I've been wrestling with replacing my PASM 2.0 sudio system since I got my 06 CTT last winter. I see very little posted on Cayenne audio system upgrades so I'm wondering if my hearing is going bad. I can't remember a worse "stereo" in a recent vehicle plus I need Bluetooth and USB. I was disappointed that the system in a car with $95K MSRP can't compete with the stock system in most econoboxes. It sounds mono...virtually no channel separation. Tonal quality absolutely sucks.

My 01 Audi had a great sounding OEM system. The base OEM system in my wife's 2010 Jetta TDI sounds better. How did Porsche fall for the Bose infomercial hype? The dealer's rep said all the speakers are functioning properly (I knew that!) but was he sympathetic; "They all have lousy sound". (BTW, my home system is C-J tubes +Vandie 3A speakers).

I'm dismayed that the whole system was built around the MOST fiber-optics; apparently means starting from scratch; head, speakers, wiring. It may be too much $$$ to sink into a 7 yr old Cayenne driven less than 10K miles per year. Any suggestions for a new head? Any examples of new systems? In-dash NAV is nice but not mandatory with $150 portable units giving far more functionality. Am I going to lose anything else if I rip out the PASM and replace it with an aftermarket head?

 

PASM = suspension
PCM = infotainment head unit (designed by Becker, a Harmon Kardon subsidiary)

If you're going to bitch, please try and get the letters right. They're all there on the keyboard, just not in the right order.

BTW, MOST was the successor to the D2B bus, both were German OEM requirements, it had nothing to do with Bose.

 

Sorry, I misplaced my PACS (Porsche Acronym Crib Sheet). And I never said Bose = MOST. I just said that both suck.

 

Just remove the windshield.

Then the crappy sound system will seem trivial.

 

Please keep in mind that all OEM audio system final tunings are approved during executive test drives <insert the story of the executive's wife trapped in a P!g with the volume "stuck" at "11 >

Porsche had multiple tunings available and this is what they chose. Since the firmware can be updated in the vehicle (very easy to do), it could have been changed at any time.

I would suggest you send a strongly worded letter to Porsche and let them know that they were wrong, in both the choice of tunings and the use of MOST.

Please remember, you are dealing with a country that worships David Hasselhoff...

 

So very glad that I got a non-Bose, CDR23 P!g..!

 

Personally, I wouldn't pay a penny for any Bose product. The 901s were decent in their day, but that was 20+ years ago; since then, they've dumbed their products down into the household segment.

[Lots of housewives love the Bose "cubes", because they're easy to hide. The fact that they sound terrible doesn't seem to have impacted their sales......]

 

I wouldn't say that my Bose system sounds terrible. In fact, it sounds pretty good when it gets a decent digital source. The Bose system in my Cayenne sounds much better than the Bose system in my Carrera 4S (before I removed it and replaced the whole system).

 

The Bose in my cayenne sounds better than any other factory audio I have had. Better than my x3 and better than all my mercedes. I think it can be a little mushy in the mids and too bright in the highs but I don't think it's terrible. I guess my expectations for a workable factory sound are much lower or something. I have been around plenty of audiophile grade home systems. It's definitely not audiophile grade but it sounds decent to me.

 

No complaints here on the Bose in my Cayenne.
The amplifier design is top notch.....cue......

 

I got the Bose upgrade in my 2013 CD, specifically because of how awful the OEM system was in the 2011 Touareg TDI that preceded it. Two grand is a lot, but worth it to me if for no other reason than to risk another OEM system. That said, I feel the Harmon Kardon Logic7 system upgrade in my E-Class sounded a little better. That said, the Bose contends with different acoustics and the challenge of satisfactorily filling a much larger cabin.

//greg//

 

I have a 2006 with the Bose system and it sounds great for a car 7 years old.....love the sound!!! Guess sound is just personal preference......lol....a fine line between sound and noise I guess!

 

Bose in my 2006 CTTS sounds great, as well as the Bose in my Audi RS6. Now the Bose in my Audi tt is just a stereo, nothing to brag about but it is a small car and a convertible, not the best acoustics.

 

i've had the Bose in all three of mine. I wouldn't be happy with it my house, but for the listening environment of the cabin in a car, its fine.

 

At a guess I would say there is something wrong with yours based on your comparative descriptions that I have actually heard myself. The PCM sounds better than all those systems

Your in a car not a house