View Single Post
      06-03-2013, 10:18 PM   #14
Grovsnus
Flight Lieutenant ≛
No_Country
18
Rep
918
Posts

Drives: Le Mans blue X1 35i
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: CT

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by soapman72 View Post
Also, whoever says that the surround option ruins stereo music is not stating the facts correctly. My 2013 X1 with the HK upgrade doesn not change the sound one bit when toggling the surround on and off. It actually does nothing unless you feed the system a surround compatible track.
Wrong. It uses "simulated surround" - check the manual, or simply your ears.

This "simulated surround" is pretty much the same as the old Dolby Surround, where sound that's in phase gets subtracted from the side channels and played through the center channel, and sound that's out of phase gets played by the rear speakers. Unfortunately, the first moves the sound from a wall to a point, and the second causes parts of the sound to be way louder than intended.

It kills positional cues - when listening to a piano with bass on one end and treble on the other, it sounds like the piano jumps back and forth instead of a fluid seamless progression.
It also hurts treble, as the center speaker doesn't have tweeters that point at you - you have to do with reflections from the windshield.

Assign Surround On/Off to one of the assignable buttons, and push it a few times while listening to stereo music. Even radio will do. There is no way you can't hear the difference, even if tone deaf.
Appreciate 0