[ericinca]

The following is a review of my Combox upgrade on a 2010 E90 335d. I ordered the Combox Media from BimmerTech and did the install myself.

Some Photos

Combox installed:



New USB/AUX port before insertion. The old AUX connector was eventually removed to make more room for the new AUX connector:



Some new wiring from the Combox in the rear to the front. The orange wire is the new BT mic wire. The black wire right next to it (hard to see) is a new BT antenna cable going to the driver's footwell location:



What I Started With

* 609 Navigation system
* 620 Voice command
* 6FL iPod and USB adapter
* 6UH Real Time Traffic Information

What I Wanted

* BT
* Improved iPod/iPhone user interface on CIC
* As mentioned here in the forum, there are many other features of the Combox Media which is nice to have but not totally must have for me

Steps

* Combox was installed in place of MULF-Hi unit.
* BT antenna was placed on the underside steering wheel panel at the driver's footwell in the standard antenna location.
* BT cable and mic wires were run from the Combox from the rear under the driver-side door sills to the front. Mic wire continued up A pillar and plugged into existing voice command mic. There is only one mic in the FZD for both voice command and BT.
* Old AUX port was replaced by a new AV-enabled AUX port.
* Old iPod cable was replaced by a new AV-enabled Y adapter cable.
* Extra AV wire was spliced into existing AUX wire and run from AUX port to the back of CIC.
* Programming was done by Alekshop in Fremont, California, with assist from Patryk. Took about two hours.

I spent the extra time to run the cables neatly to the Combox. Because the existing black Fakra cable and the MOST cable had to go different (longer) distances to reach the connection points on the Combox, I had to un-tie some of the existing wiring bundles and reposition them to go the required distances.

The Result

All the existing and new capabilities work as advertised! It is awesome to have BT, album art on the CIC, and AD2P. Works like a charm the way BMW wanted it to. BMW Apps and video on the CIC are also cool, but I can't ever imagine using them for real for safety reasons. But they are cool nevertheless!

Patryk is a genius and really, really knows his stuff down to the bloody details. He is very quick to respond and is utterly helpful on occasions when I was stuck.

At one point during the programming, nothing seemed to work. Then, due to Patryk's familiarity with my particular setup, he correctly guessed that the MOST termination under the steering wheel panel was not terminated, which was right on since I had disassembled the under-side panel to get the BT antenna installed. He guessed this even though he never saw the car and no one told him. Once I terminated the MOST connection, everything started to work. Cool!

Definitely recommended if you have the interest, some spare change, and willingness for a little adventure!

[sourphish]

Nice and congrats on the new system!

I just had my CIC, combox, back up camera, etc, coded in yesterday with MEN @ bimmertech. It took long while since there were some issues but most of it is done now. Need to schedule another appointment with him soon to hammer out the small details since it rolled onto 2am at his local time. I'm so happy to get my sound back...was rolling around 3 months without sound

As for my 6FL option, I still haven't routed it from the trunk to the arm rest yet...I'm not quite sure how to open up the center yet haha. If you have time and are willing, could you possibly help me with that?

Did your old bracket from the MULF unit work for the combox? Either I was not thinking at the time or my bracket doesnt fit the new combox

[ericinca]

sourphish, I did not have to run any wires from the Combox to the center console, so I do not know. I'm sure Patryk can help you with that.

As for the bracket, yes, the same can be used. The MULF was sitting upside down on the bottom side of the bracket, while the Combox gets installed on the top of the bracket.

Good luck!

[joafog]

Originally Posted by ericinca

The following is a review of my Combox upgrade on a 2010 E90 335d. I ordered the Combox Media from BimmerTech and did the install myself.

