Bose system and MMI update

[Hockenheim]

I've heard on other boards that applying the latest 7+ update to your MMI will greatly improve the Bose audio system in the car.

My Bose system sounds like shit, like its very underpowered and also centric to the back. I have checked\tested every possible audio setting to no avail, pretty disappointed as my old A4's Bose system was awesome.

Anyone heard or done this?

[Hockenheim]

no one?

[DeerHunter]

I heard this is the case, but your results will likely depend upon your starting point. If you have the oldest software, you'll probably be pleased with the results. I'm fairly happy with my Bose, but I started with 7.15 (IIRC).

One thing: I've heard that dealers will only be authorized to do the update if you complain about functionality (e.g. Bluetooth connection issues) and not sound quality. Make up a story if necessary.

[gatorguy]

I didn't notice any difference but I'm not sure what my starting version was.

[DVE]

Here in germany you have to complain the bad sound of bose, especially droning and too less bass. Then you will get the update, actionnumber 47A002. I'am deeply impressed by the result.

[SierraBravo]

My 4 month old S6 has a Bose system that sounds good. Apparently it came with the update.

[MalibuCANE]

My 4 month old S6 has a Bose system that sounds good. Apparently it came with the update.

I got mine in November of last year and it already had the latest update but mine only sounds ok. I wouldn't call it great and not good at all considering the price of the car. If I listened to a lot of music loud while driving I would be bummed but it serves my needs just fine.

[Ensoniq]

How do you tell which version you have?

I'm not thrilled with the Bose, but don't want to rip the car apart to do an aftermarket

[jagata]

The Bose in my AMG sounded way better than the S6.

[boydsan]

I have a 2012 A7 Prestige with Bose audio and I agree the system is disapointing for a car of this quality. To answer your question about MMI upgrade: My original MMI version was HN+R_US_AU_P0487 here in the USA, and while in for service I complained about the audio and streaming Pandora from my iPhone. The dealer upgraded the MMI to version HN+R_US_AU_K0715_2 which improved the Bose system. In the A7/S7 the audio system is poorer than A6/S6 because there is not package self mounted speakers...but both have a cheap plastic sub-woofer mounted in the spare tire well.

Upgrade for Me: After hearing my daughters 2013 Allroad with B&O system that sounds awesome, I wanted something better. I did a custom sub-woofer upgrade installing JL Audio 10TW3-D4 10" thin line subwoofer in a fabricated fiberglass enclosure mounted in the right side trunk cubby, along with JL Audio XD600/1 Mono Class D Amp and dash mounted JL Audio HD-RLC Level Control Knob. The Bose now sounds like a new system with outstanding bass levels along with greatly improved mid range and highs. I now love my Audi audio system...a 100% improvement!

[Packy]

How do you tell which version you have?

I'm not thrilled with the Bose, but don't want to rip the car apart to do an aftermarket

Ditto.

[boydsan]

Hit Menu button >then "Setup MMI" (upper left) > then scroll down to bottom of page to> "Version Information"

[MYAUDIS7]

2014 s7 version

[chrisngrod]

2012 A7

The question is do I pay the 400 to update or not...

Anyone find DVDs or get a dealer to allow you to purchase a he discs?

Thanks in advance.

[Nully]

Made the dealer install the upgrade last year, after a lot of fighting. Went from 467 to 715.

Objective result: It made it better, but I wouldn't pay for it.
Subjective result: It's still crap. It's like going from turd to polished turd. I used to drive a hand me down '97 Dodge Caravan (dark times) that had a better sound system than this.

[kouzman]

good thread. I will check my version too.

[eyeloveteeth]

i still haven't checked, but i don't really know what it is that you find missing? I actually really like the bose system - in the S7 at least...maybe the acoustics in the A6 make it not as preferable?

[agent47]

i still haven't checked, but i don't really know what it is that you find missing? I actually really like the bose system - in the S7 at least...maybe the acoustics in the A6 make it not as preferable?

+1 on it. Its a decent sound system. I am also unable to understand whats sooooo bad in it. Of course you cant compare it to the beo&hk from other cars but its plenty good over the base stereo that comes in a4/s4. I do make sure that all my music is either alac or mp3@320kbps. All sirius and bluetooth audio is bad regardless of the system. There are people who have added another amp with great results. I am no dog-ears but I certainly can tell the difference between good and bad sound quality.

