I was fiddling with it while test driving a black SI sedan and was not impressed at all with the sound of the system. I didn't get that much time to adjust bass, treb, and mids but from what I heard it just wasnt very good overall.

What do you guys think?

 

I am satisfied with the stock system. No, it's not the best stock system I've heard. My girlfriend's TL, for example, is probably 10 times better. Here's my breakdown.

Pro:

1. Steering wheel controls.
2. Reads MP3/WMA & has PC Card (got navi).
3. Speed Sensitive Volume.
4. Never had a problem hearing the music with windows down & hwy speed--distortion hardly an issue. (but see below)


Con:

1. Bass isn't deep and booming. If you listen to a lot of rap/hip-hop you'll probably not be happy with it. That being said, when I am listening to this genre, I'm satisfied with it.--but there is definately room for improvement.But I am not in the wake the neigborhood stage of life.
2. Mids---sometimes it lacks adequate midbass. Tends to distort at certain volume.
3. It's very front staged bias. The rear speakers are a joke & have no mid-bass at all.


You're not going to win any sound offs but I think it is definately a good system. Can you get better sound for only minimal investment? Absolutely.

It just boils down to what you want in a system.

Keep in min I just came from a 97 Acura Integra - stock system...so this is much much better. It's also better than my RSX-S' stock system.

 

thanks man, i have yet to fiddle with the sound also. sound is pretty imporant to me when i have passanger's in the car. other then that its windows down and ivtec up

 

I'm not too happy with mine lately. Several of my speakers are rattling and I rarely go above 15 or so on the volume, and don't listen to too much with heavy bass and whatnot.

 

Compared to my 350Z which has a Pioneer Premier system with a 10" Polk sub, the Si sounds fairly clean and does not fall far behind the after market system. I wouldn't change it out, leaving it stock thats how happy I am with it. I am very **** about sound quality. Many people equate more bass with a better system which is never true.

 

Radio serves me find, but I'm not a fan blasting my music when I drive...

 

Thanks for the feedback. I knew I wasn't going crazy.

If I end up getting into one of these, a sound system retool may be in order.. but not much else.

Thanks again guys.

-Alex

 

with my si sedan at first i was not impressed.....my lexus is300 wagon that i traded for my si had a stock system that crushed anything stock i have heard....8 speakers and a factory sub....anyways, i guess the si stereo with radio sounds like garbage but sirius or xm or ipod sounds great....better than most stockers out there....but the sub you have to keep fairly low at like 4...but thats just what i have found with mine....oh yeah, mine is without navi....my friends with navi for some reason sounds a bit worse as far as bass is concerned....half the time i forget to turn it on anyways....

 

I had an 01 Gti Vr6 with the 8 speaker Monsoon system and i like my SI's so much better. Im impressed for a stock system. Sounds great IMO.

 

The Navigation Headunit sounds 3x Better than the Non navi headunit and they both are "premium audio"

I was amazed at the difference.

 

I listen to alot of rap/hip hop and I have been very happy with it. I do have to agree with every1 else it does sound better with an iPod wich is what I use it with.

 

Works fine for me

 

I guess the point of this thread is that sound is really subjective. Who cares if we like/dislike it, question is really do you like it.

 

I like it. The 350 watt "premium" system sounds good. It's funny, it sounded better after reaching 5K miles in the SI. I know, weird, but true. I only drive it as a commuter car for work and spend total of 1hr and 30mins in the car. I don't usually crank it up to much. But was told by a car audio specialty store that even speakers need time to warm up and get broken in. Can anyone confirm that?

 

Sure, speakers/headphones need to be "burned in" so the movement of the cones and such becomes fluid and you'll get a better range.

 

I replaced it, all of it. It was not bad for a stock system, in fact, it was better than most (excluding high-end vehicles).

The main reason I changed out was because I wanted Nav and a DVD player. When I bought my car there were very few SI's around. When I found one, it did not have factory nav. My stock unit was a MP3 ready, AM/FM Single CD player.

I am pretty happy with my change out. It has been fun constantly upgrading the system. My current venture is having custom subwoofer enclosures fabricated.

You can check out the system I installed by clicking on the link in my sig.

Bottom line, if you don't want to invest a ton of money, the stock system is pretty darn good.

 

for a non-namebrand premium audio....i think it is fantastic. its not a 12speaker bose/infinity/dolby system....and it wont perform like one.

i enjoy it.

 

It was decent for stock... But I tore it all out to build a comptetition worthy SQL system.

 

It's a good stereo system for a stock setup....with component speakers and all. The sound inside is great....when you're inside the vehicle. But like all factory setups....it wasn't designed with competition in mind. You'll always get cleaner, better quality from a good aftermarket setup.

 

a quick thought, Cruising around with the music up is great and I can talk to my passenger just fine. Problem is, when its just loud enough to be enjoyable and still converse, My girlfriend or whoever is in the back seat complains about not being able to hear a thing due to the really loud music.

and that's with the volume at 12

Other than that, I love it.