i love my car. but... i must admit that the stereo in my old nissan sentra sounded better than the stock stereo in my '01 325. despite having more speakers than the sentra, the bimmer stereo is very midrange-y and harsh-sounding. and the only eq'ing i can do is to boost/cut the bass or treble.

is this normal... or is something wrong with my stereo?

My car's stock system is great (HK), even at high volumes its crisp. Might be your speakers, or it might just be you're use to something better. But i know that my setup is sick :alright. Try comparing it to another person's E46 if you're able to.

I thought the stock stereo sounds pretty darn good. no HK either.

I thought the stock stereo sounds pretty darn good. no HK either.

+1


What music do you listen to OP?

All stock systems suck. Even the cheapest aftermarket system will sound better than the best stock system. That's why I don't care what the car comes with, since it will only end up in a box in my garage. :)

No problems with my HK.

All stock systems suck. Even the cheapest aftermarket system will sound better than the best stock system. That's why I don't care what the car comes with, since it will only end up in a box in my garage. :)

Ummm...no.

i don't mind my HK, its not the best sounding stereo i've ever had, and the door tweeters have blown, but its definately listenable... my car lacks the stock subs, but i don't mind that, it still sounds pretty good without them.

My HK system is okay. Nothing outstanding, but not crap either. It is about on par with my Nakamichi system in my Lexus. Neither are great, but both are okay and little better than average.

I love my stock sound system, its nice and crisp at all volumes levels high and low. The bass is cranked up and, quite franky I don't think I need a subwoofer, the base is really good!

I do listen to it loud, so I am waiting when its gonna blow........so far so good!

yeah I have to say my HK is pretty darn good, I have no problems with it, infact I like it better than the 14speaker HK in my wifes Rover, and that has two HK subs in the back. Check your amp and speakers maybe there is somthing wrong with it.

My friend has a 2001 toyota camry that sounds wayyyy better than my stock stereo in my 2004 325i, i admit that when i had my 01 325i with the hk it was a vast improvement over stock. But side by side comparisons with other cars stock deck, bmw is pretty crappy, imo.

the stock stereo left me wanting so I have been upgradeing it for awhile now but its been slow going.

All stock systems suck. Even the cheapest aftermarket system will sound better than the best stock system. That's why I don't care what the car comes with, since it will only end up in a box in my garage.


That might be the most unintelligent and unthought out thing I have ever heard in my entire life.

That might be the most unintelligent and unthought out thing I have ever heard in my entire life.
:rofl: +1 everyone that comes into my car thinks i 1.) have an aftermarket subwoofer in the back and 2.) i upgraded the speakers. H/K FTW!!!

Ummm...no.
That might be the most unintelligent and unthought out thing I have ever heard in my entire life.

And you guys know better? I never said two speakers would be better. But if you replace every single last component in the stock HK system with aftermarket parts, even if it's Lightning Audio junk, it WILL sound better. The stock system uses speakers with paper cones and a stock amp that has a 10% THD rating. Most aftermarket amps aren't even up to 1% THD. So unless you have some valuable information that you can provide other than just disagreeing and acting like douchebags, then shut the hell up.

And you guys know better? I never said two speakers would be better. But if you replace every single last component in the stock HK system with aftermarket parts, even if it's Lightning Audio junk, it WILL sound better. The stock system uses speakers with paper cones and a stock amp that has a 10% THD rating. Most aftermarket amps aren't even up to 1% THD. So unless you have some valuable information that you can provide other than just disagreeing and acting like douchebags, then shut the hell up.

i dont know that its fair to say all stock audio systems are terrible, the HK in the new 5 is pretty good, and so is the stock audio in pretty much every new Merc.

that being said, i do agree that even the premium audio in the e46 is pretty poor. im upgrading mine as soon as i get some $.

i dont know that its fair to say all stock audio systems are terrible, the HK in the new 5 is pretty good, and so is the stock audio in pretty much every new Merc.

that being said, i do agree that even the premium audio in the e46 is pretty poor. im upgrading mine as soon as i get some $.

Yeah, it's good for stock. My point was that you could go to WalMart, get Lightning Audio and Jensen junk, and as long as you replace like parts for like parts, you get a better system.

djmatty is correct - pretty much every stock stereo is lame. we have disagreed in the past - but nothing unintelligent about what he said. as for the person that used "crisp sounding" - go to a reputable hifi store and compare. The upgraded stereo in the 5 series is good, but it is also a $2k upgrade. DJ and I could certainly match that with an aftermarket setup for 1/2 the cost. The Carver setup in the Z4 was decent as well - again for a cost. The upgraded unit in the 3 - not so good.

djmatty is correct - pretty much every stock stereo is lame. we have disagreed in the past - but nothing unintelligent about what he said. as for the person that used "crisp sounding" - go to a reputable hifi store and compare. The upgraded stereo in the 5 series is good, but it is also a $2k upgrade. DJ and I could certainly match that with an aftermarket setup for 1/2 the cost. The Carver setup in the Z4 was decent as well - again for a cost. The upgraded unit in the 3 - not so good.

Where did we disagree in the past? :confused

Where did we disagree in the past? :confused
E46 system>E36 system? :rofl

The E90 one is better than our E46 one :(

Click link in sig. to fix your stereo.

The E90 one is better than our E46 one :(

Click link in sig. to fix your stereo.

Yeah, the system in my roommate's 335i is pretty good (for stock). Not any match for mine, though. :)

^ thats cus your the man :buttrock

Yeah, the system in my roommate's 335i is pretty good (for stock). Not any match for mine, though. :)

does she have the basic one or the upgraded one?

does she have the basic one or the upgraded one?

The upgraded one (she thinks).

The upgraded one (she thinks).

kk.

kk.

Your car's white, and you're 2/3 racist. Nice.

Your car's white, and you're 2/3 racist. Nice.

:rofl
Alpine power!! :buttrock