Best aftermarket headunit V2019

[Moron95M3]

Looking for an oem looking headunit that does bluetooth, does not need to do CD (it's 2019)...

Ideas? Seems very difficult to find a Red/Amber display and with no chrome (and preferably matte).

stupidly, I found this which is close...and scary cheap. But meh looking
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...HJ8VBA6B&psc=1
31GyOpbzo2L.jpg



I know this one looks pretty good too...not sure if the orange would be okay or too different than oem.
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-vdo-part...SABEgLbsfD_BwE
s-l1600.jpg


I really like this also, but not sure how to change colors on it (help?)
https://www.amazon.com/Stereo-Compat...ustomerReviews

71bGfmTwq1L._SL1500_.jpg

[CblockM3]

I probably spend an hour or so a year googling good aftermarket head units and never find anything totally satisfying. Shouldn't be so hard.

[Hova]

Really depends on how you define "best". I really don't like any of the headunits offered these days. All of them look out of place in an E36. The last M3 I bought had this installed:

https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-MVHX5.../dp/B00GS80OQ8

The amber color setting matched fairly well. A lot of head units from Pioneer and Alpine do a form of RGB these days. If your concern is audio quality, I would avoid the non-name brands.

The Alpine UTE-73BT is a really nice unit as well, and has a bunch of colors.

https://www.alpine-usa.com/product/ute-73bt

[Moron95M3]

I probably spend an hour or so a year googling good aftermarket head units and never find anything totally satisfying. Shouldn't be so hard.

Agree...my CD changer decided it no longer wanted to be part of my trunk after the cd reader stopped working a year ago (so my old bluetooth setup stopped working too).
I have always looked, but now I kind of need

Really depends on how you define "best". I really don't like any of the headunits offered these days. All of them look out of place in an E36. The last M3 I bought had this installed:

https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-MVHX5.../dp/B00GS80OQ8

The amber color setting matched fairly well. A lot of head units from Pioneer and Alpine do a form of RGB these days. If your concern is audio quality, I would avoid the non-name brands.

The Alpine UTE-73BT is a really nice unit as well, and has a bunch of colors.

https://www.alpine-usa.com/product/ute-73bt

Thanks Hova! Good stuff...for some reason both shoot a bit too new feeling...but the Alpine fully color matched could be pretty decent...

[Neubauten]

Pioneer SPH-10BT
https://www.pioneerelectronics.com/P...ivers/SPH-10BT

You can adjust the colours of the lights to match perfectly the amber of the car, the style is reasonably tame, and the smartphone functionalities are great!

[DrftKingIII]

By no means perfect, but ticked a lot of the boxes for me. I wet sanded the surround trim with 2000 grit sandpaper to dull the finish a bit and I also painted the volume knob black. There's some 20,000 programable colors but the generic "amber" is pretty damn close. Pioneer DEH-S6010BS is the unit.

[Hova]

In Houston TX and you keep the AC at 71 without recirculation?! Crazy talk. lol.

That color match is okay. Good job trying to keep the gloss down. I'm sure it looks close in amber color at night, but again it looks out of place in an E36.

Just came to mind, I remember seeing this a while back. Any of the stock head units can be modified for bluetooth:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/121543181090

This seems like a pretty easy and inexpensive way to go about bluetooth as well:

https://zroadster.org/threads/diy-up...em-look.10563/


The "better" option would be a CD43 modified for bluetooth the same way. Going to be pretty expensive, but that blends right into an E36 as well.

Edit: Just checked Ebay, why are the stock C33 head units on these cars so expensive these days? I've thrown so many of these away...

[Braymond141]

Edit: Just checked Ebay, why are the stock C33 head units on these cars so expensive these days? I've thrown so many of these away...

Glad to see it. I’ve thrown away so many “superior” shit aftermarket decks people insist on replacing OEM units with.

What’s wrong with OEM? They actually fit and simple addons give you modern capabilities. Everything posted is horrid in my mind.

[Hova]

Glad to see it. I’ve thrown away so many “superior” shit aftermarket decks people insist on replacing OEM units with.

What’s wrong with OEM? They actually fit and simple addons give you modern capabilities. Everything posted is horrid in my mind.

Nothing wrong with the C33. I said I am not a fan of any of the aftermarket solutions, they all look atrocious. The stock C33 is made by Alpine and was a well made system. Audio tech has had diminishing returns for years now. I'm simply referring to the sheer numbers of them made, the amount of E36's totalled or scraped over the years.

Brett, you're against keeping the C33 and modifying it with with one of the two ways I mentioned to support bluetooth? Do you have a better solution?

[M3C]

This seems like a pretty easy and inexpensive way to go about bluetooth as well:

https://zroadster.org/threads/diy-up...em-look.10563/

Very interesting about the ground loop (motor noise) isolation. Does anyone have more info or experience on this issue?

[jayjaya29]

Very interesting about the ground loop (motor noise) isolation. Does anyone have more info or experience on this issue?

