Burmester or Bose if all I use is Spotify via CarPlay?

[Bigben]

I was listening standard when i was on test drive with RWD. The sound was good enough, maybe even better as I had in Koleos.
they also had a 4s in the store, with Bose…and it was something completely different.
i didn;t want to check the sound of Burmester, since i knew that i’ll spend too much and i didn;t want to go over my budget (3 BTC).

If you were to spend 3 BTC today on a Taycan that’d be more or less a keyring ?

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[B61]

If you were to spend 3 BTC today on a Taycan that’d be more or less a keyring ?

well, maybe i could get a Tesla Y for 3 btc today, but when i sold them last year (in April) i got 150k€

 

[Bao1303]

Have a 4S CT in order with the Burmester. From the varying replies I fear this will only add to the confusion, but at least this is my take: Im also into high-end HiFi, and as others have mentioned, a car cabin can never give the experience a proper listening room can. A 5K home system in a proper space will sound far better than a 1M system in a shitty space. There is only so much DSP can do to compensate before the sound just gets too over processed. The noise floor in a
car - However quiet - is far above what would give a High fidelity experience. However if one forget the absolute fidelity and concentrate on enjoyment (ref P. A equipment on a concert or nightclub) there are definitely huge differences between the BM and the BOSE. Tried them both before order and only with spotify over bluetooth, so highly compressed and seriously limiting dynamic contrast. Proper media and connection will only improve things. All settings to neutral for comparison purpose and car stationary:
BOSE: lacking dynamic contrast, muddy bass, nasal but pronounnced mids, boxy sound - like a beefed up ghettoblaster with thin plastic speakers and the typ. Teenager "U shaped" equalizer settings.
BM: Much much better for all the above, esp. dynamics and "airiness". Was it HiFi? Nope. Was it enjoyable? Yes for all sorts of music except classical. The Bose for me would only be used for radio, not music, as it was annoyingly bad for a car this price. Is the BM worth it? To me yes, but if you are not a geek like me, try the BOSE and if happy - tick the box and DONT try the BM. If on the other hand you find it to be mediocre, try the BM also. Only you can decide if the improvement is worth the premium.

Side note: My wife refused the BM due to price. However when we testdrove with the BOSE she started complaining. Took 30 sec. With the BM and it was settled - guess she doesnt realize how spoiled she is with decent sound ?, and its her car and she pays for it...

 

[f1eng]

Was it enjoyable? Yes for all sorts of music except classical.

Therein lies my problem.
I almost never feel like listening to anything other than classical, folk and blues so unless I need a Zappa or Hendrix fix I leave the “entertainment” system on a voice channel or heavily compressed Classic FM, for which a high quality system is pointless..

 

[Bao1303]

Therein lies my problem.
I almost never feel like listening to anything other than classical, folk and blues so unless I need a Zappa or Hendrix fix I leave the “entertainment” system on a voice channel or heavily compressed Classic FM, for which a high quality system is pointless..

For classical - at least complex - totally agree. You need the space, separation and low noise floor at least, or its just "mush". For other types of music it works - at least for me. For long solo drives on tedious highways, being able to enjoy music is a big plus in my book. Keyword is enjoy. Its all so subjective what we prioritise when it comes to sound so its hard to give recommendations other than have a listen to both

 

[TaycanHero]

If you are absolutely serious about the best car audio, then perhaps a local car audio specialist would the better choice. They could probably supply and fit a superior sound system + amp set up + labour for <£4,200.

Of course that is not factory spec, but if car audio is that important to you, why would you care? You just want the best, not something overpriced and half-a$$ed.

See:

 

[ayoussef]

Well I’m confused again, my head says no to Burmester but my heart says yes. My spec is getting really overpriced and I find that I’m adding other things when I remove Burmester instead of just saving the money. I wish things were like the old days where I could just walk onto the lot and pick from 5-6 Taycans just sitting there ready and built. Too many choices creates too much confusion and I’m already way over budget!

 

[TaycanHero]

Well I’m confused again, my head says no to Burmester but my heart says yes. My spec is getting really overpriced and I find that I’m adding other things when I remove Burmester instead of just saving the money. I wish things were like the old days where I could just walk onto the lot and pick from 5-6 Taycans just sitting there ready and built. Too many choices creates too much confusion and I’m already way over budget!

I always listen to streamed music in my car. I also like good audio.

My car audio experiences this year included a rental car in Africa, where my Toyota Quest did not have bluetooth/audio streaming.

It did have a cup holder. It was the perfect size to holster my bluetooth speaker.

I then streamed to that and the music experience was both gangsta, but surprisingly enjoyable, as the speaker reverberated around, adding some solid bass.

