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What is the audio quality of Pandora?
From Pandora's help page: Pandora on the Web plays 64k AAC+ for free listeners and 192kbps for Pandora One subscribers. All in-home devices play 128kbps audio, and mobile devices receive a variety of different rates depending on the capability of the device and the network they are on, but never more than 64k AAC+.
What is the audio quality of Pandora?
From Pandora's help page: Pandora on the Web plays 64k AAC+ for free listeners and 192kbps for Pandora One subscribers. All in-home devices play 128kbps audio, and mobile devices receive a variety of different rates depending on the capability of the device and the network they are on, but never more than 64k AAC+.
Pandora sounds very good when you connect via a cable, skip the Bluetooth. There is a setting to increase audio quality while in a cell network, otherwise it defaults to lower quality when using cell data.
What is the audio quality of Pandora?
From Pandora's help page: Pandora on the Web plays 64k AAC+ for free listeners and 192kbps for Pandora One subscribers. All in-home devices play 128kbps audio, and mobile devices receive a variety of different rates depending on the capability of the device and the network they are on, but never more than 64k AAC+.
Interesting point. I listen to Pandora through my iPhone, which is plugged in with the USB port. I also have a paid subscription with Pandora. (Its cheap, like $4.00 a month). The sound quality from Pandora is not quite as good as listening to tracks I have stored on my iPod, but it’s not far off. The big jump is whether or not I use the USB cord. If I’m using the Bluetooth, there isn’t a lot of sound. Of course, that’s not the car’s fault.
My settings (3LT system w/Sub) are quite similar to the OP. I also agree with an earlier post advising users to turn OFF the Bose "Autopilot", as it's far too sensitive and makes extreme changes to volume.
In addition to the above, I don't see many mentioning two other "tweaks" that I feel make a big difference toward improving the overall sound quality within C7 Coupe's (audio compromised) cabin.
1. Go to the Audio Mode settings and select NORMAL. --- I believe this is the closest to "natural" audio, without (too) much digital enhancement. You might prefer DRIVER, which would be my 2nd choice. However, I highly recommend steering clear of CENTERPOINT, as this mode is way too digitally enhanced and incorporates the Center dash speaker way too much (IMO).
2. I highly recommend you experiment with shifting the speaker Fade/Balance from center/neutral toward the FRONT speakers by 1 or 2 notches/presses. I find this tweak provides improved sound across all frequency ranges and provides improved volume levels without having to pump the actual volume too high.
Hope these recommended "tweaks" helps some of you squeeze some better sound and more enjoyment from your C7 audio system. --- It would be great to hear from anyone who finds they've experienced an improvement. Best of luck to all!
I was also pretty close in my 2LT w/ sub (Premium system), but I had too much midrange, so I knocked that down to OP's recommended level. I also followed Nostra's advice to adjust the fade/balance two clicks forward. Wow, that really did help.
The only listening environment worse than a car is a motorcycle, and IMO you can't get either one even close to a good, balanced sound like you can achieve in your home theater. I just did some adjustments to my ear, which has lost quite a bit of receptive quality over the years--and now my Harley, truck, and C7 sound decent to me. The Harley took a booster amp plus added and upgraded speakers to be acceptable, though, and my truck's lowest-tier 4-speaker system sounds about as good as the C7's 10-speaker Bose outfit.
My settings (3LT system w/Sub) are quite similar to the OP. I also agree with an earlier post advising users to turn OFF the Bose "Autopilot", as it's far too sensitive and makes extreme changes to volume.
In addition to the above, I don't see many mentioning two other "tweaks" that I feel make a big difference toward improving the overall sound quality within C7 Coupe's (audio compromised) cabin.
1. Go to the Audio Mode settings and select NORMAL. --- I believe this is the closest to "natural" audio, without (too) much digital enhancement. You might prefer DRIVER, which would be my 2nd choice. However, I highly recommend steering clear of CENTERPOINT, as this mode is way too digitally enhanced and incorporates the Center dash speaker way too much (IMO).
2. I highly recommend you experiment with shifting the speaker Fade/Balance from center/neutral toward the FRONT speakers by 1 or 2 notches/presses. I find this tweak provides improved sound across all frequency ranges and provides improved volume levels without having to pump the actual volume too high.
Hope these recommended "tweaks" helps some of you squeeze some better sound and more enjoyment from your C7 audio system. --- It would be great to hear from anyone who finds they've experienced an improvement. Best of luck to all!
We all have different ears!
2017 2LT, ITunes music saved in an Ipod:
I set my tone about as described in post #13 but a little more bass, perhaps because we have a couple of coats in the rear cargo net in front of the rear speaker. That seems good. Balance/fade set a little forward/left.
