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BMW M5 F90 (2018+) General Forums iDrive, Nav, Stereo, Bluetooth, Electronics    Bowers & Wilkins Sucks !! Confirmed by an Expert !!

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      12-09-2019, 09:49 AM   #23
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I have also measured the frequency response in the car (that is how I established the equalizer settings). There is bass in the car. But as others have said, at low volumes, you won't feel the bass as much. At higher volumes, better source, and engine off, the system measures correctly. But it is definitely trying to be more audiophile (meaning not boosted bass).

I also agree about the break in time. I am usually not one to believe in break in for speakers but for some reason this car was the exception. At the start it sounded really bright, but after it settled, it sounded much better.
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      12-09-2019, 09:57 AM   #24
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mitch65 View Post
After several attempts to find good equalizer settings for the Bowers & Wilkins system in my 2019 M5 I asked a friend of a friend who is a very well-known recording engineer to take a shot at it. He has helped designed sound for multiple home theaters for his friends and is very well versed in acoustical settings. I really enjoyed the Bang & Olufsen system in my 2016 M5, so this Bowers & Wilkins system has been very disappointing as we all know, especially the Bass. I told him about the B & O system so I suggested we also have him listen to my friend’s 2015 M5 with the B & O. Then I contacted another guy I know who has a 2020 M5 Comp with the Harmon Kardon, so we had all 3 there for him to try out. (Can’t believe I didn’t take a picture of the 3 together??) I played him some music I have on my ITouch (which is all downloaded from CD’s using Apple Lossless) on all 3 cars and let him play with the settings. We both heard a big difference between all 3 cars as did my friends. We all agreed the 2015 M5 with the B & O was better overall than the B & W with the HK being the worst of the 3. He brought out his RTA and started playing some kind of pink noise. He then made some adjustments and played some more music on my ITouch (some of which he actually engineered himself) in all 3 cars. He said we really need to change the EQ settings when we change the music style Jazz/Rock/R & B etc…… His opinion was BMW gave Bowers & Wilkins specs of what room they had in the doors and Bowers delivered the speakers with very little testing in the 5 series, which is not a very good acoustical environment and would be a challenge. I have been noticing the F90’s doors seem much lighter than the F10 M5 so was wondering if that is changing the sound a bit. He also questioned whether the Subs buried in the floor boards below the front seats are weak or being held back due to power constraints, or that BMW did not use amps that had the power Bowers wanted. We all agreed the Bowers speakers did present better accuracy & detail for voice and instruments than the B & O, but thought the B & O system was a much better overall setup in the F10 than we have with the Bowers & Wilkins in the F90 with the HK at the bottom of the 3. All of us left with better settings than we had, so that was great. This is my 4th M5 so hoping the next generation has a better sound system in it. Are you listening BMW ??
Pics or it didn't happen...
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      12-09-2019, 11:16 AM   #25
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I was online looking at part numbers and such, and found that the part number for the subs is the same for the F10 M5, F90 M5, 550, 750, etc etc. I am not sure if this is the base stereo or the SAME bass for ALL of them???


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      12-09-2019, 12:07 PM   #26
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I just set the B&W treble to the max setting and bass slightly above mid level.....and it sounds great....
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      12-09-2019, 02:29 PM   #27
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Originally Posted by Steeve19M5CP View Post
I just set the B&O treble to the max setting and bass slightly above mid level.....and it sounds great....
B&W?
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      12-09-2019, 04:03 PM   #28
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OP, all this work and you don't share your EQ settings?? We need to try what your "expert" prescribed....
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      12-09-2019, 04:11 PM   #29
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dardeca View Post
B&W?
Yes B&W ..this is the EQ setting I use in most cars.........the B&W equalizer detailed settings I use is a "U" shaped curve with treble at max and bass again slightly above mid level....the bottom of U curve will also be mid point
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Last edited by Steeve19M5CP; 12-10-2019 at 08:17 AM..
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      12-09-2019, 05:29 PM   #30
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Originally Posted by euro* View Post
OP, all this work and you don't share your EQ settings?? We need to try what your "expert" prescribed....
Exactly !! What was I thinking ?? I am out of town until Friday, will take a picture and post details when I get back
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      12-09-2019, 05:31 PM   #31
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Originally Posted by ResidualJinx View Post
Pics or it didn't happen...
Right, that is what I always say !! I do have a video but would need to edit out faces, let me see what I can do on that.
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      12-09-2019, 05:33 PM   #32
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Originally Posted by MysticBlue View Post
It's really amazing to me that they don't include a setting in idrive to allow us to turn it off if we choose.
All 3 cars had the fake exhaust sound coded off. I can't stand it, especially on the F90 where the "Hum" comes from the front when exhaust noise should be coming from the rear
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      12-09-2019, 06:19 PM   #33
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Settings I use ...
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      12-10-2019, 08:18 AM   #34
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mitch65 View Post
All 3 cars had the fake exhaust sound coded off. I can't stand it, especially on the F90 where the "Hum" comes from the front when exhaust noise should be coming from the rear
Theres a button to turn the fake exhaust sound on and off depending on mood....no need to code it off.....on the F90 M5 Competition it actually sounds good
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      12-10-2019, 10:19 AM   #35
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AndroidRobot View Post
yes, I'll have to check what I have mine at. I adjusted mine more to how I prefer the sound, not really a true reference flat acoustic sound. If I don't post pics by later today, tag me again because I get busy at work.
Tagging you again to get your EQ settings...snap a pic when you can.
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      12-10-2019, 12:20 PM   #36
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Quote:
Originally Posted by josec70 View Post
Settings I use ...
Will this improve bass performance? I have to say the midtones in most of the songs I listen to are improved but the bass is completely lacking. Not entirely sure if it is due to the amazing sound deadening (base M5) or just crap tuning. I do know that my brother's '15 C300 stereo knocks the socks off mine.
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      12-10-2019, 12:26 PM   #37
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ACF90M5 View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by josec70 View Post
Settings I use ...
Will this improve bass performance? I have to say the midtones in most of the songs I listen to are improved but the bass is completely lacking. Not entirely sure if it is due to the amazing sound deadening (base M5) or just crap tuning. I do know that my brother's '15 C300 stereo knocks the socks off mine.
It's difficult to have settings that can be used universally since every track is different. I play around with settings based on the music I listen to.