[jasonlitka]

i still haven't checked, but i don't really know what it is that you find missing? I actually really like the bose system - in the S7 at least...maybe the acoustics in the A6 make it not as preferable?

Based on the last week of driving my 2016 S6, I'd say the most likely complaint is that the low-end response is fairly poor. If you don't listen to music at relatively loud levels though you'd never know.

[Kevin1]

I have no complaints with the Bose system, but I am not into trying to shake the windows with exaggerated bass.

[eyeloveteeth]

Based on the last week of driving my 2016 S6, I'd say the most likely complaint is that the low-end response is fairly poor. If you don't listen to music at relatively loud levels though you'd never know.

so i'm predominantly EDM/Dance/Alternative and i listen to it fairly loudly...... but i am not looking for bass that is going to lift skirts....that's not what this system is for. Now I have always found the EQ in cars to be annoying so I've already pre-EQ all my music before it goes in the car.

I never use bluetooth or radio...and only use MMI or SD card.


For me? Dance / anything from EDM, UMF sounds great! Would I say it's missing around the 21-42hz range? low-mids? i would say it's a little anemic, but in general? I am enjoying the system alot. I would say I have a very nicely trained ear (i have perfect pitch and was classically trained at Julliard's pre-college program).

Is this ear shattering bass that is optimal for hip hop? ABSOLUTELY not. If hip hop is your thing, it's gonna sound horrible.

I've also noticed that Classical music is horrible - oh and Joni Mitchell sounds horrible too in the car


But I know @agent47 loves his Kelly Clarkson and he is definitely singing along with it in his beautiful C7 S6.

[Nully]

+1 on it. Its a decent sound system. I am also unable to understand whats sooooo bad in it. Of course you cant compare it to the beo&hk from other cars but its plenty good over the base stereo that comes in a4/s4. I do make sure that all my music is either alac or mp3@320kbps. All sirius and bluetooth audio is bad regardless of the system. There are people who have added another amp with great results. I am no dog-ears but I certainly can tell the difference between good and bad sound quality.

It's not just the bass, subterfuse actually did an excellent writeup on this; look at the frequency response curve. It's way over equalized to whack.

If you happen to drive other cars frequently it makes it easy to spot the difference. It's a price vs performance thing. In my extended family we have a good range of cars Ford Edge, ML Benz, RAV4, Mazda 3. With the exception of the Benz which has a "brand name" Harman Kardon system, the rest of the cars as you would expect have pretty average audio systems. The problem is the Benz (just using it as a relative example) does sound noticeably better than the rest. The Bose in the Audi sounds just like the rest of them. I don't expect the RAV4 to have a raving sound system. I do expect it from the Audi.

[agent47]

so i'm predominantly EDM/Dance/Alternative and i listen to it fairly loudly...... but i am not looking for bass that is going to lift skirts....that's not what this system is for. Now I have always found the EQ in cars to be annoying so I've already pre-EQ all my music before it goes in the car.

I never use bluetooth or radio...and only use MMI or SD card.


For me? Dance / anything from EDM, UMF sounds great! Would I say it's missing around the 21-42hz range? low-mids? i would say it's a little anemic, but in general? I am enjoying the system alot. I would say I have a very nicely trained ear (i have perfect pitch and was classically trained at Julliard's pre-college program).

Is this ear shattering bass that is optimal for hip hop? ABSOLUTELY not. If hip hop is your thing, it's gonna sound horrible.

I've also noticed that Classical music is horrible - oh and Joni Mitchell sounds horrible too in the car


But I know @agent47 loves his Kelly Clarkson and he is definitely singing along with it in his beautiful C7 S6.

