Non-invasive E90 audio upgrade

avincar · 06-09-2007, 11:59 AM

Here are some pics of a basic audio upgrade we just did in an 05 E90 sedan.

The ground rules were:

- No cutting, everything reversible

- OEM look

- Had to be below $2K retail installed

- Better sound and louder than stock

- Retain non-fading bass on the subwoofer (so we used the sub output for the sub and the front output for the front, from the OEM amp, rather than the balanced outputs from the HU - this car did not have MOST).

The first thing we did was upgrade the front speakers. Unlike older BMWs, these have 4"/100mm midranges and 28mm tweeters. We installed a set of DLS PS4A components (20mm silk tweeter, 100mm treated unpulped paper cone with rubber edge). By the way, that black tape is gaffer's tape, removes with no residue.)

I've used the MB Quart RUA210, and they are a pretty speaker, but I don't like the upper mids or highs at all. The DLS are a good low-cost replacement with silk tweeters and better-sounding upper mid.

The 4" mid from the DLS just fits. I would rather have used the Morel Dotech or Hybrid 4, but budget was a factor. The Morels have a 28mm tweeter and a 2" voice-coil motor on their 4" speaker - they sound amazing! (We put two sets in an X3 last week.)

We made an MDF ring with a shelf for the speaker frame, sealed it to the door with foam tape, and used the OEM studs to bolt it over the speaker to the door panel.

The tweeter fit loosely in the OEM location, we glued it into place after this photo was taken.

The passive crossovers went in the door, on brackets which bolted to the OEM bolt. Sturdy and no holes.

The 10" sub went in this enclosure:

I wish the upholstery was a 100% match, but with many BMWs, there doesn't seem to be any available. It does look better in person, the camera is never flattering in this respect.

The enclosure itself is molded fiberglass - we made a mold so we can make these for special orders or before the car actually arrives. It nestles on top of the battery door, and can be easily removed for service.

The speaker disconnect allows easy battery access.

The amp was a Zapco DC 360 50wRMS 4-channel. It's partially visible in some pics. We left the OEM rears and underseat woofers playing on the OEM amp, and used the Zapco speaker-level BTL adapters (which are a resistor-level attenuating network only and do not have any response-altering transformers inside).

The amp is fan-cooled and edge-sinked, so it works just fine inverted like this.

The amp panel attaches with nuts and bolts - no screws. This added to the cost, since the rear seat and deck have to be disassembled to do this part of the install, but there were no screws and no cutting.

The DC amps have a DSP card built in, and I used the 10-band parametric EQ for reversing the OEM response curve built into the amp. I've done this before, on E60s and other cars, and it's not hard to do if you have an RTA with the right test cable.

These measurements were taken with a pink noise 20-20k test disc, an NT Instruments Acoustilyzer, and a Neutrik 20dB attenuator. NO mike was used - the speaker level signals were tapped into with a test cable which is essentially an XLR to test-lead adapter.

Hi-pass output of the E90:

Lo-pass output of the E90:

I didn't take a pic of the resulting reversed curve - flat isn't that interesting

That big bump centered at 1K was flattened out and things still sounded poor - I ended up cutting it a good bit for best sound. I think there's a peak in the interior of the car in that region.

We did not try to sum the hi-pass and low-pass outputs together. The xover points were fine for my purposes. I did add another LP filter on the 10" sub, and that pulled the stage forward, which is a big thing for me.

The sound was a big improvement. It had more volume and more dynamics, the highs were much warmer and smoother, and the owner commented, "this system didn't have an image before, and now it does".

What I'd do to improve it? I'd upgrade the fronts to Morels and I'd add another set of amp channels and power the underseat 6' as midbass. Thats' about it.

oneshare325 · 06-09-2007, 12:03 PM

Good job!

remmib · 06-09-2007, 01:56 PM

Looks like a good upgrade.

What OEM system did the car have, 10 speaker or logic7?

avincar · 06-09-2007, 03:21 PM

I've seen three systems in the E90:

Analog balanced to the amp from the HU, Front Door mids and tweets, Underseat woofers, Rear door mids. This was in an 05 325 or 328i sedan, can't remember, and there were no rear deck speakers. I count 8 speakers. Parts calls this the "HiFi" system.

MOST fiber-optic from the amp to the HU (no I-Drive, no Logic 7), Front Door mids and tweets, Underseat woofers, Rear Door mids, Rear Deck mids and tweets. This was in an 06 330i. I count 10 speakers. Parts calls this the "Individual" system.