Some Photos

Combox installed:

Attachment 668443

New USB/AUX port before insertion. The old AUX connector was eventually removed to make more room for the new AUX connector:

Attachment 668444

Some new wiring from the Combox in the rear to the front. The orange wire is the new BT mic wire. The black wire right next to it (hard to see) is a new BT antenna cable going to the driver's footwell location:

Attachment 668445

What I Started With

* 609 Navigation system
* 620 Voice command
* 6FL iPod and USB adapter
* 6UH Real Time Traffic Information

What I Wanted

* BT
* Improved iPod/iPhone user interface on CIC
* As mentioned here in the forum, there are many other features of the Combox Media which is nice to have but not totally must have for me

Steps

* Combox was installed in place of MULF-Hi unit.
* BT antenna was placed on the underside steering wheel panel at the driver's footwell in the standard antenna location.
* BT cable and mic wires were run from the Combox from the rear under the driver-side door sills to the front. Mic wire continued up A pillar and plugged into existing voice command mic. There is only one mic in the FZD for both voice command and BT.
* Old AUX port was replaced by a new AV-enabled AUX port.
* Old iPod cable was replaced by a new AV-enabled Y adapter cable.
* Extra AV wire was spliced into existing AUX wire and run from AUX port to the back of CIC.
* Programming was done by Alekshop in Fremont, California, with assist from Patryk. Took about two hours.

I spent the extra time to run the cables neatly to the Combox. Because the existing black Fakra cable and the MOST cable had to go different (longer) distances to reach the connection points on the Combox, I had to un-tie some of the existing wiring bundles and reposition them to go the required distances.

The Result

All the existing and new capabilities work as advertised! It is awesome to have BT, album art on the CIC, and AD2P. Works like a charm the way BMW wanted it to. BMW Apps and video on the CIC are also cool, but I can't ever imagine using them for real for safety reasons. But they are cool nevertheless!

Patryk is a genius and really, really knows his stuff down to the bloody details. He is very quick to respond and is utterly helpful on occasions when I was stuck.

At one point during the programming, nothing seemed to work. Then, due to Patryk's familiarity with my particular setup, he correctly guessed that the MOST termination under the steering wheel panel was not terminated, which was right on since I had disassembled the under-side panel to get the BT antenna installed. He guessed this even though he never saw the car and no one told him. Once I terminated the MOST connection, everything started to work. Cool!

Definitely recommended if you have the interest, some spare change, and willingness for a little adventure!

Hi ericinca

Did you buy the Combox Media PnP Retrofit from Bimmertech?
Did you already have the USB option (6FL)?
Everything works as it should now? BT telephone, Internet, BT Audio, Album Art Covers and BMW Live?

Thanks in advance
Joacim

[ericinca]

Everything is working as advertised!

[fahren6557]

Did you buy the Combox Media PnP Retrofit from Bimmertech?
Did you already have the USB option (6FL)?

[fahren6557]

I have an '06 professional head unit (HU), Patryk told me I needed an LCI professional HU with appropriate firmware for the combox to work. What firmware do I need for the combox to work with an LCI professional HU? Thanks.

[ericinca]

I'm not an expert on LCI headunit matters as I already started with such a unit. Patryk should know since he's a pro, so ask him!

[Patrys@BimmerTech]

Originally Posted by ericinca

I'm not an expert on LCI headunit matters as I already started with such a unit. Patryk should know since he's a pro, so ask him!

We would be happy to answer all questions sent to info@bimmer-tech.net with the VIN of the car.

[ssshake]

Originally Posted by ericinca

Steps


* BT cable and mic wires were run from the Combox from the rear under the driver-side door sills to the front. Mic wire continued up A pillar and plugged into existing voice command mic. There is only one mic in the FZD for both voice command and BT.

* Extra AV wire was spliced into existing AUX wire and run from AUX port to the back of CIC.

Why did you need to run a new mic wire if you already had a mic? I have a mic with bluetooth currently, will I have to do the same?

What does splicing the AV wire accomplish?

[exec1]

Originally Posted by sourphish

As for my 6FL option, I still haven't routed it from the trunk to the arm rest yet...I'm not quite sure how to open up the center yet haha. If you have time and are willing, could you possibly help me with that?

I would be forever grateful if you could outline for me how you routed 6FL Aux/USB cables from Combox under door seam and under driver's seat and into the arm rest! My installation is complete and everything works, I just need to do the cosmetic part of routing the cable nicely into the armrest and I don't want to mess anything up. Looking for clear instructions from someone else who had to do it.