We’re back with the second Sound Check article. This time, we have a 2023 Nissan Rogue Platinum to audition with our suite of reference audio tracks. Once again, the purpose of the Sound Check articles is to help educate consumers about how to listen to music critically so they understand what’s considered good and what aspects of an audio system are weak.
Introducing the 2023 Nissan Rogue
In the spring of 2024, Nissan Canada had a sales promotion on the Platinum trim level of its Rogue compact SUV, so we see at least a dozen of these vehicles each time we run errands. The third-generation Rogue launched in 2020 as a 2021 model. The sample we have features the unique KR15DDT three-cylinder variable compression turbo-charged engine. With less displacement than a large bottle of soda, this innovative engine works well with good response and very little turbo-lag, making it a standout feature of the 2023 Nissan Rogue Platinum. Some early versions of this engine had bearing problems, but this one seems to be working great so far. We enjoyed a few drives around town, and it has enough power to merge comfortably onto the highway.
For its infotainment system, the Rogue shares the same floating tablet design that all automakers use. The 9-inch touchscreen is adequately responsive, though it is a bit of a reach from a comfortable driving position. The volume control is larger than usual in diameter but relatively flat, so it is not as easy to grip as something that protrudes more. Steering wheel-mounted audio controls take care of regularly used features like volume, source selection and voice-recognition activation. The system includes wireless Apple CarPlay, which we expect to be the bare minimum for smartphone connectivity.
Nissan tasked Bose with handling the audio system design in this vehicle. There is a powered subwoofer in the center of the spare tire in the cargo area, tweeters in the A-pillars, midrange drivers in the dash right at the corners of the windshield and woofers in the front and rear doors. Bose calls this a nine-speaker system, which makes sense.
Before we get into the listening, let’s talk about living with this infotainment system. You’ll hear the last-played radio station in 4.1 seconds when you press the Start button. If you were listening to digital audio files from a USB flash drive, those will resume in 4.75 seconds. The reconnection to an Apple iPhone over wireless Apple CarPlay takes about 30 seconds.
In terms of compatible audio files, you can store MP3, WMA, AAC, FLAC or WAV files on a USB flash drive. There is a limit of no more than 8,000 tracks in total, 255 files per folder, up to 512 folders. Supported media formatting formats are FAT16 and FAT32. We confirmed it doesn’t see NTFS or exFAT storage devices. In short, the radio is pretty typical for a factory-installed solution. Ah, we should mention that USB-A and USB-C ports are at the base of the center console, right above the wireless charging tray. Wireless charging makes perfect sense if you have wireless Android Auto or Apple CarPlay.
The instrument cluster in front of the driver and the heads-up display on the windshield display some audio information. When we selected a new track from the USB stick, the file name was displayed in both locations for a few seconds.
Soundstage and Imaging Evaluation
Let’s start by evaluating this audio system’s spatial characteristics. After setting the balance, fader and tone controls to their middle and flat positions, we cued up the seven snare drum track from the IASCA disc. The original recording has a slight error regarding channel balance, but our version has been modified to ensure that snare hit four is, or at least should be, directly in the middle of the soundstage.
Listening from the driver’s seat, the left side was compressed. As you can see from the map below, the first and second snares were on top of each other. They were reproduced inward about 5 to 6 inches from the left-side A-pillar. All were located lower than ideal (which would be eye level) and across the top of the dash. The center hit was larger than the rest, showing the typical OE-style blurry, unfocussed tuning that audio suppliers tend to provide.
Moving over to the passenger seat, the map was compressed to the right, though with better overall width than from the driver’s seat. Neither listening position offered any sense of any music coming from outside the physical confines of the vehicle.
The next track we use to evaluate the soundstage is the Dorfmeister Con Madrid De Los Austrias Muga Reserva mix of “Spanish Grease” by Willie Bobo. At the 38-second mark, the word “get” should swirl around the listening space. If it does, the soundstage is well-calibrated. If not, or specifically, the less depth there is, the worse the system performs regarding tight and accurate imaging. In the Rogue, the depth of the leading presentation was in line with the middle of the dash. The word “get” repetition extends to about the middle of the front seats. This would be considered a mediocre performance. Extending to the listening position would be regarded as very good, and behind the listening position would be considered excellent.
