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      12-11-2011, 06:42 PM   #1
jbinbi
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not premium vs premium sound

I am not an audiofile, and in my mid 50s , after many years of concerts with no hearing protection, does my hearing detect subtle sounds.

OTH, I can hear the difference between very good and just ok.

If you had listened to both the premium and standard sound systems WHILE driving, is there a huge difference between the 2?
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      12-11-2011, 07:26 PM   #2
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I hear ya...

I did purchase the premium sound be more for the Satellite Radio. I probably would have upgraded anyways, but I must say, having Satellite free for a year is pretty cool... Football games, Hockey games, every music style represented with very few advertisements. I like having the option to go Satellite if I want.

When it comes to premium stuff... I generally opt for the upgrade...
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      12-11-2011, 08:30 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jbinbi View Post
I am not an audiofile, and in my mid 50s , after many years of concerts with no hearing protection, does my hearing detect subtle sounds.

OTH, I can hear the difference between very good and just ok.

If you had listened to both the premium and standard sound systems WHILE driving, is there a huge difference between the 2?


I think this is my biggest letdown in the X3 from my experience so far. I might be just used to my Bose audio in my FX which IMO sounds pretty damn good. I haven't thought that about the HK upgrade system in the X3. It sounds ok. it's certainly better than what's in a Corolla. Maybe you just get used to a particular sound system and if you like it anything else has to measure up to it. I didn't see that in the X3. But there are other things in the X3 that are great. I go on long drives and really aprreciate sound quality and having XM is great especially when they get into a groove and are playing some great stuff.
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      12-11-2011, 09:14 PM   #4
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It's nothing like BMWs old Logic7 sound system, which was a $1,700 option when I was ordering my E60 535i wagon. That was one of the best sound systems I've ever heard in a car. Although it's hard to beat Audi with the Bang & Olufsen or the Range Rover's 1,300 watt system. This one on the X3 is just, well, okay.
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      12-11-2011, 09:23 PM   #5
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Its a good upgrade. You'll notice a difference. But it also depends on what quality music yur listening to and the type. E.g, jazz sounds amazing on the system. Hip hop, just ok.
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      12-11-2011, 10:56 PM   #6
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Listen to the base and piano in Medesky Martin and Wood's old classic "Last Chance to Dance" doing an A:B test between both systems and you will know which to buy. You can also try Miles Davis "Miles Runs the Voodoo Down" from "Bitches Brew" and you should get a second confirmation by checking how many keyboards, drummers and percussionists you can hear.
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      12-12-2011, 09:08 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Le Chef View Post
Listen to the base and piano in Medesky Martin and Wood's old classic "Last Chance to Dance" doing an A:B test between both systems and you will know which to buy. You can also try Miles Davis "Miles Runs the Voodoo Down" from "Bitches Brew" and you should get a second confirmation by checking how many keyboards, drummers and percussionists you can hear.
Is your source CD for the test? I'm noticing the audio quality is not as high as it could be over USB from my iPhone, which is puzzling as it's a wired digital connection.

On another note, has anyone tried integrating the MOG app yet? I think it's a paid service. Worth it?
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      12-12-2011, 10:21 AM   #8
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CD yes, though Lossless would probably work just as well.
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      12-12-2011, 10:44 AM   #9
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can the system play flacc files from a usb drive? or only mp3?
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      12-12-2011, 11:06 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jk View Post
can the system play flacc files from a usb drive? or only mp3?
From page 173 of the Owner's Manual, it looks like it recognizes WMA, MP3, M4A, and AAC -- no FLAC, unfortunately.
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      12-12-2011, 11:54 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jk View Post
can the system play flacc files from a usb drive? or only mp3?
There is some more info on supported formats here but FLAC isn't supported as jdmass has said. wma lossless and wav lossless both work OK

http://x3.xbimmers.com/forums/showth...t=file+formats
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      12-12-2011, 01:10 PM   #12
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Originally Posted by sfax View Post
There is some more info on supported formats here but FLAC isn't supported as jdmass has said. wma lossless and wav lossless both work OK

http://x3.xbimmers.com/forums/showth...t=file+formats
thanks for that link. very helpful.
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      12-12-2011, 03:15 PM   #13
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Vinyl....lossless
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      12-12-2011, 10:01 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sfax View Post
There is some more info on supported formats here but FLAC isn't supported as jdmass has said. wma lossless and wav lossless both work OK

http://x3.xbimmers.com/forums/showth...t=file+formats
I have the pro sound system and you are correct in saying that flac does not work natively on the system, however, I have a Blackberry Torch with flac music files on it and I just play them through the BB either through bluetooth or cable and that comes across very well.

I also have a portable flash drive with about 500GB of apple lossless music on it and run that through the USB drive (well I did before my accident!). So if you have your music collection in flac purchase a player which recognises flac and plug it in - problem solved!
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      12-13-2011, 12:52 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve30dMSport View Post
I have the pro sound system and you are correct in saying that flac does not work natively on the system, however, I have a Blackberry Torch with flac music files on it and I just play them through the BB either through bluetooth or cable and that comes across very well.

