Guess I should explain my response. I had a 96 Maxima with Bose (which IMHO sounds better than the Audi Bose) and installed Alpine deck,Boston Acoustics Rally series with Alpine amp. I was MUCH happier with the newer setup, I felt the sound was richer, deeper, and cleaner. JMHO though

I got the bose. I don't really like it. The bass is too thumpy and sloppy. I hate to admit it, but it sounds like one of those cheesed up little cars with the lights underneath and the eight ball on the windsheild that comes thumping up behind you at a light. It is somewhat embarassing.

Go with aftermarket, you'll probably be able to get better quality and more sound control for almost the same money.

has stated that. I subscribe to Stereophile, AV Interiors, Audio, and many others and all equipment reviews describe in detail the idea of a flat response so that you do not color the sound. Very thing they do is to remove the color of the room reflections during their testings. This is exactly what Bose does with their systems. Flat response means that you do not add or substract to the frequecny response over the whole spectrum of the sound being played.

You are right you are not there by a long shot.

Bose does try for a flat response through out the car.

I have modified many cars with Alpines, Sony and other decks, speakers, subwoofers etc. All could produce the highs and bass to extremes. On the surface they sounded better - that was because they were actually atenuating the sound in areas that made it seem more real. Thruth is a flat response is what is correct and Bose does that. A true Car Stereo place will have gear like HP that can measure a the frequecny resonse at many places through out the car and tune the speakers and their response to give a flatness that duplicates the orginal recording. Most people do not want to pay for this kind of service as it is very expensive and time consuming.

After many years of buying equipment for home and car, I find I must listen over many hours to find a system that is enjoyable over the long haul. It is nice that Bose has done most of the work.

One note. Bose is limited by the amount of work that the car mfr is willing to spend on the system. Cadallic/Corvette have a great system and has spent a lot more than Audi. So if one is not completely satisfied some of the blame goes to Audi.

Reggie

98.5 2.8 QMS w/Bose

For 1/2 the $1200 you would have spent on the Bose system you can obtain a vastly superior one at a stereo shop. A 50 watt X 2 amp to a good quality 5 1/4" component set up front will make all the difference in the world (as long as you're not too worried about subbass - which you would get none of with the Bose system anyway) Bose' success lies in its ability to target yuppies with a vengeance - look at their cute little clock radios featured in ads in mags like GQ and Playboy. The literature in their home theatre system ads gives the impression that their systems are audiophile quality. They are not. They are unobtrusive little systems, easily hidden out of the way for people who are more concerned with the decor of their living room than the SQ they produce. The engineers at Bose are experts in sonic compromise - form before function.
They have taken the customer perception they have so carefully crafted in the home market and run with it in stock systems for the car. Why? Becuase most people don't know much about high end stereo, but recognize the Bose name from upscale mags and draw a conclusion (also influenced by the high price).
Probably the only factory car audio upgrade that I have heard that is decent is the one available from Lexus. In conjunction with Nakamichi (a GENUINE high end stereo compnent manyufacturer) they have developed systems for Lexus autos (especially the SC400) that sound fantastic.
I digress; re: Bose - the only advantage of ordering the Bose sytem from Audi is the ability to work it into the terms of financing or leasing.

If you do decide to go the aftermarket route, you can email me with any questions or check out my listing in the registry for info in my system.

Cheers,
Mark
99.5 1.8TQMS, APR

I've heard the Bose in the A4 as well, and I would have to say that the Concert system w/ powered sub is by far the best (and most natural) sounding of the three. My 97 GLX Bose system is probably second, but still has a VERY peaky bass response, and almost no defined mid-bass---very muddy. Vocal relism is noticably poor as well. For all its peaky bass, when you really turn up the volume, it doesn't even deliver the kind of "thump" in your chest that real powered tight bass can. The A4 Bose system sounded worse, but I only listened to it for about 2 hours, so I haven't "lived" with it in any respect. I'm appalled by the price for the Bose system, that's really a laugh considering I paid about $350 to get the Kenwood 8" powered sub into the A4 w/ Concert system. Left at "0" for all controls, it sounds perfect. Plus you can contol crossover freq and gain, which you can't do in the Bose system (of course we are supposed to trust the experts at Bose though).

My GLX Bose system is good enough to get me through talk radio on the way to work, and a few CD cuts during my 15 min. commute on the way home....but it's a long way from what I'm used to for decent sound. I am in NO way a thumpin'-at-the-stoplight-subwoofer type of audio enthusiast, but Bose bass just leaves you haning if you really listen to it. Mids and highs are even poorer, and pale in comparison to the Concert system.

packaged very neatly but the sound quality is just not there. I just listened to a Bose home theatre system and it totally lacked any low end base. I had just listened to a Velodyne sub so it was obvious. But I've always been turned off by the high price of Bose for what you get. In my A4 I just installed an amp with sub for about a total of $225 ( self installed and parts from Best Buy) This compliments the original speakers very well and is fine for a car system for me.