emode

Got caught in a rain storm with the 991 and discovered the next day that I have no sound from the stereo or bluetooth phone, voice command, etc. Tried pulling the fuse to the amp to trigger a 'reset' to no avail.

Bring the car to my dealer and find out my Burmester amp shorted out because a small amount of water got into it due to the 'body seals omission issue' affecting early 991s- mine is one with a build date of 12/17/11.

3 days in the shop to install the WC25 'campaign' called 'Reworking body seal' and of course install a new Burmester amp (they also re-programmed the PDK per campaign WC27).

Ok- here's the strange part: I get the car back and upon testing the audio system with dts 5.1 source material I had extensively listened to prior to the blown amp, I realize that it sounds like an entirely different system! The clarity and detail of the Burmester system was always outstanding, but I had to admit that the bass was very subdued and the highs, especially vocals, had a tendency to be overly 'bright' and shrill, almost to an intolerable degree depending on the music.

After the new amp was installed, the detail and clarity remain, but now are balanced by full and robust bass that with some 5.1 material (e.g. Pink Floyd DSOTM 5.1 mix) literally rattles the car. This is no subtle difference- it's very dramatic, as if the sub-woofer was never on before and is now active.

This all leaves me wondering what happened. Did the factory never connect the subwoofer leads in the first place? Did they upgrade the amp since the initial builds? Was my amp partially blown all along in a way that only affected the bass or subwoofer?

I'd love to know if anyone else out there has experienced anything like this.

chuckbdc

What seal was replaced or added? Any details on what was entailed? i have an early car and am about to get it done.

Cpa4S

interesting i also have an early build.

i would agree that some vocal highs can be a little sharp. will have to check with my dealor

emode

Per the service receipt I received, the WC25 'Reworking body seal' campaign includes the following:

1) Paint touch-up application
2) Sealing, Terrafoam (2)
3) Lid (2)
4) Stopper (4)
5) Rubber Sleeve (1)
6) Cover, Shock Mount (1)
7) Repair Kit Adhesive (1)
8) Sprayable Sem Sealer (1)

According to the service manager, all of these parts come together as a kit for this 'campaign' along with instructions on the install. I didn't actually speak to the technician who performed the work, but the manager said the work involved multiple seals, mainly in the front end of the car. As I mentioned in the original post, this took 3 days in my case. When I picked up the car, they advised me not to get the car wet for 2 more days to allow the sealant to 'cure' (they didn't wash the car after this service as they would typically do).

chuckbdc

Thanks for the update.

Rocket_boy

Hmmmm, this is a good one. Since Burmester (and Bose?) both use a front firewall cavity for a sub "enclosure" (my understanding) I'm wondering if both amp and sub are affected by this body cavity sealing problem? Maybe water and/or air affected the system.

This would definitely explain a good portion of your improvement. A sub-woofer system designed for a sealed cavity is very much different compared to one designed to be vented, and given the Burmester amp I believe has some active equalization it could have messed with it on all levels.

Good that all seems to have worked out,.....also glad I waited a bit before jumping on a 991. Hopefully all is sorted now in the production line ;-)

skinzy

Interesting thread. My system has always had what I would call a lack of integration of sub with mids (possible crossover issue). It is just a little too dominate. The Burmester is a multichannel amp. It likely has a dedicated sub class D amp that may have failed early as a result of water or DOA.

emode

Thanks Rocket_boy- I hadn't thought of this possibility but it makes a lot of sense. If the sub enclosure is supposed to act as a resonance chamber of sorts but was never sealed properly, you would expect attenuated bass response. I actually now have too much bass with some 5.1 dts recordings so I'm wondering if the recall repair created more resonance vs. the originally intended spec.

Where did you read about this part of the system being in the front firewall cavity? It would be great to see a schematic of the subwoofer system. Maybe I can try contacting Burmester.

Rocket_boy

Good questions,...the sub arrangement has been documented a few places, but from the configurator....

Burmester® Audio Package
Includes:

Burmester® High-End Surround Sound System
Burmester® High-End Surround Sound System with a total output of 821 Watts and 12 independently controlled speakers, incl. a 300 Watt active subwoofer with class D amplifier integrated into the body, exclusive components from high-end audio systems such as special ribbon tweeters (Air Motion Transformers ? AMT) and an acoustically effective surface area of 207.7 sq. in.

emode

Wow- I can't believe it's been over 2 years since by original post! I wanted to post an update to my issue with hyper-active (door rattling) bass in my 991 Burmester system (see original post for details).

I was finally able to convince the dealer there was an issue by A/B testing the same source material in my car vs. a new Burmester-equipt 991 Turbo in their showroom. The service manager was totally convinced and immediately ordered a replacement amp and speakers. Bottom line: it was the amp- after replacement, the original fabulous sonic qualities of the Burmester system are magically back. Not only is the thunderous bass gone, but the mids and highs are significantly crisper and more open. I actually hadn't realized how much veiling had come along with the over-active bass.

I'm thinking the original replacement amp must have been defective, perhaps malfunctioning crossovers. My only regret is not pushing the dealer harder to investigate the issue sooner. Anyway, it's great to have the system back in working order- I highly recommend it over the Bose, especially for those into audio. If you're on the fence, listen to the system with some good dts-encoded, Dolby 5.1 or DVD-audio material. I recommend the Eric Clapton MTV Unplugged Deluxe DVD in 5.1 DTS - you'll be sold on the first track (signe)....

emode

Wow- I can't believe it's been over 2 years since by original post! I wanted to post an update to my issue with hyper-active (door rattling) bass in my 991 Burmester system (see original post for details).

I was finally able to convince the dealer there was an issue by A/B testing the same source material in my car vs. a new Burmester-equipt 991 Turbo in their showroom. The service manager was totally convinced and immediately ordered a replacement amp and speakers. Bottom line: it was the amp- after replacement, the original fabulous sonic qualities of the Burmester system are magically back. Not only is the thunderous bass gone, but the mids and highs are significantly crisper and more open. I actually hadn't realized how much veiling had come along with the over-active bass.

I'm thinking the original replacement amp must have been defective, perhaps malfunctioning crossovers. My only regret is not pushing the dealer harder to investigate the issue sooner. Anyway, it's great to have the system back in working order- I highly recommend it over the Bose, especially for those into audio. If you're on the fence, listen to the system with some good dts-encoded, Dolby 5.1 or DVD-audio material. I recommend the Eric Clapton MTV Unplugged Deluxe DVD in 5.1 DTS - you'll be sold on the first track (signe)....

pvr

I have that DVD, but was not aware you could play it in the car? I was just planning to put it on my iPod but if the DVD would work straight I would give that a go first.

lunarx

Where is that amp located?
Is it the one above the passenger side fuse box?
Its crazy if water got in there.

emode

Yes- DVDs (including DVD-Audio discs) play fine. With some DVDs, like Eric Clapton Unplugged Deluxe Ed., you have to press 'Option' after the disc loads and change the DVD Audio Format to DTS 5.1 because the default is PCM 2.0. Enjoy!

emode

The Burmester amp is under the passenger seat- water got in there because I had one of the first 991 builds where they had omitted certain body seals.