Bose Delivers Power and Control Inside
Ideal Cars Deserve Premium Audio

One of the defining features of the current Maserati range is the engine – a glorious, high-revving 4.2-liter V8. In turn, one of the defining features of the engine is the exhaust note, a spine-tingling symphony which can hardly fail to leave the enthusiast unmoved. Great entertainment – but not for every single journey. Whether making a quick trip to the local mall or cruising on an Interstate, the sound system should match up to all the other high-quality components which adorn the interior of every Maserati.

To ensure audio quality commensurate with the high standard of the Quattroporte, Maserati consulted with Bose.  A company with a long history of defining the cutting edge of audio technology, and with years of experience in the automotive business, Bose was the ideal partner for Maserati when developing the audio system for the Quattroporte. Seiji Kawakami, Theater Manager for Bose’s Special Vehicles Projects, explained the complexities involved in such a joint venture:

“Developing audio systems for cars is both interesting and challenging – the interior of a car is very ‘hostile’, acoustically. Think about positioning speakers in a typical room – if you push them back into a corner, you get much more bass response. Now multiply that complexity many, many times, and that’s what a car interior is like. Overcoming that is all about speaker placement and system tuning, and the earlier you can be involved in the design process, the easier it is. The Quattroporte was launched in 2004 – but we had been working with Maserati since 1999.

“Our aim is, quite simply, to reproduce music as close to how the musician or producer intended it to be heard,” he went on. “That can lead to some interesting discussions – the vehicle engineers prefer not to give up any interior space, and naturally avoid anything which adds weight. We decided a bass enclosure was needed down in the front passenger footwell, so we worked closely with Maserati to have some components relocated to make room. And we overcame the weight issue by using neodymium iron boron magnets, which are ten times more powerful than conventional magnets, so we were able to use much lighter speakers for the same effect.”

The results are remarkable, and well worth all the effort; music is reproduced with a rare crispness and clarity without crossing over into harshness, while bass notes have an authentic ‘kick’, delivered without overwhelming the rest of the music. In addition, speech is clear and easily understood.

Bose is also responsible for the audio system in the new GranTurismo, with the additional innovation of providing the ability to generate virtual ‘surround sound’, a first for Maserati. This was the payoff for all the effort which went into the Quattroporte – having seen and heard the results in the Quattroporte, Maserati’s engineers were more than happy to accommodate the requirements of Bose for the GranTurismo.

“We think there is a remarkably good fit between Bose and Maserati,” said Seiji. “We are both companies which value technological innovation, we both aim to deliver a true high-end, aspirational product, and we are both passionate about what we do. We’re also involved in some interesting co-marketing promotions with Maserati – we see our relationship as a win-win situation.”

Contact your local authorized Maserati dealer to arrange a test drive, which will allow you to experience the wonderful engine for yourself – just be sure to give the Bose audio system an equally thorough work-out.