's the eternal search for the holy grail. I'm not saying that to dismiss those opinions.... those that have experienced greatness in audio systems truly can tell a difference. It's just that to the everyday listener, we are happy with the first 75% of audio quality, while the audiohead is obsessed about the incremental 25% of diminishing returns above that (and willing to pay for is....)

I have the the Bose system. I'm not generally a Bose fan. The Bose system in the Macan sounds good to me. Starts to distort a bit at higher levels, but with certain types of music it sounds great to my ears. That's all that really matters and so I won't let anyone tell me otherwise. I personally think it sounds better than the Burmester in my Mercedes GLS (but that might be partly because that vehicle is a huge boat). Not as good as the B&O that was in my previous Volvo XC90. Given some of the very very bad experiences with the Bose system, I do feel like must be some issues with installation/tuning of the sound system in certain vehicles.

 

[PrudentOcean]

Also worth noting is that the diaphragm in the speakers must be broken in. When you first get your car it won't have the full range and response that the system will ultimately be capable of.

If you just got your car, don't judge the sound system (regardless of make) by what you hear now. Give the system a couple of weeks and if you want, help the break-in process along by playing music at a higher volume than you usually would.

 

[Timcat]

£3k isn't expensive in the world of Hi-Fi, where high end systems can cost more than an entire Macan Turbo, so I wouldn't expect that much even from the Burmester system. I have the Bose in my car. It's fine for a car, not Hi-Fi, but no car system can really compete with a decent home set up.

 

[justan]

I am very satisfied with the burmester. I had the bose in my taycan and it's not comparable. After given the price difference I understand that some people think it's not worth it. The important thing is his personal feelings.

 

[ros]

I think that many people actually physically don’t differentiate between basic Bose frequency bands and well-covered bands of Burmester. The analogies are in any other human senses, like food tastes, art, tolerating cold/hot, pain, etc. It’s basically about how much attention our brain is taught to pay to these.

 

[ColdCase]

I've been into high performance car audio for decades now. I think the base system is actually very good and satisfying for casual listening, if you turn up the base a notch or two. The thumping car shaking alarm triggering base is missing, if that defines your idea of a quality sound system, then you will need the subwoofer.

 

[ros]

The booming base is fine in Bose. The other ranges are very narrow.

 

[Sideline]

I have the Burmester in my Turbo and find the clarity, separation and soundstage to be fantastic. However, I can't say that I've found the sub-bass to be particularly strong. Maybe a dumb question but how can I check that the subwoofer is operating properly (or operating at all)?

 

[DTaxman]

The booming base is fine in Bose. The other ranges are very narrow.

Not sure how much you’ve experienced but I’ve found the stereo sound stage setting to be superior to the surround setting. I usually default to surround settings in cars for a more full sound, but I think it muddies up the mids quite a bit in the macan Bose system.

 

[llindenb]

Short summary for those who do not want to watch it: he thinks the Burmester is too expensive for the quality increase over Bose. However he recommends Bose over stock.

This was actually my assessment as well. I had my choice of two 4S, one with Bose and one with Burmeister. The Burmeister was better, but not almost 6k better. On my wife’s iX (she wanted the larger vehicle), the premium sound upgrade was about as good as the Burmeister but half the cost and we both felt that was worth it.

After I decided not to go with the Burmeister, my sales guy made a comment about wondering why it was even offered in the Macan. The cabin is a little too small to truly appreciate the difference and there are much better ways to spend 6k in upgrades on it.

To each his own though…

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