How is the audio on a Q5 Premium?
04-29-2017, 07:28 PM
#11
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culebra-
That depends on how old you are and whether there's any hearing loss. Seriously.
"Telecommunications" audio ranges from 300-3000Hz. AM radio does somewhat better. FM stereo pushed that up to 15,000 Hz. Might add some bass, I don't recall. And CD quality audio is 20-20,000 Hz.
But most people start losing high-end hearing in their 20's, and by the time you are in your 50's you'll be lucky to hear 15Khz, so CD's and FM radio will sound exactly alike, even though they are not. And "DVD" quality audio (there's a "superCD" as well) is even higher quality, but rarely supported.
So the first question is, how much quality can you even hear? Then, you add ambient road noise, and you can hear even less of the clarity and detail that a good system would have.
But as to Audi...the base "Concert Sound" system is about on par with a 1980's Buick or Oldsmobile. Nothing special and if you played a REAL bass note, even with the nonsense bass box that's hogging the inside of the spare tire (really!), you still won't get real bass, you'll get a fake base-boost of higher tones.
That's about what "mass market acceptably good" audio is. Nothing an audiophile, or a demanding listener, would be happy with. But commodity grade. I've got a feeling that if you begged, pleaded, wheedled, groveled...You still couldn't get Audi to actually publish the specs, for frequency response and THD (distortion) of the system. A sign of pride, to be sure. (Ahem.)
If it was still the 1980's and automakers still had to offer a "radio delete" package, I'd have taken the car with nothing in the dash, and for way less than the price of the premium audio, put in something way better. I saw one picture of the radio panel removed from the dash, and it sure looks like a standard double-DIN radio installation is hiding in there. Oh, the temptation.(G)
Meanwhile, you know. Commodity grade. Nothing to write home about, but it does the job on the interstate for a long day.
That depends on how old you are and whether there's any hearing loss. Seriously.
"Telecommunications" audio ranges from 300-3000Hz. AM radio does somewhat better. FM stereo pushed that up to 15,000 Hz. Might add some bass, I don't recall. And CD quality audio is 20-20,000 Hz.
But most people start losing high-end hearing in their 20's, and by the time you are in your 50's you'll be lucky to hear 15Khz, so CD's and FM radio will sound exactly alike, even though they are not. And "DVD" quality audio (there's a "superCD" as well) is even higher quality, but rarely supported.
So the first question is, how much quality can you even hear? Then, you add ambient road noise, and you can hear even less of the clarity and detail that a good system would have.
But as to Audi...the base "Concert Sound" system is about on par with a 1980's Buick or Oldsmobile. Nothing special and if you played a REAL bass note, even with the nonsense bass box that's hogging the inside of the spare tire (really!), you still won't get real bass, you'll get a fake base-boost of higher tones.
That's about what "mass market acceptably good" audio is. Nothing an audiophile, or a demanding listener, would be happy with. But commodity grade. I've got a feeling that if you begged, pleaded, wheedled, groveled...You still couldn't get Audi to actually publish the specs, for frequency response and THD (distortion) of the system. A sign of pride, to be sure. (Ahem.)
If it was still the 1980's and automakers still had to offer a "radio delete" package, I'd have taken the car with nothing in the dash, and for way less than the price of the premium audio, put in something way better. I saw one picture of the radio panel removed from the dash, and it sure looks like a standard double-DIN radio installation is hiding in there. Oh, the temptation.(G)
Meanwhile, you know. Commodity grade. Nothing to write home about, but it does the job on the interstate for a long day.
I should probably just pony up and spring for the plus, etc. as I like the HID lights and blind-spot monitoring as well.
I really just drive recreationally now up here in WA state and want to do some road trips over the mountains, so the upgrade might be worth the peace of mind.
04-30-2017, 10:06 AM
#12
AudiWorld Super User
HIDs were a "no compromise" feature for me. Although I have yet to find a car that matched the Marchall 900 racing lamps I used to own, with 100W bulbs replacing the stock ones. Could read a newspaper a half mile down the road...small problem, if you dropped the beams you also had no night vision left, but great for empty country roads.(G) Can't buy the at any price now, thoroughly illegal on public roads.
Blind spot monitoring was something I would have gladly bought but I felt the price was a bit extortionate, at some point I just had to say "Enough!"
Something I learned a long time ago, doing high end A-B blind audio comparisons. There are always a few recordings that will show up the real performance of any system. In Grofe's Grand Canyon Suite, there's a single stark triangle that rings at one point, all alone and clear. Tells you a lot about treble and highs and clarity. And if you track down the old Telearc recording (any of them) of the 1812 Overture...Those are real cannon. On a good system, they can knock pictures off your walls. On a cheap car stereo, I literally have heard the stereo go SILENT because it just couldn't maintain voltage during the bass kick.
Of course there's a lot of rock that can show up the same differences. Dark Side of the Moon comes to mind. And some Supertramp (also from master quality LP's or good dubs from them)...all sorts of things. And for some fun, the Eagles "Hell freezes Over" live recording. There are some tracks with deep *** drums that seem to very easily defeat every consumer grade car stereo out there. They go "WHUMP" with a very very different sound on every system, some artificially low and loud, others thin.
It isn't hard to tell just how good a system is--if you take your own hand-picked music along.
Headlights...even the premium headlights--way harder.(G) And there's just no recess in the grill to install proper auxiliary lights on a Q5. "Quel dommage!"
Blind spot monitoring was something I would have gladly bought but I felt the price was a bit extortionate, at some point I just had to say "Enough!"
Something I learned a long time ago, doing high end A-B blind audio comparisons. There are always a few recordings that will show up the real performance of any system. In Grofe's Grand Canyon Suite, there's a single stark triangle that rings at one point, all alone and clear. Tells you a lot about treble and highs and clarity. And if you track down the old Telearc recording (any of them) of the 1812 Overture...Those are real cannon. On a good system, they can knock pictures off your walls. On a cheap car stereo, I literally have heard the stereo go SILENT because it just couldn't maintain voltage during the bass kick.
Of course there's a lot of rock that can show up the same differences. Dark Side of the Moon comes to mind. And some Supertramp (also from master quality LP's or good dubs from them)...all sorts of things. And for some fun, the Eagles "Hell freezes Over" live recording. There are some tracks with deep *** drums that seem to very easily defeat every consumer grade car stereo out there. They go "WHUMP" with a very very different sound on every system, some artificially low and loud, others thin.
It isn't hard to tell just how good a system is--if you take your own hand-picked music along.
Headlights...even the premium headlights--way harder.(G) And there's just no recess in the grill to install proper auxiliary lights on a Q5. "Quel dommage!"
04-30-2017, 10:44 AM
#13
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Emerson, Lake and Palmer: Tank. About 4 minutes in there is a bass drum kick that will unscrew light bulbs. They used it in the original Laserium at Seattle Center in the 70s. They ended up having to lower the absolute sound level because it was causing structural damage. I loved it! 
04-30-2017, 11:13 AM
#14
AudiWorld Super User
Yes!
Not to mention, they also did Copeland's "Fanfare for the Common Man" and between the bass of the stadium equipment, and the reverberation of the horns IN the stadium, that's one hard mix to get right. (IIRC, all three were Julliard trained classical musicians.)
Not to mention, they also did Copeland's "Fanfare for the Common Man" and between the bass of the stadium equipment, and the reverberation of the horns IN the stadium, that's one hard mix to get right. (IIRC, all three were Julliard trained classical musicians.)
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