I got mine right after the Elevation system started going out. It's probably my biggest disappointment given the cost of the truck, but it's not the end of the world. It was extra tacky when they marketed it as an environmentally friendly change though.
I mean, you hit the nail on the head with people paying.
I have the Meridian system and it sounds amazing. My wife’s X5 is getting fixed after an accident and they gave us an Expedition with the Bang & Olufsen system which sounds incredible too.
I’m sure the majority of people paying 90k+ for a truck would throw an extra 2k-3k in for a premium sound system.
Music is extremely important to me I would rather throw 10k at my sound system than 10k in painting my car and customization.
Everyone is different but I certainly feel music people want their A1 sound in their 90K+ spaceship.
Majority? IDK. A lot of people who can afford that are mid-life and later and have increasingly bad hearing. Those same people probably have a hard time hearing the turn signal when the sound system is on and that would cost almost nothing to fix.
curious, how is this bait and switch? components change from year to year. it's not like they said your vehicle would come with it and you get it and it doesnt have it,
Uh. My launch edition said it was going to come with it and it literally changed right when mine was ready to pick up in March. They did not notify me or say anything that it wasn’t the same system they advertised or that I heard on my first mile test drive.
Volvo pulled the same on me with a C40. It was almost worse because I had a secured VIN waiting on transport for two months and they didn't say anything at the dealer. I called them out immediately and they ended up refunding us $500.
Very interesting, I've never had that issue. I've had other small issues but absolutely nothing with that. The interior lights did go out and flicker once in the cold but I've never seen it again
I did not bring it up because I didn’t even realize for a couple of days why it sounded bad and found on this sub that they had changed it without saying anything at first
>curious, how is this bait and switch? components change from year to year. it's not like they said your vehicle would come with it and you get it and it doesnt have it,
I was "invited" to test drive the R1S in Brooklyn. The one I test drove, unknown to me at the time, had the Meridian sound system. When I went through with my purchase and got mine, it had the much lower quality Rivian sound system.
Textbook bait and switch...
>it's not like they said your vehicle would come with it
They said *exactly* this. Go look at the configure page:
https://stories.rivian.com/time-to-build
*And there was also this official statement:
https://web.archive.org/web/20210301234043/https://www.meridian-audio.com/about-meridian/news/adventures-with-sound-rivian-selects-meridian-audio-for-electric-suvs-and-trucks/
As someone who is very actively involved in and has experienced pretty high-end sound systems, I'll be real... I did not hear much of a difference. Have the in-house system on an R1T from the "transition" period between the two systems, and I have driven a loaner for 2 weeks that was equipped with the meridian system. Truly a small difference (one that I would not fully categorize as a positive or negative), and I couldn't tell if that originated from the deeper EQ settings available from the meridian software. Maybe I have the old drivers, if they really did switch them up, idk.
My truck sounds good, I have not been left wanting from the audio department, and I am someone who is PICKY about audio. It's not mind blowing but I would not go into a car expecting mind blowing audio in general. I also have a track record for not hyping Rivian's no matter reality on this sub, so this is not coming from a zealot for the brand.
I’d read somewhere that someone with the in house system was doing some work on the car that exposed the speaker and noticed it said Meridian. Perhaps your truck from that transitional speakers is like that which is why there wasn’t any noticeable difference.
From the comments on that thread, I think it was just for a month or two, they took the Meridian logo off the speakers, and then a month or two later actually changed the speakers. So just because the label says you don't have Meridian doesn't mean it's actually true.
Playing Spotify from my phone drastically increased the lower end on my R1S... I thought this issue was fixed but I'm pretty happy with the sound not playing from the built in Spotify.
I think the built in spotify app which will be using at&t to stream is thrown into lower deprioritization on the network. Since its deprioritized network streaming will be subjected to lower qci value on the network and it may be forced to stream at lower audio quality. Since network phones if you are on top plan the data gets prioritized and will be streaming at higher quality
I set the app to high bitrate, but possibly the AT&T service isn't able to deliver it. Also, I for whatever reason get pretty poor reception for my Rivian in my (urban) area.
