2023 BMW 7-series - Bowers & Wilkins 36-speaker Sound System Review

[@LousyHealer13]

I listened to this at an auto show. Literally the best system I’ve ever heard in my life. I was also coming from a 12 speaker Bose system in my Sonata lol

[@mansamusa2379]

if you can't afford the 7 series but like the sound check out Volvo s90's. Same sound system in it. Not 36 speakers but 19 speakers by Bowers and Wilkins.

[@TheMineLt]

@@mansamusa2379 this!

[@mj-lc9db]

Bowers and Wilkins are just something else

[@db_auto_photography4539]

Heard one of these in person at cars and coffee. Gave me goosebumps when i got to hear it.

[@trey_rdee]

i tried the bower and wilkins a few weeks ago, and its definitely the best system ive heard.

[@afegasdf76y123e]

this is much better than the new s class speakers which i thought was impossible, but its unbelievable

[@drepark2294]

Lol not it’s not.

[@drepark2294]

Marquis Brown reviewed this system and confirmed the s class system is much better

[@afegasdf76y123e]

@@drepark2294 numbers on paper don’t lie, my uncle owns the new s class and my father has the 760li 2023. The bowers and Wilkins are superior

[@harbzsquadings2277]

@@drepark2294 mkbhd?

[@yuding237]

​@@harbzsquadings2277yeah

[@bunneche]

I love your channel and thank you for this important work. Listening to music is my favorite thing to do in a car and this information really helps my buying decisions

[@DailyMotorSound]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@DeepHorizon3773]

You need to review the B&W stereo in the BMW i7 M70 it's the best I've ever heard in a BMW or a Volvo

[@joshuathomas8548]

Oh Charlie thank you so much!! Been really waiting for this one :))

[@opachki8325]

I've had this in the test drive 740d I had end of july and it was just glorious imho

[@stery1993]

Perfect videos my guy. Would appreciate if you would review the raptor ranger sound system in your next videos. Keep up the good work! 👍🏼👍🏼

[@anan7s294]

Can’t imagine what ku lo sa slowed version would sound in this. 🤩

[@Birmingham_racing]

36 speakers? This is meant to a car not a concert hall

[@v12-s65]

Well yeah the 8 shakers kind of don't count but 28 is still at the top! Only a Range Rover or Mercedes S class surpass 30 while actually sounding good

[@mercedeslover907]

LOL

[@aeonjusco-azre-2885]

And thats why im so into 760i

[@RarToto]

@@v12-s65 +escalade

[@afegasdf76y123e]

ur still here speaking trash on bmw lol, this 7 series has better speakers than the new s class with burmesters

[@Joey-bq4hu]

Where does the (BMW 760i) B&W premium (18-speaker system) fall in comparison to the Diamond and others? Always enjoy your vids! And, Thanks in advance :)

[@Skeppyberry]

it seems to have a very V like sound. that's usually applied to systems that are designed to appeal to the masses. Best way to tell is on the A8 video. in the comparisons the A8 properly plays the piano, this and the merc sound like the player is hitting the low notes twice as hard, this is definetly solid S tier though. I believe this sits right beside the A8 and Mercedes. I prefer the Audi because of the flatter sound curve but that can also sound very harsh to some people. so they tend to prefer this or the merc.

[@DailyMotorSound]

That's a good point! And admittedly I do prefer a V sound. Not very extreme, but nonetheless.

[@Skeppyberry]

@@DailyMotorSound I figured as much when you did your review on the S8. It’s reportedly very flat. Most people I take to my local Audi dealer don’t like it because of that frequency response. I personally think it’s an S tier system but no 9 band EQ would make me agree on A. I think you’re pretty spot on with the other Audi systems you tested.

[@Anonymous-bs8it]

Wow, 36 might be a new record. Despite having 2x the number of speakers as the BMW i4, it doesn't sound twice as good...

[@v12-s65]

8 of those aren't speakers. The new Range Rover has 35 or 39 depending on if you option the tailgate event seats

[@Niclas0299]

In my opinion more speakers are just a waste of ressources. Manufacturers should offer systems not based on number of speakers and watts. I always buy aftermarket speakers and install them with a new amp and subwoofer. It is just cheaper and the result meets my needs just better. If u consider that the systems u buy in those flagshipps are so expensive just consider the amount of money u could use for high end aftermarket speakers. I would buy with a 5k budget 6 speakers in a 3 way system.

