[BMWGirlFL]

Originally Posted by strive-ajil

Hey guys, I bought a 2020 m40i last week and love it with the exception of the sound being lackluster. I thought it was because mine doesn't have the executive package and thus the premium audio. Reading through this thread the regular sound system is supposed to be loud? I have to turn mine up to 75% to really even hear it. Got in and messed around with the settings but nothing seems to help.

Try this reset.

[strive-ajil]

Tried that, all it did was change my treble/bass settings back to default.

[BMWGirlFL]

Originally Posted by strive-ajil

Tried that, all it did was change my treble/bass settings back to default.

Check your device if streaming.

[MisanoblueZ4]

If you haven’t yet, try rebooting Idrive by holding power button for 30 seconds.

Does FM/AM or XM come in any louder?

[ebirotedu]

So, I did have a chance to experiment with using the native BMW Spotify app vs my Carplay Connected iPhone streaming with Amazon HD last weekend, and I didn't really detect any difference in the quality of music.

My testing, such as it was, happened mostly top down, but I did have the top up for a few tracks.

I was driving the entire time I was conducting my experiment. I think I'd still like to compare tracks head to head just sitting in the car with top up and engine at idle just to be sure. But I'm pretty certain that I didn't notice any source differences between the Spotify app, and my content streamed from my phone.

What is interesting is that I didn't notice any sort of bass distortion or car body panel resonance as was commonly the case in the past. I attribute this to the fact that I had already reset all the EQ to be perfectly flat, whereas prior the bass was boosted slightly (a few dB). So, while this eliminated the most annoying characteristic of the Z4's bass, bass itself was also not very present on some tracks - this is still my major complaint with the HK system.

Of course, I have yet to install the 300W 10" subwoofer/amp combo that I bought last summer But I think once I do, and I get the level for the subwoofer amp set correctly it will probably resolve things satisfactorily for me.

To be clear, I'm not expecting theater quality sound in the car - just a better reproduction of all the frequencies of music that I'm using to hearing when that same music is played on other systems.

Originally Posted by ebirotedu

Finally put a Spotify playlist together that mostly mirrors one I use in the car often. Should be warm enough to test it out tomorrow, top up and top down.

Wish I were doing this today but waiting on a call and need to be in front of the computer….

[Cattler]

Originally Posted by BMWGirlFL

Check your device if streaming.

I have noticed a BIG difference in sound quality and loudness when I stream SiriusXM vs using the satellite radio tuner. The tuner is much better than streaming for me. I also have the HK system.