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      10-13-2017, 11:32 AM   #1
jharar
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Speaker Upgrade

HI

I am looking to upgrade my speakers in my 2006 Touring.

I have heard OE speakers are plug n Play , Anyone used them are they worth it any good?

I like Focal speakers they are Plug n Play as well but much more expensive.

What do u guys recommend..
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      10-16-2017, 07:07 AM   #2
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What headunit do you have? This will dictate what options are more readily available to you than others.

I have the professional headunit in my 2009 E91 & recently upgraded my speakers to the MB Quart 200.3 kit, along with a JL Audio XD600/6 V2. It's such an improvement over the stock system. In fact, even adding the amp alone made a big difference to the standard speakers.
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      10-16-2017, 08:35 AM   #3
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I?ve got
Pioneer SPH Da-120
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      10-19-2017, 04:04 AM   #4
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I have the 100KRS focal components in the front doors and 8" Match subwoofers for the underseat speakers. All wired up to a 4 channel Pioneer amp. Sound is brilliant!! This works especially because you have an aftermarket headunit as I do...
My only complaint is that you would need a proper sub in the boot to get the low end (under 30-40 Hz). Otherwise there is a good balance of highs/mids/lows from this set up.
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      10-19-2017, 04:32 AM   #5
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Are there any speakers out there which would be a good direct replacement for the fronts without having to install an amp etc? My car has the Base setup which is pretty crap but I cant be bothered wiring up an amp etc.
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      10-19-2017, 05:32 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by adammcf View Post
Are there any speakers out there which would be a good direct replacement for the fronts without having to install an amp etc? My car has the Base setup which is pretty crap but I cant be bothered wiring up an amp etc.
I think the answer is no. Unless you could fabricate some kind of adaptor for the mids in the doors, which may open up your choice


*Edit http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/conn...e90-4-speakers

They do actually make them, but this still limits you to 4" mids, and they might not get the best seal.
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      10-24-2017, 02:27 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by adammcf View Post
Are there any speakers out there which would be a good direct replacement for the fronts without having to install an amp etc? My car has the Base setup which is pretty crap but I cant be bothered wiring up an amp etc.
I wired up my focals initially without an amp and the sound was marginally better. Not worth it keeping it like that. When I connected it to my amp, the difference was insane.
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      10-24-2017, 06:26 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by adammcf View Post
Are there any speakers out there which would be a good direct replacement for the fronts without having to install an amp etc? My car has the Base setup which is pretty crap but I cant be bothered wiring up an amp etc.
Try these, I went for these MB Quart for the front doors - http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MB-Quart-Q...oAAOSwHMJYI0M4 They add considerable clarity that just isn't found on the stock speakers and they are a straight swap.
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      10-25-2017, 04:44 PM   #9
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I think i will go for MB quart good value.
I hope they are good quality and sound wise.

I had Rainbow set in my previous Lci M sport , I should have taken the set up out but left it, Never Mind..

MB quart it is then as at the moment i dont ant to spend too much , I was thinking of Focal but again they ae bit Expensive..
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      10-27-2017, 01:44 AM   #10
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I've just finished installing a set of MB Quart QM200.3's with a JL audio XD400/4 amp and night and day doesn't even come close to describing the difference. With a professional head unit recoded to HiFi, there isn't even a hint of noise.
I made my own loom (twisted pairs of 1.5mm wire which is a little overkill on the wire gauge) and connected it like how the Alpine kit connects, by cutting and crimping the wires which run alongside the left and right hand side of the car.
I did run for a while without an amp and, while it was much more clear with tweeters, the EQ on the standard base headunit made them sound like it was lacking mids and the lows and highs were too much. After recoding to HiFi with no amp, the sounds was, in all honesty, shite. The amp brought this to life though, so much so I couldn't believe the difference.
If you do go with the MB Quarts, don't worry about the weight of them. They feel so light I was initially quite worried but those worries couldn't be further away now.

