How much of a downgrade is the non Logic-7 sound system?
06-13-2011, 08:18 AM
#21
Members
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Chicagoland, IL
Posts: 180
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My Ride: 2007 M5
ZGERMAN, I am sorry I don't have a document detailing step by step instructions but its overall like this:
First verify you are on basic audio, HiFi is also non-L7 so information below won't apply there. You shouldn't have any amp at all, check if you have tweeters, if no tweeters then definitely its standard audio, no HiFi, no L7.
Do your upgrade in stages, first add L7 tweeters in the empty tweeters cavity and you will see huge improvement there itself. For this you need to take off the door card put new tweeters there. here is a guide. If you have some money to spare I would suggest to buy Moral 4" drivers with tweeters, they sound awesome from what I read on various forums, they are pricey, if you want this then do it with your tweeters upgrade in stage 1. Should not take more then 1-1.5 hrs. You won't need to visit this section again.
Many people just stopped there as they said it was good enough for them, I doubt once this upgrade fever catches you it will stop there so you might go further adding an amp and thats when difficulty starts.
To add amp you need to take the center console trim off and take out the CCC computer, insert a harness between stock wiring to the CCC which will intercept 4 pair of high level audio signal and take it to the amp and then bring back the amplified signal to the speakers, all PnP no need to cut a single wire. Now you need to route that cable all the way to the boot and put an amp there, you are done. Easier said, it took me best part of a month (only weekends) to understand the cabling diagram, parts to arrive and know how to do the job, now I can do all in a day, but whoever says they can do it in 4 hours they are professional.
To use your newly installed amp to fullest you need to upgrade stock 6" underseat woofers to earthquake 8" or equivalent, they would sound brilliant. Earthquake DIY is available everywhere. Choose amp of your choice, I used PDX-5 (low signal level amp so you need driver too), Blaupunkt is good, JL Audio is brilliant I have heard but it was beyond my budget. You can either have 5 channel amp (4 for the speakers and one single mono for the underseat subs) or just 4 channel (2 for the front doors and two for the subs)
First verify you are on basic audio, HiFi is also non-L7 so information below won't apply there. You shouldn't have any amp at all, check if you have tweeters, if no tweeters then definitely its standard audio, no HiFi, no L7.
Do your upgrade in stages, first add L7 tweeters in the empty tweeters cavity and you will see huge improvement there itself. For this you need to take off the door card put new tweeters there. here is a guide. If you have some money to spare I would suggest to buy Moral 4" drivers with tweeters, they sound awesome from what I read on various forums, they are pricey, if you want this then do it with your tweeters upgrade in stage 1. Should not take more then 1-1.5 hrs. You won't need to visit this section again.
Many people just stopped there as they said it was good enough for them, I doubt once this upgrade fever catches you it will stop there so you might go further adding an amp and thats when difficulty starts.
To add amp you need to take the center console trim off and take out the CCC computer, insert a harness between stock wiring to the CCC which will intercept 4 pair of high level audio signal and take it to the amp and then bring back the amplified signal to the speakers, all PnP no need to cut a single wire. Now you need to route that cable all the way to the boot and put an amp there, you are done. Easier said, it took me best part of a month (only weekends) to understand the cabling diagram, parts to arrive and know how to do the job, now I can do all in a day, but whoever says they can do it in 4 hours they are professional.
To use your newly installed amp to fullest you need to upgrade stock 6" underseat woofers to earthquake 8" or equivalent, they would sound brilliant. Earthquake DIY is available everywhere. Choose amp of your choice, I used PDX-5 (low signal level amp so you need driver too), Blaupunkt is good, JL Audio is brilliant I have heard but it was beyond my budget. You can either have 5 channel amp (4 for the speakers and one single mono for the underseat subs) or just 4 channel (2 for the front doors and two for the subs)
No reason to apologize for "not having a better document" ... - this is great information, and it makes me feel much better about my "2011 audio upgrade project" already!!
I believe I definitely do not have tweeters, but I do have under-seat subs (...as I can "feel" 'em). Either way, I will give my speakers (and the rear left trunk side panel) a closer look over the weekend and may hit you up later for some more information/clarification, if that's OK with you... (!?)
Thanks much, bud!
