Bose to Burmester

[maddie]

Can you upgrade later ? I already have my car but would like to switch. I don’t think it’s possible but still thought to ask on the forum.

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[pEAkfrEAk]

For sure you can upgrade but it will be very expensive (I guess between 12k to 15k USD including installation costs). Why would you like to upgrade? I have the burmester and wouldn't order it again. I'm an audio guy but the Taycan Burmester soundsystem is absolutely not worth the money.
The most annoying thing is the missing equalizer. Next time I will go with the Bose soundsystem.

 

[tigerbalm]

For sure you can upgrade but it will be very expensive (I guess between 12k to 15k USD including installation costs). Why would you like to upgrade? I have the burmester and wouldn't order it again. I'm an audio guy but the Taycan Burmester soundsystem is absolutely not worth the money.
The most annoying thing is the missing equalizer. Next time I will go with the Bose soundsystem.

I too have the Burmester and have similar thoughts. I like it but its over priced.

 

[pEAkfrEAk]

I like it but its over priced.

Yap, heavily overpriced. It sounds ok but it's not light years ahead the bose soundsystem. They are actually quite close together ?

 

[tigerbalm]

Yap, heavily overpriced. It sounds ok but it's not light years ahead the bose soundsystem. They are actually quite close together ?

I had a Bose in my Panamera Turbo S and was pretty disappointed in it. I had a loaner Taycan with Bose for a week last year (during one of my many 22 kW outages) and was surprised at how much better it was compared to the Panamera.

It still has that "over processed" Bose sound that many find annoying but as you observed, the Burmester just isn't better enough.

I think maybe its a case that the Bose has improved in this generation of car more than the Burmester.

For me the best thing about the Burmester is that the sound stage appears to be more at dashboard level – more at your ear level – and the Bose relies a lot on the speakers in the door – therefore the sounds appears to come more from "below".

 

[porcha]

Disagree - burmester is great. I work in music and noticeable difference to Bose. Wish it could do atmos though. Subwoofer excellent. Pair with noise glass and it is great. Wouldn’t spend $15k to upgrade though!

 

[ardevd]

The Burmeister system is great but it’s very expensive and takes up some of the already quite limited trunk space. I’m sticking with the Bose system myself.

 

[tbinmd]

You can do anything for a price. You would be better off just installing some audio upgrade components. The Bose is not bad. We were able to try the Burmester during an extended test drive. It's nice but not nice for the price Porsche is charging. It's a car after all, it will never sound like the system I have at home.

 

[Ambroos]

Most of the amplifying and processing for all audio systems is done by the PCM itself, regardless of which audio system you have. Burmester and Bose will sound quite similar because they are quite similar.

 

[Genau]

Most of the amplifying and processing for all audio systems is done by the PCM itself, regardless of which audio system you have. Burmester and Bose will sound quite similar because they are quite similar.

The Burmester system is rated for 1,455 watts, nearly triple the output of the 555 watt Bose system, which gives it a significantly greater volume range to enjoy very subtle sounds without them being overwhelmed by very loud sounds. Also, the Burmester system has 22 speakers vs. 12 for the Bose system, which allows for more customizable and realistic sound presence.

 

[TaycanHero]

The Burmester system is rated for 1,455 watts, nearly triple the output of the 555 watt Bose system, which gives it a significantly greater volume range to enjoy very subtle sounds without them being overwhelmed by very loud sounds. Also, the Burmester system has 22 speakers vs. 12 for the Bose system, which allows for more customizable and realistic sound presence.

Right. Now add in the sub optimal theatre of your car cabin, road noise and how you are concentrating on driving not the soundstage of your favourite song.

Is the £3k extra really worth it?

If you have no budget, then go for it.

If you do, I'd option something that has better bang for buck, or spend the money on a home music system - that's if you really care about high quality audio.

Better value, and a room is a superior place to enjoy music in the detail your high end music system was designed.

The fact most people in a car will be listening to the radio or lossy streamed music, also begs the question why anyone would option Burmester.

 

[Ambroos]

The Burmester system is rated for 1,455 watts, nearly triple the output of the 555 watt Bose system, which gives it a significantly greater volume range to enjoy very subtle sounds without them being overwhelmed by very loud sounds. Also, the Burmester system has 22 speakers vs. 12 for the Bose system, which allows for more customizable and realistic sound presence.

That's the thing you wouldn't expect though, all 'small' speakers are still always hooked up to the PCM and not to the dedicated amplifier.

The raw power output is indeed much higher in the Burmester, but the system doing all the processing, and the amplification for all tweeters is always the same PCM module.

 

[tigerbalm]

The Burmester system is rated for 1,455 watts, nearly triple the output of the 555 watt Bose system, which gives it a significantly greater volume range to enjoy very subtle sounds without them being overwhelmed by very loud sounds. Also, the Burmester system has 22 speakers vs. 12 for the Bose system, which allows for more customizable and realistic sound presence.

Also, just for accuracy – the Bose has 710 watts and 14 speakers. Not near the Burmester but closer than suggested here.

 

[TaycanHero]

That's the thing you wouldn't expect though, all 'small' speakers are still always hooked up to the PCM and not to the dedicated amplifier.

The raw power output is indeed much higher in the Burmester, but the system doing all the processing, and the amplification for all tweeters is always the same PCM module.

Also wattage is a poor means of measuring "power" for audio.

It's (how loud something is) about air movement.

10 speakers and a lower wattage will sound far louder than two speakers and a much higher wattage in the same listening environment.

There's not much more air to displace in a car cabin.

The point I'm making is at £3k+ the Burmester system is quite possibly the most mismatched and poorly priced upgrade.

I'm wondering if the Porsche pricing team accidentally added a 0 when deciding on the upgrade cost.

 

[Ambroos]

And in terms of software:

- Bose Centerpoint 2 = Burmester Auro 3D ("surround")
- Bose AudioPilot = Burmester Sound Enhancer (noise compensation)
- Bose SoundTrue = Burmester Sound Conditioner ("upsampling")

It's running on the same PCM in the same operating system, I have a hard time believing there's a significant difference in what they do.

Burmester no doubt sounds better than the Bose system, but most of that is probably because there are more speakers and maybe because the speaker components are higher quality. Software processing in the PCM is likely to be the same. High tone speakers are all amplified directly by the PCM. The additional amplifier is different between Bose and Burmester, but is unlikely to be different in quality.

It's an upgrade Porsche offers because they can, and they know some people will buy it because they want the best.

Burmester is also suspiciously similar to the Audi B&O Advanced system. Similar number of speakers, similar amount of power, similar price, the same 3D/noise compensation/enhancer. Probably the same amp and at least some shared speakers. Reality is that VW group just has this software and the parts laying around, and has a bunch of brand deals with various audio manufacturers because everyone wins with a branded audio system.

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