Base sound system in my X5 / BSW speakers

[vnabmw]

Hello to everyone- First of all, I should Thank you to all those who post some great deal of information regarding our cars, there are quite lot of readers than contributors - myself incuded, so really appreciate all the responses.

Coming to the subject, and a long one: I have base audio in my brand new X5 (2011 35d). The base sound system is pretty decent, actually- but it is a shame that BMW couldn't include the front tweeters for some higher resolution. I have other cars which have a base sound system with 10 drivers( '02 5 series) and a Bose system(sister's Audi Q7), and although the Base BMW sound system is fine, the others put it to shame- the factory systems in the other cars has I feel, is less harsh and is warmer, balanced and has higher resolution. For crying out loud, even something like the Suzuki Kizashi has a kick-a$$ sound system.

I just wanted a better sound system that sounds less harsh (less ringing in my ears) and provides warm highs. After a lot of pondering and research, I decided on the BSW speakers which had pretty good reviews and were simple plug and play. I jumped in, got a great deal on the speakers. (I should add that the guy @BSW customer support (Halston) is awesome indicating it is a decent company to deal with.) I replaced the BSW speakers prompt with the factory ones- and after hours and hours of listening and being in denial, I was convinced that the BSW system, although providing much greater detail, was causing me the dreaded ringing the ears/headache effect, not sure if you want to term this listening fatigue. I should also say that the installer and quite a few folks who listened to my system before/after love the BSW speakers though.

It seems my ears are extremely picky- The exact same thing happened when I wanted to upgrade my VW factory speakers 6 years ago. Tried various combinations- speakers, head units, alpine amp etc etc- just couldn't make the ringing go away even after break in periods (20-30 hours).When I went back to the factory system, every thing was good with my ears. I didn't have any spectacular sound, but atleast I had no fatigue.

And I just couldn't nail down the reason why (I don't think this is a hearing/ear/Tinnutis issue). I googled and found various topics for listening fatigue and unbalanced sound, etc, but my question is this: most factory systems, even the upgraded ones- induce no listening fatigue in my experience, it seems I have a problem with the even the highest quality after market components. Why is that? Inside the house, I enjoy my music life with the likes of Rotel/Parasound Amps, B&W/Definitive Technology speakers and had not once, experienced listening fatigue ever!

Not sure if anyone has the time to go thru my long email- but I do appreciate you reading thru it and posting any similar experiences/suggestions. and I think I will be going back to the factory speakers for now, and think of some solutions after the Manufacturer's warranty ends.

Thank you all!