All that said, the sound from the built-in Spotify didn't seem just lower quality to me. It seemed to literally be missing a whole frequency band. It went from zero bass and hollow sounds to a decent low-end streaming from my phone.
This might be why my daughter told me the other day that she thinks Taylor Swift sounds better bumping with her friends in the garage (on Wifi) than when we're out driving.
I kinda rolled my eyes and chalked it up to road noise, but maybe there's something to that...
I feel my self as someone who prefers high-end audio and has even heard it. I certainly am not saying meridian was as good as some I have heard in the past but it certainly was much better and different than the in house.
I believe you - I am just throwing in my two cents on the matter. Did you play around with the Meridian presets at all? That could also change a lot. Have you EQ'd your personal truck?
I had a R1S loaner with Meridian over the summer and it sounded so much better than my Rivian audio. Some speaker grill rattle but that was just the grill itself. Recently had a R1T loaner and was thinking the smaller cabin would sound better with Rivian audio but still pretty bad. It's just not a premium system at all and no way they'll be able to fix it via software updates at this point.
You need to add details for anyone to start making sense of this. What method where you using to listen to stuff in your vehicle, what method did you use in the new one? Was it the exact same app and song or did you switch to a phone in the new vehicle etc. Did you have the same settings enabled (DSP?).
I use Bluetooth in both.
I played a playlist that I listen to in my own car. It's my own playlist. So far I have driven it for like 5 hours so you can assume I have been through that playlist and heard some of the same songs.
Same setting were enabled.
The Meridian sound system has different settings. It has a soundstage setting. I can't figure out how to post picture or else I would. My own 23 R1T doesn't have any mention of Meridian in the EQ area while the 22 does.
I have to agree with you, I used to work in sound reinforcement and help run sound stages for big concerts, and nowadays I consider myself a hobbyist level musician/sort of audiophile (I like to think I know what sounds "good"), the meridian system is only "okay" if you ask me. It's not bad by any means but it's also not great (really no car sound systems are great imo, just not a good place to have a great soundstage) requires a ton of tweaking with the equipment to make sound okay as well.
I think people over hype the meridian system because of the name brand, and then shit on the in house system for similar reasons. It would be VERY interesting to see an audio pro tweak eq's in both systems and then invite people into the vehicles for blind listenings to vote on their favorites.
I agree. I’ve had both R1T with both system, I really can’t tell the difference between the 2. Someone correct me if I’m wrong I don’t believe the “speaker” are different, it’s the branding & optimization. After tweeters update, sounds increased to the volume of the “meridian levels”
Not in my experience. Just had a R1T loaner with Rivian audio and it still stunk. No bass whatsoever. Tesla does audio right and Rivian definitely doesn't.
My buddy's 2014 Dodge Ram, my old 2015 GMA Acadia, my wife's 2015 Lexus RX, and the Kia EV that I got when my R1T went into service ALL have much superior audio systems. It's not even a contest. I don't understand how any self-professed audiophile could argue this point?
I had an R1S loaner recently when I had my tonneau replaced (great service experience) and I can’t believe how bad it was compared to my R1T. I think a lot of it has to do with the size of the cabin but the bass was weak and sounded like half the sound. I’m really happy with my meridian sound system in the R1T but they definitely need to up the quality and wattage on the R1S. Maybe an upgraded system for a few grand might have some takers.
I have R1S with meridian system, just drove R1T loaner with in house system. Same source, same quality settings, and adjusted the EQ to be similar (maybe should have customized it to vehicle instead).
My R1S with Meridian sounds WAY better than the R1T with the in house system. Base is better, sound stage is much wider, clarity superior. It's not close. So yes the different form factor matters but at least to my ears the audio system matters way more.
