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ElGuapo
Well-Known Member
As others have said, I am an audiophile, but I am not an expert and sound is quite subjective. I have the "Rivian" system in my R1S. I actually think it's quite good with respect to range and the sound stage. I was just speaking with my friends today about how I can hear more detail in many songs through the Rivian speakers. Volume-wise, I love certain music loud, but if I put my volume above an 8, it gets painfully loud. Haven't come close to a 10 and, frankly, am appalled it goes above an 11... 
I actually think the speakers tend to be too "trebely", if that's a word. Even at basic levels, the highs and mid to highs tend to come through too much (for my liking).
Bass - totally depends on the type of bass you like. If you like the thundering cabinet subwoofers (like I used to have in the trunk of my Oldsmobile in the 90s), you will be disappointed. My Teslas have bass similar to that (but not like my dual cabinet subwoofer circa 1992). I think the Rivian bass is what I'd call "snappy". It's not muffled, my car doesn't rattle and it definitely isn't rumbling, but it's there. Perhaps "punchy" is a better word. I don't love it, but it's fine. I do prefer the "oh my gosh, whose car is that" bass you get when you're stopped at a traffic light and you think there's an earthquake...then you realize the guy/gal in the Honda Civic two cars away from you has crammed Dr. Dre's personal studio into their trunk.
Bottom line - make any changes suggested in this thread, then reset or keep them. There's something that will sound great to some and not great to others.
Also, remember, everything sounds better in headphones.
I actually think the speakers tend to be too "trebely", if that's a word. Even at basic levels, the highs and mid to highs tend to come through too much (for my liking).Bass - totally depends on the type of bass you like. If you like the thundering cabinet subwoofers (like I used to have in the trunk of my Oldsmobile in the 90s), you will be disappointed. My Teslas have bass similar to that (but not like my dual cabinet subwoofer circa 1992). I think the Rivian bass is what I'd call "snappy". It's not muffled, my car doesn't rattle and it definitely isn't rumbling, but it's there. Perhaps "punchy" is a better word. I don't love it, but it's fine. I do prefer the "oh my gosh, whose car is that" bass you get when you're stopped at a traffic light and you think there's an earthquake...then you realize the guy/gal in the Honda Civic two cars away from you has crammed Dr. Dre's personal studio into their trunk.
Bottom line - make any changes suggested in this thread, then reset or keep them. There's something that will sound great to some and not great to others.
Also, remember, everything sounds better in headphones.
Maheller12
Member
Just traded in my refreshed model X for the R1S. Love the R1S for all that it can do - even took it off roading - that would have broken the Tesla in half! But when it comes to sound systems, there is no comparison. The Tesla system was so far superior. Crisper, cleaner sound, more bass, better sound stage. I have the Rivian branded system. Appreciate the suggestions for adjusting the EQ, turning off Enhanced 3D, and moving the fade further back than normal. These all help… some.
I’ve gone back and forth with the same songs on Spotify and Tidal, and though I think I appreciate nuances in music, I can’t hear much difference! Tidal may lose out here because the user interface is so much cleaner with Spotify.
I’m holding out hope Rivian will improve this system over time.
I’ve gone back and forth with the same songs on Spotify and Tidal, and though I think I appreciate nuances in music, I can’t hear much difference! Tidal may lose out here because the user interface is so much cleaner with Spotify.
I’m holding out hope Rivian will improve this system over time.
Chewy734
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? ??
Steve A.
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Let's just say it's *mediocre at best* but some say it sucks!
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Steve A.
Well-Known Member
Spotify set to highest streaming quality using Android Auto in my wife's Bose-based 16 speaker sound system cranks and sounds awesome!
So, Spotify isn't the root cause of the Rivian lame sound system.
defcon888
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I listen to Prog Metal, Classic Rock (Van Halen), and some country (when the wife is in the R1T) and I have adjusted the EQ to clip the highs and boost the mids a little and it sounds amazing. I would compare it to the JBL system in my RAV4 Prime which sounds amazing. I think it is as good.
ElGuapo
Well-Known Member
The Spotify suggestion was great because I do think it's one of the most well hidden options. That said, I don't think it makes a difference.
My sense from this thread is most folks would refer to the sound system as "perfectly mediocre".
My sense from this thread is most folks would refer to the sound system as "perfectly mediocre".
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Steve A.
Well-Known Member
Plenty of lows cranked up to max w/o distortion and makes it feel like the windows are going to shatter. Again, it's not just the speaker but the software too.
Regardless, HELLUVA lot better than Rivian's sound system. Even my Audi Q7 Bose 8 speaker system cranks better than the Rivian sound system.
GaryGR
Active Member
I'm curious what EQ you've found best for prog metal. After losing my custom EQ settings I tried some of the presets and found that out of those the Classical preset actually seemed to sound best to me. It's similar to the EQ curve I had set myself and what I've always found best for prog metal and rock in vehicles, but your settings seem to be a lot different, I wouldn't mind doing a comparison.
defcon888
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I am into Dream Theater, Devin Townsend, Pyramaze, Animals as Leaders, Vai etc. I scoop the mids down and put the trebles up a bit and then boost the bass. I am not an audiophile by any means, I do play guitar and love the beefy 1978 Van Halen brown sound.
