Has anyone had a chance to listen and compare to the Bose Beta and the Beta II? What did you think? I was curious as to whether MB improved the sound quality in the new S-class. Any comments would be appreciated. . . Thanks

Did the original Beta system in the 140 go unchanged from 92 until 99 ? On a visit to a local Mercedes dealer I heard the system of a 93 300SE and it was clearly superior to the one I heard on a 95 S320. Any idea why the newer car wouldn't sound as good as the older one ? Thanks

As I owned a 93 300 SE and eventually traded it in for a 94 S500 I know exactly why: When Mercedes changed the radio for 94 they changed the EQ curve as well. My first radio sounded like crap. There was hardly any bass response and tons of treble. The regional rep told me they'd changed the eq curve because customers were complaining that there was too much bass in the earlier Bose Beta stereos.

I went through about five different head units and 2 amps before I gave up. The stereo in the CLK sounds ten times better than in my S and I've got 3 more speakers and a larger amp.

Is there a seperate EQ in the system or is the EQ curve controled by the amps ? THANKS

If I'm not mistaken, the EQ is controlled by the amp. The system automatically changes the curve depending on the type of music being played. My dealer was very helpful in trying to rectify the situation. First, they switched out the original radio with one from an S on the lot. When that didn't solve the problem, the regional rep got us a modified radio that supposedly was "mapped" with the EQ settings from the earlier Beta stereo.

What happened was interesting: The stereo sounded like the 92-93 systems for a few minutes, then the it sounded horrible after that. My suspicion is that the amp somehow overrode the head unit's modified settings.

Eventually I waited about two years and got it replaced for a final time before the warranty ran out. The one I have now sounds the best of all of them but still nowhere near the 92-93's.

Was the warranty you mentioned the original factory one or was it a Starmark ? If a radio that was "mapped" with the older settings was put it and the amps were also set to the older settings do you think the system would sound as good as the 92 and 93 system ? THANKS

I bought the car brand new and this all occurred within the original warranty period. As far as mapping the amp, I'd asked and was told it was "extremely difficult" to do with the amp. It was apparantly easier to try with the head unit.
Basically, it wasn't worth their time to reprogram one amp one customer.

ibeaver, When you got your radio replaced for the final time why do you think there was an improvment ? I would think that when you put in the radio and the amp overrode its settings that it should sound just like the original radio. Did you change something else in the system to improve it ? THANKS

By the time a I got my final radio it was in 97 and by that time, IMHO, the radios sounded somewhat better. I think the amp may have overridden the modified radio because the head unit's settings were possibly not compatible with the amp. I really don't know exactly what the cause was. That's just my own guess.

But the head unit I have in my car now is the better sounding of all of the ones I've had in my car. I think in general, after the redesign of the head unit for the 94-on S classes, the stereo has never sounded as good as the 92-93's.

Are you in the market for an S or do you already have one?

I own a 420 SEL (W126) and I will buy a newer S-class but don't know which year to go with. Do you have any sales literature or catalogs on the 140 that can help me out ? THANKS

In my opinion, the 94-on S is a more reliable vehicle. Although the stereo isn't as good, the climate control system is much more reliable and many of the components were updated (ie. door closing system, suspension)

You will be much happier with one of these later models. As I owned a 93 300SE, I can tell you that you don't want one!


Regards

Thanks for the info.

Hello Everyone,
I have a 92 500SEL (W140) in which the tape deck stopped playing and the left front and rear speakers stop working from time to time. I switched the left and right outputs from the radio unit in the trunk going to the amplifier to see if the amp was part of the speakers not working. It seems that the left channels are out in the amp. Bose does not repair them they just say send them $600 and they will send you another amp. Does anyone know how to get the head unit out of the dash? I can send it to Becker for an exchange unit for $120.

Thanks

ibeaver,
I found out that the W140 Bose sound system has a separate EQ and that must mean that the EQ curve is not controlled by the amps. Changing out the EQ with an older style one from 92-93 should make the system perform better with more bass response. What do you think ?

If it is possible to have someone re-program the EQ settings in the head unit with the 92-93 settings then you might have luck.

However, you most likely will not be able replace the 94-on head unit with the 92-93 because when I asked I was told it wouldn't work due to the difference of the newer model. (Wiring harness incompatibilities, etc.)