[Zagor]

First, I'll say that I just read every thread that mentions Logic7 and most people clearly love it. I do not want to debate that here.

I think the mid and highs sound good, but I am not satisfied with the bass. It's plenty strong enough, but to my ears it's too boomy and muddled. A lot of detail in the lower register is simply lost, a bit like when listening through a wall (not that bad, just to illustrate). I've played around with the settings and EQ, but to no avail.

Does anyone else share this feeling about the Logic7 stereo? Have you been able to find a fix? New amp for the subs? New subs? Better power to the amp?

(Please don't reply with "I think it sounds great. You suck.". There are plenty of such threads already.)

[visor]

Depends.

On the type of music that you listen to.
Orchestral, jazz, pop: it's fine.
But heavy rock, techno, etc with heavy bass: you'll need to put a 12" sub + amp in the trunk.

[GregL]

Personally I find the Logic7 system wonderful in general.

My previous QX4 had a Pioneer flip-out screen single-din headunit with a single-din navigation unit/dvd player below it, connected to a 5 channel 660 watt Alpine amp running to 4 6.5" Alpine speakers, 4 Alpine tweeters and a JL Audio 12" sub, the latter received 300 watts on it's own. No matter how much adjusting I did over the years, I could not get the bass punchy, it was always boomy, and when I thought I got it right, the thing would end up lacking in bass for certain songs. It certainly had the capacity to be very loud without distortion and at 100% volume the speakers were only at 50% capacity, but I just couldn't get the sub bass to sound quite right.

With the Logic7 system in my E90 though I'm totally delighted! I leave the EQ flat, treble is 3 notches from the right, and bass is 4 notches to the right from middle.

I don't know if it's a good idea to fiddle with the Logic7 set-up, BMW has probably invested quite a bit into this system and adding something to it might mess things up... For one of the "lesser" factory-installed sound systems I'd understand.

[Zagor]

Originally Posted by visor

On the type of music that you listen to.
Orchestral, jazz, pop: it's fine.

I disagree. There is quite enough bass "quantity" for my taste, but not enough "quality".

For example, try a good recording of a concert with a cello solo. You can hear the notes being played, but you don't really "hear the cello", if you know what I mean. The resolution and detail is limited. I notice the same thing in some electronica that uses very low bass notes, as well as movie scores.

Originally Posted by visor

But heavy rock, techno, etc with heavy bass: you'll need to put a 12" sub + amp in the trunk.

I don't think adding an extra sub will help much with the clarity, unless I also disconnect the existing ones. It would merely add more sound pressure in the lower frequencies, which is not what I want.

Note: English is not my native language. I apologise if I'm not using the proper technical terms.

[Zagor]

Originally Posted by GregL

I don't know if it's a good idea to fiddle with the Logic7 set-up, BMW has probably invested quite a bit into this system and adding something to it might mess things up...

I agree that randomly messing about with the system is a bad idea. That's why I'm asking if anyone (with greater knowledge than me) has been able to adjust this.

However no matter how much BMW or H/K has invested in this system, it still doesn't sound as good as it should to me. Hearing is very subjective, and what sounds very good to one person can sound less good to another. Some might say I am wrong, but it doesn't really matter. I still want to fix it, if possible.

Also, I do think the Logic7 system is quite good. I just feel the low end is a little boomier/sloppier than it should be with dedicated subs.

By the way, does anyone know the cutoff frequency used for the subs?

[visor]

Originally Posted by Zagor

I disagree. There is quite enough bass "quantity" for my taste, but not enough "quality".

For example, try a good recording of a concert with a cello solo. You can hear the notes being played, but you don't really "hear the cello", if you know what I mean. The resolution and detail is limited. I notice the same thing in some electronica that uses very low bass notes, as well as movie scores.


I don't think adding an extra sub will help much with the clarity, unless I also disconnect the existing ones. It would merely add more sound pressure in the lower frequencies, which is not what I want.

Note: English is not my native language. I apologise if I'm not using the proper technical terms.

OK.

Just out of curiosity and for comparison, what are you running in your home audio system? That may give us an idea of your preferences and expectations. You do know that this is just a car, right? We've been through many threads in the past discussing/arguing whether a car's interior can be or should be as good sounding as an audiophile's room.

[Zagor]

Originally Posted by visor

Just out of curiosity and for comparison, what are you running in your home audio system? That may give us an idea of your preferences and expectations. You do know that this is just a car, right? We've been through many threads in the past discussing/arguing whether a car's interior can be or should be as good sounding as an audiophile's room.

Yeah it's "just a car", but I don't feel I'm asking for the unattainable.

My home system uses INO Audio piP as main speakers powered by a Denon AVR-1507, with bass support from a simple B&W ASW300. It's by no means an extreme system.

[visor]

If you're truly after good bass SQ (sound quality) and not SPL (sound pressure level), then I don't think you have any other choice but to put in a high quality 10-12" sub (in a sealed box of proper dimensions in the trunk) powered by a high quality amp of at least 200-300 watts.

In addition, the E90 trunk is very well insulated, so you'll also need to increase the communication between the trunk and the cabin in order to allow the bass frequencies into the cabin. (I see that you have the Touring, so this may not apply in your case.)

Sorry that there is no easier solution, but changing out those 7.5 inch free air subs under the seats and adding a more powerful amp to them ain't going to achieve the SQ that you're after.