99 528 iouring audio build questions

[Dusterbd]

so, since im laid out sick ive been doing some research, and it is all confusing and seemingly conflicting.

first off, is NON dsp. just the standard buisness radio. near as i can tell, all stock. i did, however, score a touring subwoofer from the junkyard. the wiring plug was there, and it fired right up.

plans/needs:
kenwood bluetooth and HD radio head unit.
more bass, but nothing extreme.
improved radio reception
good, clear audio that goes louder than stock without distortion

gear on hand:
kenwood head unit.
kicker 4 channel amp, as well as a half dozen other amps of various brands and sizes.
amp wiring stuff
polk db8
100s of feet of speaker wire
eclipse crossover from the early 2000's
6.5 components, 5.25 components, various sizes of 2-3 way speaker as well.

so pretty much other than the BMW specific parts, i should have what i need on hand. for just about any contingency of system design.

to be blunt, im hoping to make this as simple, quick, cheap, and seamless as possible. minimum of hackery, but im ok with non BMW approved tweaks in this case....

first, let me ask about speakers:
what is max RMS of the factory stuff? they dont sound bad, but i dont want to blow them up, either.
the two (appear to be} 6.5 in the roof: one sounds blown. are these full range or just midbass drivers?

head unit: ill be making my own dash kit, as none of the comercially availible ones look good to me. however, ill need harness adapters and an antenna adapter according to my research. i see two main types of harness adapters: 1 with RCA plugs, 1 without. what do i actually need here? im foregoing retaining steering wheel controls at this time, until the rest of the install is how i want it.

amp: the factory amp still works, but not that well for me. id like to replace it. ive seen some guys run new wires directly from the head unit to the speakers, and some talk of bypassing the amp by connectiong the input and output wires together. i was thinking of using the kicker, as it takes line level inputs already. but, the amp is the most confusing research topic for me. just cant seem to understand the threads. it may be just me, or maybe theres no real answer and im on my own.

sub: found a real nice thread on the box i have being converted to an 8. perfect. only problem is that the metal hinge bar that camw with it. my touring has a spot for the lower bolt, but none that i can find for the upper. is there another tab specific to the sub equipped cars that mine doesnt have?

anything bmw specific that im missing? my goal is to have all parts and supplies on hand, and the system install and wiring mapped out before I pick up a tool.
this will be my next stop after window regulators.

[DennisCooper]

Hi,

It sounds as though you do have a bit of time available to you so that you can research and evaluate more and then plan to eventually install. I'll keep my initial response here brief so that you can begin your install journey.

For a good 6+ months I analyzed and evaluated my install in my Touring for the requirements I had. I thought about 'mixing' oem modules with aftermarket high quality products, placement of speakers, upgrading installation aspects to give a more solid base for the speakers/sub to play from, cost, ease of install, high sound quality, musicality and, simplicity.

Here's what I did;

https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...-Audio-Upgrade

With the 'foundation' of what I did, you can 'vary' each product to suit your budget, for instance 'entry level' products from the dedicated car audio brands or, mid level from the big car electronics brands like Sony/Kenwood/Alpine etc. The 'best' of the budget brands can also sound very good as well. You could go higher up as well and then also above that for when custom door or A pillar builds are needed for even more substantial audio performance - it all depends on how well you like your music reproduced in the car.

There's a few other directions you could go as I understand and respect that other owners may have specific needs/wants in mind.

Let me know your thoughts and any specific reasons for not wanting to go down the 'exact' route I've mentioned, can then discuss etc.

Cheers, Dennis!

[Dusterbd]

Thats a beautiful Install, but far more than im going for, at least with the front doors.

I love the 10? And sealed box you did. Hadn't seen that one yet. Any specific information about it?

Called crutchfield, and found out that the harness with rca is for dsp cars. Supposedly the harness without makes a head unit plug and play with the factory amp, but i have my doubts.

So at this point, after a lot more research from yesterday, is:
Is there a good diagram of the wiring to the factory amp?

Are there blueprints for the mdf panels guys are making to install 6.5 drivers in the place of the 5.25 in the front doors?

[DennisCooper]

Hi Dusterbd,

Thanks for the compliment !

Most owners will prefer to keep the OEM look on the doors and install 5.25 inch high quality replacement 2 way components in specific much more solid baffles to replace the oem plastic ones. You can go 6.5's but there's more evaluation and work involved, which then pushes the price levels up.

The OEM touring subwoofer shouldn't be called a subwoofer as it doesn't provide sub bass. It gives a 'lower end' response, but not at any clean/musical/powerful/controlled levels - for me it's a very poor output. Other's find it's ok/good.

A good, experienced and reputable car audio installer can make up a set of baffles quite easily for the front doors. If you get a nice set of 5.25 inch components, then most entry/mid level price point ones will have mounting depths which will fit easily and not be too deep to possibly touch the door membrane/metal. If you go 6.5 inch, then you'll need to evaluate carefully mounting depths and also how much excursion of the woofer cone there is as many owners have found that the cone will 'hit' the back of the door card causing a buzzing sound. To resolve, a spacer ring has been made which then of course means it's possible the magnet will hit the membrane/door metal. You could go for the 'shallow mount depth' 5.25 or 6.5 inch components, but there's only a few choices out there and the pricing level is usually significantly higher.