Cheers,
Armin
06-13-2011, 08:31 AM
#22
Yes, I will be glad to help you out.
Under seat subs are always there, in all variants of E60 sound system. Do your research in stages, first sortout the parts you need and set a budget aside, budget for amp, cables, harness, speakers, tweeters etc. Once all set make your plan and go for it. Keep in mind you will have to remove a lot of trim to lay cables from front end to the rear end, you need to remove your rear seats (sound scary? it isn't as tough as it sounds if you know the trick)
You might want to contact Technic as he can supply you all the parts, cable harness and know-how too. He is the genius of bmw audio. His harness can save your hours, once you get harness from him its all mechanical work then, no need to get into cabling and pinout diagram.
btw. is there a diy for cool while led cluster mod and while angel eye mod you have in your signature? too lazy to google
Under seat subs are always there, in all variants of E60 sound system. Do your research in stages, first sortout the parts you need and set a budget aside, budget for amp, cables, harness, speakers, tweeters etc. Once all set make your plan and go for it. Keep in mind you will have to remove a lot of trim to lay cables from front end to the rear end, you need to remove your rear seats (sound scary? it isn't as tough as it sounds if you know the trick)
You might want to contact Technic as he can supply you all the parts, cable harness and know-how too. He is the genius of bmw audio. His harness can save your hours, once you get harness from him its all mechanical work then, no need to get into cabling and pinout diagram.
btw. is there a diy for cool while led cluster mod and while angel eye mod you have in your signature? too lazy to google
06-13-2011, 09:03 AM
#23
Members
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Chicagoland, IL
Posts: 180
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My Ride: 2007 M5
Yes, I will be glad to help you out.
Under seat subs are always there, in all variants of E60 sound system. Do your research in stages, first sortout the parts you need and set a budget aside, budget for amp, cables, harness, speakers, tweeters etc. Once all set make your plan and go for it. Keep in mind you will have to remove a lot of trim to lay cables from front end to the rear end, you need to remove your rear seats (sound scary? it isn't as tough as it sounds if you know the trick)
You might want to contact Technic as he can supply you all the parts, cable harness and know-how too. He is the genius of bmw audio. His harness can save your hours, once you get harness from him its all mechanical work then, no need to get into cabling and pinout diagram.
btw. is there a diy for cool while led cluster mod and while angel eye mod you have in your signature? too lazy to google
Under seat subs are always there, in all variants of E60 sound system. Do your research in stages, first sortout the parts you need and set a budget aside, budget for amp, cables, harness, speakers, tweeters etc. Once all set make your plan and go for it. Keep in mind you will have to remove a lot of trim to lay cables from front end to the rear end, you need to remove your rear seats (sound scary? it isn't as tough as it sounds if you know the trick)
You might want to contact Technic as he can supply you all the parts, cable harness and know-how too. He is the genius of bmw audio. His harness can save your hours, once you get harness from him its all mechanical work then, no need to get into cabling and pinout diagram.
btw. is there a diy for cool while led cluster mod and while angel eye mod you have in your signature? too lazy to google
I'll definitely contact Technic once the time has come to be more specific about my upgrade path.
Thanks also for you kind word on my ride/pics!
I'm glad to share the link to the Cluster Mode DIY thread with you.. here it is: Cluster Mod DIY
It's all posted in the DIY section of this forum, and that's where the link will lead you to.
As far as the AE's are concerned, I bought those from John at Motorcepts. He has an LCI and non-LCI version; make sure you order the right ones (he sent me the wrong ones by mistake and I went through hell & back trying to figure out what's wrong with my car... he he!) Real simple replacement for both versions.
While you're at it, you may actually ask him about the HID Fog upgrade. Those bright white fogs really kick *ss and nicely match the white AEs.
Let me know if you have any questions, I'd be happy to help you out/walk you through the install.
And if you really want to do the Cluster Mod, I have a couple LEDs leftover from my mod, which I'll gladly send you.
You can also buy them directly from the vendor/factory in HK / CN, but snail mail takes a painstaking 3-4 weeks to get the U.S or Europe (depending on where you are)
Cheers,
A.
