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Why doesn't GM upgrade the crappy sound system in the 70k CTS-V?

11K views 50 replies 33 participants last post by  RippyPartsDept 
#1 ·
I think we would all agree that the sound system in the V isn't up to par for the price of the car. The V is an amazing car for the money but what should GM do to make the V's sound system on par with other luxury brands?
 
#4 ·
IMO there are MANY other low quality items I would prefer upgraded before the Bose sound system.

How about upgrading the black plastic junk trim or the fake carbon fiber trim?

Or upgrade the Recaro seat mounts that rock forward and back in my car?

Or upgrade the supercharger isolator that sounds like a can of marbles at idle?

The sound system works just fine in my V.
 
#5 ·
I agree. The sound system is not great. As bad as the system is, the lack of bluetooth audio and the hideous speech system are worse. I don't have the issue with the Recaros creaking and rocking nor do I have any issue with the isolator (yet). I actually don't mind the trim. I knew I was not buying a BMW or Mercedes. I just wanted the brute power combined with decent luxury that the V offered. No car is perfect. Not even a 100K car.
 
#6 ·
Although the V's Bose sound system could be better, it's a sonic beauty compared to the Bose POS in my '11 Z06. That system sounds like the speakers are in a hollow barrel, and an insult for a $90K list car. The factory Harmon/Kardon unit in my wife's '06 Mini Cooper sounded so much better than the Vette's. When will GM learn that BOSE stands for "Buy Other Stereo Equipment?"
 
#7 ·
I agree! I have an 08 Corvette and after a couple of weeks I ripped the whole system out and replaced everything. The V is superior to the Corvette system. Probably because the system in the V has a semi real subwoofer. At least in the vette you have the option of replacing the stock system. With the V, you don't have that option due to the pop up screen. I guess someone might have swapped this system out but I won't attempt it and I'm fairly competent with system swaps. Here is what I did to my vette.









 
#17 ·
Ugh! Really? I've got a 300C SRT8 with that Kicker system and it's rubbish compared to the Bose in my 2012 V. Do you have one of the newer Challengers? I hope so, because my older SRT8's Kicker system was horrible.

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I have to agree with other posters here - there are MANY things to upgrade ahead of the stereo. The plastic POS "Piano Black" trim is awful. My car has 300 miles on it and the trim is showing scratching already. Any reasonably intelligent person should know not to use soft plastic for something that is in the direct path of a lot of contact such as the center console. The supercharge isolator has also been a sore spot for many. How about 10" rear wheels so we can accommodate a wider variety of tires? What about a front parking camera so we don't bash up our low front ends? What about more forged internals in the engine for those of us who want to mod?


I've heard many complaints about rattles, fit, and finish - we'd love to see some higher quality materials used in addition to better fasteners and joining work among the parts.

Who's up for a better auto trans? Maybe a nice wet dual clutch design like the 7 speed in the AMG cars? That would potentially do a lot for both performance AND economy.

In the end, I could agree that they could have gone with a much better sound system, and probably even negotiated a reasonable price for one of the top makes like you find in MB, BMW, Audi, or others. But in the long list of things I would improve, this isn't close to the top for me.

But since we are focusing on the stereo itself, I'll give it 7 out of 10, which is good enough for me. If I were going to insist on changing something about it - how about making it easier to swap out as some have noted? That would give a price break to those of us who are OK with it as-is, but also leave options for those who don't like it to upgrade...
 
#9 ·
i don't think many of you have played around with the sound configuration long enough. mine sounds superb (after 3 hrs of dialing it in) "driver" mode works best for my taste. btw, captain slow, dont you have the sofa seats? =]~ maybe they absorb to much acoustics and leave little reverberation.
 
#12 ·
Because you get a value packed missile for $70G. How about the Bose system in a V1. That was an atrocious stereo. The V2 is worlds better. And that car was $50G and still a bargain.

Believe me, I'm hoping to replace my Bose with JLAudio amps, a JBL MS8 and some Dynaudio MW182s and Esotar tweets. Someday, maybe it shall happen.

But for now, this audiophile is at least not ripping his ears out compared to his V1.

You guys sure bitch a lot...
 
#13 ·
This thread is about the sound system. It sucks. Bottom line. Bose is a joke. GM has stuck with them, like Goodyear tire's, for ever. (thank god they switched to Michelen's on the V) Probably for brand messaging...... but in the real stereo world Bose is a joke. They have no real credibilty. I have spent numberous hours trying to tune the system. It is typical Bose. My stock Prius system blows away the V's.
The V is a mighty fine care. GM is gaining ground on the foreign companies. Details though. Stereo, seats, trim, rattles, etc.......What could this actually add tho the final price? Not much. At least offer upgrades and yes charge for them!
 
#14 ·
I'm no automotive journalist but I have had the opporitunity to drive many cars and the bose system lacks substance. While music plays through the speakers it is far from great. The new 2013 Lexus GS sound system sounds like a concert hall while our system sounds like your in the hallway. I think they could have made the recaro's standard and made a $2000 sound/Technology package. Maybe bigger amp w/better speakers, and blindspot monitoring.
 
