Dancing robots in the hall, influencers on stage at the football tournament on the games console: The new era has also clearly dawned in the automotive industry. While the German manufacturers, who until recently were still proud, are already fueling speculation in some media about upcoming funerals, the 30-year-old Chinese brand BYD is celebrating a kind of birthday party, celebrating its sales successes and going one better: With the Sealion 7 electric SUV, the much-acclaimed electric brand wants to take Germany by storm. As far as the music at the party is concerned, I can still benefit from my old-school knowledge. BYD is providing the number 7 sea lion with a Confidence sound system from Dynaudio. I have this Danish brand to thank for the short but unforgettable test drive in the fastest car in the world at the time, the 1001 hp Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport.
Very fitting, then, that this latest Dynaudio test drive will allow me to reduce my CO2 footprint back to child’s size. Or rather, I could. Because in Germany, this vegan form of transportation is not going to happen at the moment. Thanks to the dark doldrums and the infinite wisdom of our energy planning, we Germans emit 343.96 grams of CO2 per kilowatt hour when producing electricity, according to Statista. (For comparison: France was at 44.13 g/kWh). This makes us one of the worst performers in Europe. And – shock horror – we will also have to brace ourselves for some headwinds and bad news in the production of vehicles that convert this energy into transportation.
Surprisingly cool
And that’s because, unfortunately, this thing is good. The more the reviewer in me feels pleasure at the wheel of this Chinese electric car, the more the inhabitant of the hitherto leading car nation in me fears what is rolling towards our key industry from the Middle Kingdom. 530 hp from two electric motors built deep into the chassis, distributed over four wheels with XXL Pirelli tires. That makes 4.5 seconds from zero to 100 km/h. That really is very fast for an SUV of this size.
Much more important than such number games, which say about as much about sportiness as the wattage specifications of amplifiers and loudspeakers say about their musicality, is the feeling at the steering wheel. And that’s true even on the serpentines of the Feldberg in the Taunus mountains north of Frankfurt, a route on which I wore my horns out on motorcycles when I was young and later in various sports cars. A vehicle that feels good to me there should convince me everywhere.
This is especially true when it’s not a lightweight sports car with a high-revving combustion engine, but an electric SUV weighing over 2.4 tons. My colleague Sebastian Viehmann from the German Focus magazine, with whom I shared the test car on the Taunus tour and who is particularly appreciated for his edgy comments, made the same assessment in his report: the Sealion 7 was “of all the various Chinese e-cars we have reviewed so far, the one with the most convincing suspension, steering and handling set-up”.
Seven up
Apart from a caddy on a golf course near the industrial metropolis of Shenzhen, the number 7 Sea Lion was my first drive behind the wheel of an electric car from China. However, I can understand my colleague’s judgment very well based on my experience with well-known SUVs from domestic production: I would not have expected such a level of refinement and driving dynamics from a comparatively young car manufacturer, especially on my former home track – and even more so in the pouring rain. The agile turn-in behavior that Sebastian highlighted in his report also struck me as extremely positive, especially with regard to the weight and wheelbase. From a German perspective, the Chinese learn frighteningly quickly.
I was already very impressed with the BYD Sealion 7 before the start of the almost 90-kilometer tour around Frankfurt. The event location had its own Dynaudio lounge, where I was able to get to know the system with different songs before the trip without any distractions. I know Dynaudio not only from the listening rooms of magazines, but also from the VW days of the Danes. Back then, I took a test drive in the Phaeton 3.6 V6 and visited the chassis production and development department at the company’s headquarters in Skanderborg, Denmark. Dynaudio now belongs to the Chinese electronics group GoerTek. Accordingly, the manufacturer uses the resources in its cooperation with BYD for the Sealion 7 and also manufactures the parts in the country.
Successful integration
If you look at the effort that Dynaudio put into it. But above all, when you listen to the result of the interaction between the 12 loudspeakers and 775 watts, you are not only impressed by this standard equipment. It is also hard to believe that this is the smallest Dynaudio system that BYD currently drives.