06-13-2011, 02:42 PM
#24
thanks for your links mate. Cluster mod is daring but worth it. :-) My only worry is painting stuff, I am quite bad at these things, taping method was good but wasn't sure how taping managed to to go in complete circle without wrinkles. Anyway I will see if I can do these, I am good at soldering and related stuff. I will need 8 LEDs and I am on the other side of atlantic, i.e UK. PM me the price or if you can suggest a better alternate. Isn't Motorcepts based in the US? do they ship to the UK, how much would it cost? Do we have these item on ebay.co.uk? I can search but unsure on what exact term I should look for?
I have been dreaming about HID fog, I would love to have it. Did you do that too? HIDs in projector? I would love to see them projector, I saw a very good looking projector fogs on the ebay and I think I sould buy that.
I have been dreaming about HID fog, I would love to have it. Did you do that too? HIDs in projector? I would love to see them projector, I saw a very good looking projector fogs on the ebay and I think I sould buy that.
06-16-2011, 08:19 AM
#25
Members
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Chicagoland, IL
Posts: 180
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My Ride: 2007 M5
thanks for your links mate. Cluster mod is daring but worth it. :-) My only worry is painting stuff, I am quite bad at these things, taping method was good but wasn't sure how taping managed to to go in complete circle without wrinkles. Anyway I will see if I can do these, I am good at soldering and related stuff. I will need 8 LEDs and I am on the other side of atlantic, i.e UK. PM me the price or if you can suggest a better alternate. Isn't Motorcepts based in the US? do they ship to the UK, how much would it cost? Do we have these item on ebay.co.uk? I can search but unsure on what exact term I should look for?
I have been dreaming about HID fog, I would love to have it. Did you do that too? HIDs in projector? I would love to see them projector, I saw a very good looking projector fogs on the ebay and I think I sould buy that.
I have been dreaming about HID fog, I would love to have it. Did you do that too? HIDs in projector? I would love to see them projector, I saw a very good looking projector fogs on the ebay and I think I sould buy that.
I didn't paint my 'saucers' (what you'd see below the speedo and RPM gauges... as shown in the DIY), as it looks good enough without doing that. Don't know if it's just me, but my gauges have silver rings around them already, so I don't need any more sliver (or white) color :-)
As far as the LEDs are concerned, I'd be happy to give them to you for free, if you just pay for shipping. PM me your address, and I'll get them out to you this weekend.
When looking at eBay (to find the LEDs) I was not looking for European vendors... so i can't tell if there is someone in the UK selling these, too. Looked to me, though, as they are all located in CN and HK. But, good luck checking it out. You definitely want to 3528 type for the mod. To be more exact, look LEDs with these (or very closely matching) specs:
SMT LEDs Type 3528
Forward voltage: 2.1 ~ 3.3V
Max current: 10 ~ 20mA
Viewing Angle: 120 degree
As far as other products are concerned, I suggest you stay away from eBay - unless it's a real simple article. I've bought a few mod articles on eBay thus far, and the quality/fitment was always pretty lousy. It's just not worth the cheap price tag. I've seen posts of many other forum members that bitterly complained about the fitment of spoilers and the likes, and that's why I stay away from eBay as much as I can as far as my BMW mods/upgrade are concerned.
I'm sure that Motorcepts ships to the U.K., and for not more than the usual amount of shipping. They're real good with that they are doing, and John is a pretty quick guy to answer, too. So, I suggest you PM "John@Motorcepts" (look him up in the member section) and I'm sure he can explain everything to you.
BTW, the HID Fogs I have do replace the standard "yellow-ish" looking fog light located in the lower section of the front bumper. It's a simple switch, but you need ballasts to get them running. John sells them as complete sets (HID and ballast), and I got them for a good price, too. -- Highly recommend it; it's totally worth it!
Cheers,
Armin
06-16-2011, 08:31 AM
#26
Members
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Chicagoland, IL
Posts: 180
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My Ride: 2007 M5
Just looked up the vendor (TopBright) for you... just in case you want to order more, or directly with them:
http://stores.ebay.com/TopBright-Led..._sid=190959565
These are the really, really bright 2500mcd versions. I think, the standard is 1800mcd, but that's just not bight enough for my taste...
Besides, you can dim down the cluster brightness through the 'controller wheel' below the fog light switch on the left hand side (in your case, on the right had side).
http://stores.ebay.com/TopBright-Led..._sid=190959565
These are the really, really bright 2500mcd versions. I think, the standard is 1800mcd, but that's just not bight enough for my taste...
