[StanDiego]

Originally Posted by Westside Guy

Clarity is very subjective and what sounds great to me might not sound the same for you. I love listening to The Eagles and ripped The Eagles Greatest Hits from a CD and downloaded it onto my iPhone. When on a long road trip songs like Take it Easy sound crystal clear on my HK system with the top both up and down.

The following is one of the songs I play to test speakers:

Hotel California Live (Hell Freezes Over)

[ebirotedu]

I want a system that can do a respectable job with something like this:

[Bimmerfun82]

Originally Posted by Westside Guy

Clarity is very subjective and what sounds great to me might not sound the same for you. I love listening to The Eagles and ripped The Eagles Greatest Hits from a CD and downloaded it onto my iPhone. When on a long road trip songs like Take it Easy sound crystal clear on my HK system with the top both up and down.

Oldies and classic rock and specifically the Eagles also sounds great with the HK. Of course if/when the drum beat hits it’s a little better with that extra sub. Good vibrations also .

The clarity is lacking on anything alternative especially in the more electronica genre and especially as the volume increases (examples - Alt J, Radiohead) plus any dreamscape or chill type music - for example Tycho, Washed Out, Emancipator, Beach House. I could go on and on with examples.

In my 2012 X5 11 years ago HK with added sub and amp with total output 1600 watts and 17 speakers the clarity was unbelievable. The Z just isn’t at that level. I would have gladly paid for a better system from the factory.

[Bimmerfun82]

Originally Posted by ebirotedu

I want a system that can do a respectable job with something like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVWEWtDQ51g

I tried this with my system and even with the sub turned down was very good. Clarity still not up to par though.

[BlankProc]

Originally Posted by Horseman

Honestly, I am slightly worried about the HK system that I opted for in the M40i now. My 30i has the base system and, honestly, it sounds GREAT. Deep and crisp bass (other than some slight shaking behind the seats and trunk) ... I was definitely hoping that the HK system would be a significant improvement hence the greater price tag. We'll see.

I am 0% worried about it. I'm sure it's a great system.

I'm more worried that my car gets painted the wrong color, or the cargo ship sinks in the Atlantic.

[Horseman]

Originally Posted by BlankProc

I am 0% worried about it. I'm sure it's a great system.

I'm more worried that my car gets painted the wrong color, or the cargo ship sinks in the Atlantic.

Well, I've had the 30i with the non HK system now for two years. I'm worried because I hear alot of negative comments about the HK system here and I just paid $875 for an "upgrade". The standard system sounds real good in the Bass department.. like.. real good. So yeah I'm worried.

Like you, though, I was worried about it going across the ocean. there was actually a hurricane in the path of the ship carrying my 30i in 2021, and I had to watch it go around the storm lol. Not too long after that there was news of a ship that caught fire with a bunch of rare porsches and sunk. so... YEAH... I FEEL THAT! lol

[Horseman]

Originally Posted by ebirotedu

I want a system that can do a respectable job with something like this:

-or-

for me! HAHAHA That and a song called Playground from the League of Legends Arcane show. From iTunes it has alot more bass than youtube is pushin out.

[ebirotedu]

Yeah, both of those tracks would be a workout for the stock system.

Welcome to the Playground has a catchy melody - it was briefly on a playlist I use in the car, but it didn't hit hard enough for me. I have a couple of LoL K/DA tracks on that playlist though - POP/STARS and Villain.

Some interesting Valorant (another game) tracks are on my playlist as well. Seems like much of the serious composition nowadays is in movie and game soundtracks.

Originally Posted by Horseman

-or-


for me! HAHAHA That and a song called Playground from the League of Legends Arcane show. From iTunes it has alot more bass than youtube is pushin out.

[Horseman]

Originally Posted by ebirotedu

Yeah, both of those tracks would be a workout for the stock system.

Welcome to the Playground has a catchy melody - it was briefly on a playlist I use in the car, but it didn't hit hard enough for me. I have a couple of LoL K/DA tracks on that playlist though - POP/STARS and Villain.

Some interesting Valorant (another game) tracks are on my playlist as well. Seems like much of the serious composition nowadays is in movie and game soundtracks.

Oh those tracks sound GREAT in the stock system. Let me tell you. My mirrors vibrate and you can really feel the punches in the bass.

