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Editing, since I can't quite get my original symptom to reproduce.
What I am finding is some slightly sub-par sound quality with certain music. So, since I can't delete the thread... a VIN search tells me that I have option 676. I think this means I have the "hi fi" audio system. Going to do some digging on how to improve the sound a bit.
Editing, since I can't quite get my original symptom to reproduce.
What I am finding is some slightly sub-par sound quality with certain music. So, since I can't delete the thread... a VIN search tells me that I have option 676. I think this means I have the "hi fi" audio system. Going to do some digging on how to improve the sound a bit.
Hoho, so I said "going to do some digging on how to improve the sound a bit" as if this were not the hugest rabbit warren in all of BMW tech. Really interesting though, I am going to keep digging! Lots to learn before I start chopping things up.
Thanks. The issue is a little weird, and is 99% unnoticeable with most music I listen to, but really unpleasant in just a few songs. Current position is... ignore and gather info and bits and pieces to upgrade all speakers and amps.
I have some gear here removed from a previous vehicle and it happens to be a good match for what I think I will do with this E60.
If it's a crossover does that mean it's integral to the CCC unit, or is it external? If it's integral to the CCC, I guess that would suck a fair bit.
Well, it's one song. Mostly just the start. So it is not urgent.
Jersey Girl by Tom Waits. There's some bass at the start of the track and a speaker/speakers on the right side of the car don't like it.
This is through Spotify -> Android Auto -> Aux In, and it's my own aux-in installation (I ended up making the cable myself as well when the one I bought took too long to arrive). My electrical work is usually good, solder, heatshrink, etc. I have done a lot of it.
I was going to try to dig up a CD of it but I realised I can try through the FM transmitter as well, straight from phone to CCC. If that is better then it narrows the issue. If it's the same, I'll try a CD.
Meanwhile, I have been looking into some audio upgrades. I think they are justified in this vehicle. I have a rough plan, partly using some gear I pulled out of a previous vehicle or two which will lower the cost a bit.
Last night I sold my Avin unit to a local guy and after he left he texted that it was crackling. Came back and the bass had some noticeable distortion. We took the trim off again and I put a different aux cable in and it sounds fine. We had put the ash tray in after the CCC unit and I wonder if it pinched the cable or the connection in there. Anyway, was more careful reinstalling things and it was good.
Firstly to be clear, this is low priority, but still pretty annoying. I just tested the same song (I am sure the problem is not just that song but it's a known case where it is very noticeable so I can use it for testing) via the FM transmitter, still using phone and spotify as source. No issues, sound quality is quite good and on further listening, better than the aux in.
So, it seems sound quality through AUX/MMMI unit is the problem. I installed the aux cable and the MMI device at the same time. The next step to narrow it down would be to delete the MMI box and just test my Aux cable. The MMI box, if I understand the wiring properly, does not actually use the aux in cable per se, it simply taps into the aux through the adaptor that comes with it. That said, there is an aux cable involved as it runs between two components of the MMI setup. Plus, if my aux cable is faulty then I guess that could still interfere with the signal.
I don't have time to do any of this just at the moment.
I am still chasing down some other issues with the MMI box and I am starting to think it was a bad choice. I should probably have just gone with a full android unit. Vendor started off sort of helpful (responsive but didn't solve anything) and has gone silent now with unresolved issues.
Anyway, this is all first-world-problems stuff with a second-hand car, not stressing.
The MMI box has a master volume setting from 0 to 40. On 40 it was clipping, obviously in rare circumstances. I guess this could be the mmi box or the ccc unit. Set it to 33 and audio is very nice and clean.
Phew. Next step was pulling it all out to check the wiring.
01-13-2021, 11:11 PM
one bad speaker
