[bri1042]

Originally Posted by christianb5s4

100%. When I stream Qobuz (HiRes or not), it's night and day versus Spotify even on the G8x HK system. I'm sure FLAC local files would improve on that still.

Quality of input, quality of output. Doesn't matter if it's a million dollar system.





I should have prefaced that adjusting EQ won't suddenly make it some crazy world beating system, but it's far from bad and certainly better than factory or just using treble and bass adjustment. EQ comes down to personal preference, type of music, and your ears but I'll share what I've settled on when I get home tonight.

This guy gives a good EQ overview too, mine is not too dissimilar.

This was an interesting watch. He does seem to mostly know what he's doing but turning a sound system while playing a music track really isn't great. A pink noise file would give him better results, even with just his ears.

Logic7 just needs to go away. I have heard good results from custom-tuned up-mixing of 2-channel music, but L7 doesn't even come close. I've spent ages trying to make it work OK over the years and it just doesn't.

Also, no two humans can hear every frequency equally. When posting EQ examples, it would help if folk could post some context. Boosting treble may be being done by some people due to the state of their hearing.

This video might be useful, though you need to watch this on good speakers or headphones. The sound bar I use on my computer doesn't play anything past 14 khz despite it's specs. Using good headphones, I can still hear up to 17khz despite being in my 50s but sounds from 9 to 11 khz are quieter than the rest of the range. I am absolutely setting EQs to make for that so my settings might totally wonky for other folk.

[Needsdecaf]

I mean, I'm no audiophile for sure, and I don't have any kind of amazing hearing. But despite playing with the EQ, same source to same source (be it my phone, SXM or Spotify) in my G80 vs. my wife's Cayenne with Bose, it's way easier to hear voices on podcasts, way easier to hear vocals on music, way clearer separation between instruments in a song, etc. between her car and mine.

Like I said, this is not my area of expertise but there is way more clarity to the sound. Over the pandemic I listened to a lot of Christian James Hand's The Session and listened to him dissect music track by track, so I am now much more aware of what each instrument is doing during a song, and I listen for certain things. On songs where I've heard "the stems" as he calls them and I know, for instance, what the bass guitar is doing, it's way easier to pick it out on her car than mine.

I will try the EQ settings above but remain skeptical.

[Mike02z]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

I mean, I'm no audiophile for sure, and I don't have any kind of amazing hearing. But despite playing with the EQ, same source to same source (be it my phone, SXM or Spotify) in my G80 vs. my wife's Cayenne with Bose, it's way easier to hear voices on podcasts, way easier to hear vocals on music, way clearer separation between instruments in a song, etc. between her car and mine.

Part of the problem is Sirius is highly compressed and would sound like ass on even the best equipment. Spotify is better but still compressed.

[CJ421]

Originally Posted by Mike02z

Part of the problem is Sirius is highly compressed and would sound like ass on even the best equipment. Spotify is better but still compressed.

Is playing Apple Music over wireless CarPlay any better? Some of the songs I have are labeled "lossless" ...

Charles

[christianb5s4]

Originally Posted by bri1042

This was an interesting watch. He does seem to mostly know what he's doing but turning a sound system while playing a music track really isn't great. A pink noise file would give him better results, even with just his ears.

Also, no two humans can hear every frequency equally. When posting EQ examples, it would help if folk could post some context. Boosting treble may be being done by some people due to the state of their hearing.

100% agree, hence why I said the same in my post. What I ended up with is not what he did, was just sharing my EQ in case anyone wanted to try.

Pink noise is definitely the way to go but he's smart in using the same songs for his reviews since it's easier for viewers to compare between cars and have a consistent frame of reference. That's why I think he does it.

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

I mean, I'm no audiophile for sure, and I don't have any kind of amazing hearing. But despite playing with the EQ, same source to same source (be it my phone, SXM or Spotify) in my G80 vs. my wife's Cayenne with Bose, it's way easier to hear voices on podcasts, way easier to hear vocals on music, way clearer separation between instruments in a song, etc. between her car and mine.

