[shawncas]

Mods, please delete this. (Sincere apologies as I just now took note of the other sections of the site. (Been happy living in the general forum.) Apologies for that.

I won't lie, I didn't search this topic before posting this.. Have been living a couple pages deep and haven't seen much mention of it.

So, I got my '16 M235i the other day... Thanks all for the invaluable input in making this purchase.. Car is truly brilliant so far as to what will become a lightly modded, daily here in Orlando. (Lotus Evora S is my other, "daily.")

I really tried to make sure one of the features I truly was searching for was the upgraded Harmon Kardon sound system.... Well my model had it!

But.... It is embarrassingly bad!!! For a "premium upgrade," in audio quality, the output of this thing is horrendous. Tinny highs and absolutely no lows.

My question.. Anyone else disagree with this? Anyone that agrees that found a solution, perhaps other than the traditional sub, amp and component replace?

I am not an audiophile by any means, but I thought the factory low grade Alpine and Pioneer that comes OEM in my Lotus was bad... It's a glorious treat in comparison.

Any suggestions?

Side note.. This is about the only thing I can bitch about on this car so far after a few days and a couple hundred miles.. Is truly a brilliant car.

[pz619]

I would start here. This thread might give you a good baseline to make future decisions. I agree though, the H/K system is vastly inferior to the one in the 3 series and up.

http://www.2addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1236238

[shawncas]

Originally Posted by pz619

I would start here. This thread might give you a good baseline to make future decisions. I agree though, the H/K system is vastly inferior to the one in the 3 series and up.

http://www.2addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1236238

Thanks.. Did find that unfortunately after making my post.. Requesting mods to delete original post.

[Rayscott]

Mine is fine, I came from the AM transistor radio era.

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by Rayscott

...I came from the AM transistor radio era.

Same here. I've had audiophile-level home systems, but in the car I don't really care. Plus, my hearing's pretty well shot by now, anyway.

[USA-RET]

Originally Posted by Rayscott

Mine is fine, I came from the AM transistor radio era.

I find my HK to be more than acceptable. Guess much depends in personal preferences.

My 2015 C7 had the Standard Bose (which many owners hated). It had batter bass than the HK, but was otherwise comparable.

I never drive w/ my windows down (Florida is hot and I hate traffic noise), so volumes are kept in the moderate range. That being said, I find most of the auto makers premium audio choices to sound quite good.

[Rayscott]

Originally Posted by dradernh

Same here. I've had audiophile-level home systems, but in the car I don't really care. Plus, my hearing's pretty well shot by now, anyway.

Mine too, especially when the top is down so I turn it off.

[Heratat]

I've been struggling to get a better feel for the sound quality too. I enjoy listening to music during commutes every day so sound quality is maybe in my top 3 priority. I browsed the thread above and it looks like they think mods or even the overall system replacement is the only solution. Still, maybe it's possible to tweak things and get a favorable result?

Private Writing. No one will know.

[shawncas]

Well after posting this, found this thread in another section. Clearly I am not alone in realizing just how poor the sound system is.. For a "premium" option, the audio is just pure garbage.. The fiance's new Civic, is a symphony hall in comparison to this "upgraded HK" system.

http://www.2addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1236238

[MsportyX35]

The stereo is my only real gripe with the 2 series. The base system is, to me, unlistenable. The HK is better, but still bad, and much worse than the HK in my X1 or my Mini, both of which are inferior to the HK that was in my e46. I’m going to try coding out the fake engine sound that comes through the speakers to see if that cleans up the sound, at least a bit. But I imagine I’ll end up replacing the speakers. As is, the system is borderline adequate for podcasts and audiobooks.