Range Rover’s next luxury add-on: A car seat that vibrates to music

Many car makers will surround you with speakers in a bid to create immersive sound, but Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) thinks your seat can also play a role. The company’s new Range Rover Sport SV Edition One includes Subpac-powered “Body and Soul Seat” tech (appropriately, BASS) whose headrest-mounted membranes and transducers deliver haptic feedback in response to lower frequencies in your music. Whether you’re the driver or a passenger, you’ll feel the thumps of a dance or rap track.

The system complements the Range Rover Sport’s 29-speaker Meridian audio setup, which already has a subwoofer, but Jaguar Land Rover and Subpac also claim the vibrations can improve your health through six wellness programs. The companies point to a JLR-supported study indicating that BASS can help you relax and reduce stress by increasing the variability of your heart rate. Provided that holds up in the real world, this may be the luxury SUV to get if you need to unwind during the commute home.

The Range Rover Sport SV Edition One is already sold out for its first year. You can sign up to be notified about other SV trim levels, and there are hints BASS will be more widely available going forward.

However well this seat works, it’s just the start for Subpac. The company has been pitching its mix of haptics and bone conduction to movie theaters, music producers, VR simulation creators and gamers, and has a Flow platform that can bring vibration to seats and wearables (think of something like Lofelt’s Basslet). The firm also hopes to venture into aviation and the overall wellness space. Don’t be surprised if tactile audio finds its way into more of the devices you buy and use, even if it’s limited to premium products.

Many car makers will surround you with speakers in a bid to create immersive sound, but Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) thinks your seat can also play a role. The company’s new Range Rover Sport SV Edition One includes Subpac-powered “Body and Soul Seat” tech (appropriately, BASS) whose headrest-mounted membranes and transducers deliver haptic feedback in response to lower frequencies in your music. Whether you’re the driver or a passenger, you’ll feel the thumps of a dance or rap track.

The system complements the Range Rover Sport’s 29-speaker Meridian audio setup, which already has a subwoofer, but Jaguar Land Rover and Subpac also claim the vibrations can improve your health through six wellness programs. The companies point to a JLR-supported study indicating that BASS can help you relax and reduce stress by increasing the variability of your heart rate. Provided that holds up in the real world, this may be the luxury SUV to get if you need to unwind during the commute home.

The Range Rover Sport SV Edition One is already sold out for its first year. You can sign up to be notified about other SV trim levels, and there are hints BASS will be more widely available going forward.

However well this seat works, it’s just the start for Subpac. The company has been pitching its mix of haptics and bone conduction to movie theaters, music producers, VR simulation creators and gamers, and has a Flow platform that can bring vibration to seats and wearables (think of something like Lofelt’s Basslet). The firm also hopes to venture into aviation and the overall wellness space. Don’t be surprised if tactile audio finds its way into more of the devices you buy and use, even if it’s limited to premium products.