Appearance and Ergonomics.....
The Toronto matches the 328s’ interior extremely well as to look like a stock radio rather than an after market unit. It actually looks better than the stock unit, but integrates smoothly into the 328s’ HVAC and OBC rack. The only difference is that the Toronto’s buttons are round or oval versus square on the stock unit. The face plate also has a slight wave in it that raises the side closer to the driver a bit higher than the passenger side. The dot matrix display blends in well with the existing OBC, HVAC, and clock display. The color of the display can be adjusted so that it is very close to the display of the other instruments. You will notice a slight variation in colors of all the dot matrix displays, but the Toronto comes darn close. The display brightness can be adjusted for 16 different brightness levels. I find that leaving it full up seems to be the best. The angle of the display can also be electronically adjusted for best viewing depending on the mounting position. In the 328 the 0 setting seems fine, but in a 318ti where the radio is a bit lower, this feature may come in handy. The Toronto has a night illumination feature that dims the radio display and button lighting when the parking lights or headlights are switched on. The button colors for night illumination appear to match exactly. The night illumination brightness can also be adjusted separately therefore matching the BMWs’ instrument night lighting. I have not seen too many radios that can do this. My experience has been that most radios’ illumination was way too bright no matter if they had an night illumination feature. The display also features large easy to read text and numbers. The display color tends to wash out a bit in bright sunlight, but still remains visible and easy to read. One interesting thing about the display is that it does not have a clock. Of course this is not a problem in the BMW, since it has a separate clock. I think all aftermarket car radios ought to make the clock an option that can switched off anyway. The illumination settings and other settings are kept in what Blaupunkt calls DSC or Direct Software Settings. There is a DSC button that lets you easily access these features. The buttons on the Toronto have a very solid feel and are of a very comfortable size. Most major functions are controlled by two groups of four rocker buttons. This makes for a pretty simple interface once you get used to it. You can operate the major functions of the radio by feel after awhile. Other functions are controlled by a few other dedicated buttons. However, I do miss the rotary volume control of the stock radio.
Overall Sound Quality.....
Ok, I was expecting some improvement in sound quality, but I was not prepared for the amazing metamorphosis of the BMW sound system with the addition of the Blaupunkt Toronto. The first thing I noticed was that the highs actually began to come out of the tweeters, better mids and tighter lower bass. I figured that was worth the investment right there ! Once I had a chance to do some critical listening I really began to appreciate how good this system really is. The system went from being somewhat blase to one of the better non-competition car audio systems I have heard. I conducted my listening tests with the loudness off and tone controls set to flat. The highs which were very subdued before, are now very pleasant without being too strident. The largest improvement comes in the form of outstanding mid-range performance. This allows the system to reproduce very detailed sounding vocals and solo instruments. The sonic detail in this system appears to be very good. I am hearing details in my CDs that I could usually only hear on my home audio system. Due to the better highs, mids, and detailing, this system now has much better presence, a much wider sound stage, and better imaging. If you listen to a good classical or jazz cd you can very clearly hear the hall or studio ambience! There is now deeper bass that helps smooth out the 120hz mid-bass thump by blending in the lower frequencies. It does not get rid of this problem, but does make it less noticeable. This results in a cleaner sounding bass and better detail in percussion instruments. Actually the bass response is much improved, but a sub would always help. Power levels are more than adequate for most music. I have not driven the system into clipping yet because the sound levels get a bit painful before I reach that level. However, I am sure it could be done very easily with some mega 60hz bass pumping disc with the bass controls and loudness controls all the way up. If you are into window rattling bass, a powered sub-woofer would still be required. Ok, so that was sitting still, how was it on the road ? Since the 328 is a fairly quite car everything stayed about the same. The bass control had to be tweaked upwards a bit and the volume up a bit, but everything stayed pretty much the same. Opening the windows and the sunroof required more volume and more tweaking the bass upwards. Of course you will loose some of your low bass in this mode, so a amplified subwoofer would probably come in handy here also. The real treat is now I have a LOUDNESS control. This allows me to turn the audio down to background levels and still enjoy full rich sound. This was just not possible with the stock system. The Toronto allows you adjust the amount of boost that is applied when you select the loudness button. This is very nice because lets say you run your normal bass settings at +2. When you switch on the loudness function at low volumes you may find that the bass is now over boosted. With the adjustable loudness setting, you can tweak how much additional bass is added when the button is pressed. This keeps you from having to readjust the bass setting every time you use the loudness feature. Neat ! Now can have full rich sound and carry on a conversation! Speaking of sound levels, Blau has integrated another neat feature into the Toronto. You know how after a heavy listening session you switch the car off leaving the volume set to the "Rock the House" level? The next morning you turn on the ignition and "Yikes!" you are blasted with sound, spilling your coffee and making the baby cry. Well, the Toronto has a feature that lets you set the turn on volume. Every time you switch the ignition on the radio will default to a preset volume level. There is also a handy mute button nearby in case you need to quickly lower the volume level a bit. This can also be adjusted to your individual tastes. Overall, the sound quality of the Toronto/BMW system is very good.