B&O Crackling - How common?

[a3_phil]

I'm trying to finalise my options and I'm stuck between the Audi Sound System upgrade and the full B&O upgrade.

I don't listen to music at exceptionally high volumes but I would really value good sound quality as I listen to a real mix of music including a fair bit of classical.

Initially I thought the B&O system would be a no brainer but having read some of the threads on here about the crackling problem and then having experienced it first hand on a test-drive it's really put me off.

I appreciate that the dealer would have to get it sorted, but it does seem to be a long and drawn out process.

Does anyone have any idea how common it is? I appreciate the old 'people only post when there's a fault' adage, but I'd probably rather save myself the money and hassle by getting the Audi system if it's quite likely the B&O will be faulty out of the box.

 

[phil1824]

I have the B&O System and it has worked flawlessly. I previously had the Bose System on my A4 and the B&O is a step up (in quality and cost)
I have not compared it with the two other systems on offer

 

[RYuill]

If you don't play your music that loud, you would be aswell going for the audi sound system with the sub as I think the quality is good, and I like my beats. It's loud enough the mirrors shake, actually the wife tells me to turn it down as she thinks people will think we are showing of

 

[Vertigo1]

Not had any crackling issues with mine. Did blow a speaker shortly after I got it but was replaced under warranty without any problems.

 

[monopole]

I can't see why the standard B&O system would be different throughout the range, no issues with mine on the A5, even when loud (the shiz in my door pockets rattle about a bit then though lol)

 

[The Challinor]

I'm just praying that my B and O is ok ! Didn't really think about not spec'ing it. Was just a must, it's a pretty epic system.

 

[a3_phil]

Difficult to predict I suppose but I know I'd be kicking myself if it was delivered with the crackling problem as I'd either end up:

a) in and out of the dealer at a massive inconvenience to me

or

b) not bothering and having the shame of paying extra to get a subjectively worse set of speakers


That said, if there have been specific problems with existing cars, is it naive to think that my new build (probably October delivery?) would already have any necessary fixes / MMI firmware upgrades etc. in place?

 

[Vertigo1]

If my next car ends up with such a problem then I'll be demanding it is fixed under warranty or the car is replaced, it's that simple.

 

[a3_phil]

Hmmm, I'm tempted to take the plunge. There are three realistic alternatives:

1. Get the Audi upgrade. Spend the next three years wondering if I should have coughed up a little more to get the best possible sound.

2. Get the B&O with problems, suffer a few months (at worst!?) getting it fixed and then enjoy for a little under three years.

3. Get the B&O and have no problems.

Probably worth the risk...

 

[The Challinor]

If my next car ends up with such a problem then I'll be demanding it is fixed under warranty or the car is replaced, it's that simple.

Same here but hope it's ok

 

[Scott]

I'm having the crackling issue with B&O. The dealership has another S3 and an A3 Saloon with B&O. Both also crackle.

 

[camoto]

I'm having the crackling issue with B&O. The dealership has another S3 and an A3 Saloon with B&O. Both also crackle.

At this point I'd be willing to bet that they ALL do it and that it's only certain people with certain music at certain volumes that ever notice it.

 

[Vertigo1]

Bizarre. Is it just certain frequencies or types of music?

 

[a3_phil]

Argh, sod it. Given how intrusive it was in the test drive I had it's just not worth the risk...

Plus, speccing the Audi upgrade instead brings the ROTR back below £30k which was supposed to be my budget anyway.

 

[camoto]

It's a great option and I am sure there will be a fix at some point for it. It sounds like a digital crackle so chances might be good that it will be a software fix.

 

[snakehips]

At this point I'd be willing to bet that they ALL do it and that it's only certain people with certain music at certain volumes that ever notice it.

I'd be happy to take you up on that bet. Most of us with B&O have no issues at all, and I assure you that will be across a wide range of music and volumes.

 

[camoto]

Good point, but my crackling is in very specific cases so that's where my conjecture was coming from.

 

[mjcourtney]

Good point, but my crackling is in very specific cases so that's where my conjecture was coming from.

Same in my case. And I'm sure it was getting worse before the last software update.

I need to try my SD card out in another A3 with B&O to see if the problem persists. At least that will give some indication as to whether it affects some or all of the cars.

 

[steverobertsbbc]

Does this problem definitely exist if you play the music from the CD player, rather than from compressed sources like mp3 and via Bluetooth?

 

[benhock101]

Hmmm, I'm tempted to take the plunge. There are three realistic alternatives:

1. Get the Audi upgrade. Spend the next three years wondering if I should have coughed up a little more to get the best possible sound.

2. Get the B&O with problems, suffer a few months (at worst!?) getting it fixed and then enjoy for a little under three years.

3. Get the B&O and have no problems.

Probably worth the risk...

This was the exact same reasoning I used to decide to spec it on mine. Praying that I'm not an unlucky one!

 

[glospete]

That said, if there have been specific problems with existing cars, is it naive to think that my new build (probably October delivery?) would already have any necessary fixes / MMI firmware upgrades etc. in place?

