# B&O Sound system



## Alan Sl (Nov 11, 2009)

I have spec'd the B&O sound system on my roadster, my query is how come the system has 14 channels but only 12 speakers?
Any ideas?

Many thanks


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## pimp my TT (Mar 15, 2013)

My guess having worked in the car audio business is that two of the speakers will have two separate speakers inside, for instance one channel supplying the mid range and another supplying the high or bass...I might be wrong though!!

In a normal system this would be handled by cross over networks but the B&O will be much more sophisticated than that.


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## Rev (Nov 17, 2015)

Probably bridges two channels for each of the sub woofers (theres 2 subs, one in each door).

So what that means is each sub takes two channels each, which doubles the power being used.

I don't think there are any coaxial speakers in the B&O system (I saw one for sale on ebay), I think it was like this:

Dash:
Tweeter x3
Mid x1
(L+R & Centre speakers)

Doors:
Sub x2
Mid x2

Rear:
Tweeter x2
Mid x2

Total: 12 speakers


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## ZephyR2 (Feb 20, 2013)

Where do the rear speakers reside in a roadster?


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## bonkeydave (Dec 15, 2014)

Just behind the seata, sound was better in coupes being honest I had last year however car is obviouslying smaller inside so acoustics little different.

Only fault I have is getting right balance with roof down can be hard.


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## noname (Aug 20, 2015)

Rev said:


> Probably bridges two channels for each of the sub woofers (theres 2 subs, one in each door).
> 
> So what that means is each sub takes two channels each, which doubles the power being used.
> 
> ...


Front subwoofer are dual coil so double channel


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## Rev (Nov 17, 2015)

ManuTT said:


> Front subwoofer are dual coil so double channel


Ah I wrote that but edited it out, because I've never seen it done before. But it makes sense now thinking about it, they probably didn't want bridging or some different sub amp design complicating things.


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## noname (Aug 20, 2015)

Are a common thing in good and powerful sound system.. Not all brands use this solution because of the weight, dimensions, frequencies..

Look what I found
http://www.bang-olufsen.com/en/car-audi ... i/tt-coupe
Pardon me, you have a roadster
http://www.bang-olufsen.com/en/car-audi ... t-roadster


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## Matrix (Apr 11, 2016)

Where is the amp in the car?


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## noname (Aug 20, 2015)

It's under a front seat as far as I saw on the guide..for rhd is under the driver's


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## Rev (Nov 17, 2015)

ManuTT said:


> Are a common thing in good and powerful sound system.. Not all brands use this solution because of the weight, dimensions, frequencies..


Yeah its weird to me because I'm used to aftermarket audio, in aftermarket audio you never see dual coil subs wired that way, its always better to just get a mono amp or bridge channels, using one channel per coil would be the worst choice.


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## noname (Aug 20, 2015)

For the subwoofer in the trunk, I've used a double coil once but there I didn't have problem for the space or something else and was the better solution for more more power.
Otherwise you're right..have a stereo subwoofer is useless..or better, it won't works well.
A double coil in a woofer like ours is great!


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## aaronz (Dec 28, 2015)

How loud can you actually get this system before it destorts? I may have a blown speaker as it sounds like junk at the second "n" when turning up the volume control.

Bass and treble at 12 o'clock

Song : way down we go - Kaleo


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## Waitwhat93 (Mar 28, 2016)

Depends on the quality of songs.

If you have a bad/low quality song then it will distort at lower volumes.

Higher/lossless quality tends to go much louder without distorting.


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## noname (Aug 20, 2015)

Actually, systems like this, I remember with the Bose, gives you as max power as possible without distorting..but if the quality of the source or its equalizer is not good, is normal to have a not fine audio


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## Jake70 (Apr 29, 2016)

Have to say, one thing that's left me underwhelmed is the B&O system. I'm using an SD card with files taken straight off iTunes which I think are Lossless??

I'm certainly not after huge booming bass but I've currently got the bass on full. It sounds fine while sitting with the engine off, but driving it sounds a bit pants, not much bass at all. I actually wondered whether I hadn't switched something on. Maybe I was expecting a bit too much for the price


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## Waitwhat93 (Mar 28, 2016)

iTunes music is definitely not lossless lol.

Interesting that sound is better with engine off, mine is the worst with engine off.
Is that when going at speed? I'd check if you have the speed dependant setting on low as that may help turning that up.

I would just say, at least with the Audi sound system, that the bass is not proper banging kind of bass. It is actually really good, and doesn't just vibrate everything which is not a good use of bass.


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## TTGazza (Jun 13, 2016)

I always find any form of download type format lacking in both top and bottom responses, it's where the top and bottom are either compressed or more often removed to give more capacity though it's only really noticeable when using a decent system.


