Sounds pretty cool! Can't wait to hear it!

http://www.corvetteblogger.com/2013/...ette-stingray/

 

I always chuckle at the way these consumer-targeted press releases are written. I don't get all bent out of shape, because it's just part of the general hype game, and no audio enthusiast would take the hyperbole seriously.
[Wow... there's a scary thought. Look up what live rock concert level volume is. And why does anyone think volume equals quality?]
[Hmmm... Artificially creating additional channels that weren't recorded or mastered is "greater accuracy?" Fascinating! Should every voice and instrument sound like it's on a concert stage?]

 

'merica

 

Very simple rule.

Anytime you have your stereo cranked up, you are damaging your hearing. If you can speak in a normal tone like you would use at a large dinner table or gathering, and hear your voice clearly over the music, the damage is minimal, especially if you keep that volume up for 30 min or less.

Anytime you can't hear your own voice, you are doing irreparable damage and looking at hearing aids in your later years, if you are lucky.

When I see some of the amps and speakers that some folks put in their cars, I can't help but think they have decided that being nearly deaf by 60 would be acceptable. That's kind of sad.

Y'all be careful.

 

I just hope the bose sound has some of the depth, quality and clarity that is available in other high end systems. I get tied of hearing if it is Bose it blows. The C7 deserves a premium sound system that is on par with the rest of the car. My 2c
Bill

 

I hope it's actually good and believe it will be. The Bose system in my C5 is one of the worst factory stereos I have ever heard. I prefer to listen to the engine over music anyway but in the C7 it will be nice on longer trips to be able to enjoy music on longer trips.

 

I can say from first hand the C7 actually sounds very good. Best Vette ever by a mile IMHO even with the roof out. Its easily on par if not better than the CTSVs.

 

Years if military service involving artillery rounds have taken its toll on my hearing. Hence my 7,000 watt system in my Silverado. Lol. Losing my hearing will probably make my marriage last longer too. Lol

 

Bose smose ...... The first thing I did when I got my Z with the BOSE system is rip it out . Put my own little stereo in there . Night and day gentlemen .

 

Ain't it the truth! I've spent my whole adult life around jet engines, race cars, motorcycles, and guns. Before the eighties, no one thought much about hearing protection, even on carriers. At 69, I'm now paying the price. Normal conversation with a lot of background noise is a problem, but I'm too vain to wear an aid.

 

Hard to tell the difference between day and night when you were never in the daylight. If the first thing you did when you got the car was replace the system, you didn't really have a chance to listen to the stock system.

In any case, you haven't heard the system in the C7 yet, so you're judging the book by its cover. Wait until you hear it. The people who have heard it already have said it's amazing.

 

I've never heard a car stereo in a car I can afford sound as good as I would like. No matter how many speakers a car has or whatever new fangled tech is in the head unit, nothing comes close to the aftermarket in my eyes as far as sound reproduction.

I run JL Audio almost exclusively, sure Focal makes some serious audio gear but you end up paying ridiculous amounts of money for quality that you may or may not actually hear in a car, especially if the thought of adding hundreds of pounds of sound deadening to your sports car sounds like a travesty. JL Audio also has some of the best amps available and they are absolutely amazing...not to mention compact and lighter than much of the competition.

The thing that too many people focus on is the bass, and while I love a good setup that you can feel each kickdrum hit in your gut. My biggest beef is with the lousy reproduction of mids and highs. Without a solid headunit with true crossover tuning capability...and actual crossover component speaker setups you get a muddled mid/high sound. Most people are just used to crappy sound in cars and I always get people who hop in my truck who find that the songs they love sound 100% clearer and some have said that the clarity makes the songs sound different. Audiophiles have it tough in the auto world since some things you can't fix (road noise, cabin shape, speaker location) but I've spoiled myself and don't see myself being content with GM supplied audio.

I'll stick with my tried and true JL C5's up front, C3's in the back, with a nice little JL 10W7 sub. Amps will be a JL HD 750/1 for the sub and a JL HD 600/4 for the mids. Throw a nice Optima battery in the mix with JL Audio cabling/wires, a nice aftermarket grounding kit for the engine, and an Alpine headunit and I'll be golden. I'm looking forward to seeing how I can install this system...I'm hoping for an almost completely "invisible" install...we'll see.

 

I was very much disappointed to hear that the C7 would retain the Bose System. I have been driving Corvettes for over 40 years and had really hoped Chevrolet would go to another system. They always say the new Bose is improved but it is really the same old disappointing system.

 

How do you change the head unit in the car when it is integrated into the dash and overall functionality of the car like it is? Please forgive by lack of info on this but I would expect it isn't like swapping once for the other like it was in older cars. I don't know how it would be even possible in the C7.

