[MB London]

Anyone have ideas what is the best way to upgrade the sound on a stock 335 e90 stereo. Have had the car a month and am finding the sound very ordinary. Would really like a bigger sound. Can the speakers be upgraded? Anyone done it? Costs?

[rogerxp]

Loads of threads on here about upgrading stereo. Just search the UK forums for 'stereo' of 'hi-fi' and this will surely get you some results (might have to be patient and wade through loads though).

[trixman]

2 plug and play options, the BMW upgrade Alpine kit that is covered under warranty... and the Blaupunkt PnP amp upgrade option.
Theres even a sticky on the main board about it. Most people simply upgrade the tweeters to the Logic7 ones that you can buy from your local BMW parts store, and order the amp... or just get the alpine upgrade.

[MOB]

I think adding the L7 tweeters is the best mod to start with.

If you want power though, an amp of some kind will be needed.

[MB London]

Originally Posted by trixman

2 plug and play options, the BMW upgrade Alpine kit that is covered under warranty... and the Blaupunkt PnP amp upgrade option.
Theres even a sticky on the main board about it. Most people simply upgrade the tweeters to the Logic7 ones that you can buy from your local BMW parts store, and order the amp... or just get the alpine upgrade.

Have spoke to couple of car stereo specialist and BMW and both are saying because of the complex idrive system there is virtually nothing that can be done

[JLR1969]

I think you will find thats rubbish. Look in the technical section loads of members have up-graded as mentioned with Alpine etc.

[AlanQS]

Click on the "UK Technical Forum" and you will see two stickies. One on the Alpine upgrade and one on the Blaupunkt.

Job done.

[MOB]

Originally Posted by MB London

Have spoke to couple of car stereo specialist and BMW and both are saying because of the complex idrive system there is virtually nothing that can be done

lol, numpties

[RichardM]

Originally Posted by MOB

I think adding the L7 tweeters is the best mod to start with.

Do you know if these would be a worth while upgrade to the BMW HI-FI option?

[biscuits]

Originally Posted by MB London

Have spoke to couple of car stereo specialist and BMW and both are saying because of the complex idrive system there is virtually nothing that can be done

LOL.... standard "we can;t be bothered" response.

Most dealers don;t know about THEIR OWN Alpine upgrade, let alone aftermarket upgrades.

I keep meaning to do a full PDF writeup of my install.... must get one done as it would answer a lot of the common questions.

The systems are pretty much identical across the 1, 3 & 5 series ranges. It doesn't matter what headunit you have (standard/business/iDrive), the speaker setup is the same.

[Steve748]

Originally Posted by RichardM

Do you know if these would be a worth while upgrade to the BMW HI-FI option?

Yes, you will notice the difference

[MOB]

Originally Posted by RichardM

Do you know if these would be a worth while upgrade to the BMW HI-FI option?

mmmm....not sure - I think a lot of my improvement was due to the fact there were no tweeters at all beforehand.

It depends on how good the Hifi ones are to start with I suppose.

[rup]

Originally Posted by MOB

I think adding the L7 tweeters is the best mod to start with.

If you want power though, an amp of some kind will be needed.

MOB,
I have the standard speakers and would like the L7 tweeter upgrade.
Did u do this upgrade or did u get a dealer to do?
Approx how much did it cost?
Was it just the tweeters or the amp as well that u upgraded?

Thanks.

[trixman]

RUP, have a search in the UK section 'L7 Tweeter' or tweeter upgrade. There's even a sticky there which highlights costs and even part numbers.

As said before, it's been done a million times... and BMW saying there is no upgrade path is crazy... just check out the American area (or just search for amp or similar) and you'll find the Americans sticking all kinds of crazy setups in theirs.

ETA: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=157820

[MB London]

Originally Posted by biscuits

LOL.... standard "we can;t be bothered" response.

Most dealers don;t know about THEIR OWN Alpine upgrade, let alone aftermarket upgrades.

I keep meaning to do a full PDF writeup of my install.... must get one done as it would answer a lot of the common questions.

The systems are pretty much identical across the 1, 3 & 5 series ranges. It doesn't matter what headunit you have (standard/business/iDrive), the speaker setup is the same.

Biscuits…………… on the back of your post I rang another stealer who (of course) told me there is no such thing as an upgrade, so I quoted your reply to him ‘most dealers don’t know their own Alpine upgrade’, the guy then decides to look at his computer and hey presto finds the alpine upgrade. £317 parts and £250ish labour (2 hours……slags!) Question did you fit yours yourself? How much hair did you lose in the process? And was it worth it??

[MOB]

Originally Posted by rup

MOB,
I have the standard speakers and would like the L7 tweeter upgrade.
Did u do this upgrade or did u get a dealer to do?
Approx how much did it cost?
Was it just the tweeters or the amp as well that u upgraded?

Thanks.

L7 tweeters cost around £85 a pair from BMW, you will also need different trims (ones with grilles for the sound to come through) and foam inserts - all listed on the "other thread"

Did it myself - very easy, and I'm not great at these things.

I also did the amp as well - much bigger job but still DIY'able

[JLR1969]

Just ordered the standard hi-fi tweeters and new plastic housing from Chris at Derek Woodham in Blackpool phone 01253-607500. £68 all in even includes postage, should be here on Wednesday.

Declined the new foam inserts as you can I beleive trim the existing ones.

Considered the Logic 7s but with a standard head unit I dont think the difference would be worth the extra money.

The main improvement will be in just having tweeters.


I stand to be corrected however.

[RCUK]

i paid £215 for the alpine upgrade kit inc the window trims!

Have a look at the discounted BMW parts sticky on this page!

[JLR1969]

Originally Posted by RCUK

i paid £215 for the alpine upgrade kit inc the window trims!

Have a look at the discounted BMW parts sticky on this page!

Thats exactly what I did, thanks for the tip. Chris is a really helpfull bloke.

[rup]

Originally Posted by MOB

L7 tweeters cost around £85 a pair from BMW, you will also need different trims (ones with grilles for the sound to come through) and foam inserts - all listed on the "other thread"

Did it myself - very easy, and I'm not great at these things.

I also did the amp as well - much bigger job but still DIY'able

Thanks MOB. Looking into the Alpine as well, will post what i go for in the end.

[MOB]

Originally Posted by JLR1969

Declined the new foam inserts as you can I beleive trim the existing ones.

You can trim the existing ones, but the L7 foam inserts fit 100% out of the box and cost very little I seem to remember - I couldnt be arsed with the trimming to save such little money.

Originally Posted by JLR1969

The main improvement will be in just having tweeters.

Very much so, the paper cones in the base system produce very poor treble.

[AlanQS]

MB London: You should be able to buy the Alpine kit for around £225 including VAT but the labour quoted - 2 hours, is good as BMW state 2.5 hours for this work. My dealer actually took four hours to do the work - but only charged me 2.5 hours.