Like I said, this is not my area of expertise but there is way more clarity to the sound. Over the pandemic I listened to a lot of Christian James Hand's The Session and listened to him dissect music track by track, so I am now much more aware of what each instrument is doing during a song, and I listen for certain things. On songs where I've heard "the stems" as he calls them and I know, for instance, what the bass guitar is doing, it's way easier to pick it out on her car than mine.

I will try the EQ settings above but remain skeptical.

My intent was just to share what has improved the HK system in these cars specifically, that's all. By no means was I meaning to suggest it was some world changing thing. The HK in my wife's X5 sounds better than mine as an example, but both beat any Bose system I've ever had in my Audis.

Will admit that if BMW offered some upgraded sound system, I would have bought it. But the HK is good enough for its purpose to me.

Originally Posted by CJ421

Is playing Apple Music over wireless CarPlay any better? Some of the songs I have are labeled "lossless" ...

Charles

It's never going to be quite as good as a wired connection, but most wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Lossless / Apple Music is generally better than Spotify, Sirius, etc due to the lossless.

[Skyscraper]

I’m old. So my old 07 Porsche still has a CD player. And I still order CDs on Amazon so my wife and I can have them on our phones.
It will blow your mind how good a CD sounds over streaming.

[nu2M]

I think the HK in the M3 is horrible. I ended up getting Bimmercode, then turned off the ASD and added B&W settings. I’ve also added an AlphaOne amp and replaced both under-seat subs, and now the system is “acceptable” to my ears. Mileage may vary. Sadly, the Burmester and B&O in VAG vehicles still sound significantly better than this setup.

[Forzanerazzurri]

Originally Posted by christianb5s4

The Harmon Kardon system isn't nearly as bad as the forums can make it out to be. Especially after you customize the EQ which makes a world of difference. It's perfectly decent.

This is my opinion having a pure two channel system worth almost as much as the car.

The ones who complain are the same people who think airpods sound great.

[bri1042]

Originally Posted by Skyscraper

I’m old. So my old 07 Porsche still has a CD player. And I still order CDs on Amazon so my wife and I can have them on our phones.
It will blow your mind how good a CD sounds over streaming.

Also old and I still buy CDs. They get used once, generally, to make FLAC files that find their way onto USB sticks for actual listening (and they get turned into ALAC for my phone). Looking forward to next month when the new Pet Shop Boys and James albums on CD find their way to my house.

[BlackSunShine]

These are my top five things I don’t like about this car & honestly, these are all first world problems, and in comparison to other vehicles it’s really nothing to complain about, but here we are….

1…The auto lock/unlock feature is functional but by far the most annoying thing on this car. If you’re trying to detail your car in the garage, it’s constantly lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock…over and over and over it’s killing me.

2…The infotainment center, not hooking up to CarPlay, screen will go black but still plays music, it will be unresponsive to CarPlay, can’t hook up to CarPlay ETC… Have to reset the iDrive multiple times in a row sometimes before it even works. Super annoying I even talked to BMW about it, they have no answer. This happens multiple times a week, even if I leave my car and it’s running, then come back, CarPlay is no longer hooked up, I’ll have to spend 10 minutes trying to hook it back up.

3…Another thing that is annoying? The wind noise from the door windows (‘24 M4 cpe comp xdrive). I don’t know if it’s the design of the frameless window? Maybe not having enough cushion between the window and the car? When you get to about 20 mph or faster it sounds like the windows are partially down.

4… passenger side heated seat: it gets luke warm at best…

5… I can’t control the climate when I start the car from my key fob or from the app. The car is ALWAYS set to maximum HEAT! I think it’s called preconditioning but for the life of me, I cannot find the settings! Every time I start the car, it’s always 1,000,000° when I get inside. I definitely do not like this feature…

Other than that it’s a beast!

[BryanCO]

Originally Posted by CJ421

I've had the G80 three weeks now.
--The center console cupholders are terrible with the manual transmission. I hit my knuckles on anything in them shifting into 1-3-5. The door cupholders work great, though.
--Trunk release. It just doesn't work consistently. Seems like a common complaint here.
--iD8: No scrolling through songs in the HUD like you could with iD7.

Could you share your EQ settings? I did a "V", boosting the lower and upper frequencies a few notches. Seems to sound a little better.

Charles

Ya, I bought a 10 oz Yeti tumbler for use in the console cup holders. The 20 oz version rubs on the dash.