Besides, you can dim down the cluster brightness through the 'controller wheel' below the fog light switch on the left hand side (in your case, on the right had side).
06-16-2011, 08:37 AM
#27
Members
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Chicagoland, IL
Posts: 180
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My Ride: 2007 M5
MY APOLOGIES... for hijacking this Audio/L7 thread and (...slightly.. ha ha) getting off-topic.
No more "LED mod talk" in this thread now; I promise...
No more "LED mod talk" in this thread now; I promise...
06-18-2011, 10:47 PM
#30
Members
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Chicagoland, IL
Posts: 180
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My Ride: 2007 M5
Finally pulled off my trunk covers to check or the kind of audio system I have in my 530i... and what I may be able to do in terms of upgrading it.
I know that I don't have the L7, since...
a.) the only sound adjustments I can make through iDrive are trebles and bass;
b.) I don't have speakers in the rear doors.
However, I do have speakers in the back (hat rest/rear window shelf). And I do have a speaker cover on top of the front console - just can't tell if there's a speaker inside.
Anyhow, when I snapped some pics of what's behind the cover, I encountered this.
So... what exactly is this? Is this an Amplifier? It's made by Motorola...which means, it probably is not an Amplifier. So, what does that mean/what is this thing? Any ideas??
My guess: This may be related to the BMW Roadside Assistance feature?? Name - as printed on it - is "BMW Everest E60 US"
The underside of my hat rest/rear window shelf, as seen from the trunk. I was hoping to see some speakers sticking out, but no such luck... Would have probably been too easy (especially replacing the stock rear speakers with some better ones)..
And this connector sits on top of the Motorola unit...
This very much looks like the connectors for a CD Changer...
Can I use this to enhance my audio, e.g. getting a more improved (=louder) sound volume if running my iPod through this? I used to have a 323iT, and I was able to buy an iPod kit (made by DICE) that ran a wire all the way from the CD changer connector in the trunk to the front, and I was even able to control my iPod via the radio system and the steering wheel buttons...
Is anyone here actually using this option in their 5-Series, and does that actually work with the iDrive? Haven't been able to check out the options yet. Then again, I rather leave my iPod connected to the back of the center console and get an Amplifier to boost volume levels...
Hope my comments are making sense to anyone...
So, what do you think are my upgrade options are considering that have this stuff under my side panel? Will this do anything for me in terms of upgrading my audio??
Thanks for your input, guys!
I know that I don't have the L7, since...
a.) the only sound adjustments I can make through iDrive are trebles and bass;
b.) I don't have speakers in the rear doors.
However, I do have speakers in the back (hat rest/rear window shelf). And I do have a speaker cover on top of the front console - just can't tell if there's a speaker inside.
Anyhow, when I snapped some pics of what's behind the cover, I encountered this.
So... what exactly is this? Is this an Amplifier? It's made by Motorola...which means, it probably is not an Amplifier. So, what does that mean/what is this thing? Any ideas??
My guess: This may be related to the BMW Roadside Assistance feature?? Name - as printed on it - is "BMW Everest E60 US"
The underside of my hat rest/rear window shelf, as seen from the trunk. I was hoping to see some speakers sticking out, but no such luck... Would have probably been too easy (especially replacing the stock rear speakers with some better ones)..
And this connector sits on top of the Motorola unit...
This very much looks like the connectors for a CD Changer...
Can I use this to enhance my audio, e.g. getting a more improved (=louder) sound volume if running my iPod through this? I used to have a 323iT, and I was able to buy an iPod kit (made by DICE) that ran a wire all the way from the CD changer connector in the trunk to the front, and I was even able to control my iPod via the radio system and the steering wheel buttons...
Is anyone here actually using this option in their 5-Series, and does that actually work with the iDrive? Haven't been able to check out the options yet. Then again, I rather leave my iPod connected to the back of the center console and get an Amplifier to boost volume levels...
Hope my comments are making sense to anyone...
So, what do you think are my upgrade options are considering that have this stuff under my side panel? Will this do anything for me in terms of upgrading my audio??
Thanks for your input, guys!