Oh yeah- I even listen to nicki minaj amd miley cyrus while drinking from cups that have their photos on them .
Anyway- you and I have pretty similar music taste I guess. Shoot me a pm of what your collection looks like if you dont mind

[eyeloveteeth]

Oh yeah- I even listen to nicki minaj amd miley cyrus while drinking from cups that have their photos on them .
Anyway- you and I have pretty similar music taste I guess. Shoot me a pm of what your collection looks like if you dont mind

lol very simple -

Alesso, Avicii, Tiesto, Martin Garrix, Young & Free, Jesus Culture, Hillsong, Arty, Calvin Harris, Steve Aoki, Nicky Romero, Deorro, One Republic, Imagine Dragons.

pretty simple ;)

[redrocker55]

It's not just the bass, subterfuse actually did an excellent writeup on this; look at the frequency response curve. It's way over equalized to whack.

If you happen to drive other cars frequently it makes it easy to spot the difference. It's a price vs performance thing. In my extended family we have a good range of cars Ford Edge, ML Benz, RAV4, Mazda 3. With the exception of the Benz which has a "brand name" Harman Kardon system, the rest of the cars as you would expect have pretty average audio systems. The problem is the Benz (just using it as a relative example) does sound noticeably better than the rest. The Bose in the Audi sounds just like the rest of them. I don't expect the RAV4 to have a raving sound system. I do expect it from the Audi.

I agree with all of this. The system is way over equalized. The highs are stripped out and the lows are stripped out. At least the Sony system in our old Ford Flex has better low frequency replication. I have a 1998 Corvette with a Bose in it and the speakers are not sounding as good as when new...it was actually a decent system in 1998. But time has make the speakers less responsive. Every time I drive that old Corvette it reminds me of what the Bose sounds new in the Audi.

Maybe Audi engineers designed it this way so they could sell more $4,900 B and O's. After one listen to the Bose I checked the box on the B and O and I have not even heard of those those systems in a C7 as of yet. If it's anything like the B and O in my old S4 I will be happy.

I can see how a MMI update may repair much of the dead sound coming out...if the dealership would do this for free it's worth a try before going aftermarket.

[160Swift]

I was able to get the dealer to update me from 5.66 to 7.15, and I would say that it sounds better but still not great. I told them my bluetooth connection wouldn't work 100% of the time, and they performed the MMI update free of charge.

I just can't believe that Audi actually approved/signed off on this sound system for the A6/S6, it is a complete disappointment for a car of this caliber/price. Compared to the B&O I had in my S5, the Bose system in the S6 lacks clarity, depth, balance & bass, regardless of the type of music, source or system settings.

The B&O option would be a no-brainer if it wasn't a $5K upgrade, which is totally ridiculous - it's not like the car didn't have a sound system before, they're just putting different components in. It was only a $900 option on the S5 IIRC, not sure why it would be $4K more for the S6...

[eyeloveteeth]

I was able to get the dealer to update me from 5.66 to 7.15, and I would say that it sounds better but still not great. I told them my bluetooth connection wouldn't work 100% of the time, and they performed the MMI update free of charge.

I just can't believe that Audi actually approved/signed off on this sound system for the A6/S6, it is a complete disappointment for a car of this caliber/price. Compared to the B&O I had in my S5, the Bose system in the S6 lacks clarity, depth, balance & bass, regardless of the type of music, source or system settings.

The B&O option would be a no-brainer if it wasn't a $5K upgrade, which is totally ridiculous - it's not like the car didn't have a sound system before, they're just putting different components in. It was only a $900 option on the S5 IIRC, not sure why it would be $4K more for the S6...

when they do the update, do they scan the car? need to know if i need to wipe to avoid TD1 or not.

[agent47]

when they do the update, do they scan the car? need to know if i need to wipe to avoid TD1 or not.

There we go. TD1 talk on MMI thread. You sure compete with me on derailing threads . Anyway, yes they would hook the car up for the update- thats what I know of. They say for any updates they need to hook the car up and it will get scanned automatically.

[redknight]

This update was quoted $450 to 650 at the stealership. Even though I did complain about Bose Bass they said that's the way it suppose to be. Bummer..at least I tried.

[160Swift]

This update was quoted $450 to 650 at the stealership. Even though I did complain about Bose Bass they said that's the way it suppose to be. Bummer..at least I tried.

Yeah, prior to taking mine in I had read that a complaint about the sound quality alone wouldn't be enough for them to do the update. I think the trick is to tell them you're having an issue that isn't easily verified or duplicated - a story about my phone not connecting every so often worked for me. I would try again with a different "issue" and/or another dealership!