[@v12-s65]

@@Niclas0299 well you need a certain amount of speakers to create the basis of a good sounding system. There are 4 different speaker types which all of them are needed for a good setup: subwoofer, woofers, midrange and tweeters. Now my car has a 3 way front door setup including a woofer, midrange and tweeter. The rear doors use a midwoofer and a tweeter. Then there is a sub under the floor and you're gonna need speakers in the center plus rear quarters. If you add all up it comes to a total of 17 speakers and sounds brilliant. Those high end systems have a 3way setup for every door, tweeter/midrange combo for every corner and additional speakers in the headliner. That easily adds up to 20+. Indeed some wouldn't be necessary but it all depends on how well it's been tuned. The Burmester uses 2 woofers which are mounted into the chassis and indeed the bass is inferior compared to the other car with door mounted woofers and a real sub.

[@Niclas0299]

@@v12-s65 I agree at some point. Even though some people argue that u don’t need a rearfill I think it sounds more rich and volume is way higher. But to be honest with a super strong frontsystem u really don’t hear anything from the back anymore except u put the same speakers in the back. Center is also fair to be considered. But if I see those stupid 36 speaker systems I just don’t see the point if manufacturers get in the right direction. They use cheap components and correct the sound with amps. People who have no clue about Hi-Fi just see the figures like power and speakers and get trapped in this marketing gag and think more is better. It is the opposite less speakers more quality high end amps and there u go.

[@v12-s65]

@@Niclas0299 sometimes those speaker brands just throw shit into a car and call it a day. I had two Meridian systems - 380w stereo without center and rear quarters - now a 825w surround with coaxial speakers in the rear plus center The difference is like day and night. The soundfield was much narrower in the back compared to the new car and also at higher volumes the bass would decrease. Imo for rear passengers you totally need speakers behind their heads to create a surround stage. With the new center you get a much more balanced experience, you don't identify the sound coming from either the right or left side. Imo a wonderful system, because every seat gets the same amount of quality, which lacks in a lot of other in car audio systems.

[@degou3438]

Marques Brownlee just reviewed this car in the electric version and said that the sound system is mediocre for the price and that MayBach's Burmester 4D is much better. well, I would say that they are tuning choices, each brand with its vision, in terms of systems capacity I think they are equivalent, maybe the BMW with a slight advantage in some points. That BMW system is more neutral, balanced, more open and spacey too, however with the Burmester 4D you get an overall more musical sound, a little warmer maybe, the I7 seems to pull a little bit to a little cooler side, I think it was on purpose, it generally brings more openness and general detail, with Burmester 4D maybe you also have more “punch” and more fun but without losing too much naturalness. In general, that's it. English is not my native language so please excuse any mistakes.

[@twothbeave]

So who cares what MB says. No one made him an audiophile. I prefer the B&W.

[@opachki8325]

As someone who clearly prefers a more natural sound and who has only heard the b&W diamond sound system I also gotta say (especially with the poor infotainment and the ridiculously poor steering wheel the S-class has) that I'd always pick the BMW. The B&W actually is amazing in there with some slight eq tuning.

[@drepark2294]

@@opachki8325poor infotainment 😂😂😂 just say you are a bmw fanboy

[@opachki8325]

@@drepark2294 Go ahead and try both of those cars. I prefer proper controls like the one in the BMW. Actually used to be a Mercedes fanboy but in all honesty, they really outdid themselves trying to ruin their cars in one gen.. Källenius truly is a genius regarding this.

[@uzayramer7652]

To be fair there's quite a few variables that make a difference to the audio system such as the type of music being played, the file type such as MP3 or lossless (FLAC/WAV) and equaliser settings etc. Both systems are obviously top tier when it comes to in car factory audio systems but there's no definitive answer as to which one is the "best". Some may choose the Burmester in Mercedes whereas other looking for a more natural sound stage may prefer the Bowers & Wilkins in BMWs so it really comes down to personal preference I guess.

[@peteyification]

Hey Charlie, any leads on the Integra ELS system? I'm really curious to hear your thoughts on it, as I'm considering a Type-S.

