TahoeStud

What is the deal with the Bose setup in the Escalade and Tahoe? I have not gotten my Tahoe yet, but I was very disappointed in the system during the test drive. Also my friends Escalade's Bose is crappy as well. Bose can be a great setup, what is the deal with GM and Bose? Am I missing somethingan is my friends Escalade tuning it wrong? Thanks.

RockstarDaddy

Nope. Your'e right on the money.
Bose is a great system.... for the home! A decent one for the car as well as long as you get the hgher end Bose line, which I don't think Chevy did. It's mainly the name I think.

davemec

I agree. For the cost of the Bose upgrade in the Chevys, you can get a much better aftermarket system.

ZX1100F1

Bose aint what it use to be, neither in their home or automotive line.
The GMT900 Bose product is clean sounding even at higher volumes but it definitely lacks the sonic punch found in other systems.

FYI: The rear door and a-pillar tweeters in the Tahoe Bose setup are run of the mill Delco 4ohm speakers.

Now keep in mind that for $495 (retail) and since most of you are paying closer to invoice for your Tahoe's ($410.85 invoice amount) you would be very hard pressed to install a speaker system complete with separate amp and subwoofer that would better the Bose UQA.

kernal

I firmly believe they aren't bose speakers,,, just a name plate. My system sounds ok, my mother-in law has a 04 envoy with the bose and it sounds way better...

TahoeStud

Thanks for the info ZX and I have to agree that Bose is not what they used to be, butI do have to agree with Kernal, some Bose sounds great and others is quite weak. The only thing I can figure is that some head units are better than the ones in the Tahoe and the acoustics in the vehicle have a major impact.

I cannot understand why some of the foreign carmakers (Honda/Acura, VW, Toyota) are putting kick a$$ systems in and the american mades are not. It is funny how somecarmakers are advertising to the younger generation (ie better systems, better interiors, led lights) while the american mades arestill stuck appealing to the non gen X and gen Y.So you think the American mades are missing the boat?

I guess I kind of hijacked my own post... please fill free to post either way.

RockstarDaddy

I agree Kenral
I had a Bose system in my G35 and kicked hard!

ZX1100F1

Just to keep things in perspective, many foreign auto builders do offer a factory premium sound speaker system that rivals the Tahoe's Bose however these systems aren't free by any stretch of the imagination.

Take a vehicle such as a Nissan Pathfinder for instance, Nissan offers a very good 10-speaker Bose system as part of a "Premium Package" for an additional $1,700

The Toyota Sequoia also offers a JBL 10-speaker system that is decent (not spectacular) as part of the "Option D"package that costs $1,380 more than "Option C" which is nearly identical to Package "D" but minus the JBL speakers. Now I don't know about you guys but after paying $1,300 - $1,700 more for their premium speakers and then hearing the end result (which aint bad mind you); I'd feel slighted more so then spending $400 - $500 for the mediocre Tahoe's Bose.

With that said; it still would be a welcome improvement for GM to offer a much higher quality speaker system as an option.


To address what "kernal" said:
5 of the 9 speakers in the Tahoe are infact "Bose" licensed products that were manufactured in Mexico and technically the Tahoe sound system is classified as a GM Delco/Bose system.


The reason for the lackluster speaker performance in the Tahoe system is twofold; the primary reason being cost constraints (a conscious effort to hold production costs down) and secondary being projected consumer expectations (what will it take to satisfy 80% of our customers?), Bose does engineer and produce some extremely nice sounding systems for GM (take a listen to the Cadillac STS) and they are certainly capable of bettering the GMT900 effort but in this case they pimped their name out for a quick buck.


I remember 20+ years ago the name "Pioneer" was a brand name that was the epitome of "High end" car audio, their speakers would typically put the old Jensen's (also very good in their days) to shame, and the old Supertuner receivers were fantastic. Now look at both of these companies, 2nd rate Wal-Mart crap, which unfortunately is what the "average” American consumer is becomingaccustomed to.

Mind you most of the people who frequent this forum could not be classified as an "average consumer” who would rarely take the time to open an owners manual let alone seek out advanced information regarding their $40K + purchase.

73shark

Would replacing the Delco speakers with either Bose or other mfg.make a noticeable difference?

myco01975

Guys please remember that Bose systemsisn't known for loudness. It's known for clarity. I had a 1993 mazda RX-7 which was one of the first autos which used a Bose acoustic wave sound system. That systems bumpwas nothingcompared to the Nissan 300Z I had at the time but the music was so clear. You could hear all the instrument sounds in the music. Other cars will have better sounding Bose systems but keep in mind that the autos mentioned above (Infinitis, Acuras, etc..) are smaller/luxury autos which are designed to keep outside noise to a minimum which inturns keeps inside noise in. That's why these systems sound so good. To me the system is not that bad but that's just my opinion....