League of Legends has put out some seriously great music in recent years. Yes K/DA and Burn it All Down by PVRIS are massive examples. I have alot of them in my playlist. Martin Garrix, Biometrix, found many of these on Youtube and i don't even know how to classify this kind of music.

Playground in my car is extremely bass intensive (via iTunes). it's another track that absolutely shakes my whole car haha. Telling you the stock system is very good. which is why I worry about this HK "upgrade" now.

[RigaTony1982]

Originally Posted by Horseman

Oh those tracks sound GREAT in the stock system. Let me tell you. My mirrors vibrate and you can really feel the punches in the bass.

League of Legends has put out some seriously great music in recent years. Yes K/DA and Burn it All Down by PVRIS are massive examples. I have alot of them in my playlist. Martin Garrix, Biometrix, found many of these on Youtube and i don't even know how to classify this kind of music.

Playground in my car is extremely bass intensive (via iTunes). it's another track that absolutely shakes my whole car haha. Telling you the stock system is very good. which is why I worry about this HK "upgrade" now.

Realize they are two different cars, but had the stock Hi-Fi system in my M340i and HK in my Z4. HK is miles better, and that's comparing a convertible to a fixed roof car. I think you'll like it

[BMWGirlFL]

I'm partial to the standard system clarity. Sounds like that's where HK falls short.

[Westside Guy]

Originally Posted by BMWGirlFL

I'm partial to the standard system clarity. Sounds like that's where HK falls short.

IMHO, the settings that you select of each system will affect the clarity. I am extremely pleased with the overall sound of my HK system.

[StanDiego]

Originally Posted by Westside Guy

IMHO, the settings that you select of each system will affect the clarity. I am extremely pleased with the overall sound of my HK system.

Indeed, and the settings are very subjective to each of us. I’ve adjusted my balance slightly, moving it just a bit to the right (so speaker volume appears the same from driver’s position) and a bit to the rear. That has improved the sound overall for me. My wife isn’t big on music so she hasn’t noticed/doesn’t care. Of course, I’ve adjusted the equalizer too but that varies with my mood and music I’m listening to.

[stlcdr]

Remember, you are playing this music with a noise level of 89dB...(ymmv, of course)

[Westside Guy]

Originally Posted by StanDiego

Indeed, and the settings are very subjective to each of us. I’ve adjusted my balance slightly, moving it just a bit to the right (so speaker volume appears the same from driver’s position) and a bit to the rear. That has improved the sound overall for me. My wife isn’t big on music so she hasn’t noticed/doesn’t care. Of course, I’ve adjusted the equalizer too but that varies with my mood and music I’m listening to.

I have done something similar with my Z4's HK system where I moved it like you a little to the right and also to the rear where the larger speakers are located. I had adjusted the settings the same way on my old CLK500 that had a Bose system and it made a difference to the person that counts, the driver!

[RavenGX]

Audio setup complete, it's a huge improvement.

The sound is now better positioned for the driver a bit more focussed on the front speakers, so you get more of a concert feeling.
The difference between left and right is really noticable now.
The bass is a little bit louder.

[GerryC]

It would be an interesting experiment to see what is the effect of just adding the acoustic foam to the stock HK system.

[StanDiego]

Originally Posted by GerryC

It would be an interesting experiment to see what is the effect of just adding the acoustic foam to the stock HK system.

Pretty significant I suspect.

[perryinva]

Anyone with a good G29 DSP file for the standard system for their Alpha One or Match Up, etc (all the same Audiotech Fischer) willing to share the file? I’m looking to install the Match Up 8DSP in mine, and understand that there have been iterations of the file. There is not one listed as available on the Audiotech Fischer site for the G29.

[perryinva]

Bump to add that I installed the Match UP 8DSP, which is the exact same unit as the Alpha One by Bimmer-tech. The difference in audio quality, bass extension/depth, sound stage and volume even with the stock speakers is quite significantly better. The Virtual Channel with the FX for the center dash speaker is really impressive. It makes that speaker worth having, like a center channel in a 7.1 HT. Only content common between the two channels is played there. However, the final results depend entirely on the profile loaded in to the DSP. I really would like to get a hold of the file that Bimmer-tech provides to see if it is any better than what I have done. They will only provide it to actual customers.