# Build Log: BMW 135, Audison, AudioFrog



## jbcon (Feb 15, 2010)

Last November I picked up a used BMW 135i and had not intended to make any changes to the car since it was fairly well sorted when I bought it. It was a Nav equipped car with the basic iPod connectivity but had the base stereo option. Which is nothing more than four midranges and a mid-bass under the seats powered by about 20watts from the head unit, I quickly realized that I needed more. So with the help of my online friends (forums) and a collection of used audio equipment from previous cars I setout to improve the audio in yet another one of my cars.

Before I get into the install, a little background. I’ve been in and around car audio for many, many years. From my very first pair of 6x9’s installed in the rear deck of my ’84 Mustang I have made it a point to do at least one install in every car I’ve owned. As an early IASCA competitor and even regional Champ (1989 Florida Northern Region 101-150) I have had system for show and for my own listening pleasure. During college I worked as an installer and have maintained my skills over the past 20 plus years doing installs in mine and friends cars. I am currently not in the industry, but continue to monitor and stay informed on the hobby. The last four or five cars I’ve had, I have run through probably two dozen different variations of systems in them and find I enjoy the exercise of the install, as much as I do the finished product. 










The car itself is a 2010 BMW 135i which is amazingly fast and agile, I’ve augmented that by adding a Cobb tune and my own personal touches to the exterior. My car has the CIC Navigation system, but came equipped with the base level stereo, which doesn’t have any tweeters but does have the requisite woofer under the front seats. The base system gets its power from the Professional Radio which is less than 20watts per channel and the front outputs, despite being full-range have a proprietary EQ curve applied to them. The rear channels are mid-pass only and while I have not measured them, I understand they play from about 150 Hz and up. The Base stereo came with a four inch midrange in the front doors and rear deck and a 6.5 inch mid-woofer (with an 8-inch frame) under the seat. 



















Shortly after I bought the car, I installed a drop-in speaker system from MB Quart (QM200) which even with the factory head unit powering them, was night and day over the stock setup. But I was left wanting more. While the sound was ok, I knew at a minimum I would need to add an amp and a signal processor. But I was uncertain about the speakers themselves, a little time with my test equipment showed that I would want to upgrade the speakers, but with what?




























As far as the install itself I had some decisions to make. Despite the fact that life has taken me away from the car show and car audio scene and I don’t recall the last time I came in contact with a soul who truly appreciates such things (barring these and similar forums), I want the install in this car to be special. For this project I have been going back and forth as to whether I wanted to do a fairly showy looking install, or a completely stealth one. At this point, completely stealth is winning out and at least for the top end of this system, will be the way I go.

In my next post, I'll highlight the steps I took next and get to where I am today and continue my log as I move towards completion of this project.


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## Huckleberry Sound (Jan 17, 2009)

Nice Start!


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## BLD MOVS (Sep 23, 2007)

Your title sucked me in. Thanks for sharing your story with us. 

I'm patiently waiting for the Audison and AudioFrog parts of the story. 

Great photos by the way!


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## jbcon (Feb 15, 2010)

We'll get to the specifics shortly, while most installs start with lots of planning. In this case, at least equipment wise I am using stuff I already had. A collection of pieces from previous builds, or taken in on trade over the years. Of the equipment I ended up buying, cost played some part; but in the case of my main speakers (more on them later). I chose them due to the fact that I couldn't find anyone else using them, or any reviews online that offered any real insight. Not being one to take the easy, or same path as others I figured I would give something new a try.










Now that I've offered another teaser... isn't that what they call it in the movies? The first order of business for me was the wiring. As I mentioned before the OEM system sees the front channels being powered by a full-range speaker level output from the OEM head unit. There are no RCA, or low-level outputs available to add aftermarket amps, etc. So I will need to incorporate a DSP which can De-Equalize and convert this signal for my amps. Under the seats at the mid-woofers, is the easiest place to tap into this signal. The front 3ways are wired in parallel and from this output the mid-woofer and door mounted mid-range are all tied together. I will be using an Audison BitOne for this purpose, but more on that later.










Instead of going the traditional route and running thick and gangly aftermarket wiring, I decided to make my own harness from front to back of the car and terminate the connections at strategic locations with modular Molex plugs. Up front and running to the rear of the car I started at the doors and ran wires for a mid and tweeter through the door jams and towards the woofer under the seat. Those wires joined two wires on each side of the car from the woofer and another two wires for signal at an 8-pin Molex which carried the signal back to my amp and met up with a twelve pin and another 8-pin connector near where my signal processor would be. Since this will be a modestly powered system, I am using high-quality copper conductor hook-up wire, with 18 AWG for the mid, tweeter and signal and 16 AWG for the woofer.










