Should I order Bose radio?

Hey gang! I am trying to decide on options for a base Cayman order and have been considering Bose as a must have. However, I have seen a few people here allude to problems with the Bose system in their Caymans . May I ask what people think, yay or nay, about having it? Edited by - Grey Eagle on 08/13/2006 8:02:27 PM Edited by - Grey Eagle on 08/13/2006 8:10:33 PM Edited by - Grey Eagle on 08/14/2006 08:46:31 AM Edited by - Grey Eagle on 08/14/2006 12:37:13 PM

If you like listening to music when you drive then yes. I have it but hardly ever have the stereo on. The engine justs sound TOO good/fckeditor/editor/images/smiley/MWPX/thumbsup.gif

Yes, you should. As long as Sunday is the designated day forflinging opinions around.

Thanks Silent Will& mpollard.....I've always thought a Bose system was top of the lineso it seemed like the right thing to do in my new toy! A few of the members here have expressed dissatisfaction with their Bose radios so it was making mewonder if there was a problem peculiar to the Bose in the Porsche. I am anticipating being in 7th heaven listening to R & B as I cruise down the highway!!

I can't speak from experience, but I'm certainly hoping that the Sound Plus - with reasonable power and 9 speakers - ought to provide decent sound in such a small interior space. Cost of the Bose, $950 more than Sound Plus, seems a bit much to me. If sound is really important to you, maybe a test listen to the 3 systems would be in order. Opinions on this forum for each of the systems vary VERY widely; I conclude that beauty is in the ear of the beholder.

fredyy...that sounds like an excellent idea......and to test it correctly I'll just have to take three different Caymans out for test drives under similar conditions to compare the sound quality and reception. I love that idea....my dealer may grow weary of me, but what the heck, maybe he's a music lover too!

I love my Bose system . And I love seeing the Bose logo's in the interior. Never listened to the Porsche 9-speaker set-up, but I'm sure it can't sound too bad given it's Porsche's higher-end system. So I would say go with either system. Don't go with the 2-speaker or 4-speaker set-up, even the cheapest Korean-made cars have more speakers I think nowadays... Of course having high-quality speakers matters, but having higher number of speakers definitely makes a difference to me...

The Bose in my Cayman sounds better than my HK in my M3 .

You really need to just go and test drive a Cayman with the Bose system . There are those that love the Bose, those that hate it, and many like me that tolerate it and tweak to the best of our abilities. You will only know which camp you are in after a listen. No amount of reading here can tell you. The only think that I imagine everyone will agree on about the Bose is that it's better than the base stereo. So if decent(if not great)sound is important and pulling and replacing the base system with a real system is not an option, then you really in the end don't have an option - you have to get the Bose. One thing to keep in mind about replacing the base stereo is that I believe that the Cayman 's acoustic environment is challenging with it's relatively small space and domed roof that has to make any system prone to reverberation and boomy bass. Maybe it's not entirely the fault of the Bose system .

I am one of the minority that claim the BOSE system as being utter garbage. It is over equalized, has poor imaging, lacks detail, and just plain inaccurate. Even my wife's Honda Pilot sounds so much better! My current reference OEM systems are the Acura RL and some Lexus products. I am working on a solution with the JL Audio Cleansweep products to zero out the equalization and then reamp the existing speakers with an AudioControl parametric equalizer. The final step is to replace all of the speakers with 'real audio components' if the resulting detail is still substandard. There is another member here that has already taken the plunge to replace all of the speakers with very expensive but excellent quality Focal components. I may go Dynaudio or Focals myself. I can't believe I paid $950 for this junk. After reading 'Thrill of the Chase' and seeing all the acoustical tesing they did with the car I'm convinced they were drunk when they approved this Bose setup! My .02.

Order the Bose,if you find you don't like it turn it off.Nothing lost except the cash.I have it and it is much better than nothing. J

Greg, I passed on the Bose radio in my carrera 4. To me it is not worth $ 1400. Sometime we make all these toys a must and keep pushing the price of the car beyond where we intended in the first place. Another way to think is what else could you do with $ 1400 and then revisit this options decision. If you are very comfortable with money then I guess it does not matter. You may also want to try the in between solution i.e. sound plus which could still save you $ 1K Good luck

I personally HATE Bose in general...not as high end as people think. For $950 you could put a killer aftermarket system in the car if you must have great music...but Bose will NOT get you there.

