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BOSE - Is it really worth having?

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I guess this has been asked before, but I' m guessing that some of you have now got BOSE equipped cars?

I' m in the fortunate process of specc' ing my new S for delivery late this year. Most is as my 2.7 (litronics etc.) but I' m considering the BOSE option, although it adds over a grand to the price!!. Simple question, is it that much better than the normal " upgrade" system? I' d be interested in people' s opinions. I' ve not heard it in a Boxster yet (PC Nottingham didn' t have one) but have listened to it in a friend' s TT Roadster, and though it was rather tinny - very little bass.

Thanks
 
Hi Chris
I have a Bose in my TT Coupe and it is far superior to the non-bose Porsche upgrade in my Boxster; I have also listened to a Bose in a friends Boxster and it again was superior to my non-bose Boxster upgrade.
so soundwise I would say it is superior but I guess it' s for you to put a value on it. hope this is of some assistance
Andrew
 
Chris,

I have Bose and find it a complete waste of money. You will find that the Boxster cabin is quite noisy and this makes a good, clean sound virtually impossible. I am a Hi-Fi enthusiast and am very much into high quality sound. The Bose in the Boxster is the weakest of any upmarket sound system that I have heard.

I have listened to Bose in an Audi TT, Merc CLK and the Harman Kardon in a BMC 330Ci Coupe. All of these were far superior to the Bose in the Boxster.

I tend not to listen to any music in my car as the engine sounds awesome! At over 800GBP as an option, it really is very poor value for money. Your should also bear in mind that the sound system uses the new MOST digital bus to move sound information around. Once installed, you will not be able to upgrade or change any component.

Some people I know have not spec' d a sound option and have installed an after-market (and far superior) product.

All I can advise is listen to a Bose whilst driving the car! Take a test drive and drive the car as you would normally (slow roads and fast roads) and with the hood up and down. Then decide. Don' t just listen to it in the showroom without the engine running - it will sound good but that' s not how you' ll be listening to it when you get your car.

The Bose does sound better with the hood down - the sound is degraded dramatically with the hood up.

All in all, it was a waste of money for me. The awful CDR-23 supplied as standard (which is actually a bottom of the range Becker head unit) does not help. From what I have been able to gather, the sound is already converted from digital to analogue by the CDR-23 and then given to the MOST bus. This turns it into digital (again!) and sends it to the Bose amps where it is converted back to analogue again. If my understanding of this is correct (and I could be wrong) then this is an utter waste of the MOST bus. The CDR-23 should only read the digital signal from the CD and send it along the MOST bus straight to the BOSE amps for D/A conversion. I do not believe this happens.

Here' s a couple of links to a discussion on Bose from my own forum:

http://driverscar.proboards2.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&num=1049801283

http://driverscar.proboards2.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&num=1052917869

At the end of the day, only you can decide!
 
I have the PCM option on my tin-top. I know it' s not quite the same car.
I decided that the standard unit would be too weak, indeed the dealer advised to upgrade since it would have a negative effect some trade in.
I don' t think it makes too much difference from a valuation position if it is the 10 speaker Porsche option or the 12 speaker Bose option.
I don' t know how they would view an after market system.

The point about the upgrades is that they use the MOST bus (a fiber optic wiring loom that is not present as standard). This is effectively not possible to add after delivery (too expensive).

I think the car is too noisy generally to make it worth the effort of spending top dollar on a system. Boxsters and 911' s are intended to be a sport cars. If you want a quiet environment to listen to classical musuc, buy a Jag/Merc/Lexus etc.

I have the sat nav and phone integrated together with the 6-CD changer and audio. It all works together very well.
I have the loudness button selected, which makes it sound boomy when stationary or at low speed, but all that bass seems to disappear when moving. I would also recommend a trial listening while moving, since it does sound significantly different.
 
Chris

I have had my 03 ' S' now for 6 weeks and have been very disappointed in the Bose. I didn' t have it in my previous 2.7 but did have it my a prior Audi TT Coupe (where it was absolutely top notch.)