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## Jake70 (Apr 29, 2016)

Might try a CD and see if there's any noticeable difference


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## Jake70 (Apr 29, 2016)

Okay, maybe I was a bit premature with the disappointment  Had more of a chance to listen to the B&O system today and at volume too. Much better than I thought. This car gets better :lol:


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## Waitwhat93 (Mar 28, 2016)

Glad you're happier 

I thought the same when I cranked the volume in mine recently, sounds brilliant.


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## What Steve Did (Jul 20, 2016)

Quick question for those with the B&O system - for tracks with fairly heavy bass (doesn't have to be really loud) do you get some of the panels in the car vibrate and make a bit of a noise? I only seem to get this on the passenger side.


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## Gren (Jul 25, 2002)

Very few tracks do this and only above half volume. Think I've heard the speakers buzz on only a couple of occasions.

My internal organs buzz more than the speakers do when it's cranked up


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## GrantTTS (Mar 18, 2016)

Have never had this occur however I have mine set with a forward sound stage foregoing the pseudo surround effects. I also have Soundaktor set to zero.

As an aside, while I find the B & O good for an OEM fit I am considering whether to move to a simpler bespoke arrangement plus adding some dynamat type insulation to damp resonance from the body. The other day I was playing with the various adjustments and could not convince myself that the clarity and staging I had invested in on the BMW was reproduced in the TTS. I like the staging to be set as if I was at a concert i.e. Just in front of you at head height, I also like to feel the bass, not as in Mr Chav and his thump but more subtle, this is a function of good quality components and targeted power. Have recently tried FourMasters BMW 5 series demo which proves it doesn't have to be with a huge sub box etc and is impractical in the TT. I have some equipment already from my 435 so no huge investment just have to decide if and how to accomplish.


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## GoodThunder (Jul 19, 2016)

What Steve Did said:


> Quick question for those with the B&O system - for tracks with fairly heavy bass (doesn't have to be really loud) do you get some of the panels in the car vibrate and make a bit of a noise? I only seem to get this on the passenger side.


Nope, never had it despite listening at high volume occasionally.


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## aw159130 (Feb 27, 2016)

GrantTTS said:


> Have never had this occur however I have mine set with a forward sound stage foregoing the pseudo surround effects. I also have Soundaktor set to zero.


As an aside, how do you set the Soundaktor to zero? Are you using a coding device or is there a setting that I haven't found yet?


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## GrantTTS (Mar 18, 2016)

aw159130 said:


> GrantTTS said:
> 
> 
> > Have never had this occur however I have mine set with a forward sound stage foregoing the pseudo surround effects. I also have Soundaktor set to zero.
> ...


I used VAG COM/VCDS following the quite published on here. I think you can disconnect the connector for the speaker/transducer but haven't tried this method. With coding you can set the level you would like. I prefer it off completely as it makes the cabin more pleasant for cruising but also means the sound system can do what it is meant to without competing with another audio system.


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## mjhamilton (Apr 26, 2011)

B&O is epic even in my roadster

You can turn the volume up and make your ears bleeds before you hear any distortion

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## mr gee (Apr 20, 2007)

I am underwhelmed by the sound of the base in B&O of my TT when compared with my S3.

May I ask what settings you reckon gives the best results?


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## JCS_AutoID (Apr 10, 2016)

What Steve Did said:


> Quick question for those with the B&O system - for tracks with fairly heavy bass (doesn't have to be really loud) do you get some of the panels in the car vibrate and make a bit of a noise? I only seem to get this on the passenger side.


Yep I had this. Returned the car to Audi and had the speakers and panels replaced as I thought it was blown...


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## Xiano (Mar 18, 2016)

mr gee said:


> I am underwhelmed by the sound of the base in B&O of my TT when compared with my S3.
> 
> May I ask what settings you reckon gives the best results?


High quality audio files, simple as that. I find the B&O really shows up poor quality audio to the point where it's unpleasant to listen to, but if you have high bitrate or lossless audio files then the sound is exquisite.

If that doesn't work, try playing around with the audio settings and tweak them so they work best with your preferred genre of music. Since you probably listen to multiple genres, go with the one you listen to the most, or adjust the settings on the fly.


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## Dreams1966 (Oct 27, 2014)

mr gee said:


> I am underwhelmed by the sound of the base in B&O of my TT when compared with my S3.
> 
> May I ask what settings you reckon gives the best results?


I have recently come away from my MK3 TTS to the dark side of BMW, but by far one of the highlights of the TTS was the B&O system. The sound quality when I connected my iPhone via a cable to the USB port was stunning. I felt it lost something via Bluetooth, so used to cable it up and hide the phone in the shiny compartment.

Re settings... we all like different things.... I was quite heavy on the bass/treble settings in the car and had the iPhone set to 'rock'... at reasonable volume it was distortion free and used the make your organs and the windows wobble


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## ZaniCWB (May 20, 2016)

Any audiophile out there mind to share the exact B&O audio settings after fine tuning it?


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