Never had an issue with the truck release and I use it regularly.

[Burrcold]

Originally Posted by BlackSunShine

These are my top five things I don’t like about this car & honestly, these are all first world problems, and in comparison to other vehicles it’s really nothing to complain about, but here we are….

1…The auto lock/unlock feature is functional but by far the most annoying thing on this car. If you’re trying to detail your car in the garage, it’s constantly lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock…over and over and over it’s killing me.

2…The infotainment center, not hooking up to CarPlay, screen will go black but still plays music, it will be unresponsive to CarPlay, can’t hook up to CarPlay ETC… Have to reset the iDrive multiple times in a row sometimes before it even works. Super annoying I even talked to BMW about it, they have no answer. This happens multiple times a week, even if I leave my car and it’s running, then come back, CarPlay is no longer hooked up, I’ll have to spend 10 minutes trying to hook it back up.

3…Another thing that is annoying? The wind noise from the door windows (‘24 M4 cpe comp xdrive). I don’t know if it’s the design of the frameless window? Maybe not having enough cushion between the window and the car? When you get to about 20 mph or faster it sounds like the windows are partially down.

4… passenger side heated seat: it gets luke warm at best…

5… I can’t control the climate when I start the car from my key fob or from the app. The car is ALWAYS set to maximum HEAT! I think it’s called preconditioning but for the life of me, I cannot find the settings! Every time I start the car, it’s always 1,000,000° when I get inside. I definitely do not like this feature…

Other than that it’s a beast!

#1 & 5 can be turned off. Look at your owner's manual.

[Mike02z]

Originally Posted by BlackSunShine

These are my top five things I don’t like about this car & honestly, these are all first world problems, and in comparison to other vehicles it’s really nothing to complain about, but here we are….

1…The auto lock/unlock feature is functional but by far the most annoying thing on this car. If you’re trying to detail your car in the garage, it’s constantly lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock…over and over and over it’s killing me.

2…The infotainment center, not hooking up to CarPlay, screen will go black but still plays music, it will be unresponsive to CarPlay, can’t hook up to CarPlay ETC… Have to reset the iDrive multiple times in a row sometimes before it even works. Super annoying I even talked to BMW about it, they have no answer. This happens multiple times a week, even if I leave my car and it’s running, then come back, CarPlay is no longer hooked up, I’ll have to spend 10 minutes trying to hook it back up.

3…Another thing that is annoying? The wind noise from the door windows (‘24 M4 cpe comp xdrive). I don’t know if it’s the design of the frameless window? Maybe not having enough cushion between the window and the car? When you get to about 20 mph or faster it sounds like the windows are partially down.

4… passenger side heated seat: it gets luke warm at best…

5… I can’t control the climate when I start the car from my key fob or from the app. The car is ALWAYS set to maximum HEAT! I think it’s called preconditioning but for the life of me, I cannot find the settings! Every time I start the car, it’s always 1,000,000° when I [...]

1. You can turn this off in settings. I don’t use it for the same reason you gave

2. The was a bug I had in 07/2023 that seemed to go away once updated to 11/2023.

3. I don’t have this problem. Probably because I can’t hear it due to the HUGELY annoying dash rattles

4. You can up the heat in the seats with BimmerCode. Had to do this for the wife.

5. Definitely liked physical buttons better for climate control but ideally I’d have the screen of the ‘24 but physical buttons for climate control

[Needsdecaf]

Originally Posted by Mike02z

Part of the problem is Sirius is highly compressed and would sound like ass on even the best equipment. Spotify is better but still compressed.

Again, this is comparing apples to apples. Sirius or Spotify on my wife’s car is going to be the same source quality in my car. I understand they aren’t the best, but the Bose in her car is doing more with it.


For the poster above complaining about auto lock and unlock….disable the auto lock, but keep the Auto Unlock. Does this require bimmercode? I forget. If so, buy it and do it.

This way is so much better. No lock / unlock dance. No car locking in the garage and you have to remember to bring your keys. Etc. Most of the times you approach the car when locked you will want it to unlock, but there are many scenarios you don’t want it to lock when you walk away.

[Chrono9084]

I love this car so much.