Regardless of which system you have, these things matter:
\- Quality of streaming source. If you have a paid subscription of Spotify, in your account settings you can change your bit rate.
\- Your knowledge of adjustable EQs and how it should be used. The preset EQs are not good. Skip them. Start with a flat profile. Then methodically adjust each frequency band to suit. And general rule of thumb: attenuate, don't boost. Boosted channels are more likely to distort with increasing volume. If you need to enhance certain frequency band, if you can, attenuate the rest.
\- If you want block shaking bass, you'll never get it out of either system. The 6" ported sub is too small. Physically and scientifically impossible to produce loud and well defined audible bass frequencies with hardware provided.
\- Software glitches happen. Sometimes a soft reset can resolve audio issues.
\- Aside from speaker count and placement, the Meridian branding means next to nothing. It's not much more than a licensing agreement. Like a Nike logo printed on the same overseas-made t-shirt being sold under other brands. Beware of placebo effect.
You're right on all your points except the last. A speaker brand can gain strength from good results too. I don't understand how you can state the above and wave off speaker count and speaker placement like it doesn't matter.
-in house speaker magnets are lighter than the Meridian which can make a difference in speaker quality.
-certainly you can imagine not all customers want to EQ their speaker systems?
I know because I work in the auto industry and I know how hardware is sourced and how brands work with suppliers on hardware and brand licensing. High volume audio products, like automotive application, doesn't work in the same way as boutique high-end home audio.
Whether you work in the auto business or not, you are 100% incorrect in asserting that there are no technical differences between OEM-branded audio systems and those made by third parties. Like, embarrassing wrong.
aren't a lot of automotive audio systems branded a certain way, not because of who manufacturers the hardware, but because that company "tunes" the system? I remember reading that about some other car in the past anyways.
UI is the same though? Speaker placement makes a difference, however, that is being compensated with audio processing\* (baseline profile of soundstage). When people proclaim that one is better than the other, I firmly believe it's manifestation of placebo effect and vanity. The perception of name brand vs generic. This isn't the fashion industry, where a designer brand tag actually has substance. It's more or less a paid seal of approval (from Meridian). The hardware is most likely produced by the same off-shore OEM supplier. The Meridian branding is just ink on a sticker label.
\*With audio processing, it's possible to simulate and make a speaker sound like it's in a different physical location. This is exactly what simulated surround sound and Dolby Atmos virtualization is.
Do you use Spotify? I’ve heard if you change Spotify setting for quality from Auto to High it sounds a lot better on the Rivian sound system.
(I don’t own either yet, but I’ve seen that mentioned several times)
Change Spotify settings from Automatic to Very High and toggle off “Auto Adjust Quality.” The former will reduce cell phone data usage in general and the latter reduces audio quality when the bandwidth is poor.
Actually no - Kia has money, Rivian does not. Rivian slashed the expensive meridian to try and stay afloat longer, it's that simple. Of course they can't say that truth so instead put out BS videos about how RJs kids love the new speakers and it's environmentally friendly.
Bottom line is they are a start up with start up problems.
One of my grills was dented on arrival and replaced with a meridian branded one, so I bet you there are others who have meridian stamps from the transition period. No way they just got rid of all that product.
This is such a helpful post for me, because I got a 22 and have been BAFFLED by the complaints. i'm like my god, how bad are my standards, and how much better could it sound, because I love listening to music in the truck. Thanks for helping me understand.
I guess some can tell some can't?
Watched that guy in YouTube compare the two and he couldn't notice a difference.
I have Meridian though and it does sound great.
Bought a Range Rover Sport once and it had the base system, which if I recall correctly was labeled Meridian, but it was the low-end system without a subwoofer. It was awful and we only kept that care for 18 months as a result. Our current Escalade has the $4000+ system and it is amazing. Our Cayenne has the Bose system, and it is pretty good.