The OEM amplifier is not very powerful at all, there are ways of making it connect with a aftermarket head unit, but nowadays, those head units have a more powerful internal amplifier anyway, so no point to have the OEM amp. For a 'base' starter setup, a good reputable brand head unit with all the latest features, powering each corner through upgraded speakers is a decent way forward. As funds allow, you can add an amplifier to drive those upgraded cabin speakers (fronts in those upgraded baffles) much more efficiently and thus they'll play and sound even better. A dedicated amp could be added to then drive an actual subwoofer to give you true sub bass that's musical and clean. You could opt to blend the two amps into one single 5 channel one and do the upgrade in one go as it were - something I've thought about doing so that I only have the one amplifier unit.

As per my writeup, that's an 8 inch JL Audio 8W3-V3 subwoofer. Some enthusiasts have heard it and guessed its a 10, others say a 12 and a few even thought they were hearing a 15 inch! the sheer look of astonishment on them all when I point out they've been hearing an 8 inch driver is hilarious! a good proportion go on to ask where I've hidden the 'other' sub that they 'must have' been hearing !

12V electronics in the USA do the upgraded baffles - http://store.12velectronics.com/categories/Accessories/. You'll need to tell them the size of the hole to cut, so as per above, evaluate and research which front components you'd want to go for.

Are you going to go for an aftermarket head unit? or keep the oem setup and amp? You mention a Kenwood head unit, is that a single or double DIN?

Lastly, what level of audio quality and performance do you ideally want? I see you've mentioned the words like 'clean, non distorted. Generally speaking, if you wanting to keep any of the oem modules and the amp, then distortion is easy to push them to as the RMS power is very low meaning you'll be turning the volume up in the attempt to see if you can go louder/more powerful. My guess you do want a really good improvement without breaking the bank, so I'd say remove the old OEM setup and go for the same fundamentals as I've done.

Cheers, Dennis!

[Dusterbd]

As far as components go, ive already got my kenwood deck, kicker 4 channel amp, a seperate rockford 300 watt monoblock, polk db8 (8 inch sub for .35 cu ft sealed enclosures), and a lot of other stuff.

If i can get as good a sound and volume and soundstage as i have in my truck (95 Silverado stepside reg cab with infinity components and a polk db8 behind the seat. Only the 8 is hooked to an amp. Rest is driven off the head) ill be happy, to be honest. I dont have the ears 9f a true audiophile anymore due to too many years of race cars, rock concerts, and industrial equipment. So, due to that i can be much happier with much less that m9st others that love a go9d stereo.

I guess a good way of saying it is clear enough to listen to classical music, crisp enough for syeve via to sound good, with enough midbass and sub to make the kick drums on meyallicas black album felt in my spleen.
Im a musocal omnivore....

If any of the bmw drivers are retained at all, itll probably be the tweeters in the front and rear doors. Looks like some 2 inch full ranges can fit min yhe middle position up front, and i will evaluate what 6.5 midbass drivers i have for fitment.

You mentioned stringing all new wire. Other than "because i can ", is there really any reason to? The twisted pair wires from the factory amp look to be pretty high strand count, and my 4 channel will fit in the exact same space as the factory amp. Hell, 2 of the holes even line up.

[rjbaren]

I went the 12voltaudio route. All the amps you have are going to work. I went with the 6.5 inch Hybrid Audio technologies 2 ways up front with external crossovers rear and a pair of baffle boards manufactured by 12 volt audio for an easy and perfect fit. I also added a pair of 5.25 Hybrid Audio technologies coaxial replacement speakers from 12 volt as well in the ceiling. 10 minute install there. I also disconnected the tweeters in the rear door. I really like the sound now and I can't drive ten feet without popping in a favorite CD. Tom at 12 volt electronics has some really nice stuff and he is a super nice and easy guy to work with. You may want to give him a call or email.

[Smokymb]

Just completed my own audio upgrade on a 2000 528it, not to the extent that you have planned, but a couple of notes might be applicable. I elected to go the Apple CarPlay route and bought a Sony unit that did not have a CD player or wiring for satellite radio .. don’t need the options. Got everything from Crutchfield and was mostly happy with gear. Mounting kit looks good enuf for me, but had to drill my own holes into the mounting brackets. The interface cable was very useful, with only one glitch. The wire marked “power antenna”, which I don’t have, had to be connected to a mysteriously labeled wire from the Sony unit. Instructions and technical help from Crutchfield was good and helped with the two issues listed. Very happy with ability to use iPhone (this Sony unit also supports Android version of CarPlay) apps on a 6.25” screen, including hands free phone and iMessage, with all contacts available, navigation from Apple, with Google maps available in next iOS update, listening to books and podcasts from Audible, all the music on the phone. I can even listen to FM, AM, and anything else that will plug in to a USB port. Very happy with results. Have used Crutchfield in the past and will use in future.