Terrible Gen2 Stereo / Audio?

[jambaman84]

Rivian Elevation is horrible. They really need to hire some of Tesla's audio engineers cuz Rivian's isn't good at all.

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[BrianB]

How is the stereo on your guys Gen2? I picked mined up last week (max pack) and the stereo is terrible, it sounds like someone is muffling the singer/music. I can't seem to find any settings to correct it. The EQ doesn't seem to do much. It's basically unusable, makes me kind of cringe. My R1T was the best stereo system I ever had. I am going to open a service ticket because I think something has to be wrong, just no fidelity at all. Curious if there is a noticeable drop in quality of audio for all the Gen2 crowd or if I just got a Friday build.

I test drove a Gen1 R1T with the standard audio and thought it was fine. I bought a Gen2 R1S with standard audio, and even my wife commented on how bad it is compared to her $50K VW Atlas.

if you’ve ever had a subwoofer in your car, the base Gen 2 R1S audio will likely disappoint.

Please someone figure out an upgrade for these.

 

[beatle]

There weren't any "non-premium" stereo options in G1. Rivian went from Meridian to in-house in the G1 vehicles,

Rivian Elevation is horrible. They really need to hire some of Tesla's audio engineers cuz Rivian's isn't good at all.

I wouldn't say terrible, but they need to do some sound damping from the factory. I've never been in a vehicle whose factory stereo rattled things as much as my Rivian - and that's without a significant amount of bass.

 

[R1Tom]

There weren't any "non-premium" stereo options in G1. Rivian went from Meridian to in-house in the G1 vehicles,


I wouldn't say terrible, but they need to do some sound damping from the factory. I've never been in a vehicle whose factory stereo rattled things as much as my Rivian - and that's without a significant amount of bass.

It is clear Rivian was making on the fly changes on R1. We saw things like eliminating outlets, magnets, audio performance....but the sound dampening must have been another. My early R1T has no speaker vibration or door panel vibrations. They must have been removing stuff like sound dampening over time.

 

[moondoggy]

It is clear Rivian was making on the fly changes on R1...

Understanding people's taste in audio quality is highly subjective, it does seem like structural & component changes may account for some of the variance between all the love/hate for the Elevation system. Although Gen2 without a sub seems like it would be extremely difficult to enjoy.

 

[Vinnynj]

Debating switching from 2023 Tesla Model X to Dual Motor R1S. I know I am going to miss Autopilot. Reading this thread I am second guessing my move. Could someone who switched from a Tesla to Gen2 R1S please confirm how the premium audio compares with Tesla?

 

[SeaGeo]

Not sure about gen 2, but i have meridian in my r1s, i rode in my friends gen 1 r1s with the elevation audio and it sounds horrible, even set had thebsame eq settings. Rivian elevation audio doesn't hold a candle to the meridian sound system, its like the dynamic/ depth of sound.

I have an R1T with meridian, had an R1S with Meridian, and now have a Gen2 R1S with premium audio. The Gen2 Premium audio sounds pretty good to me compared to the R1T. In the R1S our Meridian system never sounded anywhere near as good as it does in my R1T. I suspect our R1S had issues, but I also think it was due to the cabin size.

 

[SeaGeo]

Debating switching from 2023 Tesla Model X to Dual Motor R1S. I know I am going to miss Autopilot. Reading this thread I am second guessing my move. Could someone who switched from a Tesla to Gen2 R1S please confirm how the premium audio compares with Tesla?

Not a Model X owner, but the premium audio on the Gen2 R1S is decent. However, it isn't the most bass heavy system I've heard. If you prefer a system that's going to vibrate your car to death, that isn't the OEM system with the Rivian.

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

I have the rivian elevation in my r1t and I was right around the cutoff time in March 2023. I think it sounds fine. It has had some issues. For example, sometimes this sounds come out flat especially after updates and a vehicle reboot is required. The tell is when I have to turn it up to 20 to get decent audio. If it's working normally anything more than 15 will damage my eardrums.

With all that said, I have been in vehicles that had a lot more low end base and I found that a lot of the tinniness comes when you have the 3D surround turned up to enhanced. If you turn that off to me it sounds better.

 

[savethemanual]

I recently test drove Gen2 R1S with base audio. The rep in the car said it doesn't have a sub, obviously the premium audio does and more wattage/speakers. From what I heard, I would never settle for the base audio.

Tesla most definitely has some great audio systems, I'll give them that.

 

[R1Tom]

I recently test drove Gen2 R1S with base audio. The rep in the car said it doesn't have a sub, obviously the premium audio does and more wattage/speakers. From what I heard, I would never settle for the base audio.

Tesla most definitely has some great audio systems, I'll give them that.

Not even sure why Rivian went even further down market with the standard audio. These things aren't rental fleet machines that Enterprise is going to buy....

 

[Whale Blubber]

I find the tweeters or whatever they've got in the center console under the windshield are way too tinny and overwhelm the system, while the lack of adequate sub leaves the whole soundstage without meaningful depth. (Gen1 R1S elevation)

I really want to upgrade the whole system, but just can't pull the trigger without greater confidence it won't just error out the vehicle up the wazoo.

 

[beatle]

It is clear Rivian was making on the fly changes on R1. We saw things like eliminating outlets, magnets, audio performance....but the sound dampening must have been another. My early R1T has no speaker vibration or door panel vibrations. They must have been removing stuff like sound dampening over time.

I'm not sure when my truck was built, but it's a '23 and VIN 29xxx. I'd be curious to see the inside of a factory-damped system. When the weather breaks, I plan to tackle the doors and quiet them down. It made a pretty good difference in my 2015 Model S. My 2019 Model S had better factory damping and didn't need any modifications, but both are miles away from the Rivian's doors. They're truly some of the worst.

If you're not listening to something with a lot of bass, however, the system sounds pretty decent.

 

[Kylechoffman]

So glad I picked up a Gen2 with the base audio (joking).. Hopefully I can find an installer to upgrade the system at roughly the same cost as the premium upgrade cost but with better sound.

 

[mpshizzle]

what seems to be the case for Gen2 is the premium system is the Rivian Elevation system and the standard/base system is completely new.

Both systems are new actually. Rivian elevation was 1200w, Gen 2 premium Audio is 960 so there's something different for sure.

Seems like people are happy with the new premium system though?

Sounds like the new base system is meh

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