Electromobility really does mean a change in transportation. The new Volvo EX90, which I recently got to know during the winter test drives in Hamburg, is the largest SUV from the Swedes. However, with an acceleration of 4.9 seconds from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in the twin-engine performance version with 517 hp that I drove, it still leaves many sleek sports coupés behind. However, it is the smallest electric SUV from the company that outperforms it. The EX30, which I reviewed last year, only needed 3.6 seconds for the standard sprint. However, the small electric vehicle has to make do with a Harman Kardon sound system, while the Volvo EX90, as the top model among the BEVs, draws on the full range with Bowers & Wilkins and Dolby Atmos.
From my point of view, the EX90 holds two trump cards, because in addition to the particularly audiophile car audio equipment, I really appreciate the fact that it beats my classic coupé with a petrol engine by a few blinks of an eye when accelerating. Otherwise you feel so old and left behind after the test drive.
Listening the English way
As far as the Bowers & Wilkins sound system is concerned, it was déjà vu just looking at the data sheet: four 2.5 cm Nautilus double-dome tweeters are located in the front and rear doors. A fifth acts as a central “tweeter on top” for the center channel above the dashboard. This arrangement reduces reflections on the windshield and directs the sound specifically towards the passengers. The centrally positioned tweeter also picks up on the design of the Nautilus series – a clear reference to the system’s high-end roots.
Two 10 cm continuum woofers in the front doors ensure clean mids. They suppress unwanted resonances and allow vocals and instruments to sound clear and balanced. Bowers & Wilkins also uses this special cone material in the 800-D4 series – the British brand’s top models in the hi-fi loudspeaker sector. This is complemented by five additional Continuum mid-range speakers (8 cm each) in the dashboard, rear doors and headliner, which ensure an even sound across all seats.
Dolby Atmos surround sound is provided by four 4 cm full-range aluminum loudspeakers in the roof area. In addition, there are four more of these drivers in the front headrests – a clever detail that brings surround effects, navigation announcements and warning signals directly to the ear.
Bowers & Wilkins really delivers bass
The system is equally impressive when it comes to bass: four 17 cm long-throw woofers in the doors provide the necessary foundation. A 25 cm woofer with neodymium drive, which functions as a “fresh air subwoofer” – with bass reflex opening to the outside – is located in the trunk. Even on the back seat, the module could not be identified as a sound source in the review, but the bass foundation was still noticeable. The whole thing is powered by a 25-channel amplifier with a full 1,610 watts of power.
How do we know that? The system is basically the same as the sound system in the Polestar 3, which I was able to drive in Madrid and the surrounding mountains last year. After all, both vehicles from the brands belonging to the Chinese Geely Group share the same vehicle platform. This only becomes apparent when you enter the vehicle cabin, which is characterized by a large central 14.5-inch touchscreen and smooth design: There is obviously a not insignificant difference in the positioning of the drivers. While the Nautilus double-dome tweeters in the Polestar 3 are positioned in the front doors in the mirror triangle, in the Volvo EX90 they are located further down in the doors behind a common panel for the Continuum mid-range speakers.
The two photos show the difference between B&W in the Volvo and Polestar
The advantage of this arrangement is that the two drivers on each side are as close together as possible. This enables the Bowers & Wilkins system in the Volvo EX90 to reproduce the mids and highs almost from a single point – the frequencies that are crucial for locating and reproducing voices and instruments.
On the other hand, the tweeters in the mirror triangles offer other advantages that are important for tweeter reproduction: The dispersion angle is more favorable, especially for the respective tweeter on the opposite side of the respective seat. What’s more, the front door tweeters in the Polestar 3 form one level with the “tweeter on top” on the dashboard. This provides ideal conditions for staging.
Back from the future
Of course, Volvo has once again hidden a few features for fans of electric gadgets in the EX90, which is available with a choice of five, six or seven seats. And I’m not talking about the 517 hp e-drive, which accelerates the 2.75-ton twin-motor performance version from standstill to 100 km/h in the 4.9 seconds mentioned at the beginning.
We are talking about features such as steering wheel adjustment via a touchscreen menu or touch commands to open the glove compartment. And the driver assistance systems with Lidar sensor support are also technical overkill. After all, Volvo is even more committed than other manufacturers to the goal of ensuring that no more people are killed or seriously injured in a new Volvo in the future. In this context, it is always apparent that vehicle manufacturers consider their beautiful new technologies to be perfect and tend to regard people as a disruptive factor when driving.
You may – really now?
Not only because I generally see things differently, I was reluctant to accept the EX90’s immoral offer during the test drive on a four-lane road in Hamburg’s city center: I attributed the 100 km/h shown in the small display on the steering column to the early stage of development of the test car’s sign recognition system. So, following human instinct, I only drove at 50 km/h like everyone else. I didn’t take my proof photo in case I got a speeding ticket, but as a gadget gag for my test report. At least I have to give the digital driving assistant credit for at least warning me about pedestrians…
But regardless of the permitted top speed, it was once again evident how much electric gliding is reassuring, regardless of the race car-worthy horsepower figures. This is particularly true of the Volvo EX90. The driving experience has something of floating above things or above the asphalt, something sedan-like. The seats, upholstered in artfully crafted artificial leather and also suitable for vegans, are very comfortable.
As far as connectivity is concerned, the Android Auto functions are basically already built in. After all, Volvo has been relying on an Android user interface for several years. The Swedes even use Google navigation, which updates its data using 5G mobile communications. The EX90 has a charging cradle in the center console and USB-C sockets for both the front and rear. What I find very successful is the classy-looking volume wheel with integrated push button for start and stop. However, the electric Volvo also supports Apple CarPlay.
