Bang & Olufsen

[matt_white88]

Does anyone know or has anyone manage to retrofit the B&O sound system out of the A8 including the tweeters that rise out of the dash when the ignition is turned? I am wanting to get some bits ready for my next A3.

 

[FranA3]

the current a4 , a6 and the q5 have that system dont know if they rise up out of the dash but they have the b+o sound system in them , the sound is out of this world

 

[Stiggles]

When I was having my iPod cable fitted the audio guy was showing me some audio stuff, mainly from audi's being the Bose and B+O

when he showed me the sub's from each system I was amazed to see barely any difference next to the fact they were labelled differently

sure B+O is known for its amazing sound quality I know because we have a few of their tv's and sound systems set up around our house and they are unparalleled imo.

But if you're going for a sound upgrade I'm sure there are many better alternatives at a fraction the price.

 

[LWNY]

i remember back in the heydays, B&O and McIntosh were overpriced mid-fi stuff. (Blowse weren't even in the radar cuz their stuff were just pure junk). I guess whomever that has audio experience gets into acoustic tuning for cars could get some business. True audiophile brands might not have a giant anechoic chamber to do this kind of work.

As for installing the B&O stuff on an A3, it is not recommended because there are so much fine tuning of each set of component for each of the car to balance out the interior surface and speaker/seating position that if they are just dropped into another car, it will likely not sound close to optimal.

 

[N8]

A friend of Luke's had the old S4 and now the current. He said the BOSE sounded better over the B&O?

 

[1animal1]

iirc B+O don't manufacteur their own do they?

When i used to build/install nightclub systems I used a brand from the US called 'Eminence' - nice n decently priced cones, when you looked under the surface this firm were the main supplier to most of the well known brands out there and the performance of their units were quite amazing

Couldn't agree with the BOSE comment more, they were (dont know about now) regarded in the industry as crap, B+O was equal to your Peavey of this world, not bad systems but wey over priced for what they were.

 

[matt_white88]

the current a4 , a6 and the q5 have that system dont know if they rise up out of the dash but they have the b+o sound system in them , the sound is out of this world

Yeah Fran they do have a butchers at this :

[video]http://youtu.be/ct3eEuz18qc[/video]

Thanks to all the others that replied its all been great advice, might leave it alone then apart from the tweeters that is!

 

[Kash3838]

check ot cdt audio, amp and speakers with chord company wiring! will blow b&o out of this world!
tried and tested, been there and done that. do some research on it.

 

[FranA3]

to be fair the sound in my standard concert does the job very well tbh very good sound for a low in the range system

 

[Shane.]

TBH I wouldn't bother, BOSE & B&O aren't that great IMO and the money it would cost to retrofit isn't far off what you could get a decent aftermarket upgrade for

 

[Gti Jazz Blue]

iirc B+O don't manufacteur their own do they?

When i used to build/install nightclub systems I used a brand from the US called 'Eminence' - nice n decently priced cones, when you looked under the surface this firm were the main supplier to most of the well known brands out there and the performance of their units were quite amazing

Couldn't agree with the BOSE comment more, they were (dont know about now) regarded in the industry as crap, B+O was equal to your Peavey of this world, not bad systems but wey over priced for what they were.

Most of the Sub, Bass and Mid drivers in my Brother-In-Laws PA are Eminence.

Just have a decent after-market set up installed or install it your self.

Paul

 

[Gti Jazz Blue]

Shane - looking forward to hearing yours at T19.

Paul

 

[Ash187]

I guess the main reasons to have bose/B&O would be that its integrated into the car, looks OEM and sounds decent... I wouldn't retrofit a bose system if i didnt have it, but it is convenient that i don't have an amp sitting there in plain view in the boot.
Also those B&O tweeters look nuts! would love to have those installed in the car!

 

[Shane.]

Shane - looking forward to hearing yours at T19.

Paul

No worries mate, just come find me and I'll give you a demo Bring some CD's of your own if you want, something you know well

I guess the main reasons to have bose/B&O would be that its integrated into the car, looks OEM and sounds decent... I wouldn't retrofit a bose system if i didnt have it, but it is convenient that i don't have an amp sitting there in plain view in the boot.
Also those B&O tweeters look nuts! would love to have those installed in the car!

After market can be hidden just as easy though, mines a very OEM look system, admittedly the boot is done a little bit more for show but things can easily be tucked away. Just an example of stealth aftermarket install:

 

[Ash187]

agreed shane, i was actually looking to go aftermarket but since the Bose is so integrated into the car i thought it would be too much hassle and have just put up with it. it is actually quite good, just lacks the lower end base and power.
I currently have a pioneer p4200 double din unit in the car which does also change the SQ i get so its improved alot, but i love the way those B&O pop up out the dash

 

[quattro81]

Half of the appeal (at least for me) of b&o is not just the sound..it's the look, design and little quirks - particularly the motorised stuff! Lol.. I'm a sucker really, I even bought their serene mobile, which is sheeite as a phone, but it has a cool motorised flip opening mechanism, which sold it to me really...! The idea of speakers that rise up outta the dash is tooooo cool, I almost don't care what they sound like....

 

[Ash187]

Half of the appeal (at least for me) of b&o is not just the sound..it's the look, design and little quirks - particularly the motorised stuff! Lol.. I'm a sucker really, I even bought their serene mobile, which is sheeite as a phone, but it has a cool motorised flip opening mechanism, which sold it to me really...! The idea of speakers that rise up outta the dash is tooooo cool, I almost don't care what they sound like....

