Power, however, certainly wasn't an issue with the system. Each of the many speakers is powered, using B&O's patented ICEpower technology (you may recall we've tested some amps recently by aftermarket manufacturers that have that built into their amps). There's up to 1,000 watts pushing the speakers. Speaking of power: the "subwoofer" on the rear deck, beautifully covered with an anodized aluminum grille - perhaps the best speaker grilles we've ever seen on a factory setup - was definitely there for more than looks. I was surprised just how much mid-bass and bass output the system was capable of. It was fairly realistic in terms of reproducing rap and R&B tracks. For a factory system, you'll be surprised that you can actually crank up the volume with these genres of music to a respectable level.
Audio AND Electronics
The iDrive style controller on the center console worked well enough. It was a little sensitive for my hands, but after the first hour of getting used to it you shouldn't have a problem dialing your way through the audio, car and navigation menus. Regarding the latter, of the three vehicles the nav in the Audi was the least intuitive initially. But again, as with the controller, once you understood the system of dialing to input information (which is definitely different from the Acura dialing system), it was no problem at all. On the upside, the Audi features something that's convenient and even maybe a safety feature of sorts. There's a small display in the gauge cluster that provides nav info, such as distances to travel and approaching turns; it allows the driver to just glance down to pick up the next prompt instead of turning your head to the center of the dash. The center display, when not used for navigation, will read out audio related information. Just check your track list with a quick glance down and then change selections with the controls in the steering wheel. This is something every high-end automaker should include for their audio and nav systems. I found it made a great difference.
For an S8 buyer the $6,300 ($500 more for the optional Sirius satellite radio) for the B&O system probably won't seem like a lot of money. At less than 10% of the car's purchase price, it's reasonable - proportionally speaking, of course. Perhaps some owners might want DVD playback at that price instead of the iPod tray with the USB connection. Frankly, I'd take the latter and perhaps add some all-in-one DVDs for the headrests for the little one. That would probably about do it. All in all, this is a dream car for most and definitely a vehicle worth dreaming about.
Sound Off
Average score
Audio: 6.7
Ergonomics: 7.2
Navigation: 7.5
Eric Holdaway< br/>This system is good, much better than most factory systems, but it is still behind what a true audiophile system should be, especially for the money it costs to get this upgrade. The vocals were where this system really excelled. Diana Krall, Tracy Chapman, Sting - all sounded wonderful to me on this system, very natural, but with odd imaging and stage placement of the lead vocal and even the bass instrument playback location. Dual mono-imaging appears to be en vogue these days. The lead singer imaged directly in front of the listener and not the center of the dash. Now many would think this is a good thing, but for me it creates a huge asymmetry in the stage. The left side of the stage starts at the left A-pillar and the lead-singer is just to the right of that in front of the driver, then the rest of the stage stretches all the way across the rest of the expansive dash to the far A-pillar. So most of the staging is compressed to one side and I just don't like that lopsided feeling in the staging. The bass instrument positioning was skewed too. The normally centered bass line on Usher's "YEAH!" was over the driver's left shoulder or over the passenger's right shoulder and not centered in the vehicle. Now, at low volumes the Audi almost had enough bass to be exciting. Unfortunately, as soon as you push the listening level, the subwoofer amp tapers the output and the driver falters in clarity. The high-frequency reproduction is the weakest part of the system for me. There is no shimmer or real nice extension in the upper sounds.
Chris Yato
The Audi S8 is one impressive piece of machinery with its powerful V10 motor, beautiful exterior styling and impeccable interior appointments. Audi engineers turned to the folks at Bang & Olufsen to create an upgraded audio system option to match the detail and refinement found throughout the car. This car is built to impress and immediately does so when the ignition is turned on. The B&O sound system sounded powerful with good low-frequency response, but the tonal balance was a bit off. As I auditioned the system with my usual test tracks, I couldn't help but think that the micro-perforated aluminum grilles, while stylish and beautiful, aren't exactly the most acoustically friendly choice. The side-biased staging and lack of DVD-Audio playback ability was disappointing, especially for the price point. Ergonomic faux pas include: having to reach over to the glove compartment to change CDs, and an audio/navigation system with control knob/buttons that weren't particularly user-friendly. Although the B&O upgrade is a definite improvement over the base system for both audio reproduction and "wow factor," it doesn't reach the same level of performance as the top OEM audio systems out there.
Casey Thorson
If any car is deserving of a high-end audio system, it's the magnificent S8. Apparently, Audi had already given that some thought. The optional B&O system is simply a piece of work - acoustic lens tweeters, speakers behind stunning aluminum grilles and the "Multi Media Interface" (MMI) display that motorizes out of the center dash are just plain cool (although the MMI display is a bit clunky in action). Audi's rotary knob controller is much like BMW's iDrive, but is much more intuitive to use, largely because of the menu access buttons surrounding the knob and fewer sub menus. I found it trying at times to navigate through, but really likeable when it came to menu selections such as satellite radio. There is no DVD player for the surround sound, just a 6-disc CD changer and an iPod connection oddly placed in the glove box. One really needs to play around with the system settings to get the best overall balance. I found that the B&O DSP was best set in the "All" position with the surround turned down a couple notches. But, that couldn't overcome its deficiencies. Certain vocals, such as those of Rebecca Pidgeon, were played back with so much midrange cone breakup that it was unlistenable, even at a low volume. I can't help think that those awesome looking aluminum grilles were too confining, thus creating the problem here. The system's soundstage wasn't very deep but had good consistent width. Images were generally distinguished above the dash with the exception of hard left/right midrange information that pulled to the door locations - the relatively smooth tweeters were the only saving grace here. Bass was played back with good definition and integrity, but the sub had a tendency to run out of energy before the rest of the system. In the end, the S8's B&O system has about as many pros as it does cons related to its musical performance, but its clever design is certain to make for a conversation piece at the country club.