Although I'm not suffering yet and the cause of the problem is totally different to the B&O, Audi have never managed to fix the infamous Bose problem in the TT so I'm afraid to say yes it might be naive to think that Audi are bound to find a fix.

I've ordered the Audi Sound System, thought it sounded fine for my listening tastes and I've not heard of any problems with it yet.

 

[The Challinor]

Although I'm not suffering yet and the cause of the problem is totally different to the B&O, Audi have never managed to fix the infamous Bose problem in the TT so I'm afraid to say yes it might be naive to think that Audi are bound to find a fix.

I've ordered the Audi Sound System, thought it sounded fine for my listening tastes and I've not heard of any problems with it yet.

Without googling it what was the Bose issue in the TT?

 

[The Challinor]

Can anyone with the crackling confirm if they get it when streaming over wifi? It's meant to be perfectly fine via DAB

 

[glospete]

Without googling it what was the Bose issue in the TT?

Have a look on the TT Forum but this is one thread:

http://www.ttforum.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=304093

Basically water ingress/condensation causes first crackling, then failure of the Bose amp, and Audi will not accept blame even though it is a design fault because of the position of the amp.

 

[The Challinor]

Have a look on the TT Forum but this is one thread:

http://www.ttforum.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=304093

Basically water ingress/condensation causes first crackling, then failure of the Bose amp, and Audi will not accept blame even though it is a design fault because of the position of the amp.

That's pretty poor, hopefully it would have been a warranty item anyways.

 

[glospete]

That's pretty poor, hopefully it would have been a warranty item anyways.

Yes but is rejected for out of warranty claims even though it is an accepted problem with Bose in TTs and is not a fault created by end users. Anyway let's get back on thread!

 

[Scott]

If anyone has B&O around Stoke on Trent, London or in between (not far from the motorway), I will happily travel to you and see if I can hear the crackling with my music. I'm going to London on Saturday.

 

[snakehips]

Same in my case. And I'm sure it was getting worse before the last software update.

I need to try my SD card out in another A3 with B&O to see if the problem persists. At least that will give some indication as to whether it affects some or all of the cars.

Just curious, is the crackling limited to playing off SD card, or across all inputs? I ask because I don't use SD cards and don't have crackling. Thought we might be able to narrow the issue down a little as others are also asking similar questions.

 

[PDA3]

I use sd card (not tried cd) and haven't heard crackling (even though I'm paranoid and try to hear it! )

 

[monopole]

Just curious, is the crackling limited to playing off SD card, or across all inputs? I ask because I don't use SD cards and don't have crackling. Thought we might be able to narrow the issue down a little as others are also asking similar questions.

I only play music of SD card (Micro SD w/adapter) and no, no over ****** pork skin!

 

[danilotto]

I had bad crackling in the right side midrange speaker. Changed under warranty. Now it is ok.

A good test song for B&O crackling is the instrumental beginning of Empire of the Sun: "Walking on a Dream". With that song my faulty loudspeaker crackled a lot.

 

[The Challinor]

Keen to see what's it's like over wifi

 

[Dan Halen]

I had bad crackling in the right side midrange speaker. Changed under warranty. Now it is ok.

A good test song for B&O crackling is the instrumental beginning of Empire of the Sun: "Walking on a Dream". With that song my faulty loudspeaker crackled a lot.

Thanks! I'll have to keep this in mind. I may even have to put it on an SD card and take it up to the dealership to see what I find.

 

[Scott]

Haven't tried SD or CD, but Bluetooth and USB both crackle for me, however DAB is fine.

 

[benhock101]

I wonder whether B&O would comment if approached.....

 

[Mdritchie]

I'm getting really bad crackling from my midrange speakers with my B&O (S3, April delivery, MMI Nav plus). It's such a shame as it's otherwise a great system. I only get it with certain tracks but it happens consistently. I've got loads of tracks that I now skip past when they come on as I know they are going to crackle. Not approached the dealer yet. Any links to other threads on this topic.

 

[The Challinor]

I'm getting really bad crackling from my midrange speakers with my B&O (S3, April delivery, MMI Nav plus). It's such a shame as it's otherwise a great system. I only get it with certain tracks but it happens consistently. I've got loads of tracks that I now skip past when they come on as I know they are going to crackle. Not approached the dealer yet. Any links to other threads on this topic.

This is the main thread mate about this topic. Software update has fixed a lot of crackle issues, but nothing concrete as of yet.

 

[veeeight]

Does this problem definitely exist if you play the music from the CD player, rather than from compressed sources like mp3 and via Bluetooth?

steverobertsbbc is on the money here, he has previously brought up this topic of cascade & multiple coding/decoding issues when using compressed audio.

The route to finding the root cause is to start off with uncompressed audio, on either CD or SD card. Any other source will have cascade compression issues.

Just to give you an idea of what coding already takes place in the car (and this is without considering the propriety codec inside the B+O DSP Amplifier):
http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/new-a3-s3-8v-chassis/215081-cd-holder.html#post2140450

 

[Battlekrapz]

B&O in s3 and listen to sd cards, all sorts of tunes and can't hear crackling... Car is not UK it's BE...

 

[Mdritchie]

Happy to hear you're not having any issues. I'm pretty sure I've been getting it with CDs too.