BMW E89 Audio Systems and Upgrades

[cosminr86]

I could say it bleends pretty well.
https://hifimaxnavi.com/

I ordered the 8 core 4 gb of ram version. The sound quality seems good, maybe it needs some tweaks, but i must upgrade the $itty sistem first. I just installed this weekend so no long term review


A dumb question:
I got an audison apbx10, and I wanted to mount it "landscape". The problem is that it is too tall (with about 4-5 cm too tall) and the roof does not close properly in the boot.
It's a good ideea to enlarge the middle square from the back wall and flash mount it with the carpet? Do I have enough space between boot carpet and plastics behind the seats? The sub is about 16 cm deep.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi all noted interested to see how it works out ref the head unit..

Your integrated sub woofer needs to fire into the cabin..the cubby hole behind and between the seats is the only hole from the boot to the cabin..

There’s not enough depth to flush mount the subwoofer on the boot side of the bulkhead firing forward and place the carpet back without a serious trim..imho..

So you’ll have to ‘bodge it’...I’m sure it won’t be a bodge..

 

[Colin_E]

Beware the perils of idly browsing a thread and beginning to formulate plans that never existed before :evil:
I was a bit peeved to realise those little tweeter grills on my A pillars are empty - sheesh. Maybe I should look a little more critically under the bonnet to see if anything there is just a housing or a plastic replica :x
Anyway I'm thinking -maybe- of a fairly timid upgrade by switching the OEM door speakers and adding tweeters with a so-called 'plug & play' ETON B100N kit.
Two questions:
a) Has anyone done this with these particular speakers on a stock (base) 6 speaker E89 and have any comments on whether they found the improvement worthwhile?
b) I'm circumspect about removing & refitting door cards. I used to do it with my old Z3 to lubricate the window mechanisms as she got elderly & creaky and eventually learnt some tricks but broke a few clips the first time I did it Anything different to watch here and are Z4 replacement clips easy to source?

 

[Silverstar]

b) I'm circumspect about removing & refitting door cards. I used to do it with my old Z3 to lubricate the window mechanisms as she got elderly & creaky and eventually learnt some tricks but broke a few clips the first time I did it Anything different to watch here and are Z4 replacement clips easy to source?

I recently had the door cards off, it's quite straight forward, remove the various screws and the door mirror tweeter cover, once you do that stick you hand in the gap you see between the door card and door panel in the area where you removed the tweeter cover and pull and then work you way around the pulling each clip in turn.

The first time I did this none of the clips broke but the second time I removed the cards I managed to break one clip, but it just pushed back in without any problems. When I get around to upgrading my speakers I will get a new clip and replace it, I believe they are readily available from the stealers. If you put 'BMW E89 Z4 door panel' in You tube search box you will find some useful videos on how to remove the cards.

 

[Anonymous]

Beware the perils of idly browsing a thread and beginning to formulate plans that never existed before :evil:
I was a bit peeved to realise those little tweeter grills on my A pillars are empty - sheesh. Maybe I should look a little more critically under the bonnet to see if anything there is just a housing or a plastic replica :x
Anyway I'm thinking -maybe- of a fairly timid upgrade by switching the OEM door speakers and adding tweeters with a so-called 'plug & play' ETON B100N kit.
Two questions:
a) Has anyone done this with these particular speakers on a stock (base) 6 speaker E89 and have any comments on whether they found the improvement worthwhile?
b) I'm circumspect about removing & refitting door cards. I used to do it with my old Z3 to lubricate the window mechanisms as she got elderly & creaky and eventually learnt some tricks but broke a few clips the first time I did it Anything different to watch here and are Z4 replacement clips easy to source?

It’s the duty of longer-serving Forum members to lead the ‘yoof’ away with their biases and prejudices...

What version of E89 do you have?

Sadly the B100Ns will not turn your 6 speaker base system into a 8 channel DSP power-amped entity...

However they are much better tonally and more efficient in terms of watts per decibel..

IMHO... they would be a good first step, if you then decide to go further then you’ll need something of that quality to use with your better headunit/amp..

As far as door cards..I recommend the Bavsound E89 door card removal / new speakers as it takes you through it in great detail..

https://youtu.be/LnyP_-vs3T4

It may be worth getting some of the push fit clips That hold most of the door card in place..that tend to get destroyed either on removal or when you’re re-fitting..

Again all IMHO..

 

[Colin_E]

LOL at 'yoof'. Haven't been called that for quite a few decades now...but hey i'll take it!
My E89 is a 2015 sDrive 20i MSport with 8AT. It has the iDrive / satNav/ bluetooth etc - all standard. but maybe relevant in terms of audio.
The sum total of my upgrades to date have been a remap and......a stubby
I don't really have any specific expectations of this speaker upgrade other than it being sufficiently better to be worth the cost & effort (a bit subjective of course) and I might be inclined to abandon the idea altogether if its only going to be a step on a long and expensive journey.