Frankly, when driving, there is little difference in audible quality between the Porsche Sound upgrade in my 2.7 and the more expensive Bose in my ' S' .

Is it worth £1000 - No - IMHO
 
I changed from TT to S last month. I found the Bose in the TT to be excellent but couldn' t justify the price premium for the Boxster. With the hood down you won' t hear the radio anyway and with the hood up the acoustics will be dubious.
Just listen to the engine....
 
I agree with rumba - in that I am also keen on hifi and Bose (and the likes of B&O) are not exactly top drawer - although they excell at marketing.

Yes they may sound better than your ' standard' set up, but at what price.

You can acheive far more for the money - go to any specialist....

This applies to both home and car! Bose - personally I wouldn' t touch the stuff with a very long length of something.
 
The flat 6 sound system is already installed behind the driver. Personally, I wouldn' t bother with a fancy wireless. Go for heated seats, 18" wheels, auto-wipers or like me if you live out in the sticks, PSM. On the other hand, £1000 brings the S that little bit closer. Good to see that you have chosen the Litronics.

cheers

Brian F.
 
Wholeheartedly agree Brian, you almost specced my car there except the PSM, wish I had that having tried it on a skid pan, amazing!! I have the sound upgrade bought with the car and it does help with the volume whilst reducing distortion but as for quality, I always find myself turning it off and listening to the Boxer Beat!!
 
The Boxster at 5000 RPM sounds like The Who doing a sound check. Listen to the power chords on " Won' t Get Fooled Again" and make your own mind up. :p

Oh my gawd, I' ve turned into Jeremy Clarkson. :rolleyes:
 
I' ve had my Boxter S with Bose for three months. I dont particularly care for the sound compared to other systems i' ve heard. I find the base boom a little too intrusive all the tilme. The road noise always interferes with any serious listening and I pretty much drive with the audio off except on motorways for the traffic info. I specced my car with liltronics,PSM (definately worth having after experiencing a spin in a Boxter without it) cruise 18 inch carrera wheels and full leather. I also went for aluminium hand brake and gear lever-which I think I could have left off. I think I made a mistake in not having the on board computer, but in the test car I found the lever interfering when I used the indicators.
 
I had an Boxster S with sound upgrade,my new 03 S is much better than my first on lots of counts.
I have the Bose with a PCM and 6 cd player and its very very good.
Hood up(and the glass window hood is as good as a hardtop)the Bose works really well
on autopilot(this listens to the background noise via a mic and compensates)
Hood down it is best out of autopilot because it tries to adjust for wind noise and that doesn' t work.
On balance its much better.
In fact the Boxster system made me complain about my C4s Bose(this was improved by the OPC,they said it was' nt set up right?)I do understand they have a disc to re-program/upgrade the characteristics,but they didn' t tell me that.
 
In the words of the great Mr Meldrew ' I don' t believe it' surely not another Peter Frost with a Boxster S, it isn' t zenith blue is it or that will really freak me out!!

Peter
 
To dai_lemma,
Dear son!
No its not blue its polar silver.
I thought it strange when another car was post up with my name.couple of weeks ago
Small world.I do have a cousin -peter frost in the lake district.
I expect there' s hundreds,are you a Frost from March,Cambs ?
peter frost
 
Glad you called me son and not Dad, makes me feel much better! I thought I had forgotten about a posting I had made, then I realised it was far too intelligent to have been mine. I am of the Derbyshire branch of the family, family originating from Lancashire going way back.

Happy porsching!!!

Peter
 
Looking to upgrade my sound system at the moment, I have a Kenwood 4021 Head unit and the bog standard 2 speakers.....thinking probably 2 units on the doors, maybe a sub fitted to the rear shelf and a six stack........any ideas would be most welcome!

Sq46630.gif
 
The answer to the question is YES, the standard sound system is pretty poor, spend the extra otherwise tou' ll regret it afterwards, I' ve had the Bose in my last two Porkers & it' s a good system.
 
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