#18 ·
I can't say I'm in love with the V2's Bose compared to the Bose system in the 12 year old avant.. there's not enough bass and it sounds much more hollow(and half of the avant's speakers are blown..), the fact that I can't even adjust EQ settings because of their propritary 'we know better than you' BS annoyed me as well. That said, it's also not the worst system, and certinally not bad enough to think about replacing anytime soon, clarity is at least decent, and there's little distortion as it approaches full volume. I really don't find myself basting the stereo as much as I did in the Auto V2.. The tremec V2's exhaust note is MUCH more impressive and noticeable.

as per other posters, I'd rather pick something else to 'upgrade' than the stereo first.
 
#20 ·
There are many options that exist today for those wanting to upgrade the speakers and amps with OEM integration with the stock HU... JBL MS8, JL Audio Clean Sweep and Audio Control DQL-8 come to mind off the top of my head...

The Bose system in the CTS-V is ok and far from horrible... Personally, I'm looking to put my CTS-V on a diet so the likelihood of me adding weight for audio is pretty slim... I'm a bit spoiled though, I just sit in my expert world champion SQ car when I'm in the mood for some serious listening :)

When I get some free time I'll take a look at what can be done for relatively minimal cost and install to improve on the Bose system and report back...
 
#21 ·
Queston? Do you have the sub-woofer in your cars? I have a 2012 Vagon with the sub- woofer. R you kidding me. I have a 15 year old son after setting this thing up . Holy S*it!! My rear veiw mirror didn't stop bouncing around until i turned it down. My ears hurt. I listen to rock. How loud do you need it to be. This thing through an mp player is great. i'm glad i invested in hearing aids. I' m going to be rich in 10 years!!!
 
#22 ·
Yes, we have the sub woofer. I personally don't question the ability of the system to shake my mirrors. I question the overall tonal quality of the system. Obviously this is very subjective, and is just my opinion, but I find that all Bose systems exaggerate the bass, boost the high end and have extremely muddy mid range. The Bose system is designed to give the illusion of a quality system. Many people in the audio industry will tell you that Bose is "Better Sound Through Marketing". All that said, I want to hear the exhaust and the supercharger whine. The audio system is not something I would change, as it does not appear simple. My major complaint is the lack of BT audio and the horrible speech system.
 
#23 ·
Another that's not a big fan of the bose. This is my third. Had a 2001 Tahoe, a 2008 Yukon Denali and my 11 V. Each got progressively worse/harder to modify. All were totally lame when compared to what you pay for the option. To me, it sounds great when you are test driving but after a week or two driving you realize it blows :) I agree with much of what Mike02z said. To tinny up high, too muddy everywhere else. The bass will thump a bit but it has no punch or definition. They had a SIX INCH sub in my Yukon Denali! Sorry but you are NEVER going to get decent bass out of a 6" sub. Plus bose reduces the bass as you turn up the volume so they don't blow the tiny cheap speakers they use. You would laugh if you ever saw what they use for door speakers. I put Infinity Kappas in my Yukon and they EASILY weighed twice what the bose weighed plus the bose were cheap paper cones :( On the first two vehicles I ended up replacing everything but the nav head unit and the bose amp. Had to keep the amp because all of the audio controls were done in the bose amp not the head unit so I couldn't tap off the head unit.

Getting back to the V, I actually have a 10" sub and amp waiting to get motivated to try to install. I was thinking about dynamat for the trunk but I really don't want to add the weight. Replacing other stuff becomes much more difficult and expensive. On a $70K car, the stereo should be a lot better IMO
 
#26 ·
Not trying to bust your balls. But this was just a stereo post. Sure your just poking fun. I can gurantee that if I wanted to go fast, stop hard, and slalom well, a 2 or 4 door Cadillac would not make my top 10 list. This is a great car. Great price. Great perfromance. But it is a Cadillac and trying to compete with BMW, Mercedes, etc. It has gained alot of ground. Definatly a better track car than most in it's class. But thats not the whole package. Not trying to be a V bashor. But it's not the greatest car on the market. Bang for the buck? Yea unbeatable. I would pay $80,000.00, in up grades if they were available, or maybe more for one with better stereo, seats (yes I have the Reccaro's) fit n finish. At the end of the day this is a Cadillac. Does Cadillac want to be known for best bang for the buck or an all around American car that has placed itself shoulder to shoulder with the foreign competition?
Oh yea this is a stereo post! lol
 
#28 ·
I really don't think its all that bad. Set it up right and it's more than good enough. Only better sounding stock systems I have heard are the Mark Levinson Lexus LS460, and B&O in an S8. Both of those options cost several thousand dollars ( almost over 2K for Lexus and 6K in the S8!!!). GM put the money into the performance of this car, yet still compared it's AMG and M competition(IE C63 or M3) the stereo is waaay better than both those. Frankly most people buying V's could give less than 2 shits. In fact I didn;t even turn the radio on when I bought mine!
 
#29 ·
Hi SoonerSpeedFreak, no offense taken. I am sorry for taking the radio bashing off topic. I should have just said, "I like my CTS-V radio and I am totally staisfied with it." Honestly, I've never put an aftermarket stereo in any car I have ever owned. I am old, and I can't just don't understand why anyone would make the radio priority in a performance car.
I commute over 120 miles a day (6 days a week) in my V, and all I have ever wished for was a little more power, and a little more brake.
 
#30 ·
Yeah, you have to play around with the configuration settings to get the best sound. I went from "normal" to "centerpoint" and get better sound quality. I would rather have the trick suspension than the best car stereo. I'm sure some hard choices had to be made by the engineers to maintain this price level, and performance should trump entertainment in the "V."

Jud
 
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