 

[Anonymous]

Well I think the Eton type speakers are a quick win..everything after that is harder work..

You’re car will have the BMW Active Sound Design synthetic brum brum sound injected into the speakers...see ASD on the Forum for more on that..

The stubby is a retrograde step but heh..

 

[cosminr86]

Well... I was stubborn and did'n buy proper speakers and now I have 2 days since I am 3d printing adapter rings. Done the rear, and now I am testing the some for the fronts, before printing in ABS.
Also spent entirely day rewiring all the speakers to the amp, that I put it behind passenger seat.
Tomorrow another noico sound deadening batch to finish the doors.

 

[Anonymous]

I've done an edit /update to the orginal post in light of some additional bedtime reading..nothing major..

 

[Wolter]

Hi guys, decided to upgrade my hifi system as well and started with installing a couple of Herz SP 165.1’s behind the kick panels. Since I’m using the old speaker housing to lock the new ones in place I thought I might as well try to transplant the female harness connectors from the old speakers. See the result below.
Soldered the old harness pins to the Herz connectors. Locked the harness in place with some superglue (just to be safe).
Maybe not the best looking solution but works like a charm.

 

[B21]

Hi guys, decided to upgrade my hifi system as well and started with installing a couple of Herz SP 165.1’s behind the kick panels. Since I’m using the old speaker housing to lock the new ones in place I thought I might as well try to transplant the female harness connectors from the old speakers. See the result below.
Soldered the old harness pins to the Herz connectors. Locked the harness in place with some superglue (just to be safe).
Maybe not the best looking solution but works like a charm.

Good work..when I fit my Audio Fischer Helix Woofers in my 35is in the winter I may plagarise your efforts..

Although they are never ever likely to come out again..

 

[birdy_z4]

Hi adding to the audio queries

I have the BMW Business Speaker Package aka BMW Hi-Fi aka 676 option

Doing the speaker upgrade as many are

I am looking to install the rear centre speaker and tweeter, does anyone know whether this can be wired to the 676 and if so which pins should be used and the cable routing?

Cheers

 

[B21]

Hi adding to the audio queries

I have the BMW Business Speaker Package aka BMW Hi-Fi aka 676 option

Doing the speaker upgrade as many are

I am looking to install the rear centre speaker and tweeter, does anyone know whether this can be wired to the 676 and if so which pins should be used and the cable routing?

Cheers

In simple terms you can’t ..there are not enough amplification channels and the internal DSP isn’t configured to do it..

Apart from its fine….

 

[birdy_z4]

Thanks for the answer

Reading up on amps, the next level up amp on the z4 also appears to be wired differently, is that the case

What’s the best option upgrading to an amp per this thread or the next level BMW Z4 amp?

Hi adding to the audio queries

I have the BMW Business Speaker Package aka BMW Hi-Fi aka 676 option

Doing the speaker upgrade as many are

I am looking to install the rear centre speaker and tweeter, does anyone know whether this can be wired to the 676 and if so which pins should be used and the cable routing?

Cheers

In simple terms you can’t ..there are not enough amplification channels and the internal DSP isn’t configured to do it..

Apart from its fine….

 

[B21]

The 677 amp is wired up totally differently…not trivial to implement..IMHO

Your best option is the Audio Fischer Match 7 DSP/amp which is almost plug compatible..see pbondar write up on the issues ..

Or search Match 7 here also..

 

[mlippett]

Of the many threads I have read on the subject of Z4 audio upgrades, this is the gold standard - many thanks.

I have a UK 2016 28i Z4 with the base systems and I am very keen to upgrade it - i.e. replace door speakers, add tweeters, replace footwell woofers, potentially add woofers behind the seats or a single sub in the luggage hatch area, and add an amplifier. The current plan is to go Audison throughout.

I have a few questions and would be very grateful for any answers:

- Is there an elegant way to use the existing speaker wiring from the head unit? I am planning to run the speaker channels from the head-unit straight into a 6-channel amplifier in the boot. Ideally, I can use the existing wiring (with extensions) to go from the amplifier to the door + footwell speakers. Is it up to it? Are there aftermarket off-the shelf wiring hardnesses that might help here?
- Is the best route for wiring to/from the boot under the centre console, or some other path?
- In a car that does not have the woofers behind the seats, is there still a hole for them in the body shell?
- In a car that does not have the hatch from the boot to the cabin, is there still a hole in the body shell?
- Does anyone have any positive experiences of putting an active subwoofer in the recess for the hatch?

