Hi all,

As you may know (if not, check my sig ) I'm the owner of a 4.2 NA XK, equipped with the standard stereo.
Which, to be honest, was a bit of a disappointment sound-wise. I had more bass with the Bose stereo in my previous car (Mazda MX5) than with my Jag, even turning the bass all the way up...

Therefore, for my next one (hopefully a 4.2 XKR), I'd like to have a better stereo, ideally. While browsing through the ads, I noticed some have an Alpine stereo, while some others have a B&W one.
Hence my questions:
1. Were these two available at the same time or was one available before, then replaced by the other one later on?
2. If you had the opportunity of experiencing both, which one is better? The Alpine or B&W one?

Thanks a lot in advance for this information guys!

 

For X150 models, the OEM standard speaker system was Alpine. Bowers and Wilkins was the top-of-the-line, and was included in various option packages.

For details of how to upgrade Alpine speakers to B&W speakers, see the posts by Forum Moderator Cambo in this 2016 thread:
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...remium-171171/

I wouldn't spend the $$$ to follow Cambo's advice, as those parts may be hard to find. Instead, I'd visit local car audio shops and get their advice and proposals to suit your needs.

 

For clarity, however, it was simply a licensing game. There were three different systems, base, premium and B&W. Premium was the biggest upgrade with more amplifiers and speakers. B&W was an EQ curve added to the car’s DSP and the speakers were made by a company in China called PSS by D&M holdings, AKA premium sound solutions a company which made OEM car audio components. B&W did not make anything used in the system.

 

There was a difference between model years. My '07 XKR had the premium, Alpine branded system and the only options then were standard or premium, both Alpine. The B&W system was introduced in 2008 with the Portfolio models

My '10 XKR has the premium, B&W branded system and there is way too much treble and not enough bass compared to the earlier Alpine system.

 

A combination of the custom DSP curve and aluminium tweeters.

 

So, my 2009 XK Coupe has the Bowers and Wilkins system. Would that indicate that my car has a premium, system, or was the B&W the “ base” system for 2009?

 

As I said in my post above, there were 3 systems offered with the X150. Yours is one of the 3 variations.

 

See my Post #2, above. The B&W speaker system was the premium system and was standard equipment on my 2009 XKR Portfolio Convertible, the top-of-the-line limited-production model.

 

Stuart,

thanks. I bought my 2009 as a pre owned car a few years ago. I did not get any info, on what level trim it had, so your info is helping me figure that out.

Mine is not a Portfolio edition, but does have the B&W stereo, so, I assume it has some type of trim package, above a base.

 

Mine is listed as base according to the VIN, the B&W and Alcon brake package on mine are upgrades.

 

As an interim measure until you find a suitable XKR, maybe consider replacing the current speakers. My 2008 car’s base system speakers had started to deteriorate in that the large speakers foam cone suspension was in poor condition and the tweeters plastic mounts had cracked…. 15 years old now.
I used JBL 604C replacement speakers. Much superior to the speakers that came out. Fit was pretty easy with only minor mounting adjustments and wire routing/connector changes. Cost was about $80 US and maybe 3 hours time. Removing and replacing door cards was much of the effort. I also added backing foam baffling ($30 US) on the door skin behind the large speakers to reduce distortion and help direct the sound into the passenger compartment.
No clearance issues with the door internals either. Tweeters fit in the existing “bubble” mounts and look similar to the OEM installation.
Much better sound now at least to my ear.

 

So basically, if I got it well, the B&W system is not such a great improvement as compared to the Alpine one, right?

 

Does anyone have performance specifications for any or all of the various systems?

 

Over the base it is, but next to the premium option, it's only difference was the B&W DSP profile and metal tweeters vs silk, which for many was more of a "downgrade" due to increased harshness. If you put an Alpine driver next to a "B&W" driver, the magnets, motor, basket, labels, etc are all the same, the only difference was cone material - paper for the Alpine branded and signature yellow kevlar for the B&W marketed trim.

There are extensive threads on this topic in this forum. The biggest issue with all X150 systems was lack of proper mid-range frequencies but with a bit of tweaking to settings and for some, modification of drivers has yielded improved results.

 

Good reads here and confirmation for the skeptics that the premium Alpine and the B&W were basically identical other than the difference I cited.

https://www.carpages.co.uk/jaguar/ja...k-28-10-05.asp

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...gation-192487/

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...system-186045/