[sjak92]

Hi Guys,

Also posted on the F44 thread

So I've just ordered my wife a F44 218i as she's returning to the office in August/September, the car intends to make her commute easier as she is currently pregnant with our first child and so that she has a car to get around whilst I'm at work.

Before everyone starts slating the engine choice:

It's a second car - we have an G05 X5 30d for everyday stuff
It will be remapped (circa 180bhp and 300nm more than enough for everyday stuff)
It's needs to be economical
We didn't want another diesel

We managed to get all the necessary spec onto the car. Alpine White, 18's, M Sport, Parking Assistant and a Pan roof. Ordinarily I always spec a car in with the M Sport Plus pack, but with the current microchip shortage, a £2k premium for bigger brakes, m sport seatbelts, tinted windows (which i'll get done aftermarket) and £300 worth of black kidney grill and spoiler simply wasn't justifiable without the HK Sound System

Of course, I could get it retrofitted, around £600 for all parts and another £500 for install and coding, but I have found this:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233847709109

Ideally, it needs an AMP by which point i'd go down the HK route. However, how bad is the base 6 speaker setup?

Older cars simply could not produce any bass with the base 6 speaker system and it would sound like utter shite. Is this still the case or is the system bearable and I'll be able to get away with simply a better speaker for cripser music and a little more punch from the subs?

[sjak92]

Bump on the above?

[DaveA]

My F40 M135 comes tomorrow and I was able to get the HK…

But, there was a time when I thought I might not… So I sat in a car with the standard speakers and had a play… they were not bad… These systems have a lot of DSP going on nowadays so it's not just the sound of the amp and speakers left to their own devices.. but whether it meets your requirements you'll have to see…

I looked into modding a standard set up but a) was starting to add up cost wise and b) would not be plug/play and so I wondered if there there could be warranty issues with somebody wiring amps (say) into a new car… there is lots of differing advice about which way to go and, frankly, I decided if i could not have HK I would live with the standard and not bother…

But that is me… you may think differently… there is a thread on Baby BMW forum with more info…

[DaveA]

Just to add… with the DSP going on in the system you need to understand how anything you add/change will sound with that DSP already in and unchanged… unless your new system can integrate into the system in the car so you can change/override the DSP settings… then you might not get any meaningful improvements… some of the aftermarket stuff may not yet have caught up with the latest F4* systems…

[Setright]

There a few brands that make direct replacement speakers. I prefer Audison, they give clarity and power, and no issues.

It's worth doing a bit of extra sound dampening while your at it !

[Notleks24]

Originally Posted by DaveA

My F40 M135 comes tomorrow and I was able to get the HK…

But, there was a time when I thought I might not… So I sat in a car with the standard speakers and had a play… they were not bad… These systems have a lot of DSP going on nowadays so it's not just the sound of the amp and speakers left to their own devices.. but whether it meets your requirements you'll have to see…

I looked into modding a standard set up but a) was starting to add up cost wise and b) would not be plug/play and so I wondered if there there could be warranty issues with somebody wiring amps (say) into a new car… there is lots of differing advice about which way to go and, frankly, I decided if i could not have HK I would live with the standard and not bother…

But that is me… you may think differently… there is a thread on Baby BMW forum with more info…

Can I ask. With the HK did you get the built in hard drive for music import for USB?

[DaveA]

Originally Posted by Notleks24

Can I ask. With the HK did you get the built in hard drive for music import for USB?

No, I don't think any of the cars have that now.. I use an SD card plugged into one of the usb ports. Easy to manage on my computer and easier yo fix if it gets corrupted.