Logic 7: MOST from the HU to the amp, as above, plus center. Parts calls this the "Top HiFi system".

This car was the first one - analog balanced from the HU to the amp. The system actually looks identical in architecture to the E83 X3 non-DSP system, and the amp looks identical too.

But since we used the speaker-level outputs of the amp (not what I would have done, but the only way to retain non-fading bass), this approach would work equally well on Logic 7 cars. Just get rid of that annoying center channel and voila! : )

MonacoBimm · 06-23-2007, 12:39 AM

I need your HELP!!! Avincar

MonacoBimm · 06-23-2007, 12:39 AM

Please PM ME!

MonacoBimm · 06-23-2007, 12:39 AM

When you see this

Joe Bimmer · 06-23-2007, 06:54 PM

Impressive! What are the cu. ft. dimensions of the 10" sub box? If you can make one in a similar fashion that can hold a JL Audio 10W6v2-d4 (.625 cu. ft.), I will buy one!

Let me know if you'd consider doing this, and IM me a price including the carpeting and everything as shown!

:edit: How does the enclosure attach to the vehicle?

scooby9 · 11-27-2007, 12:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by avincar

Sorry to bring back an old thread, but what tools and techniques do you use to make such nice speaker rings? I got the same component speakers and I need to install them but I can't find pre-made speaker rings like yours.

Thanks.

gloster · 11-27-2007, 08:29 AM

Fantastic job!

canucklion · 11-27-2007, 09:11 AM

avincar is a professional car audio installer

Quote:

Originally Posted by scooby9

Sorry to bring back an old thread, but what tools and techniques do you use to make such nice speaker rings? I got the same component speakers and I need to install them but I can't find pre-made speaker rings like yours.

Thanks.

VP Electricity · 04-11-2009, 02:48 PM

Someone with router skills made these...

