Who Makes The Best OEM Sound System Out There?

Out of every OEM soundsystem I've heard/owned, the Dynaudio system in the Volvo C70 far exceeds any of the others in terms of quality. It's a 14 speaker set up (6-front, 2-center, 4-rear, 2-subs) with 3 dedicated amps (mains, centers, subs) totalling 910-watts. It also has seperate 8-band EQs for the front and rear speakers.

I have never heard any system have such a clean separation between the highs, mids and lows. The dual subs provide punch when needed without overpowering the rest of the sound. There is almost no distortion and I rarely have gone above half volume.

Dynaudio used to use the C70 as its flagship application before it won the contract with Bugatti. Incidentally the C70 won "Best Car Stereo System" accolade by the luxury lifestyle publication "Robb Report")

I would not say I'm an audiophile, but I have always been in constant pursuit of good audio both at home (Klipsch Reference series speakers) and in the car and I couldn't have been happier with an OEM or aftermarket system.

Just a couple of notes to my own comments:
- Audio is *very* subjective as is with any other preference. I prefer distinct clean sound and good separation of lows and highs, as opposed to rocking bass. To each their own
- I have not had the pleasure of trying out the $4000+ systems from B&O and Naim as I will probably never buy a car in that range (except maybe the new A6)

Have you checked the Mark Levinson in a Lexus LS?
I am sure Dynaudio did great job too, so it would have been a good reference.

The Dynaudio is/was also used in the VW Passat/CC and Phaeton (current models) and I would agree, it is one of the best sounding units I have ever listen through in a car. The problem in the Passat is the road noise that tends to hurt the overall quality.

The Mark Levinson stereo in the Lexus vehicles is AMAZING!

Acura TL ELS system, very satisfying (low bass extension).
Porsche Burrmester?? Extremely satisfying.
2011 Camry SE with JBL lol - very satisfying for price point- actually the bass sets off other car's alarms with certain music when driving down smaller NYC streets.

Well it's not Bose and it's not BMW, all though the previous generation Z4 Carver sound system was the best I've heard in a BMW.

Oh yes!! Carver was an awesome audio system, Wish they still had them in cars.

If you consider Ferrari exhaust pipes as a OEM sound system I vote for them.

So is 2 billion dollar market size for all car audio(including after market) or just OEM? If it all car audio, than the market has shrunk big time.

Can't believe VW is getting rid of dynaudio for fender/panasonic...what a shame.

You are correct

the credit here is due to Lexus, which completely reset the bar with Nakamichi in the original LS. Today. the Mark Levinson in Lexus, B&W in Jaguar and B&O in Audi are all in the hunt. Not to mention Lexicon in the Genesis.

My question is when will BMW and Porsche get serious? They are MIA.

Porsche's Burmester system is pretty awesome in the Cayenne and Panamera, and needs to be in all models by next year. Easily among the top systems available today.

I also second anything by Dynaudio - their speakers are smooth and musical and make

The Burmester in the Panamera answers the mail, but it better show up as options in the new 911 and Cayman or Porsche is losing its focus...

It's great to have these partnerships. It solves the conundrum of wanting to keep a car OEM but wanting great sound. I'd love to hear the B&W in the Jag; that is my favorite loudspeaker company by far.

Completely agree with you t_bone! The sound quality on the new Jag XJ from B&W is simply amazing.- 20 Speakers, 1,200 watts and 7.1 surround sound! One of the best!!

The Ac Delco tape deck in an older Cadillac lol. BMW factory stereos aren't as bright and clear as they used to be back in the 80's when ALpine and Pioneer were providing audio. I realize they pale in comparison to the offerings now, but for their time were great. The factory stereo in my 95 525i has great highs, especially once you replace the head unit with a newer one. the factory amp puts plenty of power but the highs and bass suffer. BMW's have a very midrangey sound with muffled treble and weak lower bass notes (below 60hz). I replaced the receiver in My 02 Discovery II and fell in love with the factory system enough to where I didn't replace any of the speakers, but instead just added a Kicker CVR sub and alpine Amp. The factory HK amp powers the highs great, and I was rather surprised at how goo the factory Phillips speakers sound. Of course it is not near as nice as the audio systems of newer cars, but as it is now it is great and everyone compliments my highs and swears I have upper end aftermarket speakers. The Bose in my ML320 sounded good, but I replaced it with a double Din clarion GPS navigation dvd player with 6.5 inch touch screen display and it realy woke the system up, however the highs are nowhere near as loud as my stock highs in the my Discovery II. I think bypassing the Bose amp and powering the highs with my receiver will be louder. IT sounds good, and is louder than when I had the stock Nav receiver, but is just not very loud period.

Oh, and GM's bose systems never impressed me they way the one in my previously owned Audi A4 did. They don't sound any better than the stock systems do in my opinion. Probably due to the lackluster crap Delco receiver they used to use before switching to Fujitsu ten a couple of years back.

The Boston Acoustics system in my Jeep is pretty good. When the kids are watching a DVD in the back seat it sounds like I'm sitting in a private movie theater.

Actually I was impressed by the Boston acoustics system in my friends charger. I am glad Chrysler finally got a good sound system in their cars. The infinity was over rated big time and were nothing like what infinity offers in the aftermarket world. they speakers infinity offered to Chrysler were cheap thin paper cone speakers.

although not OEM, I have a very simple aftermarket system

high end Focal components, a Phoenix Gold Amp, a dual 8" sub system and a high end Clarion pre-amp deck....all discreetly hidden.

the SQ from this is phenomenal and definitely better than many of the OEM systems above. This system may not have as much watts or SPL, but a quality audiophile system is usually just good tuning and quality components. A lot of the OEM systems use basic components but tuned/EQ very well for their environment. Quality speaker and amp components, properly placed will provide an "air" that is hard to describe in words. The clarity of a high note has to be natural or only slightly warmed over. Most OEM's just don't get the same reverb after a note is made. The sound is good with OEM but not the same realism to a real instrument or a high end home system. I would like to think my aftermarket is closer to my home system.

don't get me wrong, my wife doesn't hear the difference cause this level of accuracy has highly deminishing returns. Just like two TV's are obvious at Best Buy, but once it's home and you get accustom to the sights/sounds of the one you chose, it's still very good to live with

On the other hand, some Bose systems sound great in store but the reputation long term is that they give you a headache for over emphasizing the mid bass.

I had Focal speakers and they were a bit too "analytical" for me, great for well recorded music, but terrible for pop/rock due to excessive top end sizzle and harshness around the edges, so there was much adjustment of the equalizer. The Dynaudio speakers on the other hand are perfectly suited for badly recorded pop music and required little adjustment of the equalizer to sound great.

Mark Levinson is overrated.