During the left and right channel confirmation tests and the snare drum track, we noticed that a little bit of the first part of each track was cut off. For example, when playing the channel check track, you should hear “left channel, left channel.” In this system, you will hear “ft channel, left channel,” as the first part of the word “left” is cut off. It could be a noise gate or digital muting. This is not uncommon, but it’s definitely an unwanted characteristic.
Bose Audio System Tonality and Dynamics
Perhaps one of the most important aspects of a car audio system is for it to be well-balanced in frequency response. We have test-driven many new vehicles in the last few months, and there seems to be a tendency for exaggerated midbass in modern cars and trucks. While this makes percussion and bass guitar fun, it ruins the realism of male vocals or a piano. We were at a concert recently and noted the bass and midbass levels were similar to this balance, but it didn’t exhibit the unwanted emphasis on the letters P and B. Each was mixed and equalized separately, as they should be.
We started the listening evaluation with “Chocolate Chip Trip” by Tool to evaluate panning, bass and dynamics. The tubular percussion had a nice ring but didn’t seem natural or lifelike. As mentioned, the stage height was low, across the top of the dash or the base of the windshield. The rim shots had a nice, sharp attack, but the kick drum was muddy and sloppy.
Next, we played “Spanish Harlem” by Rebecca Pigeon. The upper bass notes caused a very audible buzz in the left A-pillar. This vehicle has about 23,000 kilometers or a little over 14,000 miles. Hearing a buzz is annoying. Once Rebecca started singing, her voice was well-positioned in the center of the soundstage, but rather than being nice and tight, it was about 20 inches in diameter. Importantly, it was very smooth in terms of tonality. Nothing stood out or seemed to be missing. This is not an easy feat by any means. The midbass was quite accentuated, so instruments in this frequency range did not sound authentic.
Next, we listened to “Yellow Flicker Beat” by Lorde. The humming at the beginning of the track seemed to wander in amplitude more than in other systems. It was almost like a sort of tremolo effect had been applied to it. Overall, it’s not very lifelike. Once again, the upper bass emphasis took away from the realism of bass and midbass instruments, so nothing sounded realistic.
I expected the upright bass to be a disaster when listening to “I Can See Clearly Now” by the Holly Cole Trio. However, it wasn’t. That and the piano sounded quite satisfactory. With a bass-heavy track like “You Should See Me in a Crown” by Billie Eilish, the bass is fun but far from realistic or dynamic. The bass line turns into a big, mushy mess. It gives the seat a little shake, but that’s all there is good to say about it.
“Two Tribes” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood starts with an air raid siren. I’ve never heard it sound off, but it was gritty and harsh in this system. The latter is the first time I’ve used that term to describe an audio system. Far too much emphasis was placed on the lower frequencies of the male voice that provided the warning speech. The impact from the bass line was better than I expected, though, which was nice. The system did not reproduce the deepest notes in the track. The same was noted on “Prodigal Blues” by Billy Idol and “Boom Boom Pow” by the Black Eyed Peas.
Conclusions on the 2023 Nissan Rogue Bose Audio System
We give the Bose audio system in the 2023 Rogue good marks for midrange and higher frequency tonality, based mostly on not messing up Rebecca Pigeon’s voice. Much work is needed on the drone over-emphasis in the midbass and the inability to reproduce deep bass information with any level of authority.
From a spatial perspective, it did a good job keeping everything on the dash, even if the soundstage is a little lower and shallower than we would consider ideal. The narrowness of the presentation also affected the score a bit.
In terms of the interface, the radio’s response time is typical, and the steering wheel controls make it easy to use. It starts up quickly enough, so you won’t have to wait long for music while getting your seatbelt buckled. We liked the secondary information display on the instrument cluster and the heads-up display.
In the afternoon spent with the vehicle, we had a few instances where it did not automatically reconnect to the owner’s phone for CarPlay after being forced to connect to a different device. The owner’s phone was set as the priority device, but it reconnected fine once selected from the device menu.
Many consumers seem to like the audio system in the late-model Rogue vehicles. We did not hate it, but it isn’t in the realm of what a built-from-scratch aftermarket system can deliver. The most straightforward upgrade would be to implement a true subwoofer that can play into the bottom octave of the audible hearing range. However, you will have to have a reputable specialty mobile enhancement retailer check the system for noise cancellation – and the addition of engine sounds through the speakers – before you make that purchase.