Our Audio Pilot is On, I don't find it's adjustments to be excessive. If anything, I'd like more adjustment from it.
Sitting in the car stationary but with the engine running, the system actually sounded best in CenterPoint. I'll need to do some more experimenting at speed to see how that works out.
Don't be afraid to experiment to find out what's best for your ears and your music.
EDIT:
The large horizontal piece of our C7 cargo shade is installed, but the smaller forward piece is not, and that may effect the sound somewhat. The big one-piece cargo shade in the C6 was claimed to produce a noticeable noise reduction, one guy who did decibel measurements actually installed a double stock shade and said that helped even more.
Last edited by Gearhead Jim; Feb 15, 2018 at 08:59 PM.
I think the best adjustments were cranking down mid-range, and moving the fader bias a little forward. That seemed to clean things up nicely. My treble and bass were already pretty much in OP's positions.
Things like autopilot, centerpoint, driver, vs. normal are all more personal preference.
Home Bose - now, I'm going back to the 1970s - but Bose 901, Series I were spectacular....
I've been involved in high-end audio since 1960 and ended up with nose-bleed expensive stereo gear of the best reviews and quality over a 50+ year period.... no speaker system - at any price - compared to the 901s, Series I, in my experience. I truly regret the day I sold them.
Unfortunately, I have never had the pleasure of hearing the 901s, but I am a home audio geek and do have better systems than most.
Some of the brands I currently have in my racks: Onkyo Pro, Marantz, Emotiva, Oppo, Cerwin Vega, M&K.
One of the most motivating reasons for upgrading from my C6 vert to the C7 vert was the sound system. The C6 in my opinion was severely lacking. I had the opportunity to sit in a 2014 coupe at Corvettes in Carlisle shorty before the 2014 C7 was available for sale at dealerships and I purposely brought my iPod and cord just to hear the stereo. I was sold that day. The stereo sound was way better than the C6. I believe the people complaining about the sound quality just don’t have the settings set up correctly. I have no complaints about the sound quality other than the subwoofer is overpowering on certain Sirius stations at low volume. That’s a very minor issue to me.
My 2LT stereo settings
Last edited by direct007; Feb 15, 2018 at 09:54 PM.
Yeah, and audiophiles expecting home studio quality in vehicles just need to give themselves a reality check. For a sound system in a tiny, lightweight, sports car cabin, with little insulation, the Bose Premium system is certainly very respectable, once properly adjusted. The factory default settings aren't any good at all to my ears.
Direct007, try moving your settings to those in post #13, and move your fader two clicks forward and tell us what you think. To my ear, you have too much bass and mid-range for the Bose system, and it sounds brighter with the fader more up front.
Yeah, and audiophiles expecting home studio quality in vehicles just need to give themselves a reality check.
OF COURSE "studio quality" in vehicles isn't plausible.
However, a audiophile home system is the baseline for reproduced sound.
For a sound system in a tiny, lightweight, sports car cabin, with little insulation, the Bose Premium system is certainly very respectable, once properly adjusted.
As the old saying goes: you can't get a silk purse from a sow's ear.
FWIW, Jaguar F-Type offers a Meridian system as an option and Porsche offers a Burmester system as an upgrade.
Hell, my $46k Grand Cherokee has a Harman Kardon system that crushes the Bose.
Last edited by sunsalem; Feb 16, 2018 at 02:03 AM.
Yeah, and audiophiles expecting home studio quality in vehicles just need to give themselves a reality check. For a sound system in a tiny, lightweight, sports car cabin, with little insulation, the Bose Premium system is certainly very respectable, once properly adjusted.
It will never get even get close to a good listening area! The C7 (at least Coupes, Verts are reported to be somewhat better) is very noisy! The Michelin tires (worse in my Grand Sport than my Z51) and essentially no sound insulation make it far worse than most cars. It was built for performance, which is why I buy Vettes!
Reading posts from folks who put in two layers of quality insulation say it helps BUT those with before and after db data, not enough to make a major difference.
Below is a pic of what you are up against, especially the thin aluminum on the rear of the seats and the driveshaft tunnel.
For those that listen to music with very heavy bass, the doors also vibrate! Before spending any money trying to "fix the audio components" or blaming Bose, better to try to add sound insulation best you can! Or just enjoy what the car was designed to do!
At one time the word audiophile may have indicated someone who understood good audio. Today is it more of a codeword for sucker given the products hawked to this self-described goof. This website is just one of the many classic sites hawking snake oil to the clueless:
And check out their speaker cable prices under products, it should give you a good laugh.