The dozen loudspeakers in the interior of the 4.8-metre-long SUV also include a subwoofer with a 24-cm woofer, which is housed in the right-hand side wall of the trunk to save space. At the time, this sensible addition was even withheld from the Temptation sound system of the prestige Phaeton saloon from Wolfsburg, which was subject to an extra charge, because the carmakers refused to accept it. At the beginning of the collaboration with Volkswagen, this was a general handicap that limited the overall performance in a similar way to compromises in the integration of the front ducts in some models.
In the BYD Sealion, the Dynaudio developers were obviously also guided by the motto behind the three letters of the brand name: Build your Dreams. The sound designers didn’t need to be told twice and delivered a picture-perfect integration. Dynaudio tickled the maximum out of the available possibilities without excessive use of materials. The front tweeters are located behind fabric-covered grille covers high up in the A-pillars, thus raising the sound stage. This is an advantage over some Volkswagens, but also over the Puccini system in the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Gran Sport. In the super sports car, the tweeters were installed very low in the doors to save space, and in the Burmester system of the fixed-roof version, they were even banished to the footwell.
Monster dimensions
Somewhat irritated by the information published by BYD in the system description, I asked Dynaudio in Skanderborg directly and saw my suspicions confirmed. The 6 centimeter diameter of the tweeter, which is an honor for a midrange driver, refers to the outer diameter of the plastic housing that accommodates the magnet system. The actual silk dome, including its edge structure, measures 32 mm in diameter, while the voice coil has a diameter of 2.1 cm.
The front 16.8 cm bass/midrange speakers in the Sealion 7 are located quite far down in the doors, but the developers have done a good job with the runtimes of the audio signals. An 8 cm full range driver serves as the center and 2-way systems are used in the rear doors. Two surround channels with full-range speakers are positioned in the side panels – directly behind and below the small rear side window. This means that they are located behind the rear seats, in the upper area of the trunk compartment.
In addition to the successful integration of the drivers, the BYD designers have created an elegant cockpit with appealing materials. You feel comfortable on board and those who, like me, are skeptical about the trend towards more and more touch functions can enjoy the numerous buttons despite the trendy large, electrically rotatable 15.6-inch touchscreen. While in the Volvo EX30, for example, you can’t even adjust the rear-view mirrors without using the touchscreen, the BYD Sealion 7 has the familiar buttons in the door.
Door woofer and subwoofer
The front door woofers and the subwoofer in the trunk have dual voice coils, each using two amplifier outputs. This results in a total of 15 amplifier channels for the in-cabin system, in addition to a further channel driving the external AVAS speaker. A full graphical representation of the system is not available. However, Dynaudio showed the individual loudspeaker chassis, which testify to the Danes’ usual high quality. The door basses and the subwoofer have the characteristic slots in the dust protection domes of their polypropylene cones that we know from many of the Danes’ speakers for the living room.
System positioning within the BYD portfolio
In terms of the number of speakers, amplifier power and adjustable features, the Dynaudio Confidence Sound System in the Sealion 7 corresponds to the equipment found in all BYD models with a Dynaudio sound system. This is the entry-level model and therefore the smallest variant. In contrast, models such as the BYD Yangwang U8 and U9 are equipped with the Dynaudio Evidence Platinum Sound System – a system with more speakers, higher amplifier power, additional functions and even higher technological and material quality.
Sound test: BYD Sealion 7 with Dynaudio Confidence
It’s hard to believe what is considered an entry-level system at BYD. Not so long ago, you would have had to pay a hefty premium for this in European vehicles. This applies not only to the excellent balance or the stable imaging. It also applies to the punch and dynamics. Here, the Dynaudio Confidence system performs at an astonishingly high level. In terms of neutrality, it is just as suitable for audiophile sounds with natural instruments and complex vocal passages as it is for pop or rock, where a solid bass foundation and a certain drive are increasingly important.
You can spice up the punch in the bass and the pep in the treble by switching to the “Dynamic” sound preset of the DSP equalizer as part of a fundamentally audiophile approach or use “Soft” to make the whole thing more of a discreet background sound. I also found the surround mode to be very successful, which distributes the sound a little further into the vehicle for the passengers in the front row. It is therefore also particularly suitable for enjoying music in the rear row of seats. However, Dynaudio follows the common practice of leaving the front stage above the dashboard when you sit in the back seat.