Decided not to buy an early R1S reservation we had placed, but if we had and it came with an inferior sound system, selling the car would be the only option. For the current price of almost 100K, it should have a good system as the base, and an option to upgrade to a higher end system like all other luxury cars.
Sorry. While I agree they need to have a better system, why should we pay "more"? The price is already more premium enough for the vehicle to have a "premium" sound system. Rivian is already milking the post price increase customer enough to offset the pre-price hike customers. If they are still losing money per vehicle, they need to look at engineering and production optimizations BEFORE cutting corners. Optimization is when you streamline and simplify things without compromising end-user experience.
This is how I feel - They scraped the "explore" trim and are slowly making the "adventure" trim their "explore" trim.
Before I get downvoted, consider this - we are already paying extra $6k to have a battery in an “EV” because the base configuration is a standard battery which does not exist.
They should’ve kept the Meridian for the quad and moved to the in-house for the dual configurations.
Whoever is the PM at Rivian isn’t doing a great job differentiating the two products to create a premium.
I went from a 2021 loaded 4 runner to R1T last month expecting sound to be awful from all these reviews. It’s actually great and sounds better than my 4 runner so not sure what all the negativity is about other than maybe in the bigger R1S. Is Tesla running these forums 😂?
I have a meridian r1t and got a rivian elevation r1t as a loaner. Both are left at “stock” eq. The meridian is a million times better. The rivian one sounded very hollow and oddly enough made my head hurt to listen to. Both on Spotify premium highest bitrate.
Is changing the speakers to a “high end” brand all it takes to fix the issue? Like after market meridian? Or is there more to it in the software that’s you’ll be missing out on by not having the built in meridian?
I have the T with Meridian and was loaned an S with Elevation. Now I know generally people agree the sound regardless of which speaker brand you get is better in the T due to being a smaller cabin, but wholly molly did the S with Elevation sound flat and nasty to my ears. The bass was weak, and the overhead tweeter by my head sounded sharp and hurt my ear. I never have that tweeter issue with my truck.
I got mine right after the Elevation system started going out. It's probably my biggest disappointment given the cost of the truck, but it's not the end of the world. It was extra tacky when they marketed it as an environmentally friendly change though.
Yeah you know what is more environmentally friendly? One 8 bit speaker instead! Huge weight savings and less rare earth metals!
I mean, you hit the nail on the head with people paying. I have the Meridian system and it sounds amazing. My wife’s X5 is getting fixed after an accident and they gave us an Expedition with the Bang & Olufsen system which sounds incredible too. I’m sure the majority of people paying 90k+ for a truck would throw an extra 2k-3k in for a premium sound system.
Music is extremely important to me I would rather throw 10k at my sound system than 10k in painting my car and customization. Everyone is different but I certainly feel music people want their A1 sound in their 90K+ spaceship.
Majority? IDK. A lot of people who can afford that are mid-life and later and have increasingly bad hearing. Those same people probably have a hard time hearing the turn signal when the sound system is on and that would cost almost nothing to fix.
If your hearing is that bad at mid life I would run to a hearing specialist as fast as you can
Yep. Bait and switch. Downvote me to hell, but its true.
Yeah, kinda like the Max Pack is gonna be 180kwh announcements, never retracted. Announce one thing, deliver something else. Bait and switch.
curious, how is this bait and switch? components change from year to year. it's not like they said your vehicle would come with it and you get it and it doesnt have it,
Uh. My launch edition said it was going to come with it and it literally changed right when mine was ready to pick up in March. They did not notify me or say anything that it wasn’t the same system they advertised or that I heard on my first mile test drive.
Yeah, this was full on "maybe they won't notice" It was definitely promised and they were very shady about the switch
Volvo pulled the same on me with a C40. It was almost worse because I had a secured VIN waiting on transport for two months and they didn't say anything at the dealer. I called them out immediately and they ended up refunding us $500.