You can create a sound system in a car that certain individuals will love and others will hate but to try and create a car audio system that provides a truly neutral reproduction of source material really is trying to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.
At one time the word audiophile may have indicated someone who understood good audio. Today is it more of a codeword for sucker given the products hawked to this self-described goof. This website is just one of the many classic sites hawking snake oil to the clueless:
And check out their speaker cable prices under products, it should give you a good laugh.
You can create a sound system in a car that certain individuals will love and others will hate but to try and create a car audio system that provides a truly neutral reproduction of source material really is trying to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.
I know what you are talking about. Being a former audiophile, I have gone thru rehab and am now fully recovered!...my motto nowadays is "bang for the buck." I think audiophiles can have a tendency to go down the road of diminishing returns.
Originally Posted by JerryU
It will never get even get close to a good listening area! The C7 (at least Coupes, Verts are reported to be somewhat better) is very noisy! The Michelin tires (worse in my Grand Sport than my Z51) and essentially no sound insulation make it far worse than most cars. It was built for performance, which is why I buy Vettes!
Reading posts from folks who put in two layers of quality insulation say it helps BUT those with before and after db data, not enough to make a major difference.
Below is a pic of what you are up against, especially the thin aluminum on the rear of the seats and the driveshaft tunnel.
For those that listen to music with very heavy bass, the doors also vibrate! Before spending any money trying to "fix the audio components" or blaming Bose, better to try to add sound insulation best you can! Or just enjoy what the car was designed to do!
I extensively soundproofed my GS, not specifically to improve the audio sound, but rather to improve NVH. Here is the link:
One improvement the soundproofing made was to improve the sound of the OEM Bose system. I can't say that it sounds great now by any means, but it is much, much better. Surprising, before the insulation I thought the "centerpoint" mode was the worst sounding mode. Now it may be the best.
Billy346, thanks for starting this thread. I completely agree. The Bose system is pretty good. Back when I had a C5, I received compliments on how good the audio system was and there were a lot of complaints about that one. The C7 is an improvement over the C5 and sounds good to me.
Foosh made a good comment, some folks just like to complain.
After coming from 1989 C4 with a Bose radio that sucked as it got older. I had to rebuild the amps over the years ( cheap capacitors ). I have no problems with the radio in my 2016 Z-51 2LT Corvette.
I know what you are talking about. Being a former audiophile, I have gone thru rehab and am now fully recovered!...my motto nowadays is "bang for the buck." I think audiophiles can have a tendency to go down the road of diminishing returns.
I extensively soundproofed my GS, not specifically to improve the audio sound, but rather to improve NVH. Here is the link:
One improvement the soundproofing made was to improve the sound of the OEM Bose system. I can't say that it sounds great now by any means, but it is much, much better. Surprising, before the insulation I thought the "centerpoint" mode was the worst sounding mode. Now it may be the best.
Great job and Link for those that want to tackle a difficult task! As you show it "Takes More Than Putting Sound Insulation Under the Rear Carpet!"
FWIW, Jaguar F-Type offers a Meridian system as an option and Porsche offers a Burmester system as an upgrade.
Hell, my $46k Grand Cherokee has a Harman Kardon system that crushes the Bose.
I had a Jaguar F-Type with a premium Meridian, which was standard in all F-Types, but like Bose, they had a standard and "premium" version. The F-Type forum was on fire with how many people hated both systems, and I thought it was weak as well, especially on the bass side. I traded the F-Type for my 2014 C7, and was immediately impressed with how much better the Bose Premium system is.
I also have a Jeep w/ the HK, and had an M3 w/ HK. In the Jeep, I think it's equivalent to the Bose, but large cabins have better accoustics. There's more room for channel separation, among other things that enhance sound.
In the M3, I wasn't impressed with it at all, and the M3 forums were also on fire with customer dissatisfaction with it. When I read the "stereo sucks" threads, all you have to do is change the name of the manufacturer, because the words are always the same.
My wife had a premium Burmester in her '15 MB, which she recently just dumped in favor of the new Infiniti Q60 RS400 coupe. We thought the Burmester was very bland with inadequate bass. The Infiniti sounds great with a (wait for it) Bose Premium system, which she and I both love.
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Slideshow: A Jaguar designer's personal project imagines what a modern front-engined Corvette might look like if Chevrolet revisited the golden age of the Stingray.
It will never get even get close to a good listening area! The C7 (at least Coupes, Verts are reported to be somewhat better) is very noisy! The Michelin tires (worse in my Grand Sport than my Z51) and essentially no sound insulation make it far worse than most cars. It was built for performance, which is why I buy Vettes!