You will be more than happy with the Bose. Any options that are cosmetic, drop them. Try not to overspec, after all, there's another Porsche or Mercedes or any number of luxury marques that will be seeing your cash in a few years. Save some for a few frivolous options on those.

 

[f1eng]

For classical - at least complex - totally agree. You need the space, separation and low noise floor at least, or its just "mush". For other types of music it works - at least for me. For long solo drives on tedious highways, being able to enjoy music is a big plus in my book. Keyword is enjoy. Its all so subjective what we prioritise when it comes to sound so its hard to give recommendations other than have a listen to both

Too late for me, my car is built with the standard system though not delivered yet, I was persuaded to drop Bose due to shortages causing delays (and got other delays instead )
The last long drive I did with only my dog as passenger I didn’t think about putting music on for the first 5 hours!
At home I never listen to music as a background though. I either listen to some music or prefer silence, I have Asperger’s so find background noise super irritating.

My wife is a professional musician and conductor and she is perfectly happy listening to music on her laptop. She never uses the Hi-Fi.

 

[KConway]

I went with the Burmester in my newly delivered RWD. My Lexus was optioned with a Mark Levinson system that was lousy and was really hoping for better (not apples-to -apples i know) than the normal mobile audio experience. I am not disappointed with the extra bucks I paid for the Burmester. It did take a stop order and 3-4 week delay in delivery on a car that froze in February and delivered the end of July.

 

[Genau]

Therein lies my problem.
I almost never feel like listening to anything other than classical, folk and blues so unless I need a Zappa or Hendrix fix I leave the “entertainment” system on a voice channel or heavily compressed Classic FM, for which a high quality system is pointless..

Have you tried out Primephonic or Idagio lossless streaming of classical catalogs?
https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/t...-or-playing-from-a-usb-stick.8195/post-117784

 

[f1eng]

Have you tried out Primephonic or Idagio lossless streaming of classical catalogs?
https://www.taycanforum.com/forum/t...-or-playing-from-a-usb-stick.8195/post-117784

No.
I understood Apple had acquired Primephonic and would integrate it into Apple Music but they don’t seem to have done so.
I might even go back to Apple Music if they did!
I will look into Idagio to see if its search system finds classical pieces logically. Thanks.
Mind you the problem of the dynamic range of classical music and the high background level in a car is still probably the biggest problem.
Classic FM (a UK commercial channel) sounds absolutely dire on my home stereo but the dynamic range compression makes more of the sound audible in my car so it is my principle car music source.
The attraction of the USB stick is it has my choice of music on!

 

[buhhy]

Not an audiophile by any means, but I used to daily drive a pair of SRH-1540 which are a great pair of headphones. I splurged for the BM and it's really good. It's super crisp across the range - no muddy bass or treble. Soundstage is great though it does bias forward as you'd expect in a car, but not significantly. I did not get a chance to try a Taycan Bose, but the ML on my Lexus is noticeably worse.

I mostly listen to instrumentals - classical, jazz, OSTs, and a random smattering of pop songs. I do use Apple lossless music format.

Is it worth the money? Probably not, but I personally enjoyed the upgrade.

 

[02bluesuperroo]

I didn’t read through the whole thread but I know the usual answers. Personally, I just got the Burmester for one reason. I didn’t want to be tempted to tinker with the stereo. I’m the kind of person who usually upgrades their stereo. I’ve had some pretty elaborate and expensive setups in the past. Some of them easily costing $5800, if not more. I figured if I could get an OEM upgrade that would satisfy my needs, I’d be coming out ahead for the money.

I’ve had Bose systems and I’ve had a loaner Taycan that had the Bose system. It is good for Bose but it’s still the typical Bose system. You won’t be happy with it if you’re used to an aftermarket system. The Burmester on the other hand does pack just enough punch in the low end to satisfy me the 10” sun and 400w. The entire Bose system is probably 250w but the Burmsedter is 1400w. I know these numbers are marketing but it is a lot more power. The highs and mids are phenomenal, far better than Bose.

And fwiw, I only listen to streamed audio as well. It’s an automotive environment so I don’t think it makes much difference. Regardless of the source, the Burmester sounds a lot better. I totally get that it’s not worth $5,800+ to a lot of people though.

 

[Genau]

I understood Apple had acquired Primephonic and would integrate it into Apple Music but they don’t seem to have done so.
I might even go back to Apple Music if they did!

Apple Laying Groundwork for Apple Music Classical Feature Launching in 2022
Tuesday September 27, 2022 5:41 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple appears to be preparing for the upcoming launch of Apple Music Classical, a standalone classical music app that will be available alongside the ‌Apple Music‌ app.
https://www.macrumors.com/2022/09/27/apple-music-classical-groundwork/

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