Re: Why No Monsoon??? (pickles1107)

actually, I won't flame you. I happened to like the monsoon system myself. It's good for normal music playing. For most drivers, the monsoon system is above avg. vs. other stock systems. However, if you are a music lover like myself and several others, the system is quite lacking.

Beats me, if you do a search for "monsoon" in the mobile electronics, I'm sure you'll find a thousand reasons why people dislike it. Everyone has the gripes.

IB4TM?

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (pickles1107)

I'm with you, I enjoy the Monsoon sound system compared to what I had before. I don't need overdriven bass to propel me down the road, so I'll stick with the Monsoon.

I do wish the CD control had a way to FF and REW in a song, along with the track skip function.

I also have nice gear at home, Acurus Pre-Pro and Amps with Platinum Audio speakers. Unless you can make the car as quiet as the house, I don't see the value in very high dollar car equipment. But that is just one mans' opinion.

I will say that when I was in high school, my car stereo cost more than the $250 beater I drove

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (desertjd)

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR>I do wish the CD control had a way to FF and REW in a song, along with the track skip function.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

It does, just hold the track skip down and it will FF in the song

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (desertjd)

desertjd,

hold down the forward track or reverse track buttons and it'll you can fast forward or rewind.

I'm pretty sure this worked on my stock HU

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (pickles1107)

in my case http://www.grateful.net/br6/ (btw, not cosmetically finished yet - just in-the-rough but very nicely functional), control of a remote mp3 unit was top prio. and with the double din head taking all the available space, there was nowhere to put an lcd control or other head unit in AND keep the factory system.

some people object to the head unit, so they replace that and keep the amp/spkrs as factory. some keep the head and replace the amp/spkrs! ;-) diff people want diff things.

I wanted a good mp3 setup so that forced the removal of the factory head. and soon, the factory amp and some of the spkrs will go (I am going to remove the tweets from the rear and actively crossover a new front tweet and keep the factory midbass; and do all that at 24db/oct inside an amp).


but I do agree that the monsoon system can be made listenable, compared to many other so-called premium OEM systems.



<![CDATA[in my case http://www.grateful.net/br6/ (btw, not cosmetically finished yet - just in-the-rough but very nicely functional), control of a remote mp3 unit was top prio. and with the double din head taking all the available space, there was nowhere to put an lcd control or other head unit in AND keep the factory system.

some people object to the head unit, so they replace that and keep the amp/spkrs as factory. some keep the head and replace the amp/spkrs! ;-) diff people want diff things.

I wanted a good mp3 setup so that forced the removal of the factory head. and soon, the factory amp and some of the spkrs will go (I am going to remove the tweets from the rear and actively crossover a new front tweet and keep the factory midbass; and do all that at 24db/oct inside an amp).


but I do agree that the monsoon system can be made listenable, compared to many other so-called premium OEM systems.



[Modified by linux-works, 7:23 PM 1/25/2003]

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (screeech1)

just tried it, it works

thank you all for the tip. I was looking for this in the manual and missed it

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (desertjd)

I think the Monsoon is fine for the extra money you pay. It will surfise until the real aftermarket beauty begins if you choose so. The thing about the Monsoon is that there is no mid range control. Its all bass or treble, where as no control over the middle stages of music. To truly redefine what music sounds like inside a car, you have to be able to shape every aspect of the music itself.

Once you see the pictures of my future install, you will see that I have only 1 12" DVC sub. I did not want to add a system with 200 watts of highs and mids and 1,400 watts of BASS!!!!!!!!! I am all about SQ then SPL. A lot of people think to have a great system you must have 8 woofers or so. I have seen some real nice 1st place trophy winners with less than 150 watts that sounded awesome. Its all about how its nicely blended together.


MNB

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (MyNetBuddy)

Heh. You bought Rockford stuff for SQ?

BTW, the difference between the Monsoon and non-Monsoon headunits was that the Monsoon GAVE you a MID adjustment, while the stock Premium V system did not.

