[Stahliniho]

Hi all,

Been offered a full system upgrade from my base system to the Hifi one including all components, surrounds and wiring loom for circa £200 and have a couple of questions...

1. Is there any point in doing this upgrade, should I just save up for Top Hifi
2. Is the Lear AMP any good compared to my CIC base system.
3. Is it easy to install?
4. Will I need to code the HU to hifi for it to work?

I've looked at all the forums and can't seem to find the info I need.

Thanks for any help.

[bishbosh]

See inline

Originally Posted by Stahliniho

Hi all,

Been offered a full system upgrade from my base system to the Hifi one including all components, surrounds and wiring loom for circa £200 and have a couple of questions...

1. Is there any point in doing this upgrade, should I just save up for Top Hifi
For £200 that's sounds good, obviously depends what the components are. Anything over a stock audio setup will be good
2. Is the Lear AMP any good compared to my CIC base system.
Sorry, can't help.
3. Is it easy to install?
Yes, if you're able to take off door cards and don't mind dismantling a bit of interior trim
4. Will I need to code the HU to hifi for it to work?
I did for mine, but my amp is fairly basic. Presume you'd have to do it for a CIC system, it's not absolutely necessary - depends on what equipment you install.

I've looked at all the forums and can't seem to find the info I need.

Thanks for any help.

[Stahliniho]

Originally Posted by bishbosh

See inline

It looks like a hybrid between top hifi and just hifi spec on this http://musicarnw.com/bmw-factory-audio-explained/

Essentially, it looks like I would gain:

A-pillar Tweeters
Hifi front door
hifi 200mm under steat vs 165mm
hifi Rear Door Speakers
hifi Rear Shelf Speakers
Hifi Rear Shelf Tweeters
Lear BMW Amp


Obviously, anything is going to be better than the current base set up I have but wondering if I should just stump up for more in the long run?

[R99]

If you are retrofitting the HiFi sound into your car including an original wiring loom, you are going to need to code the HU to HiFi.

It sounds like a very good deal for £200.

I paid £1.3k for a full Individual Audio loom, amp & speaker set.

Top HiFi (logic 7) & Individual Audio use the MOST loop for their signal.

My understanding is that the HiFi set up will require the loom to also run to the HU, as it does not use the MOST loop?

[Stahliniho]

Originally Posted by R99

If you are retrofitting the HiFi sound into your car including an original wiring loom, you are going to need to code the HU to HiFi.

It sounds like a very good deal for £200.

I paid £1.3k for a full Individual Audio loom, amp & speaker set.

Top HiFi (logic 7) & Individual Audio use the MOST loop for their signal.

My understanding is that the HiFi set up will require the loom to also run to the HU, as it does not use the MOST loop?

This is what I am worried about, it seems to good to be true.

I've no idea about the MOST, I can't get any info as most people upgrade straight to Top Hifi.

[bishbosh]

Do you already have a CD changer in the boot? If so, the most loop will be there. I think if you check realoem for part numbers, you can buy the parts to make your own most cable - with the appropriate terminators. I've never made my own MOST ring though, so not sure how easy/difficult it would be.

[Stahliniho]

Originally Posted by bishbosh

Do you already have a CD changer in the boot? If so, the most loop will be there. I think if you check realoem for part numbers, you can buy the parts to make your own most cable - with the appropriate terminators. I've never made my own MOST ring though, so not sure how easy/difficult it would be.

Aha! Yes bishbosh I do!

Well I have the prewiring for it. So it would be a plug n play?

[ptpending]

if quality of the hifi system satisfies your needs, this is good idea
you would need to remove both front seats and central console to route wiring via factory route

[Stahliniho]

Originally Posted by ptpending

if quality of the hifi system satisfies your needs, this is good idea
you would need to remove both front seats and central console to route wiring via factory route

Ah I presume its a floor lining out job too?

[bishbosh]

Not really, you only need to prise up the carpet seams near the speakers and where the door sills are, then you can lay the speaker wiring alongside the existing wiring and secure with zip ties. That's the easy part!

[Stahliniho]

Originally Posted by bishbosh

Not really, you only need to prise up the carpet seams near the speakers and where the door sills are, then you can lay the speaker wiring alongside the existing wiring and secure with zip ties. That's the easy part!

OK,

so with the Pre wiring of the CD Changer, what else is in there?

[ptpending]

Originally Posted by Stahliniho

Ah I presume its a floor lining out job too?

nope, only to unfold floor lining edges a little

[mob17]

A lot of people upgrade from Hifi so....

Strongly recommend you have a listen in one before you do this, otherwise you could end up being disappointed. I have learnt from upgrading mine that you get what you pay for and with audio.

[makkan00]

Few corrections / additions
1- Hi-fi does take analogue signals in and gives analogue signals out. Having said that, MOST loop has nothing to do with hi-fi. So having a cd changer loom will not help in your case.
2- cars with base setup run the speaker cables from cic / hu to speakers.
Comparing it to hi-fi, low level (after coding to hi-fi) signals are sent to amplifier in the boot and then it sends the signals to speaker.
So you will be taking out the wiring look and replacing it with hi-fi one of that is including in the package.
3- Lear amp is similar to alpine hifi kit except with ho-fi rears are getting amplified.
So a cost to of £200 plus installation is your first step.
If you go for one, I would suggest you to get bimmer retrofit PNP amp for hi-fi which is miles better than lear. So total cost can come upto £450-600 depending on installations.
4- Food for thought... are their any aftermarket setup which cost that much and gives you decent sound... something for you to work on.

[Stahliniho]

These are the connectors on the loom he has...









Anything missing?

[ptpending]

connectors are look like, but you can check them by trying to connect to amp and all speakers
there should be 6 channels(each is 2 wires) to speakers and 4 channels and one remote wire to headunit from amp

[Gangsta]

If your buying second hand I suggest have it tested as it's easy to get bitten, knowing that these lear amps are not known for their long life, just a thought.