[vhs04]

Originally Posted by Billfitz

There are issues with respect to overall response. My system has dips at 180 and 400Hz. It has nothing to do with the subs. That range is all coming from the door speakers. When I measured them nearfield neither the fronts nor the rears have any dip there. When measured at the driver's seat with all four running the dips appear. To make sure it wasn't a polarity issue with respect to the subs I reversed the sub polarity and it made no difference. Dips of that sort are to be expected when you have four speakers separated by the distance that they are. Ideally those speakers would all be well over 1/2 wavelength apart within their pass band. Since 1/2 wavelength at 180Hz is about 1 meter you can see the problem. There's just so much you can do within the confines of a car.

With regards to inductors look for the Jantzen brand. They're made in Denmark, so someone over there must sell them.

Thanks for the hint, I’ll send ‘em an email.

[Billfitz]

I would think their website lists dealers. Never looked myself, they're widely available from multiple sources in the US.

[SupremeF34]

The HK system isn’t great. I have a blown speaker in my passenger door and blown dash speaker too. I think BavSound is the best option, aftermarket or OEM.

[Billfitz]

Bavsound sells re-badged Chinese gear that's not even the equal of OEM. This is where they get it from.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3256...80119986%21rec

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3256...52428024%21rec

[dangerus_car]

lol, so whoever buys bavsound speakers have been conned by their social media marketing. God bless their money, lol

btw, how do you determine the OEM is better than the bavsound? i mean there is no spec paper on the OEM speakers. do you based it on your listening only?

this guy supremeF34 is resurrecting a lot of old thread, totally self promoting

[SupremeF34]

dangerus_car yup basically just my own listening lol. I like to think I have a good ear.

Have I posted links to my videos? Yes. But not in every post. Besides, I've answered some questions that haven't been answered yet, or answered fully. I just don't understand how sharing my videos from time to time is a problem. I mean, they are topic-related. Is this not a place to gain/share knowledge of BMWs? Aren't you required to make "a certain number of replies" to get full access in here? I know I'm the new guy posting but yikes

[Billfitz]

Originally Posted by dangerus_car

how do you determine the OEM is better than the bavsound? i mean there is no spec paper on the OEM speakers.

There's no specs on the Bavsound/Isudar speakers either. They show SPL charts, but they're fake. The 'Average Joe' wouldn't know that, but I've been designing speakers since 1969, so I know a fake when I see one. I have the specs on the OEM Hi-Fi speakers and real SPL charts because I measured them.

[Call me the breeze]

I will resurrect this thread once more due to my recent experience. I had the full Bavsound HiFi replacement in my 2018 330i GT which was installed separately in this order: amp, woofers, door speakers. Unfortunately that car was totaled in August and I replaced it with 2018 430i GC with Harmon Kardon. So now I have apples to apples comparison of 3 distinct systems.

Here's my assessment. The HiFi system was embarrassingly bad for a premium car like BMW. My previous Acura with the technology package blew it away. The Bav amp was a major improvement making everything cleaner, more neutral and with a wider sound stage. The amp revealed how weak the woofers were so on to stage 2. The Bav woofers are punchier and tighter but not necessarily lower dB. I decided to go ahead with main speaker replacement. It was a lot of work on installation but a marginal upgrade. In fact, I had to turn down the treble because they were overpowering the sound. In summary, I was very pleased with the amp upgrade, liked the woofers but disappointed with the main speakers.

Now onto the H-K system, I can say it is a ton better out of the gate from HiFi to the point that I could live with it as-is. The equalizer, limited though it may be, is useful. I have done some research on the upgrade options to H-K and they are fairly limited. I visited the Bimmertech showroom (I live in the Orlando area) and discussed with them. Because it uses a fiber optic cable, Bimmertech does not offer an amp replacement. I'm not sure who does though I am not spending the exorbitant cost for Bav anymore if they do. I am also not going through the hassle of replacing all the main speakers. Just not worth my time and really they aren't terrible. I am interested in replacing the woofers with Earthquake 8x. In fact I have spoken directly to the owner Robert about it. I believe Earthquake is the only true audiophile option for underseat woofers. He explained that some H-K systems have different impedance from the factory though you wouldn't have any way of knowing without testing with an ohm meter. I tested mine and it happens to be 8 ohm. They offer a 2 ohm and a 4 ohm woofer. I can't find specs on the H-K amp, am not interested in an external amp, and now trying to decide if the 4 ohm Earthquakes are a good match to the amp. If anyone has direct experience or can send a link to a thread, let me know.