High-gloss imaging
And that’s a good thing. The impression in terms of imaging is similar to the feeling of looking at the stage from a box in a concert hall. You are not consciously aware of the speakers installed at the rear, just as you should be. Similarly, you are not confronted with structure-borne noise or problems with the timing of impulses when you are sitting directly in front of the subwoofer in the trunk. In the rear seats, I really liked the surround setting of the Dynaudio Confidence system. However, in the “Dynaudio Focus” menu, in addition to a sound distribution optimized for the driver or front passenger, there is also a setting called “Rear”. During the test drive with Sebastian, I adjusted the sound to my respective seat, which further improved the localization of solo voices or instruments in the middle of the wide, high and three-dimensional stage in front of my nose.
The electric SUV ran very quietly even when recuperating, kept rolling and wind noise to a minimum and thus offered a solid basis for cultivated music playback on the road. So you could really enjoy the acoustic fingerprint of the Dynaudio home loudspeakers, which I know very well from countless reviews for hi-fi magazines such as AUDIO or stereoplay, in all their glory. When AUDIO was still part of Motor Presse Stuttgart, we even used a large floorstanding speaker from the Danish brand as a reference. And as usual with Dynaudio, naturalness and tonal fidelity are at the forefront of the sound tuning. In this respect, the Confidence does not need to hide behind expensive, powerful special features in the upper class, even if there is still room for improvement in terms of impulse processing, resolution and the kick and pressure in the bass. It is suitable for enjoying music as naturally as possible, not so much for getting a full blast of electronic beats.
Practical customization options
In the audio system’s very practical menus, which are easy to understand even for inexperienced users, there is even an option to adjust the dynamic volume control to compensate for driving noise – very practical if someone wants to enjoy the top speed of 215 km/h, which is rapid by electric car standards, with a well-maintained background music.
Speaking of volume control: despite all the prophecies of doom, it at least works better in my own home-made car. After I had connected my iPhone to the Sealion 7 via Bluetooth and WLAN with Apple CarPlay, its volume control did not go full throttle as usual. It remained as quiet as the last time I used it outside the car, so it wasn’t enough to turn up the car’s volume control. For the best possible sound and full dynamic range, you have to manually set the iPhone to full power after establishing the connection and then adjust the level with the car’s volume control while driving. However, by the time you read this report, the problem may have been solved by a software update.
BYD Sealion 7 with Dynaudio Confidence: Conclusion
With the Dynaudio Confidence car audio system, the BYD Sealion 7 offers a shaken level of sound culture with a traditional European tuning for a comparatively very reasonable price: it comes as standard in the BEV, which is available in three variants from around 48,000 euros. Some owners of vehicles from local traditional brands may look to the Far East with envy. And when it comes to the overall driving experience of the powerful and comfortable electric SUV, it has nothing to hide behind most of its European competitors.
If you want to find out more about range and battery technology, I recommend reading the report by our colleague in Focus, as we at STEREO GUIDE focused on sound in this report. And apart from the volume control, there was nothing to criticize – especially when it comes to the standard equipment of a hi-fi system with such a powerful sound as the Dynaudio Confidence. This fact contributes to the excellent overall rating with full points in the price-performance rating.
Technical data
- Recommended retail price BYD Sealion 7: from around 48,000 euros (“Comfort”), AWD from approx. 54,000 euros (“Design”), test car (“Excellence”) from approx. 59,000 euros
- Recommended retail price Dynaudio Confidence sound system: standard equipment
- External dimensions / vehicle weight: 4.83 x 192.5 x 162 cm / approx. 2435 kg (test vehicle, “Excellence”)
- Drive power: 390 kW / 530 hp
- Acceleration 0 – 100 km/h: 4.5 seconds
- Vmax: 215 km/h (electrically limited)
- Further information and technical data: www.byd.com
STEREO GUIDE verdict
In the review, the BYD Sealion 7 impressed with its agile driving characteristics and a truly audiophile sound system. The standard system owes its excellent overall rating to the full score in price/performance, which puts it in one of the top places in our list of the best.
Advantages
- Exceptionally balanced, naturally tuned sound system
- Low driving noise, good driving comfort and light-footed handling
- Dynaudio Confidence Sound System as standard
- Comfortable interior with a good quality feel
Disadvantages
- Volume control of the iPhone worked with CarPlay against that of the vehicle
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Price/Performance Sound System10
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Sound8.8
