I've thought about spending some good bucks to get a much better sound system for my 8. I love classical music and acoustic jazz, so I'd want a system that can reproduce that kind of music as well as can be expected in a car.

Problem is, every high-end car audio system I see, regardless of cost, is all about mega bass, capable of booming as loud as financially possible. That works fine for a lot of pop, rock and hip hop, but the system I want would reproduce the bass, midrange and highs equally well, with the midrange – not the bass – probably the hardest part of the music to "get right". (Don't get me wrong; I like a tight, well controlled bass – clean and deep – but it would be no more prominent than the mids and highs. Should sound the way unamplified music sounds in a jazz club.)

Anyone know how to approach this? Obviously I could go to a car audio shop, but I'm concerned that all they really know how to do well is deliver the "big bass" sound most people are after.

 

My bass desires are generally in line with yours. For full deep bass, a sub is a plus, though ~200W into 4 ohms with a single 10" speaker is plenty. How much you get depends mostly in how you set it up. For jazz/classical, replacing the bose mid/tweets in the front doors is a must. (You can see the outline of my setup in vBGarage or by searching under the Series I interior section. Jedi54 has a good thread on upgrading the Bose system too, btw.) One can get very very close to good bass however, keeping the stock bose 9" door speakers, but lining the inside door skins with a panel dampening material. See https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-interior-audio-electronics-24/cheapest-audio-upgrade-ever-%3D-%2450-215671/ for details. The improvement in mid-bass response is borderline stunning, (plus it stops the mirrors from vibrating and gives your doors a Mercedes-like clunk when closed). Regardless of further upgrades, you probably want to do these two things anyway - worth a try and maybe you get by with $200 vs. $2000.

 

^ Wow, thanks man. That's just the kind of info I'm looking for. Will check it out.