In response to the original stated question: compare it side to side with almost any other aftermarket headunit and you'll understand. It simply lacks a certain realism in reproduction of sound that destroys the imaging capability when run with any set of speakers. Not to mention that the Monsoon amp is a piece of crap, and distorts at moderately high volumes, destroying your speakers. With an aftermarket amp and stock speakers, you'll reach a much higher volume without distortion (the distortion is due to the shittiness of the amp, not the bottoming out of the speaker).

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (stealthx32)

Mid adjustment where? And yeah, if you spend a little more than $100 a speaker, you might notice a difference.

MNB

<![CDATA[Mid adjustment where? And yeah, if you spend a little more than $100 a speaker, you might notice a difference.

MNB

[Modified by MyNetBuddy, 4:02 PM 1/29/2003]

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (MyNetBuddy)

I had mid adjustment.

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (MyNetBuddy)

I know that the stereos have a bass, treble and mid knobs, but that is no where near what is takes to adjust.... you know what, fuck this. My mother always said you cant argue with a fool.

The hell with this place!!!

MNB

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (MyNetBuddy)

My momma always said life is like a box of chocolates....

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (pickles1107)

Whats the deal with the Monsoon haters?

[/QUOTE]

its not like they dont have enough juice, they do. they just sonud like from the box.

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (speedyVdub)

don't mind mynetbuddy. He's got his own agenda.

The monsoon system just isn't for everyone. It also just happens that most of the people in here are modders, so everything is always being upgraded..including the sound system. I think that if you ask the normal passat driver, they're quite pleased with the sound system.

There are some obvious issues that have been discussed (lack of mids, bad sound stage, etc. etc.), but to each their own.

MNB: All I said was that there was a mid adjusment.

<![CDATA[don't mind mynetbuddy. He's got his own agenda.

The monsoon system just isn't for everyone. It also just happens that most of the people in here are modders, so everything is always being upgraded..including the sound system. I think that if you ask the normal passat driver, they're quite pleased with the sound system.

There are some obvious issues that have been discussed (lack of mids, bad sound stage, etc. etc.), but to each their own.

MNB: All I said was that there was a mid adjusment.

[Modified by julianfang, 4:00 PM 1/29/2003]

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (julianfang)

lack of mids?? are you kidding me?

mine screams so loud I had to cut most bands from 500-4k almost 12db down!

lack of mids: yikes! lack of clean treble and bass maybe; but there's no lack of screaming screaching cat-strangling mids in this car! ;-)

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (linux-works)

Hmmm...I sense a troll? You can't debate the existence of a mid adjustment. IT EXISTS!!! As for spending $100/speaker? Huh? I had 30 watts running to my stock Monsoon speakers, and albeit not wonderful, it sounds pretty damn good. A former member Ron, won the "best sounding Passat contest" at our local NE GTG of 50+ cars, winning against some with sound systems over $3k. Guess what he used? A Alpine CDA-7998 to a JL 300/4 (75w/channel) running stock speakers.

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (stealthx32)

not to hijack this thread, but....

i'm gunning for Ron this year!

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (julianfang)

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (pickles1107)

This only applies to the 2002s....perhaps the 2003s (Jettas/Passats) if it hasn't been fixed.

Play a CD with plenty of bass. Turn the balance control full left and then full right. How's the bass level in the left front speaker compared to the right front speaker? Then compare the volume levels between those two speakers....are they the same? Next....turn your fader full left and full right. Does your fader operate beyond the 10 and 2 oclock positions?

http://www.petitiononline.com/VWofA/petition.html

<![CDATA[This only applies to the 2002s....perhaps the 2003s (Jettas/Passats) if it hasn't been fixed.

