Notes on a 2009 535i HiFi to MS-8 install
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My Ride: Titanium Silver 2008 550i 6MT. Matte black grille and numbers. Carbon roundels. Eibach springs and sway bars. Bilstein struts. UUC SSK. Smoked LED side markers.
Just as an FYI Crutchfield has the MS-8 on sale. I'm not affiliated in any way. Just thought I would pass on the info.
MS-8 on sale
MS-8 on sale
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BTW, will the MS-8 be okay mounted upside down like that since hot air rises and all? Are the internal components "heatsinked" to the external casing? I'm worried about it overheating.
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Just as an FYI Crutchfield has the MS-8 on sale. I'm not affiliated in any way. Just thought I would pass on the info.
MS-8 on sale
MS-8 on sale
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Right. I know it has 8 channels and you're only using 7, but I've read through the user manual, and I noticed you can only choose none, 1, or 2 for the number of subwoofers.
I saw this review where the guy ran into an issue tuning it.
But in my head, the underseat woofers aren't really subs. They're more like a woofer or mid-bass speaker, so I was hoping I could set them up that way in the MS-8. Can you elaborate a little on how you set it up? Did you setup the underseat woofers as subs or front lows or something else? If you think that's too detailed for this thread, just ignore this post. In any case, PM me the details on ordering the harness from you. Thanks.
To the person that asked about mounting it upside down, the user manual doesn't warn against that. Just says to give it enough room and air to cool. It only draws 16A, so it probably doesn't get all that hot.
I saw this review where the guy ran into an issue tuning it.
Originally Posted by Amazon Reviewer
Update. Due to unfortunate lack of calibration options MS-8 has issues when speakers are not placed at typical locations. For example, it uses bass sweep for subwoofer calibration and regular signal for other speakers. This causes issues when woofers are located under seats, like, for instance, in BMW. In order to have proper calibration under-seat woofers have to be specified as subwoofers so MS-8 uses sweep signal to calibrate them. But there is a catch: MS-8 is only able to handle two subwoofers and it is impossible to add real subwoofer to it (unless crossed separately).
So rating remains the same. MS-8 is a nice device, amps are good quality, nice processing, but it really needs to offer various calibration targets as well as options which signal to use for low end calibration and perhaps allow more than two subs - quite a few cars have woofers under seats and sub in a trunk.
So rating remains the same. MS-8 is a nice device, amps are good quality, nice processing, but it really needs to offer various calibration targets as well as options which signal to use for low end calibration and perhaps allow more than two subs - quite a few cars have woofers under seats and sub in a trunk.
To the person that asked about mounting it upside down, the user manual doesn't warn against that. Just says to give it enough room and air to cool. It only draws 16A, so it probably doesn't get all that hot.
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This is my own install, where the MS-8 is under the trunk floor trim and no overheating:
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Right. I know it has 8 channels and you're only using 7, but I've read through the user manual, and I noticed you can only choose none, 1, or 2 for the number of subwoofers.
I saw this review where the guy ran into an issue tuning it.
But in my head, the underseat woofers aren't really subs. They're more like a woofer or mid-bass speaker, so I was hoping I could set them up that way in the MS-8. Can you elaborate a little on how you set it up? Did you setup the underseat woofers as subs or front lows or something else? If you think that's too detailed for this thread, just ignore this post. In any case, PM me the details on ordering the harness from you. Thanks.
To the person that asked about mounting it upside down, the user manual doesn't warn against that. Just says to give it enough room and air to cool. It only draws 16A, so it probably doesn't get all that hot.
I saw this review where the guy ran into an issue tuning it.
But in my head, the underseat woofers aren't really subs. They're more like a woofer or mid-bass speaker, so I was hoping I could set them up that way in the MS-8. Can you elaborate a little on how you set it up? Did you setup the underseat woofers as subs or front lows or something else? If you think that's too detailed for this thread, just ignore this post. In any case, PM me the details on ordering the harness from you. Thanks.
To the person that asked about mounting it upside down, the user manual doesn't warn against that. Just says to give it enough room and air to cool. It only draws 16A, so it probably doesn't get all that hot.
If a trunk sub is used then my suggestion is to get at least a 3-channel (woofers and sub) amp instead of a mono amp; a 5-channel (front, woofers and sub) amp would be even better. Then set the fronts as 2-way. The reason is that with the underseat woofers driven by the aftermarket amp you will have another level to adjust: the amp gain. The midbass is there but the MS-8 have issues setting the midbass output because of the woofer location. The amp gain knob can get the midbass level back from the MS-8, as well as the MS-8 sub, mid, bass and the 31-band EQ level adjustments. I use only the amp gain and the 31-band EQ to get the midbass that I want in my own setup. Everything else in the MS-8 is set to mid-point.
Midbass level also gets better without tricks the louder you calibrate -the closest to -20dB the better. But you may be clipping the headphone mic as well.
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For installs without subs I set the underseat woofers as subs because the midbass after calibration is immediate and tight. That is my suggestion to anybody with a BMW with underseat woofers, the MS-8 and no intention of adding a trunk sub. Otherwise the midbass will be very tricky to achieve if the woofers are set to be part of a 2-way front configuration.