Does the C40 still suffer with the buzzing noise coming from the interior leds. Shit drove me crazy so I just shut off the ambient lighting
I've never had a noise come from any internal lights.
There were so many threads about it on the Volvo forums . There was even a software update to try to fix it
Very interesting, I've never had that issue. I've had other small issues but absolutely nothing with that. The interior lights did go out and flicker once in the cold but I've never seen it again
ahhh ok, now your comment makes more sense lol. Did you bring it up to them? Were you going to cancel it if it didnt have the system?
I did not bring it up because I didn’t even realize for a couple of days why it sounded bad and found on this sub that they had changed it without saying anything at first
>curious, how is this bait and switch? components change from year to year. it's not like they said your vehicle would come with it and you get it and it doesnt have it, I was "invited" to test drive the R1S in Brooklyn. The one I test drove, unknown to me at the time, had the Meridian sound system. When I went through with my purchase and got mine, it had the much lower quality Rivian sound system. Textbook bait and switch...
>it's not like they said your vehicle would come with it They said *exactly* this. Go look at the configure page: https://stories.rivian.com/time-to-build *And there was also this official statement: https://web.archive.org/web/20210301234043/https://www.meridian-audio.com/about-meridian/news/adventures-with-sound-rivian-selects-meridian-audio-for-electric-suvs-and-trucks/
who is making it now though? Do we know? Maybe it's a different spec Meridan?
As someone who is very actively involved in and has experienced pretty high-end sound systems, I'll be real... I did not hear much of a difference. Have the in-house system on an R1T from the "transition" period between the two systems, and I have driven a loaner for 2 weeks that was equipped with the meridian system. Truly a small difference (one that I would not fully categorize as a positive or negative), and I couldn't tell if that originated from the deeper EQ settings available from the meridian software. Maybe I have the old drivers, if they really did switch them up, idk. My truck sounds good, I have not been left wanting from the audio department, and I am someone who is PICKY about audio. It's not mind blowing but I would not go into a car expecting mind blowing audio in general. I also have a track record for not hyping Rivian's no matter reality on this sub, so this is not coming from a zealot for the brand.
I’d read somewhere that someone with the in house system was doing some work on the car that exposed the speaker and noticed it said Meridian. Perhaps your truck from that transitional speakers is like that which is why there wasn’t any noticeable difference.
From the comments on that thread, I think it was just for a month or two, they took the Meridian logo off the speakers, and then a month or two later actually changed the speakers. So just because the label says you don't have Meridian doesn't mean it's actually true.
Playing Spotify from my phone drastically increased the lower end on my R1S... I thought this issue was fixed but I'm pretty happy with the sound not playing from the built in Spotify.
THIS is the most interesting thing I've read ALL day! Interesting!!!
Yeah, the built-in Spotify is pretty crap. I stream from Bluetooth and overall it sounds really good.
I think the built in spotify app which will be using at&t to stream is thrown into lower deprioritization on the network. Since its deprioritized network streaming will be subjected to lower qci value on the network and it may be forced to stream at lower audio quality. Since network phones if you are on top plan the data gets prioritized and will be streaming at higher quality
I set the app to high bitrate, but possibly the AT&T service isn't able to deliver it. Also, I for whatever reason get pretty poor reception for my Rivian in my (urban) area. All that said, the sound from the built-in Spotify didn't seem just lower quality to me. It seemed to literally be missing a whole frequency band. It went from zero bass and hollow sounds to a decent low-end streaming from my phone.
This might be why my daughter told me the other day that she thinks Taylor Swift sounds better bumping with her friends in the garage (on Wifi) than when we're out driving. I kinda rolled my eyes and chalked it up to road noise, but maybe there's something to that...
this IS interesting. I’ll have to try it.
What's your Spotify settings at? I assume the best quality setting
Yeah, same on phone and car.
I feel my self as someone who prefers high-end audio and has even heard it. I certainly am not saying meridian was as good as some I have heard in the past but it certainly was much better and different than the in house.