Play a CD with plenty of bass. Turn the balance control full left and then full right. How's the bass level in the left front speaker compared to the right front speaker? Then compare the volume levels between those two speakers....are they the same? Next....turn your fader full left and full right. Does your fader operate beyond the 10 and 2 oclock positions?

http://www.petitiononline.com/VWofA/petition.html

[Modified by DanoP, 2:21 PM 1/30/2003]

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (pickles1107)

My attitude about it was this...

if they want me to spend $300 above the non-Monsoon system, why wouldn't I go buy something else with that $$ instead? (like something that can play mp3s...)

Mike

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (Zim)

Right....and why would you spend extra on a defective system.....where there is no bass on the left side of the vehicle, the volume level is decreased on the left compared to the right, and the fader doesn't work properly. Why do people pan the Monsoon system? Because it is defective.....and because it has a harsh, strident sound. I've spent my life around live music and have owned many high end components.....I think its laughable that anyone would consider Monsoon even remotely acceptable. Then again, if you don't know what the real thing sounds like, you have no way of knowing how bad it really is.

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (DanoP)

We got Monsoon in my wife's 2002 Jetta. Note that there is a HUGE difference between the pre-2002 and post-2001 Monsoon systems. So people who say their Monsoon sounds good generally drive 2001 or earlier models with the single DIN Premium V HU. People who gripe the most about the Monsoon are 2002 and 2003 owners with the double DIN. That system is a total POS. I am mad that VW made us pay extra $350 for such a lousy system.

The first time I turned the radio on (still on the dealer's lot) I immediately noticed how bad it sounded, even compared to my Plymouth Neon's stock system. I took it to two separate dealers, the regional factory rep looked at it, I called VWofA and filed a complaint twice about the system, I called BBB Auto Line to try to get it resolved, I made a petition (DanoP mentioned above), and right now I'm waiting for my court date with VWofA to get this issuse resolved (reimbursement for my expenses, roughly $800).

I was never happy with the system until I got a new HU. It's day and night, I can't even tell you the difference! VWofA's stand in the matter has been "radio meets factory standards" all along and they would not budge from it.

I was so disappointed with the Monsoon system, that I just special ordered a 2003 Passat 1.8T GLS Wagon so I would not have to put up with the crappy sound (fully loaded, less Monsoon). Instead of ordering Monsoon for every car, they should add ESP, but I guess VWofA marketing thinks crappy tunes will sell more cars than the added safety of ESP.

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (GTakacs)

"Instead of ordering Monsoon for every car, they should add ESP, but I guess VWofA marketing thinks crappy tunes will sell more cars than the added safety of ESP." .......Gtakacs

If there is only one thing I will ever agree with again in my life, It is that sentence right there. Bravo my friend, Bravo!!!!

MNB

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (MyNetBuddy)

the days of 'please, mr dealer, delete the radio for credit' are long gone.

the scam of forcing the buyer to get stuff he doesn't want is with us for good ;-(

even the politicians do this. they pork barrel stuff that they KNOW no one but them wants, but pkg it together with stuff you NEED and bingo - they forced stuff on you and you basically had no choice.

and even if you try to custom order a car, there are certain things you cannot get unless you get the full glx pkg. and its impossible to get glx and NOT get monsoon.

prices are relative. an extra $300 for the radio isn't such a big deal if you think of it as the car costing $300 more. or the variance in prices from one area of the country or one dealer to another. I know I saved about $300 in the cost of the car by NOT paying 'port fee' and 'floorplan advertising fee'. so thinking of it that way, I didn't pay any more for monsoon ;-)

if it was closer to $1k for the radio, sure, I'd be upset. but $300 is 'noise level' when it comes to new car pricing.

 

Re: Why No Monsoon??? (linux-works)

I agree that $350 on a $20K+ car is 1-2% and isn't much, I just thought that paying $6 a month for something that sounds so bad is too much, and I'd rather spend it on XM or Sirius subscription or get the added safety feature. Also note that a couple of $300 add-ons here and there and you just raised the price of the car substantially.

P.S. How did you get them to waive the port fee? I'm paying $100 over invoice + $167 port fee for my Passat.