[bones]

I’m about to order an M340i but don't want the Premium Package. The only way to get HK is to get the PP. Sucks.

I've had HK in my last 3 BMWs. Will I be able to live with the downgrade? I'm not an audiophile but I do like a little thump here and there.

[MT4life]

Originally Posted by bones

about to order an m340 but don't want the premium package. only way to get HK is to get PP. Sucks.

I've had HK in my last 3 BMWs. Will I be able to live with the downgrade? I'm not an audiophile but I do like a little thump here and there.

Don't know about G20 but on F30 the difference is quite noticeable

[Thompjas]

I have a bog standard G20 320D Sport - with standard sound system - this is far better than my previous F30's stereo for sure.

Sadly cannot comment about comparison with HK set up, but front and rear passengers enjoy the new car with default settings and music turned up a little louder now as sound is great!

[Isow]

Originally Posted by bones

I’m about to order an M340i but don't want the Premium Package. The only way to get HK is to get the PP. Sucks.

I've had HK in my last 3 BMWs. Will I be able to live with the downgrade? I'm not an audiophile but I do like a little thump here and there.

HK in the G20 is fantastic.

[klokan]

Originally Posted by Isow

HK in the G20 is fantastic.

True.

Much, much better than F30.

[Rovman]

I test drove G20 330i’s with both the regular stereo and the upgraded HK stereo. Although the standard set up sounded fine, the HK set up sounded much better with much deeper Bass representation and better crisper highs representation. Also much higher Volume (DB’s) with still crisp tight sound no overdriving of the speakers.....

[F20driver]

Originally Posted by Thompjas

I have a bog standard G20 320D Sport - with standard sound system - this is far better than my previous F30's stereo for sure.

Sadly cannot comment about comparison with HK set up, but front and rear passengers enjoy the new car with default settings and music turned up a little louder now as sound is great!

How many speakers are there in non-HK stereo system? Thanks

[ny176]

10 speakers on the standard sound system

[Encanto]

Suggestion for clarity:

- standard audio system in the USA is HiFi
- standard audio system outside the USA is Stereo

HiFi has 10 speakers/205W
Stereo has 6 speakers/100-150W

[Skeewiff03]

Just received the car with HiFi (10 speaker) set up.

Coming from an E90 with a Stereo (6 speaker) sound, I was expecting something much better.

HiFi volume is not that high, and rather thin sounding as someone else already mentioned. Have not experienced the HK to compare though.

[themnmd]

On my m235 had base radio, it was fair. On my new m340 I have HK it is quite good. It sounds the best in the middle third of the volume. You have to play with EQ to get the sound the you like best. I have heard the BW on a friends M5 and it very good, too bad you can't get it on the 3 series

[Calamari]

HiFi system in EU (marketed as standard in the US) is better than I expected. I have it in my car. It's a decent system that can be upgraded significantly by replacing center, front and rear speakers with ETON BMW plug-n-play speakers. (No need to upgrade woofers). Total cost of this is 380 €uros.

I am in the middle of this process and have just replaced the front speakers and the improvement is very noticable. Stronger and more precive kick-bass. Clearer mid-range and much much nicer high-range. I'm really enyoing it now.

I'm gonna do the rear and center speaker replacement in the next week or two. I expect improved kick-bass and mid-range quality from the rear speakers, and a centered stage with the center speaker.

Speakers you need is:
- 4 x Eton B 100 W for front and rear doors (you'll just leave out tweeters for rear doors)
- 1 x Eton B 100 XCN for the center speaker.
(see images below)

If you're not all about ground shaking bass, this will be a very nice system as the sound will be clear, warm and natural.


Other option is BavSound stage 1 upgrade which replaces the same set of speakers but is a bit more expensive (performance is comparable to Eton option).

.

[eddiehaug]

Just for reference (HK System):

[giorgoXXI]

Originally Posted by Isow

HK in the G20 is fantastic.

It might be that I use Spotify as my only source, but I have to say the HK system is OK but not that great. I am coming from a Lexus with a Mark Levinson stereo and that blows away the HK system. It is good, just nowhere near as good as the competition. Maybe I need a better source to get the most of it. I imagine the Bowers and Wilkins in the more expensive BMWs are the truly spectacular ones.

Given how the HK sound, I can only image the standard stereo sounding very average.

[eddiehaug]

Originally Posted by giorgoXXI

It might be that I use Spotify as my only source, but I have to say the HK system is OK but not that great. I am coming from a Lexus with a Mark Levinson stereo and that blows away the HK system. It is good, just nowhere near as good as the competition. Maybe I need a better source to get the most of it. I imagine the Bowers and Wilkins in the more expensive BMWs are the truly spectacular ones.

Given how the HK sound, I can only image the standard stereo sounding very average.

There's always something better, and then something better than that. I listen to a lot of music in different formats, and I play instruments myself, and in my opinion, when taking about audio, the law of decreasing marginal returns makes it just not worth it (unless that you're a freaking millionaire, which I'm not) to go beyond a certain quality level. I had the Hi-Fi system in my previous 2018 5 series, and I've listened to the HK on the G20 and I'm sure that my FLACs will sound more than good enough, considering it's just a car. For deeper enjoyment I have my setup at home.

[Burrcold]

Originally Posted by giorgoXXI

It might be that I use Spotify as my only source, but I have to say the HK system is OK but not that great. I am coming from a Lexus with a Mark Levinson stereo and that blows away the HK system. It is good, just nowhere near as good as the competition. Maybe I need a better source to get the most of it. I imagine the Bowers and Wilkins in the more expensive BMWs are the truly spectacular ones.

Given how the HK sound, I can only image the standard stereo sounding very average.

What Lexus were you coming from with the ML system? I had it on my IS and I think the HK system on the M340i is better (subjective I know...it maybe not as clear but the ML lacked bass which the HK system has). The B&O system in my S4 and S5 was better than both though...not by much.

[bimmer456]

Standard HiFi sound didn't get very loud on 330. Not sure about m340. On the 2018 F30 HK was standard at base price under $50k msrp. The m340 is more expensive and leaves out some standard equipment.

[giorgoXXI]

Originally Posted by Burrcold

What Lexus were you coming from with the ML system? I had it on my IS and I think the HK system on the M340i is better (subjective I know...it maybe not as clear but the ML lacked bass which the HK system has). The B&O system in my S4 and S5 was better than both though...not by much.

I had an older IS (2008), agreed bass wasn't its strongest point, but in terms of clarity, soundstage and precision it was incredible, and that was coming from a bluetooth source (via aptX). With a DVD-audio 5.1 it was even better. I test drove a recent UX with ML, and that didn't sound as good, so maybe the older ones were better.

The HK system is designed with its Logik surround feature in mind, which I am not a fan of as the end result sounds too processed, but
I am getting used to it. My biggest complaint is how compressed the mid-range sounds, so it might be that BMW is only streaming 128 kbps via Spotify (to save data money). I may try FLAC files to compare, although I am happy to sacrifice sound quality in favour of the convenience the built-in Spotify app gives you.

[jm917375]

This was one of the question in my mind when I purchased my car. I asked the dealer to give me 2 cars to test the audio. One with HK and the other without.

I have tested them and chose HK. If you listen audio more than medium volume then you will feel the difference. If you listen at low volume then you wont feel the difference.

[teapot]

Originally Posted by bones

The only way to get HK is to get the PP. Sucks.

Double-check this. I think HK was a separate option when I was ordering mine.

[Rapidray]

Originally Posted by ny176

10 speakers on the standard sound system

Where are the ten speakers located?

[Xsapper]

HK is great and getting better the more its used.