home stereo: "Studio on Wheels": Infiniti Fights Competition With Super Sonic 2007 G35
Date posted: 08-05-2006
NEW YORK — The 2007 Infiniti G35 will debut this fall with an optional Bose stereo audio system designed by the two companies with the goal of outperforming every other factory-installed car audio system, found in any car at any price.
Named "Studio on Wheels," this new car audio system was modeled after a superlative two-channel home stereo system that cost more than $33,000 to assemble — as much as the entire car — using components such as "electrostatic tower" speakers priced at $10,000 a pair and a $4,000 CD player, said Thomas Crahan, regional product manager for the Infiniti G35 at Infiniti North America in Gardena, California.
Like this home system, Crahan says, the Studio on Wheels system is capable of reproducing sounds in a wider frequency range than most audio systems, and it is designed to "stage" the sound entirely from the front.
Crahan demonstrated the system last month at a cocktail reception for journalists in New York, hosted by Infiniti and Bose. A jazz quintet played live, and then the journalists were invited into the car to hear a recording of the same music played by the same band through the Studio on Wheels system.
The system incorporates audio components and architecture never before used in a car: a CD player with a 24-bit digital audio converter (DAC) chipset from Burr-Brown, a high-end audiophile brand; Burr-Brown op-amplifiers in the head unit; and, in each front door, a set of 3 speakers that includes a 10-inch woofer for bass as well as a tweeter and a midrange speaker.
"It's a very different approach" to car audio, Crahan says.
To date, Infiniti has not planned to offer the new sound system as a stand-alone option; it is expected to be offered only in an optional "premium package" in the 2007 G35. The price of this package has not been announced yet, but an Infiniti spokesperson says it is expected to be similar to the price of the premium package offered with the current G35 — which ranges from $3,150 to $3,500.
By comparison, in some competitively priced vehicles from other automakers, premium stereo audio systems are available either as stand-alone options or embedded in packages. For example, in the 2006 Chrysler 300, a premium Boston Acoustics stereo audio system is available as a $635 option or is standard in the Heritage model of the vehicle. Volvo charges $995 for the premium stereo audio system with Dolby Pro Logic II in the 2007 S60 T5 or includes it in the $1,595 "Sport Package" for the S60 2.5T and 2.5T AWD — down from $1,200 for the stand-alone option in all 2006 S60 models. Meanwhile, in the 2007 Audi A4, a premium Bose stereo audio system costs $1,000 in an "audio package" with Sirius satellite radio, or the same audio system can be bundled with a navigation system for a package price of $2,100.
The 2007 Volvo S60 and 2007 Audi A4 models are at dealerships now.
The 2007 Infiniti G35 is expected to be at dealerships in November.
What this means to you: Stereos are major selling points as cars turn into homes away from home. And it appears Infiniti is thinking it can win some people over with a truly high-end offering.
NEW YORK — The 2007 Infiniti G35 will debut this fall with an optional Bose stereo audio system designed by the two companies with the goal of outperforming every other factory-installed car audio system, found in any car at any price.
Named "Studio on Wheels," this new car audio system was modeled after a superlative two-channel home stereo system that cost more than $33,000 to assemble — as much as the entire car — using components such as "electrostatic tower" speakers priced at $10,000 a pair and a $4,000 CD player, said Thomas Crahan, regional product manager for the Infiniti G35 at Infiniti North America in Gardena, California.
Like this home system, Crahan says, the Studio on Wheels system is capable of reproducing sounds in a wider frequency range than most audio systems, and it is designed to "stage" the sound entirely from the front.
Crahan demonstrated the system last month at a cocktail reception for journalists in New York, hosted by Infiniti and Bose. A jazz quintet played live, and then the journalists were invited into the car to hear a recording of the same music played by the same band through the Studio on Wheels system.
The system incorporates audio components and architecture never before used in a car: a CD player with a 24-bit digital audio converter (DAC) chipset from Burr-Brown, a high-end audiophile brand; Burr-Brown op-amplifiers in the head unit; and, in each front door, a set of 3 speakers that includes a 10-inch woofer for bass as well as a tweeter and a midrange speaker.
"It's a very different approach" to car audio, Crahan says.
To date, Infiniti has not planned to offer the new sound system as a stand-alone option; it is expected to be offered only in an optional "premium package" in the 2007 G35. The price of this package has not been announced yet, but an Infiniti spokesperson says it is expected to be similar to the price of the premium package offered with the current G35 — which ranges from $3,150 to $3,500.
By comparison, in some competitively priced vehicles from other automakers, premium stereo audio systems are available either as stand-alone options or embedded in packages. For example, in the 2006 Chrysler 300, a premium Boston Acoustics stereo audio system is available as a $635 option or is standard in the Heritage model of the vehicle. Volvo charges $995 for the premium stereo audio system with Dolby Pro Logic II in the 2007 S60 T5 or includes it in the $1,595 "Sport Package" for the S60 2.5T and 2.5T AWD — down from $1,200 for the stand-alone option in all 2006 S60 models. Meanwhile, in the 2007 Audi A4, a premium Bose stereo audio system costs $1,000 in an "audio package" with Sirius satellite radio, or the same audio system can be bundled with a navigation system for a package price of $2,100.
The 2007 Volvo S60 and 2007 Audi A4 models are at dealerships now.
The 2007 Infiniti G35 is expected to be at dealerships in November.
What this means to you: Stereos are major selling points as cars turn into homes away from home. And it appears Infiniti is thinking it can win some people over with a truly high-end offering.
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