If a trunk sub is used then my suggestion is to get at least a 3-channel (woofers and sub) amp instead of a mono amp; a 5-channel (front, woofers and sub) amp would be even better. Then set the fronts as 2-way. The reason is that with the underseat woofers driven by the aftermarket amp you will have another level to adjust: the amp gain. The midbass is there but the MS-8 have issues setting the midbass output because of the woofer location. The amp gain knob can get the midbass level back from the MS-8, as well as the MS-8 sub, mid, bass and the 31-band EQ level adjustments. I use only the amp gain and the 31-band EQ to get the midbass that I want in my own setup. Everything else in the MS-8 is set to mid-point.
Midbass level also gets better without tricks the louder you calibrate -the closest to -20dB the better. But you may be clipping the headphone mic as well.
If a trunk sub is used then my suggestion is to get at least a 3-channel (woofers and sub) amp instead of a mono amp; a 5-channel (front, woofers and sub) amp would be even better. Then set the fronts as 2-way. The reason is that with the underseat woofers driven by the aftermarket amp you will have another level to adjust: the amp gain. The midbass is there but the MS-8 have issues setting the midbass output because of the woofer location. The amp gain knob can get the midbass level back from the MS-8, as well as the MS-8 sub, mid, bass and the 31-band EQ level adjustments. I use only the amp gain and the 31-band EQ to get the midbass that I want in my own setup. Everything else in the MS-8 is set to mid-point.
Midbass level also gets better without tricks the louder you calibrate -the closest to -20dB the better. But you may be clipping the headphone mic as well.
Elias,
I received the the harnesses today. They look great and I'm sure will make my install much easier. Of course I do have questions.
1. All of your explanations have to do with using the MS-8. I didn't go this route. I went with a JL Audio Clean Sweep and I also purchased the add-on summing processor that goes with it. With this setup where/how would I get a signal for my JL Audio 12w6v2-D4 sub after connecting my front, rear and SWS8xi?
2. This may be a very dumb question but I plugged in the harness for the trunk and I'm not sure what the attached white plugs match up to, am I missing something? Also how would I go about converting the wires to RCA for amp?
3. I'm not sure if the harness is bypassing the OEM amp or using it. Is the harness you sent me for adding a sub/amp to the trunk or is it for adding an amp to power the underseat subs?
4. There are also two more smaller white plugs in the box with various short wires attached to them. What are these for and where should they be installed?
My Equipment:
Morel Ovation - Front Stage
Rainbow SLC or SLX 2-way (I bought both sets before I got the Morels. Which set should I use for the rear?)-Rear Stage
Earthquake SWS8xi refurbished and customized by manufacturer. (EarthQ is using me as a tester and added larger voice coils to my set of 8xi's) They are releasing an updated version of the 8x & 8xi.
Alpine PDX - 5
JL Audio CL441dsp - Clean Sweep
JL Audio CLSSI - Clean Sweep Signal Summing Interface
JL Audio 12w6v2-D4 sub in a sealed enclosure
JL Audio 500/1 mono amp
Will this setup work or do I need to switch something out? Thanks in advance for any advise, Nate.
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From: Florida
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Elias,
I received the the harnesses today. They look great and I'm sure will make my install much easier. Of course I do have questions.
1. All of your explanations have to do with using the MS-8. I didn't go this route. I went with a JL Audio Clean Sweep and I also purchased the add-on summing processor that goes with it. With this setup where/how would I get a signal for my JL Audio 12w6v2-D4 sub after connecting my front, rear and SWS8xi?
I received the the harnesses today. They look great and I'm sure will make my install much easier. Of course I do have questions.
1. All of your explanations have to do with using the MS-8. I didn't go this route. I went with a JL Audio Clean Sweep and I also purchased the add-on summing processor that goes with it. With this setup where/how would I get a signal for my JL Audio 12w6v2-D4 sub after connecting my front, rear and SWS8xi?
2. This may be a very dumb question but I plugged in the harness for the trunk and I'm not sure what the attached white plugs match up to, am I missing something? Also how would I go about converting the wires to RCA for amp?
3. I'm not sure if the harness is bypassing the OEM amp or using it. Is the harness you sent me for adding a sub/amp to the trunk or is it for adding an amp to power the underseat subs?
4. There are also two more smaller white plugs in the box with various short wires attached to them. What are these for and where should they be installed?
My Equipment:
Morel Ovation - Front Stage
Rainbow SLC or SLX 2-way (I bought both sets before I got the Morels. Which set should I use for the rear?)-Rear Stage
Earthquake SWS8xi refurbished and customized by manufacturer. (EarthQ is using me as a tester and added larger voice coils to my set of 8xi's) They are releasing an updated version of the 8x & 8xi.
Alpine PDX - 5
JL Audio CL441dsp - Clean Sweep
JL Audio CLSSI - Clean Sweep Signal Summing Interface
JL Audio 12w6v2-D4 sub in a sealed enclosure
JL Audio 500/1 mono amp
Will this setup work or do I need to switch something out? Thanks in advance for any advise, Nate.
Morel Ovation - Front Stage
Rainbow SLC or SLX 2-way (I bought both sets before I got the Morels. Which set should I use for the rear?)-Rear Stage
Earthquake SWS8xi refurbished and customized by manufacturer. (EarthQ is using me as a tester and added larger voice coils to my set of 8xi's) They are releasing an updated version of the 8x & 8xi.
Alpine PDX - 5
JL Audio CL441dsp - Clean Sweep
JL Audio CLSSI - Clean Sweep Signal Summing Interface
JL Audio 12w6v2-D4 sub in a sealed enclosure
JL Audio 500/1 mono amp
Will this setup work or do I need to switch something out? Thanks in advance for any advise, Nate.