 

Let me rephrase CRASH ..... Got my Z I put on my fav cd and the sound wasn't cutting it . 2 weeks later I had the stereo done . I'm sure the c7 sound will be ok , but if your an audiophile it's not gonna cut it . I enjoy a nice crispy sound with clear mids, punchy midbass , and a nice low sub bass around 30hertz . I don't mean to sound like a jerk but it extends from my teen years , everytime I got a new car the system went in next , also growing up in Brooklyn that was the norm. Back in the day . Peace

 

But I would assume you'll at least listen to the stock system first at least, if anything, to see if it's even worth spending the money on a fully custom install. Putting a new system in the C7 isn't exactly going to be straight forward, especially seeing how you want to change the head unit. I imagine just changing the head unit in a C7 is going to be extremely expensive and will take time to figure out.

In either case, I can totally understand the issue audiophiles have and will always have. But lets be honest here, this is a high-performance sports car. If an audiophile wanted great sound, they might have a luxury sedan or truck for good audio and cruising and a stock system'd C7 for driving.

Well, again, I'm going to play devil's advocate here. I have a feeling that if the C7's audio system didn't have the Bose name stamped on it, but maintained exactly the same equipment, you might be singing a different tune, so to speak.

While Bose has a crappy reputation (for car audio especially), they're not without their merits. And more importantly, many of their failures have not actually been theirs. If GM contracts them to put together a cheap system for any specific car, who are they to decline a high-paying contract? That would be bad business. But GM isn't the only company that contracts them.

Just for ***** and giggles, I Googled "best stock car audio systems" and found that on every single list, there was a high end car with Bose somewhere in the middle of these top 6 and top 10 lists. It would seem that with many of these high-end cars, their manufacturers have occasionally contracted GOOD audio systems from Bose. Good enough that nearly every review starts out by slamming Bose for their past failures (namely many with GM), and then praising them for doing something right. And apparently the Infiniti Mxx sedans seem to have options for some really high-end audio systems; also made by Bose.

Now if you want to be creative with your imagination for a second, think about how Bose can actually make a good system (if they're contracted to do so) and think about the many people that have actually heard the new C7 audio system and have already written great reviews about it; some even stating how on par it sounds with the high-end HK systems. Imagine, GM did something right with the Bose contract... Just... Imagine.

I was thinking the same thing. The only thing I can think of is if someone designed a replacement for the center cubby that allowed both the stock and aftermarket units coexist with the aftermarket unit sitting behind the stock headunit screen. Although, I could imagine how much of a PITA that could be.

LOL! Why did you put my name in caps?

 

Bose isn't that bad. I'm not saying they are the best either.
To me its like trying to compare my old Acoustimass 5 Series III system that I use for some killer computer speakers to my Klipsch Reference 7 system for my home theater then saying all Bose systems are junk because they cannot keep up with higher priced systems.

It is after all a factory specked unit designed to meet the cost targets placed by GM.
I hope they at least used some durable cone and surround materials so that we don't have to deal with baked out paper cones and blowed out foam surrounds in 10 years.
They at least used Neodymium magnets on the drivers to save weight. Not sure if the baskets are composite as well for even more weight savings.
Also I hope the drivers also have enough excursion designed into them so you don't have to set the bass way down when turning it up.
I do remember the older Bose systems having some real crappy drivers that would bottom out the cones at less than half volume...

I actually enjoy my Monsoon system in my SS but I did add some JBL tweets on the dash to improve it.
I really hope the Corvette's system is an improvement over the Monsoon sound quality wise but we shall have to see.
I certainly don't expect it to keep up with my home theater system but that's just not a fair comparison.

 

I'll be honest, as long as I can tune in on some good 'Talk-Radio' I'll be fine. After I'm up on the latest current events it will be time for the sounds of my NPP exhaust.

 

I got the NPP

 

There's something here to consider, and folks should pay attention to what SCM_Crash is describing. Look at another part of the interior: the seats. Made by Lear. Lear is the same company that's made the OEM seats in Corvettes since at least as far back as the C4s. Maybe even further back. With the C7, the seats are getting a lot of positive comments specifically with how different they are from the C6's. In other words: GM contracted with the same company they've used forever to make better seats.

Most times, it just takes the magic of additional dollars.

The same thing could be at play with Bose here. Give it a chance at least. Is the audio from the HU and the Bose amps and speakers (remember: Bose only makes the amps and speakers) going to match that of an expensive aftermarket system? Hell no. But: you're in a car. It's not one of the best places to absorb high fidelity sound. Really. It isn't.