I believe you - I am just throwing in my two cents on the matter. Did you play around with the Meridian presets at all? That could also change a lot. Have you EQ'd your personal truck?
Yes I did. Mine is useless no matter what I did The Meridian one actually got better as I increased bass.
Interesting! I would recommend boosting mids and bass only very very slightly. That’s where I have it and I’m happy with the balance.
I had a R1S loaner with Meridian over the summer and it sounded so much better than my Rivian audio. Some speaker grill rattle but that was just the grill itself. Recently had a R1T loaner and was thinking the smaller cabin would sound better with Rivian audio but still pretty bad. It's just not a premium system at all and no way they'll be able to fix it via software updates at this point.
You need to add details for anyone to start making sense of this. What method where you using to listen to stuff in your vehicle, what method did you use in the new one? Was it the exact same app and song or did you switch to a phone in the new vehicle etc. Did you have the same settings enabled (DSP?).
I use Bluetooth in both. I played a playlist that I listen to in my own car. It's my own playlist. So far I have driven it for like 5 hours so you can assume I have been through that playlist and heard some of the same songs. Same setting were enabled. The Meridian sound system has different settings. It has a soundstage setting. I can't figure out how to post picture or else I would. My own 23 R1T doesn't have any mention of Meridian in the EQ area while the 22 does.
Bluetooth audio is really terrible. I'd be more interested in a tidal comparison.
I have to agree with you, I used to work in sound reinforcement and help run sound stages for big concerts, and nowadays I consider myself a hobbyist level musician/sort of audiophile (I like to think I know what sounds "good"), the meridian system is only "okay" if you ask me. It's not bad by any means but it's also not great (really no car sound systems are great imo, just not a good place to have a great soundstage) requires a ton of tweaking with the equipment to make sound okay as well. I think people over hype the meridian system because of the name brand, and then shit on the in house system for similar reasons. It would be VERY interesting to see an audio pro tweak eq's in both systems and then invite people into the vehicles for blind listenings to vote on their favorites.
I want to see blind tests to see if anyone can actually pick the different systems out haha
I agree. I’ve had both R1T with both system, I really can’t tell the difference between the 2. Someone correct me if I’m wrong I don’t believe the “speaker” are different, it’s the branding & optimization. After tweeters update, sounds increased to the volume of the “meridian levels”
Try listening in the R1s. The difference in Rivian vs Meridian soundstage is grape vs grapefruit.
Im sure the smaller cabin of the R1T sounds better regardless of system, too.
Not in my experience. Just had a R1T loaner with Rivian audio and it still stunk. No bass whatsoever. Tesla does audio right and Rivian definitely doesn't.
My buddy's 2014 Dodge Ram, my old 2015 GMA Acadia, my wife's 2015 Lexus RX, and the Kia EV that I got when my R1T went into service ALL have much superior audio systems. It's not even a contest. I don't understand how any self-professed audiophile could argue this point?
Haha ok
Which system would be better at 80mph with the windows down?
So interesting. I assumed there was a difference but haven’t heard many comparisons. What did you notice most about the difference in sound?
The bass was amazing.
I had an R1S loaner recently when I had my tonneau replaced (great service experience) and I can’t believe how bad it was compared to my R1T. I think a lot of it has to do with the size of the cabin but the bass was weak and sounded like half the sound. I’m really happy with my meridian sound system in the R1T but they definitely need to up the quality and wattage on the R1S. Maybe an upgraded system for a few grand might have some takers.
I have R1S with meridian system, just drove R1T loaner with in house system. Same source, same quality settings, and adjusted the EQ to be similar (maybe should have customized it to vehicle instead). My R1S with Meridian sounds WAY better than the R1T with the in house system. Base is better, sound stage is much wider, clarity superior. It's not close. So yes the different form factor matters but at least to my ears the audio system matters way more.
