Can anyone with a 2016 CX-5 Touring please give me some feedback on how good/bad the Touring 6-speaker stereo sounds? I don't really want a moonroof, and they make you get it if you upgrade to the Bose 9-speaker stereo surround package. I think I'd rather save the money.
2016 stereo options on the Touring
- Thread starter CaboWabo
- Start date
Bring a few CDs (yes, those shiny disk things) and compare them at the dealer. I found the standard was, for me, not very good and the Bose was significantly better. I also did not particularly need a moonroof, but I like it! Makes everything brighter (still too cold here to actually open it!)
Thanks festus, I'll bring a CD and check them out. I've had bad luck with sunroofs in the past either leaking or breaking, so I swore to never bother upgrading to one again. Also a regular roof seems to quiet the interior cabin. Plus after the first few months I find myself not even opening the roof very often anyway. That being said, I have no idea about the longevity of a Mazda moonroof, but I do tend to keep my vehicles a very long time. I sort of subscribe to the notion that the less extra tech and options on a car, the less that can go wrong in the future. That's part of the reason why I'm not going to opt for the Tech Package or I-Activesense. Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Blind Spot Monitoring are all I really want...and luckily they both come standard on the 2016 Touring.
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Now this is hearsay and personal preference so take it as it is.
I had the bose system in my 2003 and 2010 MX-5. It was pretty much trash. Now I'm picky but the general consensus is that if you are at all picky about your sound, the Bose system will disappoint. There are 100's of "Bosectomy" (yes there is a term) threads all over the mx-5 forums and although I'm new to the cx-5 forum, I'm sure they are here as well. Search google for No Highs, No lows must be Bose.
You aren't likely to remove the infotainment brain as it is multiple pieces that communicate over a can bus. Without it you can't change a plethora of options on your car.
My suggestion is buy the model you want and don't worry about the sound system.
Then, if you decide you don't like the speakers (mine in the sport really aren't THAT bad), then replace them with drivers from crutchfield. If you want better than even that, you could put in an amp and tap off the stock amp in the passenger kick panel. All wires to feed the doors are there. You could add tweaters to the dash etc.
Of course this requires you to be gutsy with tools and knowledgeable with this type of thing.
I don't know what the cost difference between the trim models is but for less I'm sure you could pay somebody to upgrade your system.
At the end of the day if you are looking to touch nothing, then yes the Bose system probably "sounds substantially better".
I had the bose system in my 2003 and 2010 MX-5. It was pretty much trash. Now I'm picky but the general consensus is that if you are at all picky about your sound, the Bose system will disappoint. There are 100's of "Bosectomy" (yes there is a term) threads all over the mx-5 forums and although I'm new to the cx-5 forum, I'm sure they are here as well. Search google for No Highs, No lows must be Bose.
You aren't likely to remove the infotainment brain as it is multiple pieces that communicate over a can bus. Without it you can't change a plethora of options on your car.
My suggestion is buy the model you want and don't worry about the sound system.
Then, if you decide you don't like the speakers (mine in the sport really aren't THAT bad), then replace them with drivers from crutchfield. If you want better than even that, you could put in an amp and tap off the stock amp in the passenger kick panel. All wires to feed the doors are there. You could add tweaters to the dash etc.
Of course this requires you to be gutsy with tools and knowledgeable with this type of thing.
I don't know what the cost difference between the trim models is but for less I'm sure you could pay somebody to upgrade your system.
At the end of the day if you are looking to touch nothing, then yes the Bose system probably "sounds substantially better".
Bob-Loblaw
Member
- :
- 2016 CX-5 GT
+1^. CD sounds WAY better than anything else. USB stick sounds good too and that's my new preferred method of music listening.
My 2016 is my second CX-5 Touring. I've never been impressed with Bose sound and I find that the base 6 speaker stereo isn't too bad.
On my 2014 I upgraded the front speakers and added an Alpine class D amp and the sound was improved but not dramatically. Just clearer at all levels, especially when the volume was low. For reference the cost for the speakers plus the amp was around $300 and I did the install myself. I'm considering doing the same in the new CX-5 when the weather warms up, but I'm thinking I'll wait a while and see if I can live with what the car came with.
My Miata has a Bose system but a convertible is so noisy I didn't think it worthwhile spending the time and money to improve something you cant hear well.
On my 2014 I upgraded the front speakers and added an Alpine class D amp and the sound was improved but not dramatically. Just clearer at all levels, especially when the volume was low. For reference the cost for the speakers plus the amp was around $300 and I did the install myself. I'm considering doing the same in the new CX-5 when the weather warms up, but I'm thinking I'll wait a while and see if I can live with what the car came with.
My Miata has a Bose system but a convertible is so noisy I didn't think it worthwhile spending the time and money to improve something you cant hear well.
I'm not minding the CD sound on my 2016 Touring's standard audio system. Radio is not that great, but that's radio. There is an HD Radio setting for those channels that broadcast in HD, and that's better with some tone tweaks. For CD, I've found that if I put the tone settings at neutral, crank up the volume first and then add a bit of bass and treble (like +1 on both scales) and keep it that way it's decent. The system could use a subwoofer, but only if it could be frequency controlled for sub bass--not just a boom box--because you get bass from the stock speakers. With CDs, the CX-5 sound is significantly better than my 2012 CR-V sound was, so for me that's good.
I used to have a 1998 Mazda 626 that I loaded up with an expensive stereo system, replacing everything--head unit, amps, speakers, plus a subwoofer with its own volume and frequency control. I got really spoiled by that rig.
I used to have a 1998 Mazda 626 that I loaded up with an expensive stereo system, replacing everything--head unit, amps, speakers, plus a subwoofer with its own volume and frequency control. I got really spoiled by that rig.
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Bob-Loblaw
Member
- :
- 2016 CX-5 GT
+1 on both scales? I've got them cranked all the way. I'd be interested to know what most people set it at. Not a lot of room for customization.
All in how much effort and money you put in. I can clearly hear my system at 70 with the top and windows down.
I have $1000 in my system though. Also not super great for my ears considering the noise floor of the highway is probably 80-90db before tacking on the system's SPL.All in how much effort and money you put in. I can clearly hear my system at 70 with the top and windows down.
I didn't do anything with the Miata. For the CX-5 it was less than $300 for the amp and speakers, and took an afternoon to install.