4 Months ago I went Looking for a T8 R Model & bought a 2022-Late Polestar Engineered, E.R. The first 3 -1/2 months No CarPlay. BUT NOW finally Version 2.2 OTA update came out, & Wired Apple Car-Play is Real - REAL, Nice on Bowers & Wilkins. & FYI: After 4 Months, just now went for 1st fuel stop. Very Happy, with Car especially now that I figured out how to change the Öhlins dampers too My Fav. Settings. 😘
It would be nice to be able to test some of the mid-level audio systems in cars, not just the expensive ones you get on the top trims since those typically aren't the volume sellers.
Good review, just a side note. The Treble, Bass and Subs are to correct what is not ok in your recordings, also used for personal taste... but from my perspective I will not alter what the sound engineers and artists created in studio by playing with Treble Bass and Sub. The same applies for different room emulations provided by B&W. I will just take this system just for the better separation of sound added by some extra tweeters and the extra power overt the HK system.
Well said! But see my comment above, this 'high end' system has no L/R fader adjustment control !!!! You can't adjust the soundstage so you are in the centre of it. I just bought a Volvo XC90 Ultimate and the B&W sound system is a massive disappointment.
Interesting about car play and AA, would you do a review on android automotive? I'm android auto, but interesting to see how automotive works, the playstore what you can download etc!?
I can heard so much quantity of bass even from my headphone, personally i still think the new mercedes s class is better as it is more immersive and the able to capture details of different range frequencies more clearly.
I get what you're saying, the actual system is great but in my opinion it cannot be top tier if lossless audio cannot be achieved. When you spend the extra cash it's because you're sensitive enough to hear the differences between lossless and lossy, this is not worth the money.
Volvo's used to be reliable, now nothing but pain. Went to the shop 6 times in 2.5 years. Selling it out and getting a GV70. The sound system is one thing I had never an issue and consider top notch, if not the best in its class.
Of course there is usb. It is under the lid of the center console. You are welcome. 😉 And The new software 2.2 supports Apple CarPlay from The same USB.
I just took delivery of a brand new XC90 Ultimate Hybrid with this B&W system. What a massive disappointment! I fail to see how Volvo regard this as 'high end' and B&W see themselves as 'audiophile' experts. It's that bad. I wouldn't have bought the car if I knew how poor the B&W is. HUGE omission: there's no fader/balance control so the driver can adjust the placement of themselves in the middle of the soundstage!!! To think, I sold my 2016 Landrover Discovery to buy this - the Discovery had a far better set of sound adjustment parameters, including the basic L/R fader!! Eight years on, and the Volvo has a poorer system! With the limited range of controls, and no L/R adjustment, almost all the sounds come from somewhere in my door, and virtually none from the other side of the cabin. So, obviously no stereo effect whatsoever. Secondly, you're quite right, no EQ or even a mids adjustment!?!? And as for the childish 'environments' like concert hall and jazz club, really? Any true music fan understands that record companies, recording engineers, and mastering houses, go to extreme lengths to ensure their product is mixed well with exactly the right amount of reverb. And B&W give you toy tools to change that? I can only think that the marketing people at Volvo hold complete sway over the other disciplines involved in specifying the features that go into the cars. I can hear them saying: "But it's got 19 speakers!!" So? (i) it doesn't sound like it, and (ii) who needs 19 speakers??? Recording professionals don't create their product to sound better on 19 speakers. If someone is contemplating buying a Volvo model with this expensive B&W system, do what I failed to do - insist on a full listenening test in the showroom.
What you need is to give that one back and buy a inscription pro XC90 T8 just before they did the facelift and went to the Google system and still had the old style screen unlike the one in this car because in my Volvo the B&W is easily as good as the Naim system i experienced in a £250,000 Bentley
Even the standard sound of my S90 is good. I cannot imagine the B&W audio system...my dream!
4 Months ago I went Looking for a T8 R Model & bought a 2022-Late Polestar Engineered, E.R. The first 3 -1/2 months No CarPlay. BUT NOW finally Version 2.2 OTA update came out, & Wired Apple Car-Play is Real - REAL, Nice on Bowers & Wilkins. & FYI: After 4 Months, just now went for 1st fuel stop. Very Happy, with Car especially now that I figured out how to change the Öhlins dampers too My Fav. Settings. 😘
Front 1/1 Rear 2/2 is the best choice for my S60
Excellent review of the BW system, its the best sounding one I have heard in your reviews.
Love to see review of Revel Ultima in Lincoln Nautilus
It would be nice to be able to test some of the mid-level audio systems in cars, not just the expensive ones you get on the top trims since those typically aren't the volume sellers.
Guess it isn't up to Charlie. It's what's available for him to test rather than what he wants to test.
They've done that already multiple times, check their past uploads.
