Stereo

Congrats on your new car! :D

There are decent audio solutions out there; on my first Z4 I installed a pair of Genesis 6x9 subs behind the seats running off a Genesis 5-channel amp mounted in the boot. I also upgraded the other speakers - Morels if I recall correctly. It sounded great.

My current Z4MR has the DSP set up in it and, tbh, while it doesn't blow you away in the quality dept, it is just about good enough to prevent me from wanting to install an aftermarket system. Anyway, I prefer to hear the sound of the engine and very rarely listen to music in this car which is a first for me as car audio has been a major hobby of mine in the past!

Enjoy the ///M!
 
Hi chaps, I am picking up my 2008 Ruby Black Z4MC this w/e... upgrading from a 2007 3.0si coupe. I had the speaker upgrade in the 3.0 and it is the only option missing from the M. As mentioned above the engine is amazing and therefore would only listen to music whilst cruising on the motorway.

I am very interested in after market sound upgrades. I know there are 2 little spaces behnd the seats. Would you suggest 6x9's and a small amp or 1 sub and an amp. I want to achieve a crisp, deep and loud(ish) sound without disturbing the interior at all. Dont really like the idea of cutting plastic here and there and potentially creating rattles!

Any advice and suggestions on make model would be ace!

Thanks guys... cant wait to get the new car! :)
 
I am firstly going to fit a 12" sub and keep the standard head unit. I will see how this sounds but will likely also go for some seperate 6x9's behind the seats in the next few months. I have just bought a TRUNK-LOC with remote trigger - which will allow for an easy boot setup. (I hope!!)
 
I had the standard stereo which was the one thing I didn't like about the car.

I looked into fitting the other BMW options but there were some loom issues.....

So I came up with my own solution for about a grand fitted with decent interconnects (not pictured)...

I used a 2 channel iPaul amp, LC6i using the head unit as inputs via high quality speaker cable to the back of the car. I installed a set of 3 way component Rainbow speakers (quite high end). I've kept the original rear speakers as fill for the moment.

If I keep the car I will use the spaces behind the seats to fit a couple of custom sub enclosures, another amp being used to power these from the boot.

I adapted the original amp bracket to fit the iPaul Amp. All the components are hidden which is what I wanted.....

ampz.jpg


The only thing about doing this is even with an amp isolator, there is some pick up of alternator wine. But if you keep the LC6i input down, it's gone.

Great bits of kit!
 
Wow that looks pretty sweet.

Do do the install how much trim did you have to take off to get to the stereo output to send to the lc6i?.. is it in the boot already or do you have to run it from the cabin?
 
So you take the feed from the dash, along the gearbox to the LC6i, through the amp then back up to the rear of the stereo to head to the speakers? shame there's nothing to tap into in the boot like there would be in a dsp car.
 
dont bother with the £700 DSP upgrade... Worst £700 i have spent in my life... rubbish hi fi in the car... I wish BMW can do a collaboration with Bose, just like Merc and Audi.... :thumbsdown:
 
funkdude said:
dont bother with the £700 DSP upgrade... Worst £700 i have spent in my life... rubbish hi fi in the car... I wish BMW can do a collaboration with Bose, just like Merc and Audi.... :thumbsdown:
Click to expand...

If you think the DSP is bad you should have heard the Harman Kardon set up in the M3. Personally I'm impressed with the DSP option and wouldn't have one of these cars without it now.
 
I have the DSP and think its ok, just don't understand all the settings, can someone give me a guide? Also soem recommended 'memo' settings?

Cheers
 
Hi Andy
I ordered a TRUNK-LOC with remote trigger for £20ish of sextons. I can then tap into the rear speakers wires for RCA's, it also has a remote lead to the amp. Will let you know how the install goes.
 
Andy said:
So you take the feed from the dash, along the gearbox to the LC6i, through the amp then back up to the rear of the stereo to head to the speakers? shame there's nothing to tap into in the boot like there would be in a dsp car.
Click to expand...

Mine goes alongside the drivers door sill.

You could theoretically use the rear speaker feeds as inputs but the cable is not great. Depends on how far you want to go. The 2 copper wires you can in my pic are the feeds from the head unit. Most important are good cables, decent amp and decent speakers. A sub is really essential and something my system misses.

Looked at the BMW speakers but to be honest they were very cheap, even the DSP ones. So decided to go with something more simple for the same money....

You do have to cut a bit around the tweeters and the door speakers need a spacer between the door and inner card to give a few mm more room, along with the rubber boot being taken off them. A bit of tweaking but works well....
 
ive bought an alpine swd-1600 which i planned to go under the seat for simple bass, but it's not quite as loud as i'd like, it's quite heavy and it doesn't fit as easily as I wanted so I'm not sure what to do. Got the oem bluetooth going in next week so wondered about tackling it whilst it's all still apart, but haven't found a cheap enough amp.

Want a PDX4-150 to run the front components and something behind the seats i think, but there's a recession on don't you know and I've spent quite a lot on her and the other car recently. Decisions decisions.

Like the look of that LC6i tho, have ordered one of them.
 
LC6i is great - makes life easy.

The amp I use is the 2 channel Rainbow iPaul amp - £250 or so. Speaker were £300 if I remember right. The smaller iPaul amp fits perfect in the space where the amp should be with a little alteration of the existing bracket...
 
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