My only gripe is an issue my 21 M340i had as well.

Idrive seems to be inconsistent between startups. It seems to forget which screen I was on and will randomly pick screens. It almost feels like there are two memory banks that it pulls from when starting up. It will even remember two different spots on my playlist (USB drive im the car).

I have yet to figure any rhyme or reason to this. And no, it's not because I grab the wrong key or that the second key is too close.

[Sierra055]

My only gripe is the steering is too light and gives very little feedback. Other than that, I'm really loving it.

[Unimatrix0]

For those that detail their car and don't want the car lock/ unlock all the time:
Leave your key fob inside, away enough so it is out of range of the car.

Unlock the car with Apple Watch and open the drivers door and close it.
(What I do most the time)

Or use your Phone or the digital card to unlock it.

Again you have to open the drivers door once, then close it if you want or need too.

You can still start it with all 3 if you need to.
No more annoying lock and unlocks.

[M4ROLLIN20]

Originally Posted by Forzanerazzurri

Agreed. At the car wash the mirrors just constantly go in and out and the car is beeping non stop while I'm walking around it.

I would imagine you take it to car wash place you trust? Just saying because I took one of my beauties to a popular “high end” car wash and left the car in the valet mode or wtv and watched from a far. It’s on Ventura Blvd in Cali so as you picture they do a lot of high end cars. What really annoyed me after tipping knowing the manager etc, was the fact that the towels they used at the end were not new microfiber towels. As other members have said, I’m really thinking about doing it all myself. I understand some ppl don’t have time to do all that, but if something like the the mirrors folding and unfolding annoy you aswell, this is something to concider.

[M4Tejas]

Originally Posted by BlackSunShine

These are my top five things I don’t like about this car & honestly, these are all first world problems, and in comparison to other vehicles it’s really nothing to complain about, but here we are….

1…The auto lock/unlock feature is functional but by far the most annoying thing on this car. If you’re trying to detail your car in the garage, it’s constantly lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock, lock/unlock…over and over and over it’s killing me.

2…The infotainment center, not hooking up to CarPlay, screen will go black but still plays music, it will be unresponsive to CarPlay, can’t hook up to CarPlay ETC… Have to reset the iDrive multiple times in a row sometimes before it even works. Super annoying I even talked to BMW about it, they have no answer. This happens multiple times a week, even if I leave my car and it’s running, then come back, CarPlay is no longer hooked up, I’ll have to spend 10 minutes trying to hook it back up.

3…Another thing that is annoying? The wind noise from the door windows (‘24 M4 cpe comp xdrive). I don’t know if it’s the design of the frameless window? Maybe not having enough cushion between the window and the car? When you get to about 20 mph or faster it sounds like the windows are partially down.

4… passenger side heated seat: it gets luke warm at best…

5… I can’t control the climate when I start the car from my key fob or from the app. The car is ALWAYS set to maximum HEAT! I think it’s called preconditioning but for the life of me, I cannot find the settings! Every time I start the car, it’s always 1,000,000° when I get inside. I definitely do not like this feature…

Other than that it’s a beast!

Cat approved?

[Mike02z]

I just put some lossless music on a USB drive. The HK system sounded much better. Now I’m going to dump all my music to a 256GB USB drive.

[Forzanerazzurri]

Originally Posted by M4ROLLIN20

I would imagine you take it to car wash place you trust? Just saying because I took one of my beauties to a popular “high end” car wash and left the car in the valet mode or wtv and watched from a far. It’s on Ventura Blvd in Cali so as you picture they do a lot of high end cars. What really annoyed me after tipping knowing the manager etc, was the fact that the towels they used at the end were not new microfiber towels. As other members have said, I’m really thinking about doing it all myself. I understand some ppl don’t have time to do all that, but if something like the the mirrors folding and unfolding annoy you aswell, this is something to concider.

I wash my car myself for sure. Another poster gave some great advice about leaving the key on the driver's seat. So that's what I do now and its problem solved.

[M4ROLLIN20]

Originally Posted by Forzanerazzurri

I wash my car myself for sure. Another poster gave some great advice about leaving the key on the driver's seat. So that's what I do now and its problem solved.

Yes sir!