I also have a portable flash drive with about 500GB of apple lossless music on it and run that through the USB drive (well I did before my accident!). So if you have your music collection in flac purchase a player which recognises flac and plug it in - problem solved!
Interesting that your BB works playing FLAC via USB. I thought that would be the same as accessing files on a flash drive with the phone just treated as a dumb file store. Is there an intermediary encoded digital format at work here?
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      12-13-2011, 09:12 AM   #16
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US Premium Sound (Logic7)-No FLAC for me using BB Torch 9850 or anything else. This is getting to be a real Pain in the Ass coordinating all the formats for all the devices and software applications. iTunes, WMP, MediaMonkey......ipod, iphones, sansa players, BB, music servers, home pre-amps....cars. Jeez. Beginning to look like Mp3 is the only common format.
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      12-13-2011, 09:33 AM   #17
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Most sound systems are ok but never match the quality of aftermarket systems. If you want quality sound you can and should always go to a decent aftermarket installer...sky's the limit.

I personally wouldn't spend that much money on a car system because 1. you should hear some of the external noises (ie. sirens etc. ) 2. unfortunately the BMW X3 is not that quiet inside.

For $1500 you can get a pretty decent aftermarket system that should beat BMW premium sound system. ( the secret is you will get a better cross over system to seperate midrange/high/bass, and better speakers..not to mention a better amp and D/A convertor ) The scary part is I hate people taking apart my car.

FYI - I am an audiophile but always found car systems never give you the quality of the home systems just the badging (ie. mark levinson, B&O, etc.). Then again my home system is worth 1/2 the price of my car. I guess I like music better than I like driving. Too many hobbies...so little money.
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      12-13-2011, 09:43 PM   #18
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Now I find the BMW X3 premium sound system to be awesome, and I am sure glad that I have this option. Would not have it any other way.
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      12-14-2011, 12:13 AM   #19
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If anyone's curious about MOG (one of the few BMW Apps). I just subscribed to the $9.99/mo Primo plan. Search and stream practically any song, any artist, 320Kbps, integrated in the nav screen. There's also a Pandora-ish radio feature. I believe you can save songs to the phone too. Setup is odd in that you have to register at their website and purchase service without having tried the app out in your car first. Once you've subscribed, run the MOG app on your iPhone, plug in the phone via USB, then in iDrive go to Connected Drive > BMW Apps > MOG. It's pretty cool. And sounds great with Premium Audio.

Last edited by nonagon; 12-14-2011 at 01:34 PM..
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      02-05-2013, 06:44 PM   #20
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Bmw premium sound is very good

There is a lot of confusion as to who makes the actual head unit, and the amplifier and the speakers for the 2011 onwards BMW X3 with premium audio.

Some say its Harmon, but Harman webiste only lists the X1, the 3 series and X1 as the cars in which their products are featured.

Then some say its Alpine audio, as I have seen one photo of the head unit bearing its name , but that could be for the standard audio system and not premium. Not sure!

Whoever the parts supplier is not know, but what is known for sure is that a Swedish company called Dirac is providing an amazing self-tuning software, that makes any speaker system sound like 1000's of dollars worth. They call it Dirac Live. This small company so impressed BMW that they threw away more expensive audio brands and incorporated it in most of their models. Even Bentley and Rolls royce use Dirac, as can be seen from Dirac's website. Bently features a NAIm sound system again with Dirac software.

So all you fellow BMW X3 drivers should feel very happy about what we have from BMW is the very best and much better than what wannabe BMW copycats like AUDI offer in Bang & olufsen. Even B&F worked with Dirac to get their software for the new BMW 6 series coupe.Basically today if you don't have Dirac your system is just ok and not great.

I was always impressed with my X3 premium system and launched a massive search on google, because every lyric could be discerned so well and I had never felt that before in any other audio system. Its a great system, worth every penny spent, and you only realize that once you feel the difference. I have posted my findings to help fellow BMW afficionados.
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      02-05-2013, 07:36 PM   #21
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Ok, so I have driven my 2012 x3 with premium sound for 8 months, and I drove a loaner x3 2013 with standard US audio for almost two weeks. I think this entitles me to a fair comparison. There is none. The standard audio was very disappointing. Very poor quality, much like my '05 x3 prior to the speaker upgrades. Little or no kick or snap. I use an IPod classic as a source in both case ( Sirius is crap). Premium has its issues, but when you consider the price includes the Sirius and one year of service, the real cost is less than $500, which is quite reasonable. It could be better, with my first request to improve midrange treble distortion, but overall, a bargain. I would easily buy it again. The graphic equalizer is also a much more flexible tool than the simple bass and treble controls. The overall sound is clearer, more dynamic, better bass, lower noise, less muddy, and just plain louder. The standard system has no ability to rock out, even with the windows closed. Forget it with the windows open. Unless you upgrade the standard speakers, which cost at least $200 or more if you do it yourself (probably way more) and a lot more if you pay someone else, the premium sound is a no brainier to me. Of course, one can wonder why the standard system is so poor in a $40K+ car, but that is a different post.
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      02-05-2013, 07:40 PM   #22
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Even though you replied to a thread ending over a year ago I agree with you. I like the X3's premium sound at least as much as the Logic7 in my 7 Series and also some recent Audi systems I've heard.
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