Apologies if there are other threads that already cover this (I've looked and not seen any), but can anyone recommend possible ways to improve the sound of the new A4's Bose system with just a few speaker changes?

I prefer clean sound with good definition across the range that can accomodate a wide range of music -- have no need for thump. I don't wish to invest huge sums or change the head unit, just gain some reasonable improvements. However, I'm worried about properly matching speakers, particularly given my lack of knowledge about the technical aspects of this particular Bose system.

Thanks in advance.

so my advice is consider getting new amps and speakers...

if you go to continentalimports.com, you can get an adapter for the factory headunit to give it rca pre-outs, which can be wired to an external amplifier (i highly recommend JL or Boston Acoustics) which can then power 6.5" components in the doors (JL,DLS, Diamond, Focal are all good companies for these). To really bring the speakers alive though, I'd highly recommend getting a sub and sub amp...I know you may not be looking for bass, but if you can crossover the door speakers so they don't have to play the low notes, they'll play the mids and highs much clearer. If you get 1 10" sub and a reasonable sub amp, you can tune it so the bass isn't overwhelming. All told, with install, you can probably get a decent sounding system for $1500-$1750

My hope was just to buy a few strategically placed speakers. I see that the impedance poses some problems, but I'd love to have a lower-cost alternative.

The above generalization about "Bose" and "2 ohms" in actually JUST a generalization.

I've done may OEM audio upgrades where the Bose speakers were 4 ohms.

I just did a 1999 A4 Bose speaker upgrade where the speakers were around 3-3.2 ohms (I have an impedance meter that measures the impedance of a speaker at any given frequency).

We upgraded the front door mids, front door tweeters, and the rear deck woofers, all with 4 ohm Euro-made drivers, and the system sounded much better. It might have had to be played a click or two higher on the volume, but the distortion from the speakers was so much lower that there was more usable absolute volume than there had been orignally.

I ahve not had a chance to get at an 2005.5 A4 - what do you think the speaker sizes are again?

Regards,

Ken
avincar.com

there are 2 ohm aftermarket speaker sets out there. My only concern would be that you would presumably put in component speakers, which generally require more power than the bose amps put out. SO, if you did just the speakers, it might sound a little better, but adding more powerful amps would really make them come alive. I must admit that I was really surprised at the improvement when I added my 4 channel amp. You can find a decent 4 channel amp for $2-300. In my opinion, its definitely worth the investment

Would new amps run in tandem with the existing amps, or in place of them? And would changing out the amps require that all of the speakers be replaced, or just some of them? (Again, I don't want to change out every speaker, just a few particular ones.)

I've checked the information in the owner's manual, but the details aren't provided there. I'll phone Audi of America and Bose, but if anyone else knows, that would be appreciated.

not sure what you mean by "only replace some speakers" though...if you want to just replace say, the front door speakers, then you would still probably use the factory amp just for the rear doors. so you'd be bypassing part of the factory amp for the front channels, and installing a 2 channel amplifier to drive your front speakers. If you get an amp and sub, you'd be completely bypassing that channel on the factory amp

hope that helps