06-09-2007, 11:59 AM	#1
avincar Private 4 Rep 63 Posts Drives: touring sedan Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Portland, OR iTrader: (0)	Non-invasive E90 audio upgrade Here are some pics of a basic audio upgrade we just did in an 05 E90 sedan. The ground rules were: - No cutting, everything reversible - OEM look - Had to be below $2K retail installed - Better sound and louder than stock - Retain non-fading bass on the subwoofer (so we used the sub output for the sub and the front output for the front, from the OEM amp, rather than the balanced outputs from the HU - this car did not have MOST). The first thing we did was upgrade the front speakers. Unlike older BMWs, these have 4"/100mm midranges and 28mm tweeters. We installed a set of DLS PS4A components (20mm silk tweeter, 100mm treated unpulped paper cone with rubber edge). By the way, that black tape is gaffer's tape, removes with no residue.) I've used the MB Quart RUA210, and they are a pretty speaker, but I don't like the upper mids or highs at all. The DLS are a good low-cost replacement with silk tweeters and better-sounding upper mid. The 4" mid from the DLS just fits. I would rather have used the Morel Dotech or Hybrid 4, but budget was a factor. The Morels have a 28mm tweeter and a 2" voice-coil motor on their 4" speaker - they sound amazing! (We put two sets in an X3 last week.) We made an MDF ring with a shelf for the speaker frame, sealed it to the door with foam tape, and used the OEM studs to bolt it over the speaker to the door panel. The tweeter fit loosely in the OEM location, we glued it into place after this photo was taken. The passive crossovers went in the door, on brackets which bolted to the OEM bolt. Sturdy and no holes. The 10" sub went in this enclosure: I wish the upholstery was a 100% match, but with many BMWs, there doesn't seem to be any available. It does look better in person, the camera is never flattering in this respect. The enclosure itself is molded fiberglass - we made a mold so we can make these for special orders or before the car actually arrives. It nestles on top of the battery door, and can be easily removed for service. The speaker disconnect allows easy battery access. The amp was a Zapco DC 360 50wRMS 4-channel. It's partially visible in some pics. We left the OEM rears and underseat woofers playing on the OEM amp, and used the Zapco speaker-level BTL adapters (which are a resistor-level attenuating network only and do not have any response-altering transformers inside). The amp is fan-cooled and edge-sinked, so it works just fine inverted like this. The amp panel attaches with nuts and bolts - no screws. This added to the cost, since the rear seat and deck have to be disassembled to do this part of the install, but there were no screws and no cutting. The DC amps have a DSP card built in, and I used the 10-band parametric EQ for reversing the OEM response curve built into the amp. I've done this before, on E60s and other cars, and it's not hard to do if you have an RTA with the right test cable. These measurements were taken with a pink noise 20-20k test disc, an NT Instruments Acoustilyzer, and a Neutrik 20dB attenuator. NO mike was used - the speaker level signals were tapped into with a test cable which is essentially an XLR to test-lead adapter. Hi-pass output of the E90: Lo-pass output of the E90: I didn't take a pic of the resulting reversed curve - flat isn't that interesting That big bump centered at 1K was flattened out and things still sounded poor - I ended up cutting it a good bit for best sound. I think there's a peak in the interior of the car in that region. We did not try to sum the hi-pass and low-pass outputs together. The xover points were fine for my purposes. I did add another LP filter on the 10" sub, and that pulled the stage forward, which is a big thing for me. The sound was a big improvement. It had more volume and more dynamics, the highs were much warmer and smoother, and the owner commented, "this system didn't have an image before, and now it does". What I'd do to improve it? I'd upgrade the fronts to Morels and I'd add another set of amp channels and power the underseat 6' as midbass. Thats' about it.
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06-09-2007, 12:03 PM	#2
oneshare325 Brigadier General 199 Rep 4,178 Posts Drives: E90 325i, E82 135i Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Arlington, VA iTrader: (11) Garage List 2018 BMW M3 [0.00] 2006 325i [0.00]	Good job!
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06-09-2007, 01:56 PM	#3
remmib General 1569 Rep 29,202 Posts Drives: 2013 F10 520d M-Sport Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Norway iTrader: (0)	Looks like a good upgrade. What OEM system did the car have, 10 speaker or logic7? __________________ F10 520d M-Sport Alpine White \| HRE P43SC 20x9+20x11 \| Michelin PSS 255/35+295/30 \| KW V3 Coilover \| M5 Front Sway Bar + M550d Rear Sway Bar \| 3DDesign Front Lip \| BMW M Performance CF Spoiler \| BMW M Performance Diffuser \| BMW M Performance Black Grills \| BMW M Performance Pedals \|
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06-09-2007, 03:21 PM	#4
avincar Private 4 Rep 63 Posts Drives: touring sedan Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Portland, OR iTrader: (0)	I've seen three systems in the E90: Analog balanced to the amp from the HU, Front Door mids and tweets, Underseat woofers, Rear door mids. This was in an 05 325 or 328i sedan, can't remember, and there were no rear deck speakers. I count 8 speakers. Parts calls this the "HiFi" system. MOST fiber-optic from the amp to the HU (no I-Drive, no Logic 7), Front Door mids and tweets, Underseat woofers, Rear Door mids, Rear Deck mids and tweets. This was in an 06 330i. I count 10 speakers. Parts calls this the "Individual" system. Logic 7: MOST from the HU to the amp, as above, plus center. Parts calls this the "Top HiFi system". This car was the first one - analog balanced from the HU to the amp. The system actually looks identical in architecture to the E83 X3 non-DSP system, and the amp looks identical too. But since we used the speaker-level outputs of the amp (not what I would have done, but the only way to retain non-fading bass), this approach would work equally well on Logic 7 cars. Just get rid of that annoying center channel and voila! : ) __________________ avincar.com
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06-23-2007, 12:39 AM	#5
MonacoBimm Banned 44 Rep 1,859 Posts Drives: Sapp. Black 330i(2nd e90) Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Panama City, Panama iTrader: (1)	I need your HELP!!! Avincar
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06-23-2007, 06:54 PM	#8
Joe Bimmer Lieutenant 13 Rep 548 Posts Drives: Alpine White 2015 X5 x35i Join Date: May 2006 Location: Austin, TX iTrader: (0) Garage List 2006 325i [0.00]	Impressive! What are the cu. ft. dimensions of the 10" sub box? If you can make one in a similar fashion that can hold a JL Audio 10W6v2-d4 (.625 cu. ft.), I will buy one! Let me know if you'd consider doing this, and IM me a price including the carpeting and everything as shown! :edit: How does the enclosure attach to the vehicle?
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11-27-2007, 08:29 AM	#10
gloster Captain 15 Rep 649 Posts Drives: 335i MT, sport Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Cleveland, OH iTrader: (0)	Fantastic job!
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04-11-2009, 02:48 PM	#12
VP Electricity Brigadier General 289 Rep 3,201 Posts Drives: F34 xDrive Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: portland oregon iTrader: (3)	Someone with router skills made these...
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