ITS featured on C&D's podcast

[ZeroGSR]

The only thing annoying in the Savagegeese comparison video to the CTR is his very wrong take on the sound systems lol. People don't want neutral sound they want some freakin' bass.

The ITS stereo blows the CTR out of the water.

This car and driver podcast was a fun listen. I wonder if the S2000 really has a superior shifter (never had the privilege) or if that is just their nostalgia lense.

As a previous audiophile, I try to stay away from anything with the Bose name on it. Nothing against them, but it's not my taste. I think the ELS system is perfectly fine, like others I could use a subwoofer upgrade, but it's "good enough" for me. It's much better than the B&O system in my last car for comparison.

As for the shifter, yes the S2000 is superior, that's not nostalgia. It's also has a direct connection to the transmission and no cable, so it's not a fair fight. But to be clear, we are talking about minutiae here. Drive the ITS and S2000 back to back and you will notice a slight improvement, more direct and solid. But the difference between the two is smaller than say the ITS and pretty much anything south of a Porsche. That they could do all that with a cable is nothing short of astonishing.

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[TemporarilyStairs]

As a previous audiophile, I try to stay away from anything with the Bose name on it. Nothing against them, but it's not my taste. I think the ELS system is perfectly fine, like others I could use a subwoofer upgrade, but it's "good enough" for me. It's much better than the B&O system in my last car for comparison.

Ha I've added subs to 2 of my Civic's, and my last Si's oem sub was weak as hell. This is the first oem stereo I've had in a car that I am not wanting for anything.. in fact I've considered turning the bass down on some songs. Can't imagine needing more and I'm somewhat of a basshead

 

[Integra23]

Ha I've added subs to 2 of my Civic's, and my last Si's oem sub was weak as hell. This is the first oem stereo I've had in a car that I am not wanting for anything.. in fact I've considered turning the bass down on some songs. Can't imagine needing more and I'm somewhat of a basshead

Strange. Maybe my sub has an issue. I can't hear anything from the back it's all from the door speakers. I have bass maxed in our limited EQ.

 

[ZeroGSR]

Now can you tell me anything you like about the ITS more? I can't afford another car right now but that is basically dream garage duo haha.

It really depends on use case. They are both amazing cars in their own way, but other than being Hondas they don't have a ton of anything else in common. The ITS destroys the S2000 as a daily driver and is IMO one of the ultimate do everything cars. The S2000 was my idea of the pinnacle of weekend fun. Honestly, I missed my S2000 every day after selling it, until I got my ITS.

As for something to like more, I think most would agree, TORQUE

 

[Cliffpc]

If you are looking for a good "demo" song, I highly recommend Steely Dan - Morph the Cat.

If you can hear the different tones between the blended horns and the vocals you have some good ears and a decent sound system.

 

[Siblue]

As a previous audiophile, I try to stay away from anything with the Bose name on it. Nothing against them, but it's not my taste. I think the ELS system is perfectly fine, like others I could use a subwoofer upgrade, but it's "good enough" for me. It's much better than the B&O system in my last car for comparison.

As for the shifter, yes the S2000 is superior, that's not nostalgia. It's also has a direct connection to the transmission and no cable, so it's not a fair fight. But to be clear, we are talking about minutiae here. Drive the ITS and S2000 back to back and you will notice a slight improvement, more direct and solid. But the difference between the two is smaller than say the ITS and pretty much anything south of a Porsche. That they could do all that with a cable is nothing short of astonishing.

Funny you mentioned B&O. They will replace ELS in future Acura models.

 

[optronix]

Good conversation. Maybe I should actually listen to the podcast- not much of a podcast kind of guy... and interestingly enough it's because I enjoy a decent stereo on my drives and I don't really have many other opportunities to listen to podcasts.

There is such a divide on the pricing when it comes to "critic score vs audience score". They brought it up again in this podcast and said even though $52k is seemingly a lot of money, it's no different than the average price of cars these days. But the regular "audience" opinion always seems to be that the ITS is overpriced. I often ask myself if having memory seats, moonroof, homelink, and auto folding mirrors would change my decision on the value. For sure, the ELS system really changes the experience and perhaps tips it over the edge for the value question. I never thought I was an audiophile but the difference between the ITS and my Accord Touring is huge enough for me to choose the ITS for a drive.