Dieser Inhalt wird von einer dritten Partei gehostet. Durch die Anzeige des externen Inhalts akzeptieren Sie die Bedingungen von youtube.com.
Sound test: spatial imaging at it’s best
Because I always spread our elaborate car audio reviews out over the year, my video on the Volvo EX90, including my conclusion on the Bowers & Wilkins sound system with Dolby Atmos, made its debut in Michael Blumenstein’s worthwhile driving report on autoflotte.de. For all those particularly interested in hi-fi in the car, here are my detailed listening impressions. It’s important to remember that there was only one reason why my jaw didn’t drop when I heard the Volvo EX90. This was because I had already experienced this with the Polestar 3 and was prepared for an impressive performance.
With its more than two dozen speakers and Dolby Atmos, the Bowers & Wilkins sound system in the EX90 provided an immersive sound stage that acoustically exceeded the dimensions of the almost 1.97-metre-wide vehicle. Wow! This takes listening in the car to a whole new level compared to surround or even stereo. Instead of perceiving individual sound sources – such as the drivers in the headrests or the effect loudspeakers in the roof channels – you are completely immersed in the surround sound. Dolby Atmos and matching multi-channel tracks from the streaming service Tidal create the feeling of being in a real concert hall. The imaginary stage rises audibly above the dashboard and extends far beyond the cabin in width and depth.
Electric drive and immersive sound – the perfect pair
While with many systems you have to listen carefully while driving, here a moment is often enough to give you goosebumps – thanks to the three-dimensionality created by the height channels. The whisper-quiet drive of the EX90 plays perfectly into the 3D sound’s hands. Voices and instruments often seem to come from outside the vehicle – together with the Polestar 3, this is a real highlight among the systems currently available.
In terms of sound, the standard 3D sound system is based on the Bowers & Wilkins 800-D4 series. For those who don’t live in the hi-fi bubble: These are speakers that you would normally find in mastering studios. For example, in the legendary Abbey Road Studios, where the Beatles classics were mixed. As a tribute, Harman, who together with Volvo are responsible for the implementation of Bowers & Wilkins systems in the Scandinavian brand’s vehicles, have devised a sound preset with the acoustic fingerprint of the legendary London studios. However, it was not yet installed in the test vehicles. It only came on board later via an over-the-air update.
Same, but different
Despite the largely identical hardware basis, the treble in the Volvo blended even more harmoniously into the soundstage than in the Polestar. With the Polestar, I had the feeling that the system was indulging in a small portion of brilliance in the treble range, which was a deliberate demonstration of this: No ordinary setup is playing here. It is impossible to say whether this is due to the changed positions of the tweeters in the front doors, the sound tuning in the DSP or both together.
Conversely, after the test drive I had the feeling that the width and plasticity of the stage image was even more spectacular in the Polestar 3.
With audiophile recordings – such as minimalistically arranged voices with natural instruments – the system shines with a wealth of detail and emotional depth. With complex rock songs or dense vocal reproduction, the sound in the Polestar can seem a little more tonally sober than in the Volvo. But this is criticism at the highest level.
The bass kicks really well
The bass range is also impressive: the dynamic performance impresses with its punch and precision. The Volvo EX90 is not inferior to its sister model from Polestar. However, at very high levels with the tracks from our special Qobuz playlist “STEREO GUIDE extreme Bass Test”, the door panels on our test car sometimes interfered with the sound. However, this problem should be resolved by the time the series vehicles are delivered. Then, in addition to the traditional Concert Hall from Volvo’s home town of Gothenburg, the sound preset from Abbey Road Studios will also be available, which unfortunately I was not yet able to try out on my test drive.
However, such effects are a matter of taste anyway and I like the very well-balanced 3D sound system from Bowers & Wilkins “pure” exceptionally well. Which is of course recommended in terms of even better focused imaging when you’re alone in the EX90: Selecting the driver’s seat as the listening position in the “Focus” menu, compared to the settings for “All”, “Front seats” or “Rear seats”, once again enhances the contours of the individual sound bodies and improves the stage imaging. The solution used by Volvo is much more practical than the fader balance controls in many other vehicles. It’s quicker, easier and doesn’t require any special hi-fi knowledge. I also went into this point in more detail in a recent interview for the Volvo blog in Switzerland.
Volvo EX90: Conclusion
The Volvo EX90 and the Polestar 3, which is based on the same platform, are very close in terms of their Bowers & Wilkins sound systems. And with an overall score of 97 percent, they position themselves at the upper end of our rating scale.
A price comparison of their sound systems is difficult, as the EX90 offers B&W sound for a very moderate €3,050 extra, while the Polestar 3 is part of a technology package that is twice as expensive and also includes numerous other useful features such as a head-up display, infrared windshield and acoustic glazing in the lower rear window. However, compared to luxury class vehicles such as the BMW iX (also B&W) or Audi A8 (B&O), both Bowers & Wilkins audio systems are very affordable.
And if the high-fidelity solution from the British loudspeaker specialist is still too expensive for you, the EX90 offers a Bose Premium Sound System with 14 channels and 760 watts as a consolation.
STEREO GUIDE verdict
The Volvo EX90 with immersive Dolby Atmos distributes 1,610 W over 25 loudspeakers for a surround sound that even exceeds the lavish dimensions of the electric SUV. And at a very moderate additional cost in relation to the effort and sound quality.
Pros
- Excellent three-dimensional spatial representation thanks to Dolby Atmos
- Excellent tonal balance
- Powerful, clean bass reproduction
- Outstanding performance for the money
Cons
- Operation extremely fixated on touchscreen
-
Sound quality9.3
-
Price/performance sound system10