Richcolorado
Member
I have worked in the professional audio field my entire life. This includes designing and tuning a huge variety of systems from recording studios, to amphitheaters to the largest stadiums and for some pretty famous acts. I have also been deeply involved in the development of DSP audio products of the highest quality. So while I am learning so much on the forum from all of you with a lot more knowledge than me in so many topics, this is one area that I am pretty familiar with.
I do agree that the system is pretty mid-fi at best. I have an R1-S with the post-Meridian sound system. I will say that it would be very hard for a non audio company like Rivian to be able to do all that Meridian can do due to both expertise and years of experience. I have only had my Rivian for a month now and to be honest I have not taken a deep dive into making it sound better. I am just enjoying the other stuff that is new to me too much so far!
I read a lot of good input in this thread. It is true that the source you start with matters an awful lot. So, yes Tidal probably sounds better than the others and by all means set Spotify to the highest quality available as long as you can support that bandwidth. At home I listen to Tidal or Qobuz for streaming.
As far as equalizing, I do have to imagine that they spent some time on setting up the DSP to an average good setting for many source types. As an example of why that matters, setting up for speech intelligibility is quite different from music. And even music genres vary a huge amount. One of my projects was for Red Rocks Amphitheater. I gathered frequency and volume level data for every concert over 4-5 years with one second data. Each genre is quite different and I can usually tell you what type of music it was just by looking at a nights overall frequency response. And the folks doing the sound know what curves work for each type of music and act.
Not only does the genre matter, but even more important is that we all have different taste.
And there is no correct or incorrect taste. When I set up a system, I first set it up using acoustical test equipment including a pink noise generator and an RTA along with other equipment not relevant here. Depending upon the application I might go with setting up to be flat to 4.000 Hz and the drop off from there at about 6 dB/octave. But it is important to remember that that is simply a starting point, and usually does not sound that great anyway. In the end I do it by ear to my own taste. That is what most pros do. I have done that for very famous bands and venues and it tends to work the best. So please do not use test equipment and then feel that what it showed you is the "correct" and best setting and then don't change it. Accuracy is not as important as your own pleasure. So, when setting up a recording studio for the first time you go for very accurate sound as you need to know what is being recorded. But for playback systems (including your Rivian) set it to what sounds best to you. Really... that is what matters! I agree that setting the sound back from the center sounded better to me and that the 3D sounds a bit wonky. But that is my opinion and I vary that depending upon what I am listening to. So, you only have a few things that you can adjust so just play around with it and go with what you enjoy the sound of. Don't feel a need to go with someone else's favorite unless you really like it. I would assume that the engineers who designed the system got it right as far as flatness and such so just adjust to your taste from that starting point and enjoy the sound. Also if there anomalies in the DSP they will fix that in time. And.. I agree that the bass in pretty lacking. Just cranking up the lowest frequencies on the EQ may not be the answer to that but may help somewhat.
I do agree that the system is pretty mid-fi at best. I have an R1-S with the post-Meridian sound system. I will say that it would be very hard for a non audio company like Rivian to be able to do all that Meridian can do due to both expertise and years of experience. I have only had my Rivian for a month now and to be honest I have not taken a deep dive into making it sound better. I am just enjoying the other stuff that is new to me too much so far!
I read a lot of good input in this thread. It is true that the source you start with matters an awful lot. So, yes Tidal probably sounds better than the others and by all means set Spotify to the highest quality available as long as you can support that bandwidth. At home I listen to Tidal or Qobuz for streaming.
As far as equalizing, I do have to imagine that they spent some time on setting up the DSP to an average good setting for many source types. As an example of why that matters, setting up for speech intelligibility is quite different from music. And even music genres vary a huge amount. One of my projects was for Red Rocks Amphitheater. I gathered frequency and volume level data for every concert over 4-5 years with one second data. Each genre is quite different and I can usually tell you what type of music it was just by looking at a nights overall frequency response. And the folks doing the sound know what curves work for each type of music and act.
Not only does the genre matter, but even more important is that we all have different taste.
And there is no correct or incorrect taste. When I set up a system, I first set it up using acoustical test equipment including a pink noise generator and an RTA along with other equipment not relevant here. Depending upon the application I might go with setting up to be flat to 4.000 Hz and the drop off from there at about 6 dB/octave. But it is important to remember that that is simply a starting point, and usually does not sound that great anyway. In the end I do it by ear to my own taste. That is what most pros do. I have done that for very famous bands and venues and it tends to work the best. So please do not use test equipment and then feel that what it showed you is the "correct" and best setting and then don't change it. Accuracy is not as important as your own pleasure. So, when setting up a recording studio for the first time you go for very accurate sound as you need to know what is being recorded. But for playback systems (including your Rivian) set it to what sounds best to you. Really... that is what matters! I agree that setting the sound back from the center sounded better to me and that the 3D sounds a bit wonky. But that is my opinion and I vary that depending upon what I am listening to. So, you only have a few things that you can adjust so just play around with it and go with what you enjoy the sound of. Don't feel a need to go with someone else's favorite unless you really like it. I would assume that the engineers who designed the system got it right as far as flatness and such so just adjust to your taste from that starting point and enjoy the sound. Also if there anomalies in the DSP they will fix that in time. And.. I agree that the bass in pretty lacking. Just cranking up the lowest frequencies on the EQ may not be the answer to that but may help somewhat.
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