$52k is only a lot of money when viewed from the lens of what cars "used to" cost... even just a few short years ago. I thought I paid a lot for my STI back in 2015, and it was $36k. Truth be told, this Integra is a slightly upmodel version of an STI, but the price has obviously taken a significant leap.

But also that was nearly 10 years ago, and as others have noted, to get the same level of performance AND ENGAGEMENT (i.e., manual trans) from a new car in this market, you have to go WAY up in the price range. The M2 or CT4 BW would be the first stop, and that's gonna be ~$70k. Some would argue the A90 Supra, but those things are also expensive especially in manual and are severely compromised compared to the ITS from a daily driver perspective. The Type R is worth bringing up now but only because it's become possible recently to actually get one at MSRP. That's a pretty smart buy TBH, but personally the extra cost for the ITS is justified. Hell, a Mustang GT can easily run into the $60k mark with a few options. I'm sure I've left out a few options but the point remains.

When all of this is taken in perspective it's a fantastic value. People just can't seem to reconcile that new cars are insanely expensive, and I'm convinced most of these "audience scores" are from people who are not and don't plan to be in the market for a new car anytime soon, if ever.

Strange. Maybe my sub has an issue. I can't hear anything from the back it's all from the door speakers. I have bass maxed in our limited EQ.

With all this talk about the ELS system, I really think I may have an issue too. I am supremely underwhelmed with this system... and I don't feel like I'm particularly hard to please. I've been a longtime defender of Bose systems in certain cars. I've had many iterations of Bose in various Porsches that other folks have absolutely trashed, but I've found to be quite enjoyable. From my perspective the Bose systems in any late model Porsche sports car is actually significantly better than the ELS in my Integra... I'll have to try to listen to one in another car.

 

[bpebler]

I have both the ITS and S2000, and I like the S2000 shifter better. More mechanical feel to it. More satisfying to manoeuvre.

I wonder if you'd like either the Hybrid Racing or Acuity shifter then. Acuity is supposed to be out with 2 version, one that adds on to the oem and a full replacement like HR.

 

[Negitoro7]

Funny you mentioned B&O. They will replace ELS in future Acura models.

The B&O in my friends’ A3 and RS3 are the best systems I’ve heard in cars. I don’t have my ITS yet though, which is arriving in a few weeks.

 

[bpebler]

Yeah BO sounds like a good one. Ford trucks have them and they're supposed to be better than the HK in Ram's which was amazing. The new Acura ZDX has BO.

 

[optronix]

FWIW the B&O in the RS5 I had was exceptional. The only better factory systems I've heard was the Meridian in a Range Rover Evoque, and the Burmester in my Macan.

I also felt like the HK system in my STI was better than the ELS in my ITS. I think something might actually be wrong with it.

 

[Wolfman]

FWIW the B&O in the RS5 I had was exceptional. The only better factory systems I've heard was the Meridian in a Range Rover Evoque, and the Burmester in my Macan.

I also felt like the HK system in my STI was better than the ELS in my ITS. I think something might actually be wrong with it.

I didn’t have the hk in the sti but the regular stuff in the sti was pretty lack luster. I’m no audiophile but the bass does hit a little bit more in this than other cars I’ve had with beats/bose. I forgot what was in my old s4 but this was way better than it.

 

[mopar_man]

I had a 2015 S4 with a B&O that I quite enjoyed. I really enjoy the ELS also.

 

[AsianEd]

I finally listened to the entire episode yesterday while I was out running errands. It was a little weird listening to the driving portion while driving, since I'd hear the exhaust, engine, and noises from the recording that didn't line up with what I was feeling. There were a couple of times I had to think "wait, was that the podcast or my car making that noise?"

In the price discussion, it was interesting for them to bring up the cost of an average car these days. A lot of the internet will claim that for the price, you can buy a faster German car. While that might be true, while it might be true (and 0-60 times are purely the only reason you buy a car), they all lack the engagement of a manual transmission.

Would it be nice if the ITS was cheaper or had a couple extra things? Sure. I'd also like gas, eggs, my mortgage, and Netflix to be cheaper too. Things 10 years ago were "less expensive" than they are today. But my wages were also lower. That's the way economic growth and inflation work. The numbers always go up.

Heck, the $34k I spend on my last car in 2013 has roughly equivalent spending power of $46k today. That's nearly Type R money in 2024. Considering the car I bought was a Focus ST, a CTR seems practically like a bargain for nearly the "same" money!

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