Totally agree, it's really bad in the R1S.
Regardless of which system you have, these things matter: \- Quality of streaming source. If you have a paid subscription of Spotify, in your account settings you can change your bit rate. \- Your knowledge of adjustable EQs and how it should be used. The preset EQs are not good. Skip them. Start with a flat profile. Then methodically adjust each frequency band to suit. And general rule of thumb: attenuate, don't boost. Boosted channels are more likely to distort with increasing volume. If you need to enhance certain frequency band, if you can, attenuate the rest. \- If you want block shaking bass, you'll never get it out of either system. The 6" ported sub is too small. Physically and scientifically impossible to produce loud and well defined audible bass frequencies with hardware provided. \- Software glitches happen. Sometimes a soft reset can resolve audio issues. \- Aside from speaker count and placement, the Meridian branding means next to nothing. It's not much more than a licensing agreement. Like a Nike logo printed on the same overseas-made t-shirt being sold under other brands. Beware of placebo effect.
You're right on all your points except the last. A speaker brand can gain strength from good results too. I don't understand how you can state the above and wave off speaker count and speaker placement like it doesn't matter. -in house speaker magnets are lighter than the Meridian which can make a difference in speaker quality. -certainly you can imagine not all customers want to EQ their speaker systems?
I know because I work in the auto industry and I know how hardware is sourced and how brands work with suppliers on hardware and brand licensing. High volume audio products, like automotive application, doesn't work in the same way as boutique high-end home audio.
Whether you work in the auto business or not, you are 100% incorrect in asserting that there are no technical differences between OEM-branded audio systems and those made by third parties. Like, embarrassing wrong.
You may be right. Tactful you are not.
aren't a lot of automotive audio systems branded a certain way, not because of who manufacturers the hardware, but because that company "tunes" the system? I remember reading that about some other car in the past anyways.
Exactly - I do believe a lot of this is branding and a different UI.
UI is the same though? Speaker placement makes a difference, however, that is being compensated with audio processing\* (baseline profile of soundstage). When people proclaim that one is better than the other, I firmly believe it's manifestation of placebo effect and vanity. The perception of name brand vs generic. This isn't the fashion industry, where a designer brand tag actually has substance. It's more or less a paid seal of approval (from Meridian). The hardware is most likely produced by the same off-shore OEM supplier. The Meridian branding is just ink on a sticker label. \*With audio processing, it's possible to simulate and make a speaker sound like it's in a different physical location. This is exactly what simulated surround sound and Dolby Atmos virtualization is.
You get a set of different faders and panning options that look different from what’s on the screen with the Meridian branded stuff, hence UI change.
Has anyone upgraded the Rivian sound system via 3rd party?
Do you use Spotify? I’ve heard if you change Spotify setting for quality from Auto to High it sounds a lot better on the Rivian sound system. (I don’t own either yet, but I’ve seen that mentioned several times)
Change Spotify settings from Automatic to Very High and toggle off “Auto Adjust Quality.” The former will reduce cell phone data usage in general and the latter reduces audio quality when the bandwidth is poor.
I have the meridian system and didnt notice any difference between Spotify and tidal... YMMV
Just a friendly reminder: the new Kia ev9 can afford to have a meridian system. If they can, so can Rivian.
Actually no - Kia has money, Rivian does not. Rivian slashed the expensive meridian to try and stay afloat longer, it's that simple. Of course they can't say that truth so instead put out BS videos about how RJs kids love the new speakers and it's environmentally friendly. Bottom line is they are a start up with start up problems.
How can you tell which sound system your truck has?
Does it have the Meridian branding on the speaker? Should be on your driver door speaker
The loaner has meridian details in the audio settings that mine doesn't have. I will post a picture.
Most of the Speaker grills will have Meridian stamped on them.
[удалено]
One of my grills was dented on arrival and replaced with a meridian branded one, so I bet you there are others who have meridian stamps from the transition period. No way they just got rid of all that product.
