jonnywright

Hi all,

Just taken delivery of a brand new B8, mostly chuffed so far. Before I ordered I had an A3 on demo and the entertainment system was quality. The entertainment system on my A4 seems to be a lot less comprehensive than what I had in the demo A3 (admittedly it had the sat-nav extra but anyhow).

I have been Googling around trying to get my head around the different entertainment systems that Audi make and am getting myself in a right mess so hope someone can explain the different variations to me? I have read about various different versions of MMI; 2G, 3G, 3G+ or something to that effect. Is MMI even the only option? In my car I have a symphony radio, no nav etc, but when I start up the car, the monitor does not say "MMI" or anything, it says "AMI" or something similar? Are these the same or completely different systems?

I know I'm waffling but basically, I want to know what different systems are out there and what my upgrade options are (if any) from AMI to MMI or update AMI etc.

Thanks

Nostromo

You have the Audi Symphony system. The 'AMI' is the audi music interface which gives you the SD card slot plus the ipod adapter. It's fairly long in the tooth as far as tech goes.

You other option on a new A4 would have been MMI 3G+. It's basically the same stuff as in the new A3 minus a couple things (like the touchpad on the controller). It has toys like DVD playback and Bluetooth streaming. It's RIDICULOUSLY over priced at $3000.... (though Audi is currently offering a $1250 discount on it)

You also can get the B&O sound system (upgraded amp and speakers) with either radio.

jonnywright

Right thanks for clearing up a few of my questions! I actually got a Black Edition so got the B&O as standard. I read a few places that firmware/software updates can increase functionality? Two of my main gripes with my system over the one in the A3 are;

Lack of bluetooth playback - no excuse for not including that in my opinion.

Also, and some may find this very petty but anyway, when listening to media; DAB radio for example, the screen just shows the list of stations. Why cant I have more info on what I'm actually listening to? Currently playing track etc?

Would an update add this kind of functionality or are the updates more like "bug-fixes"?

Cheers

Nostromo

Having B&O is a huge plus in my opinion. I was actually waffling between Symphony and MMI in my new car, but it HAD to have B&O. That wasn't negotiable.

Not sure about firmware upgrades. Especially if it's a brand new car. It should be as updated as it can be.

Bluetooth. Yup. It's pathetic. A lot of people use the "Tune2Air" dongle to get streaming in their car. Do a search here for it.

My old Audi Symphony would scroll the name of the songs for FM stations that supported it. There must be an option to turn that on/off.