[eyeloveteeth]

There we go. TD1 talk on MMI thread. You sure compete with me on derailing threads . Anyway, yes they would hook the car up for the update- thats what I know of. They say for any updates they need to hook the car up and it will get scanned automatically.

ha - but it's a legitimate question, no?

[subterFUSE]

This update was quoted $450 to 650 at the stealership. Even though I did complain about Bose Bass they said that's the way it suppose to be. Bummer..at least I tried.

Tell them that the stereo randomly makes a loud popping noise that sounds like a rock hitting the windshield.

That's the trigger for the TSB that gets you the MMI update. My car was doing it, so they updated for me.

[redknight]

Tell them that the stereo randomly makes a loud popping noise that sounds like a rock hitting the windshield.

That's the trigger for the TSB that gets you the MMI update. My car was doing it, so they updated for me.

Their excuse was they had another model on hand and test it side by side. I also threw in about the Bluetooth disconnecting and they counter that I needed to update my handset (Galaxy Note 4). They tested other phones and it was working fine they stated. I wish that there was a torrent file where we can update it by USB so I can send it to everyone here!

[chrisngrod]

+1 wish we could upgrade our firmware on our own. Sigh.

[iten]

I was able to get the dealer to update me from 5.66 to 7.15, and I would say that it sounds better but still not great. I told them my bluetooth connection wouldn't work 100% of the time, and they performed the MMI update free of charge.

I just can't believe that Audi actually approved/signed off on this sound system for the A6/S6, it is a complete disappointment for a car of this caliber/price. Compared to the B&O I had in my S5, the Bose system in the S6 lacks clarity, depth, balance & bass, regardless of the type of music, source or system settings.

The B&O option would be a no-brainer if it wasn't a $5K upgrade, which is totally ridiculous - it's not like the car didn't have a sound system before, they're just putting different components in. It was only a $900 option on the S5 IIRC, not sure why it would be $4K more for the S6...

I have a B&O S5, Standard C7A6, and a Bose S7...

I find the S5 to be the best and the standard system better than the S7.

I drove my A6 to the dealership last week to compare it side by side with their S6 with Bose, and I still like my standard system better. Therefore I know it's not the cabin space that's making my bose S7 inferior to my standard A6.

Audis in my country only comes with MMI low (without Satnav)...Does anyone know if the new MMI updates will be applicable to our cars?

I am especially sensitive to treble...Any suggested upgrade will be appreciated! Thanks!

[eyeloveteeth]

I have a B&O S5, Standard C7A6, and a Bose S7...

I find the S5 to be the best and the standard system better than the S7.

I drove my A6 to the dealership last week to compare it side by side with their S6 with Bose, and I still like my standard system better. Therefore I know it's not the cabin space that's making my bose S7 inferior to my standard A6.

Audis in my country only comes with MMI low (without Satnav)...Does anyone know if the new MMI updates will be applicable to our cars?

I am especially sensitive to treble...Any suggested upgrade will be appreciated! Thanks!

have you considered pre EQ-ing your songs?

[Westyfield2]

+1 wish we could upgrade our firmware on our own. Sigh.

Unless the USA cars are different to the UK cars, then you can. Audi don't like the idea of it, but it is possible ;).

[spidey9999]

I wonder if the Bose system will sound better in the 2016 models.

The price for the B&O upgrade for 2016 Canadian cars is unchanged @ $6.5K as opposed to the price reduction you folks in the US received.

[jasonlitka]

I wonder if the Bose system will sound better in the 2016 models.

The price for the B&O upgrade for 2016 Canadian cars is unchanged @ $6.5K as opposed to the price reduction you folks in the US received.

Well, my comment was about my 2016. I don't know if they changed anything between earlier models and this one, I haven't listened to an older car and this one side-by-side, but it sounds fine as long as you aren't expecting window-rattling bass.

[chrisngrod]

Unless the USA cars are different to the UK cars, then you can. Audi don't like the idea of it, but it is possible ;).

They said supposedly they have to hook it up and there's no media in the form if DVDs or SD cards these days.

Audi really doesn't want us to like them as much as they want the Europeans to .

Still want an RS3 for my wife though! That announcement was exciting.