“Active Sound Design” is a feature that is standard on the majority of new BMW models. It is essentially the sound of your car’s engine being amplified and fed via the speakers within the cabin. It was first introduced on F10 vehicles. According to BMW, this was a required feature because modern vehicles are so well-sound-insulated that the engine can hardly be heard at all. Additionally, the sound coming from the back of your automobile isn’t really helpful because laws require quieter exhaust systems.
BMW had to take action in order to maintain the aural experience or keep it as close to the genuine deal as possible, despite some BMW enthusiasts’ complaints about the way things are done. The Active Sound Design function wasn’t always as “efficient” and “accurate” as it is now. The sound didn’t exactly like the genuine thing; it had a deep, artificial vibe to it. It was unsettling when, for example, some straight-six engines would sound like V8s.
They have improved in recent years, and the video below demonstrates how you can even change the ASD settings by using a sub-menu in the infotainment system. You must access the “Car” menu, scroll all the way down to “General Settings,” select “Engine Sound,” and then alter the sound’s volume. Depending on the driving mode, the car will by default modify the Active Sound Design level. Basically, the sound will change anytime you switch to Sport mode if you don’t fiddle with these settings while driving.
If you don’t like that, you can change the settings manually. Active Sound Design is always available in Sporty mode. Depending on your desire, it can also be Balanced or Reduced. Now move along and configure your car as you choose.
In This Article...
actively created sounds
In order to modify or improve the sound both inside and outside of the car, active sound design is an acoustic technology concept utilized in motor vehicles. To create a simulated vehicle sound, active sound design (ASD) frequently employs active noise control and acoustic augmentation techniques.
The typical applications of ASD range from altering an existing sound to completely producing a new one. There isn’t a single uniform model for ASD, hence several software or hardware solutions may be used depending on the vehicle manufacturer. ASD is known by a variety of names, including Active Sound Control in Acura, Active Sound System in Kia, Soundaktor in Volkswagen, and Acoustic Management System in QNX.
Active noise cancellation (ANC) was first used in vehicles in 1992 when Lotus installed it in the Nissan Bluebird. In order to develop an enhanced ANC system that removed noise from the road, tires, and vehicle chassis, Lotus teamed up with Harman International in 2009. Recent customer demand for vehicles with fuel-efficient and cleaner combustion engines has increased the efficiency of engine systems but decreased their audible appeal. Electric and fuel cell vehicles lack the distinctive sound of a traditional combustion engine and instead function with high-pitched tones. By enhancing the quality of interior and external vehicle sound with ASD, combustion and electrical vehicle producers want to increase customer acceptance of these vehicles.
BMW
BMW has acknowledged the inclusion of ASD in its vehicles and is more transparent about its usage of the technology.
During drives, the Active Sound Design technology from the company plays back recorded engine noises through the car’s speakers.
Drivers won’t likely notice anything because the sound delivery matches variations in engine speed.
Your tame V4 engine may sound like a powerful V6 engine thanks to the Active Sound Design included in BMW vehicles.
BMW’s ASD also makes it easier to determine when to shift gears by emphasizing engine noise.
According to our research, BMW uses the ASD system on models that are designed for performance, such as the i8 hybrid sports car and the M Series.
Additionally, the BMW X3 M40i, X4 M40i, and X6 50i SUV models all include Active Sound Design.
ACTIVE SOUND DESIGN: BIMMERCODE F87
You will be guided through the process of turning off (or on) active sound design in models that have this functionality in this tutorial. In an automobile audio application known as active sound design (ASD), the sound of the engine is produced based on different engine factors like speed and throttle input. To eliminate the unreality of engine noise being filtered into the cabin, most people opt to code this out of the vehicle. ASD can also become bothersome while traveling on the interstate because it tends to produce drone and sound frequencies that interfere with inside-the-car conversations.
You can download the Bimmercode app for iOS or Android if you’d like to help us code this feature. Find out HERE if your automobile is suitable.
The Veepeak Bluetooth Adapter is recommended by the Bimmercode website for bluetooth phone connections.
When your control units have fully loaded, you will see Active Sound Design (ASD 01) at the very top. Choose this group.
Hit the back button (Top Left Blue Arrow) after choosing that, then choose CODE in the top right. The ecu will restart, and it’s common for the car to make some errors when coding. While programming the automobile, keep your hands off everything. Let the car’s coding procedure take place. The screen will then display “Coding Complete.” If you’re all done with this code portion, go back to the main screen and choose “Disconnect.”
When you are done, take the veepeak adapter from the OBD2 port and store it safely. I prefer to keep mine in the glove box so I can continue to code features as needed.
Your car no longer has active sound design; we are done. Deselect the deactivation button or just utilize the backup feature if you want to code it back in. (Bimmercode keeps backups of your vehicle so you can easily undo any coding you make.)
