The Genesis GV80 SUV has 6 calming ambient soundtracks, from 'rainy day' to 'snowy village.' We ranked them.
- The 2021 Genesis GV80 is Genesis' luxury flagship SUV model.
- The car comes with a "Sounds of Nature" ambient noises function.
- At any time, you can hear a forest, rainstorm, or crackling fire through the car's speakers.
There were a great many things the Genesis team wanted me to try out during the media drive for the 2021 GV80 midsize luxury SUV — review here — but the one I was keenest to test was the "Sounds of Nature" ambient noise function.
The GV80 is Genesis' flagship SUV. Its interior was by far the most impressive part, swaddling you in creamy leathers, brushed metals, and open-pore wood. The cabin design was led by the brand's "the beauty of white space" philosophy — one that's dictated by Korean architecture and meant to evoke a sense of simple, clean, modern, and purposeful design.
There are six Sounds to put on: Lively Forest, Calm Sea Waves, Rainy Day, Open-Air Cafe, Warm Fireplace, and Snowy Village. You can hear them for yourself below, with the exception of Snowy Village, which got cut off because Instagram is lame and only allows 60-second clips. I don't make the rules.
I've ranked them below from least favorite to favorite.
6. Warm Fireplace
I thought that on a cold and rainy day, Warm Fireplace would be ideal. Certainly, that was the one I made a beeline for.
But then after I turned it on, I started thinking about how strange it was to be listening to a crackling fireplace while doing 60 mph in a car on the highway. Then, my brain went to thinking about cars and fires together and then I started thinking about car fires and then I got upset and had to change the channel.
The sound quality was good, though!
5. Rainy Day
Normally, I love the sounds of a rainy day. I often have the Rainy Mood page open in the background when I work.
But this rain had a hollow, tinny sort of sound, like you're listening to it while sitting inside of a tin bucket. And the predominant noise was what sounded like rain hitting a puddle, or a leaky faucet.
In a pinch, it'll do alright. But it's just not my preferred rain noise. This is a sentence I never thought I'd ever type.
4. Snowy Village
This one definitely sounds like winter. Again, apologies for Instagram cutting it off, but it starts out with the sound of someone crunching around in some freshly fallen snow. There's something so specific about footsteps through the first snow and it was captured perfectly.
3. Open-Air Cafe
Some people like working in coffee shops because they find the murmur of indistinct conversation and the clink of plates and silverware calming. It's nice as white noise comes, sort of like operating a mobile cafe while behind the wheel of the GV80. If Genesis could somehow manufacture a coffee- and baked goods-scented interior aroma, then we'd be in real business.
And it was nice hearing what normalcy sounded like again. I haven't been to a cafe since March and it's likely that I will not return to one until next March, if that.
2. Calm Sea Waves
As its name indicates, Calm Sea Waves gives you the sound of gently rolling waves. Definitely not huge or crashing ones. Think a calm, tropical, white-sand beach with tranquil waves. If the color cerulean were a sound, it'd be this.
Quite good, highly recommend.
1. Lively Forest
Lively Forest starts out with birds chirping, which is a great start to forest noise. You can hear bugs chirruping, leaves moving — general woodland stuff. This one makes you think of taking a stroll through the trees. There's depth to the sound: The birds don't sound uniformly close by, but rather the calls come from both near and far.
And since I live in an urban hellscape and I try to escape to the woods as much as I can, this one resonated with me the most.