Good review, just a side note. The Treble, Bass and Subs are to correct what is not ok in your recordings, also used for personal taste... but from my perspective I will not alter what the sound engineers and artists created in studio by playing with Treble Bass and Sub. The same applies for different room emulations provided by B&W. I will just take this system just for the better separation of sound added by some extra tweeters and the extra power overt the HK system.
Well said! But see my comment above, this 'high end' system has no L/R fader adjustment control !!!! You can't adjust the soundstage so you are in the centre of it. I just bought a Volvo XC90 Ultimate and the B&W sound system is a massive disappointment.
@@marmadukewinterbotham2599 I only have HK but I'm super happy with price/quality value!
I purchased xc60 with BW so excited to pick it up ❤️
Stop the cap
Next time do the sound system demo on refreshed 2022 GMC Denali Ultimate
Interesting about car play and AA, would you do a review on android automotive? I'm android auto, but interesting to see how automotive works, the playstore what you can download etc!?
The only downside of volvo's interiors is lack of physical climate control buttons even though theres is enough space to put them.
I guess that will be a trend for all other cars going forward.
That’s why there is voice command in the car
Hello. Please test the Genesis G70 without Lexicon (9 speakers). Thanks.
I can heard so much quantity of bass even from my headphone, personally i still think the new mercedes s class is better as it is more immersive and the able to capture details of different range frequencies more clearly.
Looks like the mercedes is more full . At some point that means the B&W is more "natural" . Maybe its all about personal preference
The S-Class is also more costly than the XC60..
XC90 is even better
I get what you're saying, the actual system is great but in my opinion it cannot be top tier if lossless audio cannot be achieved. When you spend the extra cash it's because you're sensitive enough to hear the differences between lossless and lossy, this is not worth the money.
The system has been updated and now supports audio via USB.
@@norbertmayer7005so I can plug my phone in via usb?
@@norbertmayer7005So as long as I’m physically plugging my phone into it… I get carplay, *and* I get lossless audio, right?
@thesj2233 Man, what da hell r u talking about ? B&W best in market
Just plug in the cable and carplay icon will pop up. Isn’t harder than that
Volvo's used to be reliable, now nothing but pain. Went to the shop 6 times in 2.5 years. Selling it out and getting a GV70. The sound system is one thing I had never an issue and consider top notch, if not the best in its class.
Why some Volvo come with H/K and some come with B&W. Like is BW an upgrade over H/K??
yes
Charlie be like, “She’s a 10 but her new 2022 XC60’s sound system doesn’t have a 5- or 9-band equalizer or a 3.5 mm auxiliary input jack”
No USB audio in? Are they serious.
So you can't plug an usb stick to listen to my flac files? Really?
Of course there is usb. It is under the lid of the center console. You are welcome. 😉 And The new software 2.2 supports Apple CarPlay from The same USB.
@@theisrisum1765 oh ok, great!
USB audio was disabled for several months until firmware 2.2 was released.
the seatbelts are extra or aftermarket
You get gold seatbelts in Polestar Engineered Volvo cars, so this is an XC60 Polestar Engineered
I just took delivery of a brand new XC90 Ultimate Hybrid with this B&W system. What a massive disappointment! I fail to see how Volvo regard this as 'high end' and B&W see themselves as 'audiophile' experts. It's that bad. I wouldn't have bought the car if I knew how poor the B&W is. HUGE omission: there's no fader/balance control so the driver can adjust the placement of themselves in the middle of the soundstage!!! To think, I sold my 2016 Landrover Discovery to buy this - the Discovery had a far better set of sound adjustment parameters, including the basic L/R fader!! Eight years on, and the Volvo has a poorer system! With the limited range of controls, and no L/R adjustment, almost all the sounds come from somewhere in my door, and virtually none from the other side of the cabin. So, obviously no stereo effect whatsoever. Secondly, you're quite right, no EQ or even a mids adjustment!?!? And as for the childish 'environments' like concert hall and jazz club, really? Any true music fan understands that record companies, recording engineers, and mastering houses, go to extreme lengths to ensure their product is mixed well with exactly the right amount of reverb. And B&W give you toy tools to change that? I can only think that the marketing people at Volvo hold complete sway over the other disciplines involved in specifying the features that go into the cars. I can hear them saying: "But it's got 19 speakers!!" So? (i) it doesn't sound like it, and (ii) who needs 19 speakers??? Recording professionals don't create their product to sound better on 19 speakers. If someone is contemplating buying a Volvo model with this expensive B&W system, do what I failed to do - insist on a full listenening test in the showroom.
What you need is to give that one back and buy a inscription pro XC90 T8 just before they did the facelift and went to the Google system and still had the old style screen unlike the one in this car because in my Volvo the B&W is easily as good as the Naim system i experienced in a £250,000 Bentley
You spent $70000+ on a car before ever trying it? 😂