[Billfitz]

As you've found out, and many of us have long been preaching, the amp is the weakest point, not the speakers. The best amp is the MatchUp 7. The H-K underseats are 8 ohm, as opposed to the 4 ohm Hi-Fi woofers. That's a wiring consideration. You can get more power with more voltage into a higher impedance or with more current into a lower impedance. More current requires larger wire to handle it. BMW went with higher voltage. The H-K amp may be able to handle a 4 ohm load, but I wouldn't trust the wire being able to handle it. The Earthquake sub in 2 ohms is the best option, but it demands being either separately amplified or be used with an amp that has separate volume control over the sub amps and mid/hi amps.

Threads dealing with the MatchUp 7 and Earthquake abound in the Navigation, iDrive, Audio, Video, Bluetooth, Phone, Cameras, Electronics section.

[johnung]

Originally Posted by Call me the breeze

I will resurrect this thread once more due to my recent experience. I had the full Bavsound HiFi replacement in my 2018 330i GT which was installed separately in this order: amp, woofers, door speakers. Unfortunately that car was totaled in August and I replaced it with 2018 430i GC with Harmon Kardon. So now I have apples to apples comparison of 3 distinct systems.

Here's my assessment. The HiFi system was embarrassingly bad for a premium car like BMW. My previous Acura with the technology package blew it away. The Bav amp was a major improvement making everything cleaner, more neutral and with a wider sound stage. The amp revealed how weak the woofers were so on to stage 2. The Bav woofers are punchier and tighter but not necessarily lower dB. I decided to go ahead with main speaker replacement. It was a lot of work on installation but a marginal upgrade. In fact, I had to turn down the treble because they were overpowering the sound. In summary, I was very pleased with the amp upgrade, liked the woofers but disappointed with the main speakers.

Now onto the H-K system, I can say it is a ton better out of the gate from HiFi to the point that I could live with it as-is. The equalizer, limited though it may be, is useful. I have done some research on the upgrade options to H-K and they are fairly limited. I visited the Bimmertech showroom (I live in the Orlando area) and discussed with them. Because it uses a fiber optic cable, Bimmertech does not offer an amp replacement. I'm not sure who does though I am not spending the exorbitant cost for Bav anymore if they do. I am also not going through the hassle of replacing all the main speakers. Just not worth my time and really they aren't terrible. I am interested in replacing the woofers with Earthquake 8x. In fact I have spoken directly to the owner Robert about it. I believe Earthquake is the only true audiophile option for underseat woofers. He explained that some H-K systems have different impedance from the factory though you wouldn't have any way of knowing without testing with an ohm meter. I tested mine and it happens to be 8 ohm. They offer a 2 ohm and a 4 ohm woofer. I can't find specs on the H-K amp, am not interested in an external amp, and now trying to decide if the 4 ohm Earthquakes are a good match to the amp. If anyone has direct experience or can send a link to a thread, let me know.

For the HK system, the Earthquake SWS-8Xi (2-ohm) with a pair of their spacer rings is a perfect upgrade.

The HK amplifier doesn't supply enough power to the subs, so install a secondary amplifier like the AudioControl ACM-2.300 along with a Technicpnp wiring harness to connect the HK amplifier to the secondary amplifier.

I have posted details about this so just search Bimmerpost.

[MEN54]

Originally Posted by KRS_SN

sadly it is . when i switch from comfort to msport a god awful drone is played through the hk speakers. I thus avoid msport mode like the plague. I am aware I can code this off and but I am too much of a pussy to try this though I have bought the obd2 vgate adapter and bimmercode app I love my f34 and worry that my coding attempt will cause something horrific to happen.

I coded my car to turn the ASD off and after restarting app, my F30 turned into a Monster truck hahahahahaha

Bro, its just a disabling a feature within car's computer via a coding software, its just that simple.

[KRS_SN]

Originally Posted by MEN54

I coded my car to turn the ASD off and after restarting app, my F30 turned into a Monster truck hahahahahaha

Bro, its just a disabling a feature within car's computer via a coding software, its just that simple.

Hey just to update I did do this a few years ago after i posted and it was great. Silence is golden fake noise is bad.