Bmw E39 Amplifier Install

This will be a long post, but I hope it is useful to those who are contemplating upgrading their e39s as I have. As many of you will know, the sound is woeful in the normal 5 and pretty well everyone who has noticed has taken steps to improve the sound. Most replace the speakers, many replace the head unit and some go completely to town and rebuild the interior of the car, building subs, speaker pods and so on. I've taken the middle ground.

I've changed the the head unit and upgraded the speakers (and will detail this in a separate blog) but I've now added an amplifier and a sub with absolutely minimal change to the car yet the change to the sound is simply stunning. How have I done it? That's easier than I thought it would be. Speakers and head unit are an easy first step, although I never got the steering wheel controls to work. Doors came apart without fuss, the seats come out simply and the whole speaker upgrade took no more than an afternoon to complete.

Well worth it. Workplace Management Ohno Pdf File. Head unit was again simple, although it was a royal PITA to get the 40-pin adapter cable back into the cavity behind the head unit!! Recently I decided (after listening to my son's Crystals and W7) that maybe an amplifier and sub would help my sound - giving it new depth and weight.

By WonderHowTo; Check out this video. Install a subwoofer amplifier in a BMW 5 series (E39). Prep the trunk to install DICE iPod kit into a BMW E39 Car Stereo.

However, nice though the W7 sounds, it is a bit big in my son's Clio and would even swamp the 5's boot. What to get and where to put it? Having decided I wanted a sub though the next question is: where to put it? Here opinion varies, but the options are: • Up under the parcel shelf (as per the M5 sub box that is available) - sounds good, but takes up too much depth. • Up against the seat, firing towards the trunk opening - ok, but takes up boot space and I have folding seats too • In the corner over the battery is good - the whole boot space helps the sub breathe • In the cabin under the seat(s) - not good as the sub(s) will not move enough air and it is harder to run the cables in I also wanted something that would live in the car and would NOT take up boot space, as we use the car for holidays etc.

And need the boot space (you would not believe what SWMBO needs when she goes on holiday!:roll: ) Therefore the sub had to: • Fit in the battery cover cubby • Be removeable completely (I've still got to be able to get to the bulbs, for example) • Be wired into the head unit • Not interfere with the boot space • Be protected against damage from luggage moving about in the boot Not too tall an order, but the size of the battery cover meant that only an eight inch or a ten inch would fit. I thought about a Basslink and I know that they do fit, but the passive radiator at the back would lose out to the side of the car and would be kinda wasted where I wanted to site the unit so that ruled that out. An infinite baffle sub would suit the area just fine however, and if I can integrate an amp too that would be just great. I did think about building an enclosure as others have done and may still do so in the future, but for speed and to see if it was worth it, I opted for the simple option of buying a powered sub instead. So I looked at what was available in the line of powered subs, compiled a spreadsheet and bought me a Vibe SQ8 EVO8 Active from in West London having measured up the space above the battery. It's an 8' amplified enclosure measuring 265mm x 315mm x 180mm. Running the cables It's on to the audio wiring next and for this we need to start in the cabin of the car.

Remember that the power wiring runs down the right side of the car so we will be running the audio wiring down the left (passenger) side of the car. To prepare for this you'll need to think through the cables you need to get the signals from the front of the car to the back.

I worked out that I needed two 5m lengths of coaxial interconnect (left and right front to the amplifier, left and right rear to the sub, remote to both amp and sub, and of course the two runs of speaker wire back to the head unit for the front speakers. Also, look hard at what you need to get from your head unit. My Becker came with the four RCA outputs. All I had to do was present them ready for the RCA interconnects. First we need the rear seat and seat side cushions out (this pulls up from the front and two small bolts undone by the doors frees the cushions). Also, the kick plate in the passenger footwell under the glove compartment needs to come out (it sort of comes down from the dash and slides towards you to release it).

You should now be in a position to run in the cables you need from the head unit to the rear of the car. Start by marking one of the speaker cables at both ends.