BMW M5 Channels Engine Noise to Speakers

Fake Noise is Meant to Recreate Muscle Car Vibe

[martinibuster]

Article located at cNet, of all places [reviews.cnet.com]. This is weird. The car is too silent so they figure out a way to ADD noise to the cabin.

BMW M5 generates fake engine noise using stereo
For a driving enthusiast, there's nothing like the throaty roar of a well-tuned engine. ...some automakers have been seeking ways to preserve and enhance the visceral sound of an angry engine for their performance-oriented models.

BMW... artificially replicates engine noise in the cabin using the stereo system.

What BMW has done is link the M5's car stereo system's digital signal processor (DSP) into the engine management system, which allows the audio system to simulate the sound of a twin-scroll, twin-turbocharged V-8 engine in sync with the actual 560-horsepower mill humming away in the engine bay... as you rev the engine or accelerate away from a traffic light, the car stereo will be recreating the bark and roar that you'd normally be missing from the driver's seat through the speakers.

[pageoneresults]

Now that is interesting! Can you believe my daughter and I were just talking about this yesterday. We we're cruising down the freeway at 70 with the windows down. I told her if we could capture the sound we were hearing, and convert to MP3, we could start a Soundscapes collection and make a mint. :)

There's nothing like the sound of a Supercharged 640HP (540 RWHP) HEMI!

BTW, I think Toyota should channel fake engine noises to external speakers on the Prius! How many times have you been in a parking lot and a damn Prius has crept up on you? I've been startled more than a few times.

[Marshall]

Wasn't there a movie about someone trying to do this?

[incrediBILL]

Who needs engine noise when you have a wife in the car?

<ducks>

[lawman]

That's why you need engine noise.

[johnhh]

Article in the UK Sunday Times saying cars too quiet and needs a ghetto blaster. Or , cyclists and pedestrians wearing ipods can't hear cars coming. <start of cyclist rant>no lights, on pavements, jump lights, think they are the greatest</end rant>

[wheel]

There's nothing like the sound of a Supercharged 640HP (540 RWHP) HEMI!

WHich is also coincidental, because I was just thinking today how I could hear the sound of the hemi in my vehicle - and was a bit surprised because I'm not used to hearing what I'm driving. And just as happy not. I'm a big fan of sleepers :).

Or , cyclists and pedestrians wearing ipods can't hear cars coming.

I read recently that something like 80% of car-cyclist collisions are the fault of the cyclist. I was stunned, because I encounter close calls on my bike all the time and they're never my fault - 1 in 10 car drivers are complete idiots towards cyclists (same ratio works in reverse as well). I'd like to think that the cyclists that are causing accidents aren't 'cyclists', they're just an idiot on a bike. Yeah, I know, that's probably the very definition of cyclist.....

[Leosghost]

I suspect that frequently the cyclist, immediately after an accident with a car ..is in no condition to give their side of the story as to who was at fault.

[wheel]

Possibly. From what I gather it's normally in an urban setting, cyclists riding through crosswalks when they shouldn't be. I ride all rural so it's different.

[Essex_boy]

Wheel: Same prob in cambridge, UK. I swear they want to die.

[Old_Honky]

Same problem in Southampton they jump the lights and even in a city where there is massive over provision of cycle lanes they still cycle on the road and hold up traffic. The answers:
1) No cycling without passing a stringent proficiency test (part of which tells them that they should not weave in and out of traffic because they are difficult to see and they will get killed).
2) All bicycles must display a road fund licence which will cost them a significant amount annually.
3) All cyclists must be insured at least covering third party.

In my opinion the pro bike lobby has too much power. To prevent accidents it is the pedalling menaces who should be told to look out for cars not vice versa. They may think they are in the right but they should be constantly aware that they are difficult to see and they must put themselves in positions where they are not a danger to other road users.

One particular thing that annoys me is when these idiots go round a roundabout by going to the centre and then out again. They should stay on the outside lane.

Another thing that annoys is people cycling on pavements, if they are too timid to cycle on the road they should stay at home. I recently had a close encounter with a spotty youth (trousers at half mast on a bike too small for him) who shot by me (from behind) at high speed on a down hill pavement. If he had hit me or if I had moved slightly to the side I would be writing this now from a hospital bed.

Also can any pro-pushbiker explain why they are allowed to go to the front of the queue of cars at traffic lights where they form a solid slow moving road block as they all try to get by each other at a fraction of the speed that cars are capable of and hold the traffic up for no good reason.

Getting back to the original point I think false "boy racer" engine noise played inside the car is not a good idea. However for electric cars, engine noise played through a speaker positioned behind what used to be the radiator grille will be a necessity and probably a legal requirement in most countries within a few years.

[rocknbil]

San Diego bicyclists are much smarter. They ride on the sidewalks (and get away with it.) :-/

As a bicyclist myself, I find this really offensive, bikes belong in the street. Especially when I'm walking in any of the beach areas and get slammed (while about to take a bite out of a cone . . .)

[johnhh]

these idiots go round a roundabout by going to the centre and then out again

Actually, some years ago, I had one fall over in front of me when he touched a wet , white, mini-roundabout. Poor bloke, donated my car blanket to keep him warm before the ambulance arrived. His own fault of course.

Where we live, in the Autumn and Winter all these guys leave a local factory, NO lights, straight across any red lights, no helmet, no insurance, no road tax, no MOT.

And don't get me started on caravans...

[thecoalman]

I was reading another article where some company had spent considerable time engineering how the door sounds when you close it. I'd imagine there is a lot of engineering going into making things have that great quality sound/feel. Still never come close to the sound of my '72 F-250 doors closing.... nice solid thunk!

[Visit Thailand]

I bet the guys and gals at Rolls-Royce had a bit of a laugh when they read about that!

Anyway, if you want real vrmmmph then only a Ferrari will do, an M5 is just not the same.

I did read that some manufacturers such as Nissan have engineered their electric cars such as the Leaf to make a small sound that can be heard by pedestrians so they know there is something there if they are looking in another direction.

[J_RaD]

chevy made a "here i come" horn sound for the volt to let people walking know

[youtube.com...]

I think it would be silly to make electric cars emulate engine noises.