Distortion from speakers or does the B & O just suck?
 

I've noticed that "sometimes" the stereo has distortion and wondering if anyone else has noticed this. Had a Harmon/Kardon upgrade in my 2014 bmw 335i which was awesome, couldn't have been happier. For an audiophile like me, that stereo could handle essentially any tuning at any volume and I was amazed by how good it was. The Audi's B&O seems to have left a bit to be desired. I've noticed that on some songs and some talk radio, when at mid volume, the speakers can get distorted and some of the spoken words (talk radio) can cause distortion, similar to when a radio is turned up too loud and the speakers might not be able to handle the volume level. This seems to happen at mid-volume levels and wanted to know what other's experience has been with the stereo quality.

A lot of my audio from my phone (iTunes, Spotify) has great quality sound, while Sirius is not so great

I too came from an HK upgraded system on my 2015 M3, and the B and O is terrible. Depending on track/source, I can induce crackle and distortion even at mid volume. Seems like there are long threads on how bad the B and O system is.

I never experience clipping (distortion) on my B&O through various sources and volumes -- FM radio, SD card.

I do find the sub can bottom out if bass is too pronounced.

Otherwise -- and properly tweaked -- I find the system sounds very good. And I'm a bit picky about these things.

So far I've not experienced any distortion from the B&O system. Overall I am satisfied with it. Source material is from the iPod or news broadcast from various FM stations. Depending on my mood, I may listen to classic or alternative rock and pop. I find this system better than the H&K in my last BMW. Though it is several notches down from the B&W system in my wife's Volvo XC90. But it should be better for the upgrade cost of $3,200 USD.

See here, and listen to posted clip:

https://www.audiworld.com/forums/aud...e-bad-2936587/

Mine sounds amazing, and I know that because I had the misfortune of needing to drive an A5 SB as a loaner without an upgraded stereo which sounds awful.

Absolutely no distortion on mine, even if I turn the bass and sub pretty high (how I like listening to my music, which is frequently bass heavy)

Perhaps I am not qualified to comment on certain posts here at AudiWorld, but I am definitely qualified to comment on this one. The Bang & Olufsen audio system in my new Audi S4 is simply amazing in so many ways including clarity and lack of distortion, depth and layers of tone, amplification power, etc. One observation is that the tonal quality of Sirius XM sourced music is not quite as incredible as music played via CD or iPhone. Under the Sound settings there are multiple options to be aware of like Rear/Front Focus, I chose Rear. Level of Surround Sound, I turned that down to zero. play with the woofer and subwoofer sound levels and you should be set. I have had my car for less than two months and just yesterday I popped a CD in there for the first time: Tom Petty's Greatest Hits CD. I adjusted my tone from there and it sounds great in other genres like classical, jazz, metal, etc. tomorrow I'm going to try Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd Animals, AC/DC, Peter Frampton (Frampton Comes Alive!, what else is there?) Fleetwood Mac, Steely Dan, etc.

What makes me qualified to comment? As a hobby I used to own a music store full of guitars, amps and assorted "music gear." This included high-end products and when I wasn't traveling for my real job we would try everything at the most ridiculous settings and volumes, because we could. Also, a close friend owns a recording studio and I spend some time there from time to time. I used to play in a Rock & Roll Band. Most importantly, I raised a violinist who has played professionally since age 14 and currently plays on her university orchestra. Her violin from the 1770's is worth more than my new S4. (quite a bit more...)

If your Audi S4 Prestige has a sound system that does not sound incredible, there are some settings that are just not set up right, or there is some other serious technical issue.

I have the same / similar issue from certain speakers / speaker grilles although I would call it vibration rather than distortion.
I came from to Audi's B&O audio from the Burmester system in the new Mercedes C Class. I think the B&O system is slightly better (one reason is that it's more controllable (ie. independent control for the subwoofer)) but I do not expect the B&O system to vibrate!!

Run a sine sweep on your system to determine what is vibrating, where and when. You could plug your phone into the car while playing this video; I have some test CD's which I will run but essentially it's just the same as this linked above.

I think my front center woofer has a problem.

I ran the sweep above and I have a reproduceable rattle at 240hz. They have a new woofer in order.

The B&O I had in my 2012 A4 was superior to the one in my S4. I'm disappointed.