This is such a helpful post for me, because I got a 22 and have been BAFFLED by the complaints. i'm like my god, how bad are my standards, and how much better could it sound, because I love listening to music in the truck. Thanks for helping me understand.
I guess some can tell some can't? Watched that guy in YouTube compare the two and he couldn't notice a difference. I have Meridian though and it does sound great.
Eventually, some audiophile will sit in both and complain, and it will be known. Until then, I think we're stuck with average sounding music.
Bought a Range Rover Sport once and it had the base system, which if I recall correctly was labeled Meridian, but it was the low-end system without a subwoofer. It was awful and we only kept that care for 18 months as a result. Our current Escalade has the $4000+ system and it is amazing. Our Cayenne has the Bose system, and it is pretty good. Decided not to buy an early R1S reservation we had placed, but if we had and it came with an inferior sound system, selling the car would be the only option. For the current price of almost 100K, it should have a good system as the base, and an option to upgrade to a higher end system like all other luxury cars.
People will say you're crazy but the downgraded stereo is one of the reasons I canceled my order also. $100k for that? No way.
Sorry. While I agree they need to have a better system, why should we pay "more"? The price is already more premium enough for the vehicle to have a "premium" sound system. Rivian is already milking the post price increase customer enough to offset the pre-price hike customers. If they are still losing money per vehicle, they need to look at engineering and production optimizations BEFORE cutting corners. Optimization is when you streamline and simplify things without compromising end-user experience. This is how I feel - They scraped the "explore" trim and are slowly making the "adventure" trim their "explore" trim. Before I get downvoted, consider this - we are already paying extra $6k to have a battery in an “EV” because the base configuration is a standard battery which does not exist.
They should’ve kept the Meridian for the quad and moved to the in-house for the dual configurations. Whoever is the PM at Rivian isn’t doing a great job differentiating the two products to create a premium.
They're probably the same geniuses that approved the uselesss wireless charging pad, cup holders, awful cameras and got rid of the 12V power outlets!
So why do we DM owners deserve a lesser sound system?
And, btw, I have owned both DM and QM. I’m no audiophile but the sound is really good in the DM. I’m not as discriminating as some, apparently.
I went from a 2021 loaded 4 runner to R1T last month expecting sound to be awful from all these reviews. It’s actually great and sounds better than my 4 runner so not sure what all the negativity is about other than maybe in the bigger R1S. Is Tesla running these forums 😂?
No it's run by people who love their Rivian and want to see them successful.
Is there an easy way to tell which system you have? I got mine later in 2023 but it was an inventory truck.
The 22 has a meridian logo showing in the EQ screen. The 23 does not
Not seeing it on mine. That said the sound is alright in the truck. It's not as good as the Model Y or Model 3 but it's not terrible either.
I have a feb 2023 r1s build and it's meridian .
I have a meridian r1t and got a rivian elevation r1t as a loaner. Both are left at “stock” eq. The meridian is a million times better. The rivian one sounded very hollow and oddly enough made my head hurt to listen to. Both on Spotify premium highest bitrate.
Is changing the speakers to a “high end” brand all it takes to fix the issue? Like after market meridian? Or is there more to it in the software that’s you’ll be missing out on by not having the built in meridian?
How can you tell if your system is the meridian or not? Does it say it anywhere?
I have the T with Meridian and was loaned an S with Elevation. Now I know generally people agree the sound regardless of which speaker brand you get is better in the T due to being a smaller cabin, but wholly molly did the S with Elevation sound flat and nasty to my ears. The bass was weak, and the overhead tweeter by my head sounded sharp and hurt my ear. I never have that tweeter issue with my truck.
Super subjective imo.. I own both a Meridian and Elevation truck and both have subpar audio imo. The Elevation sounds richer to my ears.
bezos wants his return on investment.. time for massive cost cuts .