Last edited by Scott16; 10-27-2017 at 01:55 AM..
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      10-27-2017, 03:51 AM   #11
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I'm thinking of getting g MB quart speaker set up, I already got 12 inch JL audio sub in the boot.

I want to power the speakers through amp but haven't got clue how to wire the amp to the speakers..

I just ow how to wire the sub which I did myself about a year ago in my car but never ever wired the speakers through amp, I can fit the speakers no problem but haven't clue about wiring them up through amp..

Is there any write up or anything I can look for.

I've checked with audio shop they want over £100 to wire it up.... WTF?

It might have fair bit work to do but I'm not paying £100+ for speakers to hook up to the amp..

I think I need to buy a new 4 channel amp as well as at the moment I've got JBL Mono amp.
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      10-27-2017, 04:21 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jharar View Post
I'm thinking of getting g MB quart speaker set up, I already got 12 inch JL audio sub in the boot.

I want to power the speakers through amp but haven't got clue how to wire the amp to the speakers..

I just ow how to wire the sub which I did myself about a year ago in my car but never ever wired the speakers through amp, I can fit the speakers no problem but haven't clue about wiring them up through amp..

Is there any write up or anything I can look for.

I've checked with audio shop they want over £100 to wire it up.... WTF?

It might have fair bit work to do but I'm not paying £100+ for speakers to hook up to the amp..

I think I need to buy a new 4 channel amp as well as at the moment I've got JBL Mono amp.
Check this out:

http://mbquart.com/media/mconnect_up...bmw_manual.pdf

I recently did this setup with my friends E60, do you have a stock (BMW) head unit or have you swapped it out for something else?
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      10-27-2017, 04:23 AM   #13
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I've replaced it last year with
Pioneer SPH DA-120
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      10-27-2017, 04:48 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jharar View Post
I've replaced it last year with
Pioneer SPH DA-120
Ah that's good, it means you have proper line-outs for front and rear speakers.

The stock BMW setup is that the full front channels go to the underseat subs first then on to the doors, so you'll need to split this so you can power the sub and doors independently.

Basically you'll take the front line-out from the head unit and run to your line-in on the amp. From there you'll run new speaker wiring to the underseat subs, use ch3-4 on the amp and run in low pass.

For the doors, again you'll run new speaker wire from ch1-2 from the amp down to where you cut the wire from the sub, you want the wire that goes to the doors. Feel free to try and run the new cable into the doors, it's a complete PITA so I would be inclined to use the stock wiring from the sub to the doors.

The crossover will use the wiring into the doors, you just need to split this out to the mid and tweeter.

Depending on the original spec for your car, you might need to get the tweeter housing for your doors, or modify your existing trim pieces.

You'll note this does not include anything for the rears, this is because the rears are filtered somewhere in-line and run in high pass only and are effectively filler noise as opposed to full range sound. I would leave as is and fade around 70% of the sound to the front. Though that is my preference, you set however it sounds good to you!

That's a pretty quick view of how it installs, I'm at work atm so can't go into super detail but hope that helps a bit!


Last edited by sirleeofroy; 10-27-2017 at 04:54 AM..
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      10-27-2017, 05:05 AM   #15
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Ok so you're good with putting the speakers in.
I assume, due to the aftermarket head unit and sub with amp, you already have RCA cables running down the side of your car? Are these connected to a sub specific pair of RCA outputs on the back of the head unit or are they connected to the RCA outputs for the front or rear? Most amps have a pre-amp out so no need to run another set if your connected to the front RCA outputs. (unless your doing the rears too).
As for wiring the speakers from the amp, have a look at some threads relating to the BMW alpine upgrade.

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=182752
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...ht=amp+install

Where abouts in the UK are you, maybe there is a member close by who can help?

Last edited by Scott16; 10-27-2017 at 05:51 AM..
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      10-27-2017, 09:42 AM   #16
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I'm in Barking Essex.....
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