ayap

I'm not an audiophile, so I can live without the B/O system.

I just wanted to know how the stock system sounds, and how many speakers, woofers or twitters there are.

Sandy S

This is not quite the answer you want and I'm not an audiophile either but I like good music (loud). My previous A4 (2008 B7) had the stock system and I just never liked it. My current S4(B8) has the B/O and I like it so much that I'm really unhappy driving my second car that does not have the B/O.

mcar11

I have non-B&O, I would say it's lacking in the highs and separation up front. Front tweeters are on the upper dash above the vents. They aren't placed in upper door panel like the B&O tweeters are. Each front door also has mid/woofer.

I'd install high quality tweeters where the B&O tweeters would go to help with spatial separation. Low end could always use help, like most other stock systems.

Each rear door has mid/woofer and separate tweeter. One sub in the rear deck. There's also a center speaker in the front dash below the windshield.

Overall not terribly happy with non-B&O, but that was my choice at the time.

510B8

The B&O was originally part of my request list. However, since I only had a month to get a car which had a limited supply with being blue & a stick, I went without it. It's still an Audi, so I definitely think they researched the stock system, and it's good. I believe the B&O is the cherry on top because it's a major upgrade for a reasonable amount of money. Everything else in the car rocks, so I can go without it, and I don't plan to upgrade the stereo system.

DrGP

I listened to both radios before ordering and, to my ear, the difference between the 2 systems was not enough to justify getting the B&O. I was trying to keep the MSRP as low as possible for lease rate purposes, and decided to get the sport dif instead. I'm happy with my decision. Based on my experience, the standard Audi radio sounds just as good as the extra cost BMW Symphony radio that I had in my 335i. If you are not a hard core audiophile, the standard radio will sound just fine.

Pworld

How do the B&O speakers hold up? In 3 years of ownership of my B7 with standard system, i have about 5 out of 10 speakers that still work and aren't blown. I hope the B&O can handle my loud music.

S4ormance

I have the B&O and it is nice but nothing out of this world. I listened to a non-B&O and after putting all the settings on flat to do an apples to apples comparison, I didn't notice a dramatic difference. The high's are a bit more pronounced with the B&O system.

In my opinion, the digital amplifier that you get with the NAV option makes a bigger difference with sound quality of music than anything.

ayap

So, you were about to ride in another S4 with w/o B&0 ? or was that in the dealer ?

CJ_S4

I have the non B&O factory system and am a medium ranked audiophile. Like mentioned earlier this system struggles with highs and lows. Sitting with the car parked, it actually sounds OK to me, but out on the highway even with the windows up all you hear is midrange. I have the treble turned all the way up and it is barely adequate for me. Also, the bass is real finicky - If I have it too high it sounds OK at higher volumes but real boomy at low volumes. Conversely, if I have it too low it sounds OK at lower levels but not adequate at high volume.

I have a neighbor that has a B8 A4 Avant with the B&O and it is delicious sounding. I really wanted the B&O, but did the deal on the car before I realized it didn't have it.

I just plan on replacing the front/rear tweets and upgrading the sub. Hopefully this does the trick.

S4ormance

I have listened to the following configurations and rate them out of 10 for sound quality:

B&O w/ NAV option(digital amp)-9/10 (my S4)
B&O w/out NAV option(digital amp)-7/10 (friend's S4)
Non-B&O w/ NAV option(digital amp)-8/10 (dealer S4)
Non B&O w/out NAV option(digital amp)-6/10 (dealer S4)