[@barbecuetechtips6024]

Integra is the best for it's size class

[@voodooturbo]

@@barbecuetechtips6024 Mazda 3 would like a word.

[@christianbryant5617]

@@voodooturboYea literally. Bose has came out and said the Mazda systems are some of their best ever work, along with Porsche. It manages this without too many speakers also.

[@suvadipmazoomder28]

20:08 the bass drops and the X7 ❤

[@regalgs51]

On the BMW website, it says this stereo has 40 speakers. But the Bowers & Wilkins website says this stereo has 36 speakers. I can’t figure out the discrepancy.

[@hyeGUY25]

16 mins into the video that amazing song plays in all your videos. How can I find this track?

[@DailyMotorSound]

This one? kzbin.info/www/bejne/iqrJmYxjq5ytfqs

[@nikolausulreich1547]

Have you tried the base B and W system of the current 7 series? My I7 only got the base version and It defently lacks of some base at the front seats 😢

[@maxl7827]

There is no base B&W. You have harman kardon or hifi.

[@butnskala81]

You have Bowers & Wilkins Surround Sound with 18 speakers and Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround with 36 speakers which is tested here.

[@randwick619]

Does anyone know the location of the 18 speaker 655 watt system in the normal 7 series 2024? Many thanks

[@dakaleido1662]

How does it compare to S class burmester systems? Both basic and 4D.

[@afegasdf76y123e]

7 series 100% way more crisper and more bass and louder

[@drepark2294]

@@afegasdf76y123eanother lie from you

[@iceWaterProductions1]

Only through a couple of minutes hopefully he cranks some heavy ass Death Metal.

[@diluxe]

Could you do a video on explaining your tiers as I'm a little lost on why this is an S and the Naim is an A tier in the Bentley. Cheers

[@DailyMotorSound]

Sure, we'll do something like that soon!

[@endorphin2806]

What's the name of music at 11:30

[@martindekan5625]

The Travelling Symphony - Savfk

[@endorphin2806]

Thanks​@@martindekan5625

[@joshenramsey6768]

The audio is honestly next level but I think volvo's bowers and wilkins is as good as this one. Maybe the volvo's base is not as sharp and the volvo doesn't have (exciters). Non the less, volvo's bowers and wilkins performs as good with 17 less speakers.

[@ryanshannon6963]

The real question is this as good or better than S90 B&W system?

[@nanospace2389]

No, the s60 is better than 500k rolls royce speakers and the s90 is better than that.

[@BrandonG8Man]

It better be an S Tier at this price. Thinking it might be a good idea to start listing vehicles by price class. Anything less than an S in this class would be an epic fail. Putting an S Tier in an under $60k vehicle would be something to be applauded.

[@michaelriga6431]

And its not S tier, its really muddy. Studio does sound better, but you do need to play the EQ. Most car manufactuers still can't get audio right. They think adding more speakers is the way to go. Its not.

[@SansSpidey]

That throne is reserved for Volvos with their Bowers & Wilkins system then, but I'm still unsure if Charlie agrees... ;)

[@michaelriga6431]

@@SansSpidey Nope - its reserved for custom audio. Go to a audio shop and put in your own. I did that with my Civic and RAV4, full Focals with a Diamond Sub, Diamond AMP and a DSP AMP from Audiocontrol. I still have not found a system that can even come close to that.

[@trey_rdee]

@@michaelriga6431 this is about aftermarket systems.

[@Niclas0299]

I would say it is impossible to get an S Tier at a fair price from a manufacturer because of the profit margins etc 50% of the price of speaker systems has to be deducted. Say if u buy a Burmester which costs 1000 euros 500 euros may be the price of the components. So amp sub and 13 speakers now u can guess which crap is in your car :). Most people don’t need high end audio in their car and most people do not know how a good system really sounds. U can get S Class sound with much less than 5-7000 euros.

[@tool8337]

TOOL!!!!! guest appearance lol

[@DailyMotorSound]

We've got Invincible on our member's only test list!

[@tool8337]

@@DailyMotorSound 😍

[@dhomwww]

What about 740 is it enough to be satisfied ?!

[@maxl7827]

740 or 760 doesn't tell jack about the equipment.

