WHAT ARE MERIDIAN SOUND SYSTEMS, AND WHICH LAND ROVERS FEATURE THEM?

I am the first to admit to knowing precious little about what goes on under the hood of a car. I can check the oil, add wiper fluid and (maybe) change a tire; but that’s the extent of my automotive prowess.

On the other hand, as a lifelong music lover and amateur audiophile, I insist on knowing how well my favorite music will sound on a new car’s sound system before I even think about purchasing the car. Indeed, I have been known to choose my new rides based less on performance, handling, and safety than on how well they deliver concert-hall quality sound.

So, when I saw that MotorTrend.com had taken the time to make a serious comparison of eight luxury cars based solely on the quality of their sound systems, I was more than a little intrigued. After all, when you invest as much in a luxury car as you probably did in your first home, it should sound like Carnegie Hall inside.

Motor Trend’s comparison included more than just subjective appraisals by a panel of sound and acoustic experts. For the sake of a more scientific, apples-to-apples comparison, they played the identical musical tracks on each car’s sound system to assess how accurately they reproduced various audio frequencies. A bass-test sweep tone was also used to check how well the subwoofer managed low-end frequencies.

The measurements were first taken while each luxury car sat stationary in a garage, then again while on the road to evaluate whether the tonal qualities changed once the car was in motion. Finally, the systems were ranked from last to best, based on these objective criteria as well as a few subjective observations by the experts.

EMERGING AS THE JUDGES’ CLEAR FAVORITE WAS LAND ROVER’S RANGE ROVER SPORT, WHICH CONTAINS A MERIDIAN SOUND SYSTEM.

If concert-hall quality is what you want, then Meridian certainly delivers the goods. By its own description, the company’s Trifield technology “includes a dedicated height channel, which renders all instruments, performers, and venues in true scale and location adding a further sense of acoustical realism for every passenger.” Its Cabin Correction technology “removes unwanted cabin resonances, preserving the natural rhythm and timing of the performance. Bass becomes smooth, deep and balanced.”

At the same time, Meridian Digital Precision maximizes the signal-to-noise ratio, ensuring the finest musical detail of every song is rendered. Distortion is reduced to a minimum so that every detail of the musical performance is captured crisply and accurately. All of this, of course, is a fancy way of saying that Meridian delivers concert-hall quality sound with the utmost in acoustic perfection.

Depending on your choice of Land Rover model and trim level, its Meridian Sound System might include anywhere between 8 and 20 speakers to deliver a premium audio experience.

Pairing Meridian with Land Rover was a natural fit from the moment the partnership was created in 2011. For just as Land Rover is famous the world over for delivering the most authentic and immersive driving experience possible, the British audio pioneer—which first opened in 1977—is legendary for creating the most authentic and immersive audio experiences possible.

As such, the enduring partnership celebrates the finest in British automotive performance, Meridian’s unmatched audio capabilities and the spectacular blending of the two. Put the design capabilities of both companies together and in just five years they created a Land Rover that contains what MotorTrend.com describes as the “best audio system in the luxury automotive class.”

Every Land Rover model currently on the market features a Meridian Sound System. These include Defender, Discovery and Discovery Sport, as well as the Range Rover Evoque, Range Rover Velar, the Ranger Rover Sport and the New Range Rover. For the record, Land Rover’s corporate sibling Jaguar also makes exclusive use of Meridian Sound Systems.