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If you have the optional Navigation system, your audio system is automatically upgraded to 11 speakers 235 watts from the basic 10 speakers 100 watts, you also get larger door woofers. We have the Bose on our 2011 Panamera 4 and when we ordered our 2013 Cayenne S we decided to skip the Bose but we do have the Navi. Surprisingly, we find the Cayenne bass stronger than the Panamera Bose system. Since we currently own both cars, it is easy to compare both systems and no regrets so far for not getting the Bose on the Cayenne.

 

I had a loaner 09 Cayenne (previous model) without Bose and my 12 vehicle has Bose .Personally I wish it had the Burmester system . The Bose is sufficient but (IMO) a luxury type of vehicle it is the perfect setting for the high end sound system . I can understand skipping this option on a 911 or a Boxster but I feel Burmester is a must on a Pany or Cayenne.

 

I'm a bit of an audio snob and went to great lengths to build acceptable systems in our 996 and my old Escape.

I looked at both the upgrades and decided that for the money I could build a better system. So I skipped them and just have the base + Nav.

Surprisingly I've found myself happy enough with the sound quality that I don't have a burning desire to change it like I expected. Its not the best in the world by a long shot, but it does a reasonable job. The thing that surprised me the most is that the system has no dedicated sub, but it still does a very good job on the low end. Unlike many OEM systems (including the "high end" upgrades) it doesn't seem to be full of peaks and valleys through its range. It seems to have a much smoother curve than I expected.

Almost a year in and it still hasn't driven me to my Audio shop to start planning what to do with it.

 

IMHO, you can't get a better sound aftermarket for the same $$ as the upgrades from Porsche. We've upgraded several systems from Ferrari, Mercedes, Porsche, etc. You simply cannot just swap the speakers, it's much more involved than that. The reason why so many "stock" systems sound good, is time alignment. When all the doors are shut, system sounds great at reasonable volume. Once one door is opened, you can tell something's off. Try it.

In a nutshell, the bose system, for the money, i think about $2k upgrade, is not a bad deal and does a decent job. It just distorts at high volume, and as mentioned before, the highs and lows are not as clean. Is it worth an additional $2K for the burmeister??? Your ears will have to be the judge. A quality aftermarket system with a proper design, equipment, and installation will run you around $8-10K...but the sound will rival some of the best home audio. For a true audiophile, the sound they hear at home, once duplicated in their car, is quite amazing.

 

I agree with you Moe. Well said.
I wanted the Burm badly since I am an audiophile. When I had the chance several times to go back and forth between 2 new 2013 Cayenne's one BOSE and one BURM, I did not hear an improvement with the BURM and was suprised at how balanced and clean the BOSE sounded. I hated the BOSE in my SL500 so I was already biased against it. But after owning it now in my '13 it is nice- not great but really nice. The one thing I miss that would surely come with an $8K aftermarket upgrade would be the lower frequency sub-base deep sounds that external subs give in home and car systems.
And by the way, even if I crank the BOSE it doesn't break up.
Even though I contemplated adding a different sub to the BOSE, for now I will leave it as is. Of course everything sounds bad listening to SAT radio due to it's horrible frequency response or lack of dynamic range.
I also keep turning the sound enhancer spatial effect thing on and off for comparison. I think when it is turned on, 2 speakers in the rear come on that are normally off.
Rob

 

This is actually a good point. At the level of even the base system that Porsche uses the quality of the input makes a big difference.

 

Yes- You would want a good source to make a good evaluation. I only used a CD in the player and it was one I knew well that also had great bass content in the recording.

 

I totally agree with Moe. The Bose upgrade is a phenomenal value.

 

Gnat, what are your settings? I find the quality of the Bose to be shockingly poor compared to my 535 with upgraded no name hifi (2011, before Harmon Kardon and B&O were options)

Thanks.

 

I have the fade shifted a couple of points to the rear, reduced the treble slightly, bumped the bass a point or two, and most importantly turned off the Loudness option (this made the biggest difference going from pure crap to a pretty reasonable system).

 

Agree the Bose is a must and a minimum for the Cayenne. Every single time i've driven a Cayenne with a base system I've stepped away thinking that'd be a deal breaker for me. In comparison the Bose is light years better.

 

Do you have any idea if "loudness" was turned on or not? I was highly disappointed in the base+nav system as I drove it off the lot and intended to go straight to my audio guy to start discussing options. A few miles later I found and disabled that "feature" and it made a world of difference and I'm happy enough to live with it as is.

That "loudness" option just ruins it and I have no idea why they built it the way the did. It made it sound like the speakers were being overdriven while being under water. Just horrible.

 

Believe me I tried everything as at the time my wife was desperate to get a car without the wait of a custom order. I found the main problem was the base system had to be wrung right out in adjustment in a bid to create a surround type sound and one that was beefy enough. I also found the fader had to be wound right to the rear speakers just to get it to sound like there was sound happening throughout the car unlike the Bose that gave that sense automatically without any fiddling. Stepping from one car to the other the difference was profound to me. I'm sure if you had a car without the Bose you would learn to live with it but thats not the point as I said to the sales guy who also agreed the base was very weak for this car....shame on Porsche for being so mean. A car of this standard really felt lacking without the Bose to me. I've always loved my music and to me sound is an important feature in a car particularly of this packaging and value. I guess i would cop it in a Toyota or something but a Porsche?.. not me....but that's just me and I know plenty that have taken the cars with the base sound, so no offence intended. Sorry, to answer the question yes i did try it with loudness off and actually found the system easier to adjust whereas with loundess it was as if the system was trying to compensate for a lack of sub and wasn't able to carry it off.

 

Bummer. Maybe my misspent youth is starting to catch up with me...