1995 W124 brochure says...

'active base sound system' is
- standard on E300 diesel and E320 sedan/cabrio/wagon,
- not available on E320 coupe & E420 sedan,

'high performance sound system' is
- standard on E320 coupe and E420 sedan,
- optional on E300 diesel and E320 sedan,
- not available on E320 cabrio/wagon.

What components do these systems consist of / differ by? Thanks.

I've had 2 '95 W124's (E300D's) and both number code plates decoded the car as having the "active bass" type system. I wasn't aware that there even was any other type of system. I'll be interested to see the response, if any.

Rgds,
Chris W.
'95 E300D

I have the "active bass" system in my E320 wagon: 6 total speakers. Two on top of the dash, made out of paper with foam surrounds and whizzer tweeters built in. A little over 5" in diameter. Two more small 3-4" paper mid-range speakers in the armrest of the rear doors behind a grille. The "active bass" part of the system are two 6.5" woofers located in the bottom panel of each front door. These are better quality speakers in their own plastic housings. In the rear underfloor compartment of the wagon is an amplifier which looks decent sized and drives those two woofers only. End result: a system that basically sounds like garbage. There is never enough bass. Turn up the volume and you get plenty of distortion. There is little musical accuracy to the system. I think the only problems with the system could be resolved by better speakers and perhaps more powerful amps. The head unit is nice enough--it has an auto-seeking weatherband, CD changer controls and prewiring, auto speed-controlled volume, Dolby B & C noise reduction and full-logic cassette. This unit is also used in the S-Class sedans of around the same years 94-97? and is (I believe) the same one in the "Hi-Performance" E-Class system. My guess is very few cars have the better system, just like very, very few W124 E-Classes have the factory-offered switchblade key / keyless entry, or auto-dimming rearview mirror.
Probably the only difference between the high performance stereo and the active bass stereo is better (maybe Bose like the S-Class) speakers and amps.

I am embarassed to have such a lousy system in such a nice car. My 92 Range Rover has an amazing stereo (a/d/s -Range Rover, all seperate amps, wooden subwoofer enclosure, port tuned, liquid-cooled tweeters, 6-CD changer, Weatherband, etc) all factory in 1992. 120 full-bandwith watts RMS; very little T.H.D.

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2002 Mercedes-Benz E320 4Matic
1995 Mercedes-Benz E320 Wagon
2005 Land Rover LR3 V8 SE
1999 Audi A8 4.2L quattro

I believe that the higher-end sound system has bose speakers. My 1995 E420 has, according to the dealer's spec sheet, Option 810 "Bose Premium Sound System". The radio looks like any other 1995 W124, but my guess is that the speakers are better. The bass response is quite good.

Troy
1995 E420 87k

Lucky you. Where are the speakers located in the car?
I wonder if its possible to retrofit them into the E320?
Sound improvement would be quite nice.

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2002 Mercedes-Benz E320 4Matic
1995 Mercedes-Benz E320 Wagon
2005 Land Rover LR3 V8 SE
1999 Audi A8 4.2L quattro

I hear you guys. Yesterday I took a spin in a 98 S320 which has i think a 11 speaker BOSE system. I think it has component set in front doors. (highs, mids, low) and 4 speakers on rear deck. I think it may also have speakers in dash. Anyways, that system is very nice. Doesn't distort and the sound quality is very good. I wish our W124 E300D came with a similar set up. Currently the E300D has the active base system.


I read few threads about W124s and it seems like its hard to upgrade the speakers due to odd sizes etc..

My 1995 E420 has speakers in the dash, doors, and the rear shelf. I believe that it is a 10 speaker system - so the speakers in the doors and rear are probably mid-low and high-low setup.

I've seen people selling them on e-bay before. It might be as easy as plugging the speakers in - I don't believe that there's any separate crossover for the Bose unit - should be all integral to the speakers.

Troy
1995 E420 87k