ASD, in my opinion, serves little purpose. Instead of using synthetic engine sounds, I prefer to let my actual engine speak for itself.
Has the BMW X5 active sound?
There are two variations of the CARGRAPHIC Active Sound System for the BMW X5 Diesel: Either as a “Do It Yourself” system that can be installed by anyone, or as a kit that doesn’t require changing the normal exhaust system.
Or as a part of a CARGRAPHIC Sport exhaust system or of CARGRAPHIC Sport rear silencers, which upgrade your BMW X5’s aesthetics and maximize its exhaust flow performance in addition to replacing the factory exhaust components and providing a wonderful sound effect.
How can I tell if the sound in my BMW is active?
The greatest place to start looking for Active Sound Design in a car is the BMW model type. The BMW M240i and BMW M235i are two M performance vehicles that are most frequently affected by fake engine noise. Nowadays, automotive sound simulators are nearly standard equipment on all contemporary BMWs with a performance focus. For instance, the BMW i8, BMW M5 F10, BMW X3 M40i, BMW X4 M40i, or BMW X6 50i SUVs all come standard with ASD.
The Active Sound Exhaust System: What Is It?
The Active Sound Exhaust is a speaker for diesel automobiles made starting in 2009 that produces a rich engine tone. This makes it possible for your car to sound like a V6 or V8 without having to change your exhaust system and making it illegal.
Active Sound Control: What Is It?
Active sound control involves modifying a sound field using electroacoustic transducers, most often loudspeakers.
What does my BMW’s beeping sound mean?
Okay, so this is the second of my three questions. My car occasionally beeps strangely when I’m driving and once while I’m parked.
“beep…beep…beep…bbbeeeepppp…” And that’s it; nothing else appears on the display; nothing at all. Initially, I thought it might be low gasoline, but it’s actually doing it with a full tank of gas. Lane departure? No, it wasn’t that either because it had previously occurred while I was on the phone while seated in the garage. What the heck is this noise?
The hourly reminder is it. It reminds you with brief beeps at the top of each hour. You can disable it. It is in the setting if you have i-drive.
Until I discovered what it was, it drove me mad as well. The following is an excerpt from my manual:
Space Grey/Black Leather 2011 X3 xDrive35i F25, Premium, Cold Weather, BMW Apps, Sirius, and Technology packages are available. BMW Member of CCA (WindyCity Chapter). old automobiles 2007 E90 335i 06 750i E65 (CPO) (bought used but had problematic iDrive so sold it to get 7-series)
The beeps are so weak that at first I believed I was going mad. Once it started happening frequently, I believed I had to include it on my list of issues. It’s stupid to leave the hourly alarm’s default settings on.
I believed my car, which I had only three weeks ago, had a computer or electrical problem, which would have made me the target of my family’s jeers as they all suggested I get the Lexus IS because of its higher reliability.
Thank you so much for letting me know that it was only a setting on iDrive that I might have accidentally changed. I love this thread more than any other.
On a BMW i3, how can you turn off the pedestrian sound?
Strangely, I cannot seem to locate any on/off switch anywhere on my 2015. The owners handbook refers to settings/pedestrian safety (or words to that effect), but once in settings, I see nothing at all related to this, and I don’t really hear much of a sound while in EV mode at a low pace. Would not mind hearing a cool UFO sound similar to the vintage Fisker Karma.
It hurts a lot. In the UK, you can disable it. However, the automobile returns to the hum when you restart it. Would have preferred not to have bothered the speaker. PS90 choice!
figured it out, or at the very least made turning it on and off pretty simple. One of the “radio” buttons can be set up to function as an on/off switch. Simply choose the pedestrian noise function from the settings menu, then press and hold the desired radio button to preset it. Once you’re done, that button will now serve as your on/off switch for the pedestrian noise.
That advice is fantastic! I had no notion that buttons could be set up to serve purposes other than radio.
I just configured one to turn on “hold state of charge.” When I wanted to save the remaining battery power for later, I always found it unpleasant to have to go through Menu – Settings – Auto eDrive – Hold status of charge.
I’ve tried the Pedestrian Warning a number of times – on and off, at low speeds, in quiet places, with the windows down – but I can’t hear a thing. Is it just difficult to hear in a car, or is mine broken?
By the way, I use the buttons for navigational purposes as well, like calling home or other numbers.
I appreciate the advice, but I would much rather have a numeric keypad than the buttons you suggested for using the phone or entering radio station information, etc.
Regarding the pedestrian warning, I’ve also not heard anything. I’m not sure what’s missing.
ChiTown likely meant that he had specific contacts pre-programmed onto the radio keys when he said that. The touchpad works flawlessly for entering phone digits; you don’t even need to look (like you would on a keypad).
In Switzerland, actually. I chose it since it was an open option (like some of the UK guys on here). It can be turned on and off. I simply cannot distinguish between them.