[@MrMiamiswaggz305]

Favorite part of your video are when you get to Aimless Lyrics

[@mortensenvick5711]

Which b&w do you think is better? XM, iX or 7 series?

[@DailyMotorSound]

Too close to say.

[@gamerbarista]

What is the total watt output?

[@uzayramer7652]

The previous 7 series had 16 speakers and an output of 1400 watts, this new 7 series has 36 speakers and a total output of 1965 watts I believe.

[@dhomwww]

It is possible to make up grade to my 740 2023 700 watts only 😢

[@afegasdf76y123e]

ofcourse, any speakers can get upgraded

[@АфганскаяБошка]

Man please,audi a8/s8 d4 bose 14-speakers

[@yassir1100]

I thought Wireless Apple Carplay auto compresses audio files to High Quality AAC 256kbps? Lossless is much higher - Ive tried everywhere to find someone that tells me otherwise, as Im due to get a BMW with wireless carplay only, and was told I'd be audio limited to the figure above. Any explanation (channel or other users) would be amazing. Great video otherwise

[@DailyMotorSound]

Thanks! I've been trying to get a straight answer to this as well but have heard different responses. I should look into it more

[@truevinyl]

Hi, I’m really interested in this question as well, I currently have a Burmester 3D Mercedes system and I use wired CarPlay with the Roon ARC app with downloaded vinyl rips. As I understand it, those are playing 16 or 24 bit / 48 mHz pcm. They sound amazing. I’m considering a move to BMW 7 Series with the Diamond System but if wireless CarPlay uses 256k AAC then that would be a dramatic step backwards and I would need to stop using Roon ARC and move to USB drives. So it would be really helpful to have a definitive answer on wireless CarPlay audio compression. Unrelated request, could you please demonstrate these systems ability to navigate artists, albums, playlists etc for the USB drives. The Mercedes system is lousy in this respect, thus the reason I prefer to use CarPlay. For example, displaying long titles for songs and albums, such as classical music titles, is awful on the Mercedes system. I’m hoping BMW does a better job of displaying and navigating music from iDrive but I can’t really tell from these reviews. Thanks!

[@thomosburn8740]

the DSP is clearly not optimized for the rear seat. I guess the area behind the seat and below the rear glass is acting as a mid-bass chamber (very boxy tone)

[@maxl7827]

Music will sound different on different seats no matter what you do, since the distance from bass drivers is different and cabin gain will act differently.

[@thomosburn8740]

@@maxl7827 unless someone were to run different DSP for just the rear seats!!!

[@maxl7827]

@@thomosburn8740 What? The whole system is equalized, level matched and measured to perform with a dsp. But it is impossible to make the music sounds same at each seat. Bass frequencies amplify in vehicle cabin, and the further away you are from the bass drivers the more amplified the sound is. This effect is called cabin gain. Hence why rear and front seats have different sound, no fix around this unless you have subwoofer in every corner

[@mirlabov]

Next time playing play Enya carribbean blue

[@fancha831]

bowers sounds a bit too intimate for my liking, even the ochestra

[@MusicAnirban]

Whats wrong with all the new car designs? That all digital panel looks so out of place. They no longer look like car interiors. Paying such premium price for such horrible front panels?

[@theputtystudio]

seems like the sound system is good as my RAV4 LE

[@voodooturbo]

Systems like this just seem gimmicky as hell. 36 speaker, but a third of them are surround sound gimmick speakers and seat rumblers. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure it sounds pretty good, but these processors don't add anything to the sound in my experiences, and I just turn them off. At a certain point you're just synthesizing the presence and sound stage instead of letting the speakers do that job like they're supposed to. That back seat screen is just ridiculous rich people crap though LMAO.

[@hyeGUY25]

I listened to this sound system today in the 7 series and it was garbage no way near worth 4800. The stock harmon Kardon sound system sounded better in the 8series since thats all I could test because they didn't have a single 7 series without the bullshit sound system.

[@RJ-xj3ct]

I thought the same thing. Im not sure if there are two tiers of this system but it felt completely underwhelming. Its weird bc I listened to the bowers in the x7 and was blown away so I expected even better from the 7 series.

[@MichaelNeumann-n2v]

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