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Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround Sound System in BMW iX

The new BMW iX is an outstanding vehicle in many respects, and this should also apply to the sound of the audio system that the driver can enjoy with this electric vehicle. Bowers & Wilkins is responsible for the audio system of the BMW iX and relies on the Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround Sound System.

The new BMW iX is the first electric vehicle to be equipped with this outstanding audio system.

BMW iX first electric vehicle with Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Dome Tweeter

Ultimately, the BMW iX is the first electric vehicle to feature the Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Dome Tweeter, the remarkable tweeter used in the Bowers & Wilkins 800 Series Diamond. So if you’re enjoying music in the BMW iX, you’ll be doing so through the same speaker system that’s used in Abbey Road Studios, for example.

Longstanding partnership between Bowers & Wilkins and BMW

The fact that BMW is equipping the new BMW iX with the Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround Sound System is of course by no means unexpected. After all, the German carmaker BMW and the British loudspeaker specialists already have a long-standing partnership that will continue even after the takeover of Bowers & Wilkins by Sound United LLC.

For example, the Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround Sound System can be found in BMW 5-Series and BMW 7-Series vehicles.

Foto © Bowers & Wilkins - Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround Sound System im BMW iX
Foto © Bowers & Wilkins – Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround Sound System im BMW iX

Interestingly, however, Bowers & Wilkins now proclaims that the new BMW iX offers the best possible sound quality ever available in a car. Once again, the company’s developers were not content to simply implement the existing system into the new vehicle; rather, they worked closely with BMW’s engineers to create a solution perfectly suited to the electric vehicle from Bavaria. The result, he says, is a sound experience that sounds as if you were in the studio with the musician.

In the BMW iX, two diamond dome tweeters and three aluminum dome tweeters are installed in the vehicle, along with five aramid fiber midrange speakers and eight additional speakers integrated into the front and rear headrests. A special feature is that these speaker systems integrated into the headrests can be adjusted to produce an individual sound for each passenger.

The four bass speakers are further supplemented by so-called 4D shakers, which the manufacturer claims produce rich bass even at low volumes. It is the first time that such speakers have been installed in a BMW, it says.

Foto © Bowers & Wilkins - Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround Sound System im BMW iX
Foto © Bowers & Wilkins – Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround Sound System im BMW iX

In order to be able to select the optimum sound for every taste, four different sound modes are available, which can be activated at the touch of a button.

Harmonious integration into the vehicle interior

As far as the design is concerned, Bowers & Wilkins has also made every effort to integrate the audio system as harmoniously as possible into the vehicle, while at the same time properly highlighting the characteristic design elements.

For example, Bowers & Wilkins states that the tweeters are covered in brushed stainless steel to match the minimalist interior of the BMW iX, with a laser-engraved logo from the manufacturer featuring a subtle lighting effect. The speakers in the doors of the BMW iX are discreetly hidden behind acoustically optimized fabric.

Getting to the point

Even though the partnership between Bowers & Wilkins and BMW has existed for years, they can now present a premiere. Together, they have developed an audio system for the BMW iX that represents the latest generation of the Bowers & Wilkins Diamond Surround Sound System. This is the first time that this outstanding in-car entertainment system for the automotive sector has been used in an electric vehicle.

Manufacturer: BMW
Distribution: BMW
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Michael Holzinger

Michael Holzinger, founder and editor-in-chief of HiFi BLOG and sempre-audio.at, has been working for years as a journalist in the fields of IT, photography, telecommunications and consumer electronics.

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