A sane person couldn't justify any of the Porsche options at these prices. Fortunatly for Porsche they are not dealing with sane people. I ordered the Bose system no regrets. This isn't exactly a concert hall enviroment. It has enough boost to overcome engine and road noise and automaticaly adjust for higher noise levels. Bose is the name audiophiles love to bash. I read the consense on this question is it is a personal choice that no amount of logical discussion will help you with. Edited by - JoeK on 08/14/2006 08:42:35 AM

Ha - so true! I'm proud to consider myself insane after those inspiring words /fckeditor/editor/images/smiley/MWPX/teeth_smile.gif. My only beef with the Porsche sound system is what comes standard in the Base Cayman (two tin cans and a rope). I like to listen to music in the car, and would pay for the Bose - but I wouldn't be crying over the Sound Package Plus.

For $950 the Bose is a good deal. No it's not the best factory system among other manufactures. No it's not as good as an aftermarket system done right.......but this will cost you a whole lot more than $950. What it is is the best factory sound system available......and it's pretty nice for what it is. I'd rather have it than some monkey rippin' head units and speakers out.......this is a heart attack waiting to happen, seen it all too often.

Well, there is certainly a lot of knowledge in this group. I don't have a music director's ear but just enjoy clean quality stereo sound while cruising. Having never owned a Bose system my knowledge of what to expect is nil. I suppose I am falling prey to the 'name' and reputation. I may have to rethink my decision to include it in the options. As has been pointed out here I should take a car out that has the Bose system and concentrate on the sound and not the driving rush.........that will be a challenge. Thanks very much for all of the responses. This forum is a great place to ask questions and solicit opinions as so many of you have direct experience with the product . Best regards....Everett Edited by - Grey Eagle on 08/14/2006 08:36:58 AM

I have the Bose system in my car and consider it lackluster at best. Having rented a Cayman S before the purchase decision with the standard audio set up, I can say that was even worse. Contrary to some opinions out there (they must be guys who don't commute much), a daily driver should have a decent stereo system. Judging from the considerable number of posts dealing with iPod installation, many of you must feel the same way. Also, and again contrary to some other posts, it is quite possible to put a decent stereo into a small irregularly shaped space. This just was not done by the Bose people and they ought to be spanked. Interestingly, Porsche's Volkwagen partner puts Dynaudio (sp?) systems in their high end cars, a Danish system, which is sublime by comparison. Silversled is quite right that the developers must have had a bad day when they OKed this installation. Has anyone thought of communicating 'our' displeasure directly to the Bose mobile audio people directly?

Better spend money on something like ceramic brake or chronu and so on...initial audio is very good any way.

OK, allow me to show my audio ignorance here! I'm not well versed on the meaning of the technical criticisms that I see posted here.....ex. 'over equalized, has poor imaging, lacks detail, and just plain inaccurate' .....how does that translate to layman's terms in sound quality and clear reception? Is one constantly fussing with the controls to correct the sound clarity? Is there distortion while the car is in motion? Edited by - Grey Eagle on 08/14/2006 09:38:38 AM Edited by - Grey Eagle on 08/14/2006 09:40:22 AM

I would go and take a listen. I have the stock stereo and it's terrible.

I like mine well enough. I listened to the stock radio before purchase and thought it was terrible.

do it.

Yo grey eagle, i'm waiting on my cayman with Bose, so cant speak from much experience here, but....i spent 2 hrs in my friends Carrera with Bose, and ummediately felt what others have expresssed about the Bose. To my ears, it sounded fine, but not overly impressive. I have no idea how he had the sound settings, but regardless, a system this price shoudl sound better. To me it lacked depth, meaning the music felt thin. as for poor imaging and overequalized, a very good system will image well, creating a spacious feel with the music. Long story short, if these things dont mean any to you, dont worry about them. For my sins i'm an audiophile, but if i can get over the decent but not brilliant output from the Bose, than i guess you will be quite happy with it too. As others have said before, Bose certainly do not make outsatnding audio equipment, and something like a Linn would have been just lovely, i.e. teh Bose doenst match the quality of the Cayman S .

I have the Bose system and agree it's a disappointment. The comments about the sound being too thin are spot on. My 10 year old Mazda 323 has a factory clarion system that knocks spots off the Bose in the Cayman The surround system of the Bose is a waste of time - it just distorts the sound and is terrible.

Bose is a brilliantly marketed (thank you, Paul Harvey) average stereo.

Can a Cayman be ordered from Porsche with no sound system installed? Might make it easier for the after-market install.