If I can work up the courage to do this, I'll share the experience :? .

Cheers,

-Mark

 

[B21]

Each of the 3 audio systems has its own unqiue wiring llom, so you can't plagarise another audio's systems cables..

There are a numbe rof harnesses now offered to allow the 6 speaker system to integrate with a DSP/amp...being an Audio Fischer bigot I'm mostly aware of their versions for their products..but it seems other suppliers are doing similar systems.

Running from front to rear is relatively easy as you can route via the centre tunnel and/or the edges by the door jambs.

There are a couple of access points to get into the boot area so again running from the headunit to a DSP/amp in the boot then back to the headunit to take advanatage of the stock wiring is easy enough.

The body shelll has the mounts for the subwoofers..you either will need to cut some holes and fabricate speaker covers in the rear cabin trim or buy a second iuser version from a 676 or 677 version car.

Personally I'd go for the pukka sunwoofers in the correct positions if you are going that far.

Good woofers with decent DSP/amp provision will make a dramatic difference to lower frequencies.

I've spent a fortune on subwoofers and amps for poor results.

As a coupe ie roof up..its easy to get good audio performance, roof down at 85 mphs its harder work..

Enjoy the journey!

 

[Silverstar]

Of the many threads I have read on the subject of Z4 audio upgrades, this is the gold standard - many thanks.

I have a UK 2016 28i Z4 with the base systems and I am very keen to upgrade it - i.e. replace door speakers, add tweeters, replace footwell woofers, potentially add woofers behind the seats or a single sub in the luggage hatch area, and add an amplifier. The current plan is to go Audison throughout.

I have a few questions and would be very grateful for any answers:

- Is there an elegant way to use the existing speaker wiring from the head unit? I am planning to run the speaker channels from the head-unit straight into a 6-channel amplifier in the boot. Ideally, I can use the existing wiring (with extensions) to go from the amplifier to the door + footwell speakers. Is it up to it? Are there aftermarket off-the shelf wiring hardnesses that might help here?
- Is the best route for wiring to/from the boot under the centre console, or some other path?
- In a car that does not have the woofers behind the seats, is there still a hole for them in the body shell?
- In a car that does not have the hatch from the boot to the cabin, is there still a hole in the body shell?
- Does anyone have any positive experiences of putting an active subwoofer in the recess for the hatch?

If I can work up the courage to do this, I'll share the experience :? .

Cheers,

-Mark

Much of what you have asked is already covered in my thread: https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=126024

You can use the existing factory speaker wires, they are more than capable of handling what you want to do. You can splice off the speaker wires behind the head unit and take it to your amp and from your amp back to the other end of the head unit. B21 has mentioned there are harnesses available to do this but I suspect they cost an arm and a leg and it would be much cheaper to make up your own harness only caveat being cutting into the original wires.

For the cabling I ran mine the same way as the factory along the passenger side door sills / jambs. For the subs the holes are there and the trim panel for the bulkhead has the cutout marked on the back where you can make the holes, again see my thread all info is contained there. I would imagine the hole for the pass through is also there.

I have placed two Kicker shallow mount subs in the bulkhead space where the original factory subs should be and they do a fine job sound great with some deep bass but it's not the type of bass to shake the mirror or windows. For that you need much bigger subs which require much bigger box which is almost an imposibility in this car due to space. Even if you put sub box in the boot (assuming you have the pass through) you are limited by space if you want to keep the functionality of the folding roof.

I was thinking of the downfiring sub box from Kicker with a 10" sub that can sit in the boot neatly and still allow the roof to fold but I am not sure how much more bass it would generate compared to the 2 6.75" subs that I have in the bulkhead already.

 

[mlippett]

Thanks both for your responses.

@B21 thanks for the tip on Audio Fischer, somehow they had passed me by.

@Silverstar a couple more questions if I may - how difficult is it to get the wiring along the passenger side door sills - does the seat need to come out? Is it obvious which cables to hook into from the head unit? I'll follow your lead on the subs - no need for anything in the boot for me.

Cheers

 

[B21]

Thanks both for your responses.

@B21 thanks for the tip on Audio Fischer, somehow they had passed me by.

@Silverstar a couple more questions if I may - how difficult is it to get the wiring along the passenger side door sills - does the seat need to come out? Is it obvious which cables to hook into from the head unit? I'll follow your lead on the subs - no need for anything in the boot for me.

Cheers

AF are a great company ..their DSP tools allow you to create a fabulous , coherent , clear and stable soundstage…some folks really appreciate that..others are happy with ‘stereo’__I’m sure Audison do very similar things..

Enjoy your journey…