I don't think this system is as lousy as it has been made to appear here but it does require that you tune the settings to achieve the best sound possible for the genre of music you most listen to.

If more bass is what you seek play with the lows until there's enough in place. This may entail you play with the mids and highs as well.
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      12-10-2019, 01:11 PM   #38
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Quote:
Originally Posted by josec70 View Post
It's difficult to have settings that can be used universally since every track is different. I play around with settings based on the music I listen to.

I don't think this system is as lousy as it has been made to appear here but it does require that you tune the settings to achieve the best sound possible for the genre of music you most listen to.

If more bass is what you seek play with the lows until there's enough in place. This may entail you play with the mids and highs as well.
Totally agree. Depends on the track. Although I liked the B+O, the B+W has nice sound modes like Studio, Concert, and Lounge.
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      12-10-2019, 04:36 PM   #39
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dardeca View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by AndroidRobot View Post
yes, I'll have to check what I have mine at. I adjusted mine more to how I prefer the sound, not really a true reference flat acoustic sound. If I don't post pics by later today, tag me again because I get busy at work.
Tagging you again to get your EQ settings...snap a pic when you can.
here they are, note these settings give the music a 'brighter sound' since I listen to mostly classic rock (ACDC, GnR, Motley Crue, Queen etc) since the B&W system really shines in the mid range at higher volumes. I use the concert or on stage modes generally speaking.

Evey set of speakers is slightly different too so this might not sound good on yours, it's hard to say.


500Hz +2
1kHz +2
2kHz +1
Treble +3
Bass +4
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      12-10-2019, 05:40 PM   #40
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I am a car audiophile and sound quality competition is one of my hobbies. I can tell you definitively that all factory car audio is terrible. Period. It doesn't matter of it's a $9000 Burmester upgrade on a $200,000 Mercedes, the system is garbage.

If you want high quality audio in a car, you must install aftermarket equipment and you must invest a lot of time and effort into proper installation and tuning.
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      12-10-2019, 06:19 PM   #41
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Steeve19M5CP View Post
Theres a button to turn the fake exhaust sound on and off depending on mood....no need to code it off.....on the F90 M5 Competition it actually sounds good
What button? That's not what the exhaust button with the green light does if that's what you mean, if it does turn off the ASD it's doing a lot more than that because it also quiets the exhaust system itself, no more pops and bangs with the green light off on the button.
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      12-10-2019, 06:20 PM   #42
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Quote:
Originally Posted by subterFUSE View Post
I am a car audiophile and sound quality competition is one of my hobbies. I can tell you definitively that all factory car audio is terrible. Period. It doesn't matter of it's a $9000 Burmester upgrade on a $200,000 Mercedes, the system is garbage.

If you want high quality audio in a car, you must install aftermarket equipment and you must invest a lot of time and effort into proper installation and tuning.
True, and I have done that in the past, but these days cars are so complicated it's not worth the hassle. And I lease, so it's just for 3 years.
I agree the Bowers and Wilkins system is a huge disappointment compared to the previous B & O in the F10 M5. I consider myself an audiophile, and have a high end system at home which has no tone controls at all. Since I play the car audio more, I really miss the B & O in the F10 M5. I would describe it as the Bowers sounds like it has much smaller speakers with a small sub and with the B & O you hear a much "fuller" sound. The Bowers tends to distort bass when a Bass player is the focus on most EQ settings. If you play the same song on the B & O it doesn't.
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      12-10-2019, 07:00 PM   #43
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All you ‘audiophiles’ need to listen the exhaust when you punch it. lol. Pure stereo joy.
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      12-10-2019, 07:02 PM   #44
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AndroidRobot View Post
here they are, note these settings give the music a 'brighter sound' since I listen to mostly classic rock (ACDC, GnR, Motley Crue, Queen etc) since the B&W system really shines in the mid range at higher volumes. I use the concert or on stage modes generally speaking.

Evey set of speakers is slightly different too so this might not sound good on yours, it's hard to say.


500Hz +2
1kHz +2
2kHz +1
Treble +3
Bass +4
Can I assume the other frequencies not listed above are set to neutral?
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