slojotaa

I have been analyzing the potentials for the A7 stereo, which in my view as a musician, isn't the strongest suit from Audi. Here are my findings:

1. - Found the woofer, and battery, nicely hiding under the rear spare tire.
2. - Strange shaped woofer.....and stranger looking than sounding (although sounding is not good at all.
3. - Went the "base stereo" route, since the Bose lacked bottom, and the B&O is good if I am going to listen to Chopin, but I prefer Chopin with a beat :-).
4. - Opted on base, with the intent of modifying it "slightly".
5. - Base stereo has excellent cabin clarity, and is actually pretty nice sounding.
6. - Robin Trower, Seal, Zep, Pink Floyd ....all classic rock sounded terrible though with the cheap sub in the trunk.
7. - Went and had a kicker 8" sub, and a Kicker Amp (matched by installer who is terrific) installed. Amp was mounted to the sub-box (no invasion).
8. - Spliced the power etc, into the original Sub connection, with intent of replacing it when I sell the car in the far distant future.
9. - All MMI controls work well.
10. - First day went back to installer, and said the base is too strong and muddy. He adjusted a few things, and changed the frequency settings (The trick is to adjust appropriately).
11. - Bottom line, the stereo now sounds awesome!!!! I love it, punchy kick to the base and base drum, highs are crisp in the cab, cutting through it. Can't get enough of the sound now. Frequency adjustments were the key.

In summary, this sub sounds awesome, the stereo is extremely satisfactory, and I saved the money on getting a Bose upgrade or Bang and O.

Strongly suggest that those who have the base stereo, or those considering the stereo options hold off, and consider this "non invasive" approach. It is a clear cut winner.

Now, I know that there will be a lot of folks who offer opinions, saying that the Bose or the B&O are this and that and that I am crazy. But, as I said I am a musician since I was 4 years old, and it is all taste, art and in the ears on the sides of our heads. This just works so well for me, and for those who listen to classic rock, or base licks in music....this is a fine balance. Again, I used Kicker, but I am not a rep for this product, nor any association. I just had the sub in the garage (sons car), and my guy matched the right Amp, which happened to be a Kicker. He had it in his car, and said he loved it.

Good luck, find a great installer who doesn't screw up the car, treats it non invasive with TLC....and good luck.

Let me know how you make out, and hopefully you have the same satisfaction as I did with this "minor" fix, but "MAJOR" improvement. I now love my A7 even more with the stereo properly balanced and working the way it should.

Viper killer

So you have a sub enclosure sitting in the back now?
Or did you replace the factory speaker?

JerryS4

How about some pictures and the details of the Kicker parts and costs? May be something worth doing since you figured out what seems to be a low cost way to greatly improve the sound. Is this a DIY thing or should it be done by a pro only in your opinion?

Gangee

Howdy All,

I didn't go for the 6k stereo upgrade.

Instead, prompted by this post, I had my installer put in a Focal 8" sub woofer and 600W amp. Total cost, with labor including hardwiring my V1, $1600.00 w/tax.

It totally changes the sound of the system. Wow, what a great sound now. The highs and lows are higher and lower. And, they're so crisp now.

I agree with the folks here that say the base stereo is average. For an audiophile like myself, it just doesn't cut it. But now, I'm really happy with the sound. I took the long way home last night!

For the folks in CO, I had Highline Car Audio in Denver do it. Website is here:
http://highlinecaraudio.com/

Owner is Eric.

Check out the RS4 work he did.

He's very detail oriented, used to working on nothing but...cars like ours. Great guy, very easy to deal with and eager to please.

It's a 100% non-invasive install and in no way changes the factory look. "All" (this is not a DIY install) he did was replace the sub-woofer and amp already installed with the Focal gear. In fact in the spare tire compartment there's more room now. He did a great job.

When Eric sends me pics I'll post them.

= gangee

Gangee

I should also add that Eric did the install so that the gear can be pulled out of the car, should I sell the car and the buyer doesn't want the great stereo.

Gangee

Here's the pics of my install:

1banger

Nice install!