[Platinum]

Does anyone have any reviews yet of the audio system within the limited/ultimate model?
Hopefully it will out perform the Bose system I had in my pathfinder.

 

[Sonartech]

My impression: Really mediocre performance in the mid-range, over-reactive bass and extremely sharp treble in default mode. There is an option to enhance the bass, but that's all you get for enhanced sound modification beyond basic bass, treble and center point. The bass can get really, really overbearing, but I'm sure that'll turn some people on. I was very surprised to learn that there is no graphic equalizer in the audio system - so no way to tune those mids up, and dial the harsh points of the treble down. Don't get me wrong, it's far from terrible - I just came out of a 2016 Volvo XC90 T8 with Bowers-Wilkins audio, and that has been about the best in-car audio I've heard to date.

It's important to note that the audio file support for the Palisade is fantastic, even compared to the Volvo. It even supports WMA Pro. So far, I haven't found a problem with Tags or FLAC support, in any form or format. The Volvo was extremely picky about FLAC version, tag format and filename length. So far the Palisade eats everything I've thrown at it. I do wish it scrolled the filename while playing. The GUI could use some work, too.

 

[ChrisK]

I just have to say, that I am the biggest B&W fanboy and have dreamt of having that Volvo with that system, may even sell some cars to get it (the wife has the Palisade) that being said, I haven't formulated an opinion on the Palisade system yet( only 160 miles basically test driving) but up front it seems to have some chops, but barely getting through the system options I didn't see a lot of customizing there.

 

[lowblow]

On the limited trim, don’t forget to go into Settings -> Advanced and turn on Clari-fi surround (Quantum Logic) It is off by default and is a pretty cool technology.
http://www.clarifisound.com

 

[Kiwilinkml]

My impression: Really mediocre performance in the mid-range, over-reactive bass and extremely sharp treble in default mode. There is an option to enhance the bass, but that's all you get for enhanced sound modification beyond basic bass, treble and center point. The bass can get really, really overbearing, but I'm sure that'll turn some people on. I was very surprised to learn that there is no graphic equalizer in the audio system - so no way to tune those mids up, and dial the harsh points of the treble down. Don't get me wrong, it's far from terrible - I just came out of a 2016 Volvo XC90 T8 with Bowers-Wilkins audio, and that has been about the best in-car audio I've heard to date.

It's important to note that the audio file support for the Palisade is fantastic, even compared to the Volvo. It even supports WMA Pro. So far, I haven't found a problem with Tags or FLAC support, in any form or format. The Volvo was extremely picky about FLAC version, tag format and filename length. So far the Palisade eats everything I've thrown at it. I do wish it scrolled the filename while playing. The GUI could use some work, too.

 

[Kiwilinkml]

Can you clarify about displaying the filename? Are you saying that if I have a song on my phone it will not display the name of the tune? Secondly, I didn't think there was a CD player in the car so can you expand on the formats comment? Thank you

 

[Sonartech]

For Filenames: I don't use a connected phone for playing music, only a USB thumb drive. However, I expect the behavior between the two sources is probably the same. If you have a long name tag (or just filename, if you don't use tags), the current software won't/doesn't scroll the entire filename on the display. For example, if you have a file tagged "Gustav Holst: The Planets - Jupiter", you'll only see "Gustav Holst: The Pl" on your display - so you'll never see the rest of the filename title. This especially sucks for classical music that has long titles. The system design spec for folder structure is 20 directory layers max, max 255 bytes folder/file name length (not a Tag limitation), max of 2,000 folders including root, and a total maximum of 8,000 files per device.

For Filetype Support: The Palisade supports MPEG-1/2 Layer 3, OGG Vorbis, FLAC (all forms I've tried), WMA (both standard and professional including lossless) and PCM WAV. MP3 support covers 8-320kbps (CBR/VBR) up to 48 kHz, and has support for ID3 tag versions 1.0, 1.1, 2.2, 2.3 and 2.4. OGG supports Q1 to Q10, up to 48 kHz for those that still use this silly format. FLAC supports 8, 16 and 24-bit, up to 48 kHz with all (current) tag structures supported. WMA support was unexpected, but it supports Standard 385 kbps/48 kHz. WMA Pro supports 192 kbps/48 kHz. Finally, WAV support is 8/16 bit, up to 48 kHz.

Thumb Drive Support: 64KB or less bytes per sector, formatted FAT16, FAT32 (recommended by Hyundai), exFAT, and NTFS. Yes, I verified it actually reads NTFS. USB hard drives may not be recognized. When using a USB mass storage device divided into logical drives, only the files saved in the first drive can be played. When a USB storage device has some applications, media files may not be detected. Also, it says some USB storage devices with a plastic plugs may not be recognized, but I am successfully using a 32GS MicroSD with a plastic carrier and it works fine. The manual also says that "USB memory cards (e.g. CF cards, SD cards) may not be recognized" but again, I'm using a 32GB MicroSD in a Sandisk plastic USB reader and it works fine.

 

[scottm_dj]

I'm used to DVD based surround sound systems (i.e. Bose Studio Surround, Acura ELS, or B & O Audi)...how does surround sound work with these non-disc systems? Can i fire up a 5.1 FLAC file and have it play properly in surround? Or is it only lame "psuedo surround" from a 2ch source?