I use this in my M3 and it eliminates a lot of the noise:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N10AQ76

[AJLM34A]

9f136b40-edaf-11e4-95ec-b2aa523e3106.jpg

[Hova]

Very interesting about the ground loop (motor noise) isolation. Does anyone have more info or experience on this issue?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_loop_(electricity)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phantom_circuit

Ground loop isolaters are more of a band-aid that a real fix, but they do work and have their place. Usually you can tell if you need one if you hear a high pitch noise or static while your engine is running, and no added distortion while the engine is off. Your charging system or something else is causing interference, and is essentially trying to ground itself. There are lots of other ways to combat this; make sure your speaker wires are not running on the right hand side floor board (where the power cable is), run well made insulated and twisted RCA cables AWAY from other power sources, keep grounds and power lead surfaces clean, test alternator charging voltage and load (oscilloscope helps here). Different cars react to the issue in different ways, the metals used, area of grounds, etc. The list goes on and on.

[DrftKingIII]

In Houston TX and you keep the AC at 71 without recirculation?! Crazy talk. lol.

Just came to mind, I remember seeing this a while back. Any of the stock head units can be modified for Bluetooth:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/121543181090
This seems like a pretty easy and inexpensive way to go about bluetooth as well:
https://zroadster.org/threads/diy-up...em-look.10563/

I think it was January when I took that picture otherwise I would be dead by now.

I'm interested in grabbing a kit and doing this to my C33, I've kept it in a box in the garage. Just skeptical of the Bluetooth music playback, I've had some that were genuinely awful enough that I'd rather drive in silence.

[Braymond141]

Nothing wrong with the C33. I said I am not a fan of any of the aftermarket solutions, they all look atrocious. The stock C33 is made by Alpine and was a well made system. Audio tech has had diminishing returns for years now. I'm simply referring to the sheer numbers of them made, the amount of E36's totalled or scraped over the years.

Brett, you're against keeping the C33 and modifying it with with one of the two ways I mentioned to support bluetooth? Do you have a better solution?

I'm not against modifying the OE decks to add modern capabilities. However, the bluetooth option with maker board buttons glued to the tape deck door is terrible.

[M3C]

I use this in my M3 and it eliminates a lot of the noise:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N10AQ76

Did you plug this isolator to bluetooth cable?

What interface you have?

[Moron95M3]

Good stuff everyone!

Hova...I have a '95, and thus a CM5903L not the newer C33/43/etc.

...so that guy won't work for me. Although that + a newer deck could be an option.

[RRSperry]

Jeez just put in an Alpine 149bt and call it a day... It's a freaking radio... Yes, if you are anal you can add filters to make the display the "correct" color.

[AJLM34A]

Jeez just put in an Alpine 149bt and call it a day... It's a freaking radio... Yes, if you are anal you can add filters to make the display the "correct" color.

A 4 1/2-year-old Alpine does;
radio with LED.jpg

[bluptgm3]

In Houston TX and you keep the AC at 71 without recirculation?! Crazy talk. lol.

That color match is okay. Good job trying to keep the gloss down. I'm sure it looks close in amber color at night, but again it looks out of place in an E36.

Just came to mind, I remember seeing this a while back. Any of the stock head units can be modified for bluetooth:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/121543181090

This seems like a pretty easy and inexpensive way to go about bluetooth as well:

https://zroadster.org/threads/diy-up...em-look.10563/


The "better" option would be a CD43 modified for bluetooth the same way. Going to be pretty expensive, but that blends right into an E36 as well.

Edit: Just checked Ebay, why are the stock C33 head units on these cars so expensive these days? I've thrown so many of these away...

CD43 has a lot more power than the C33 fit in the E36 and the diversity antenna capability is a plus.
My other E36 came with a Pioneer HU that really struggles with radio signal, but BT and USB input is nice.

I have been looking at the Continental/VDO HU w/BT as a replacement.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[AJLM34A]

I have been looking at the Continental/VDO HU w/BT as a replacement.

Did you read the reviews on ECS?
" The usb port is pretty much useless, it wont charge or play music from a device, only works with usb drives - doesn't really matter with bluetooth and aux though."

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-vdo-part...7412ub-or~con/

[dmc97]

I just picked up the Alpine UTE-73BT as well and will be installing this week. The price and features list was right and my audiophile buddy just put one in his Boxster and has been happy with it. There’s a good value Kenwood unit that looked slightly more period-correct but it didn’t have variable color at the price point that was better than the Alpine.

I’ll share some photos of the Alpine on my build thread when it is in.

[RRSperry]

I mean really guys,,, the Alpine 149Bt is only like $200.... It's a great head unit.

[jayjaya29]

Did you plug this isolator to bluetooth cable?

What interface you have?

I'm running a Clarion FZ102E. This isolator goes between the head unit aux port and the source of your music (like phone or ipod), wired of course.

[propcar]

interesting Jay, mine has some of the feedback noise as well but I'm not using an aux connection .