I'm with you on this one.. but your last comment on how you almost dont care how it sounds reminds me of this on the ASN Pub page

 

[N8]

Thing is though Shane, I agree and disagree, my BOSE was £400 from factory how much was your system, knocking on £3.5k?

 

[quattro81]

I'm with you on this one.. but your last comment on how you almost dont care how it sounds reminds me of this on the ASN Pub page

that's brilliant... but as much as i love brands (and I do have the iphone 4 - which I got on launch day!!!!) i said "almost" lol.... i'm a bit of an audiophile really, but if something sounds great and then has that extra little wow factor that b&o stuff has aesthetically, that can swing it for me vs some of the plainer stuff on the market...? Particularly the home equipment..
Just spent soooo much on ICE over the years, that i'm sticking to the bose that's in it this time!

 

[Farhan]

LOL i love that video. I remember when people at work and the techie guys tried to tell me the iphone is poor bla bla........they like why do you want it i just put that video up and it made a point!!

 

[Ash187]

i my iPhone 4!

 

[N8]

iPhone 4 lover here

 

[Shane.]

Thing is though Shane, I agree and disagree, my BOSE was £400 from factory how much was your system, knocking on £3.5k?

I'm more on about retrofitting, and not necessarily to the level I'm running. But the work required to retrofit the bose system would push it way over what it's worth and the B & O even more so

 

[N8]

Yeh I agree with you bro

 

[matt_white88]

agreed shane, i was actually looking to go aftermarket but since the Bose is so integrated into the car i thought it would be too much hassle and have just put up with it. it is actually quite good, just lacks the lower end base and power.
I currently have a pioneer p4200 double din unit in the car which does also change the SQ i get so its improved alot, but i love the way those B&O pop up out the dash

You hit the nail on the head its not just for the sound its for the look, I mean who else has got tweeters that rise out of the dash!

 

[Gti Jazz Blue]

Maybe the answer is to integrate the B&O tweeters (so that you get the appearing out of the dash) and go after market for the rest, you should be able to tune the B&O tweeters in using a processor to get the TA and EQ to an acceptable level.

Paul

 

[bdavbdav]

No worries mate, just come find me and I'll give you a demo Bring some CD's of your own if you want, something you know well



After market can be hidden just as easy though, mines a very OEM look system, admittedly the boot is done a little bit more for show but things can easily be tucked away. Just an example of stealth aftermarket install:

Is that A 2010 A3? Door cards look different from my 2009, but I wasn't under the impression they had changed anything major :S

 

[Ash187]

Couldnt the B&O tweeters integrate with the Bose System? Surely there is some kind of kit that can trick the Bose system and let the high end play out of B&O? and the tweets in Bose are in the A piller so wiring shuoldnt be hard. the hardest part would be fitting in the B&O tweets and making sure there is enough room for it to come up and not hit the windscreen. i was having a look and there are vents around the area that the tweets would fit into so would need to work around these.

 

[matt_white88]

Couldnt the B&O tweeters integrate with the Bose System? Surely there is some kind of kit that can trick the Bose system and let the high end play out of B&O? and the tweets in Bose are in the A piller so wiring shuoldnt be hard. the hardest part would be fitting in the B&O tweets and making sure there is enough room for it to come up and not hit the windscreen. i was having a look and there are vents around the area that the tweets would fit into so would need to work around these.

exactly my thoughts, I wonder how much the tweeters are from Audi. Anyone got ETKA who could check???

 

[Shane.]

Is that A 2010 A3? Door cards look different from my 2009, but I wasn't under the impression they had changed anything major :S

They're custom door builds mate.

 

[Ash187]

Had a poke around on ETKA (still learning how to use it properly)
There are a couple of part numbers which look like it could be the B&O system but will need to double check with someone first.

this is off an A8:
4E0 035 361 - Trebble loudspeaker dashboard for vehicles with high end loud speaker system - Left
4E0 035 362 - Trebble loudspeaker dashboard for vehicles with high end loud speaker system - Right
4E0 035 397 - Trebble loudspeaker dashboard for vehicles with high end loud speaker system -Centre

 

[Ash187]

 

[Ian_tdi]

Audio is 10% equipment, 90% installation. You can have the very best equipment in the world but if installed poorly it will still sound rubbish!

I personally think that Bose and b&o stuff is massively overpriced and considerably better equipment can be had for far cheaper, if and that's an important if it's insttalled properly!

Shane's install is a bit of an inspiration for me, and I hope to get my system sounding something like it! Watch this space!....

 

[Ian_tdi]

Having said all that those b&o tweeters are pretty cool! Haha.

 

[N8]

 

[matt_white88]

Had a poke around on ETKA (still learning how to use it properly)
There are a couple of part numbers which look like it could be the B&O system but will need to double check with someone first.

this is off an A8:
4E0 035 361 - Trebble loudspeaker dashboard for vehicles with high end loud speaker system - Left
4E0 035 362 - Trebble loudspeaker dashboard for vehicles with high end loud speaker system - Right
4E0 035 397 - Trebble loudspeaker dashboard for vehicles with high end loud speaker system -Centre

Does EKTA tell you prices?

 

[Ash187]

just upgrading my etka to the latest version so hopefully should be able to get the correct prices. still new on ETKA so its taking me a little while trying to figure out how it use it properly

 

[matt_white88]

No worries fella not in a major rush

 

[Ash187]

Ok so i have the latest ETKA installed and it looks good but no prices for the B&O tweeters, does not look like its is sold in separate pieces... must be a full package thing from Audi.

 

[matt_white88]

I will give them a call tomorrow and see what they say.