Once the speaker and signal wiring was done, I ran power wire from the trunk mounted battery to the location that I wanted to mount my amp. In this series of BMW, there is a cavity on the right and left side of the trunk. On the left side in cars equipped with the upgraded Harmon and Logic 7 system there is usually an OEM amplifier. Although mine didn’t come with either, I ordered the mounting bracket used on such cars and modified it to fit my amp. Space was limited so I didn’t have a lot of choices for a 6 channel amplifier that would fit.




























Most of the others who have done installs in these cars have used the JL Audio XD600, which is a perfect fit in these cars. Having had several different amps to chose from, Including a couple of Hertz HCP-4D's, an older Audison four channel, I considered them all, but went a different route since this amp will not be visible. Partly due to its availability, partly due to the fact that it was a marine amplifier and had screw terminals, which are more secure. I went with this Clarion XC6610, which is a Class-D amp like the JL and has identical power output. While technically it was never sold in the U.S., I had one from a previous install that I ordered from a shop in Canada.




























After fabricating my bracket and making my power and ground connections I buttoned up the left side of the trunk and moved to the center of the trunk to mount and connect my processor. 



















I'm not sure if I mentioned before, but this will be a mostly stealth install. As much for the challenge of it as the look of it. I want as little audio equipment visible as possible.










For this car, despite what may seem to be a cost-cutting approach. I wanted to make sure I had as much flexibility and tunability as I could get. So I traded in my old Audison Bit Ten, for the 8 channel Bit One. In these cars there is another tray area under the floor, which just happened to have a blank spot that this processor would perfectly fit.



















In my next post I will get the BitOne installed and go through some of the initial tuning and setup of the Audison and offer some initial impressions of this setup with the MB Quarts. Since I know some folks who might be reading this may follow my progress and stop here in their attempts to recreate or do a similar install. I want to offer my thoughts at this stage so folks have good information as to what they can expect.

After that we will move into the other half of this install, which is what I suspect brought some here in the first place.


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## Black Rain (Feb 27, 2011)

This is an interesting build. I see you are using Audio Frog 4" mid and 1" tweet and placing them in the stock locations at the moment for them. I have seen that they have been getting great reviews and many people have started using them. So I'm looking forward to see your views on them and whether you continue to use the stocks or move to the pillars.


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## adrianp89 (Oct 14, 2007)

Beautiful work so far. Just had a newer 3 series in the bay for a radio and ended up having to re-wire from the floor sub to the door speaker, the wire somehow got pinched high in the kick. What a nightmare to get to that lol. Good call on being strategic with the wiring for the speakers, you probably saved several hours of work.


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## capea4 (Sep 2, 2010)

the molex plugs is what i did in my X5, the best part was when i traded it in. i plugged the factory back together and was done. looks great


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## hatemi (Dec 23, 2011)

One side note. Why not recode the HU for top hifi so you get clean line mevel out of it?

Lähetetty minun PLK-L01 laitteesta Tapatalkilla


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## SQLnovice (Jul 22, 2014)

I often get audiofrogner, aka audio frog boner from seeing installs with these drivers. Nice install and love the car.


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## thebookfreak58 (Jun 18, 2012)

Or use MOST bus?


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## jbcon (Feb 15, 2010)

For the moment, I'm going this route but would like to explore recoding the car later. Having already done some basic coding, or had it done I'm trying to save on the expense of having to have someone else do it and I don't have the time to learn it myself. My independent has an Autologic, but I would need to be able to tell him exactly where and in what module to look. It took him an hour to do some coding before that should have taken 10 minutes... as for the MOST bus, I was under the impression that 2010 and the base didn't have the correct equipment to tap into it. If I'm wrong, let me know. I imagine the Audison De-EQ does an OK job, but the better the signal in, the better the signal out.


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## jbcon (Feb 15, 2010)

As for the Audiofrog, I am trying something different. Most everyone has used the GB series equipment, which I don't doubt is stellar stuff. But I couldn't find anyone using, nor could I find any reviews on the GS series. I figured I'd save a few bucks, upgrade from my previous plan and do a public service.










Originally I was going to use some old MB Quart's I had. I even went so far as to do some testing to see which had the better efficiency and might work better. Having found some mirror triangles from a Hi-Fi car and having the original mirror trim without speaker grills had me eyeing the sexy little AudioFrog tweeter. I do plan on getting the system up and running with what I have, then swap out the door speakers with the Audiofrogs. I'd like to minimize the number of times I go in the doors.


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## hatemi (Dec 23, 2011)

You need dealer tool for coding the HU. At least in E90 chasis you get rid of the factory eq and your speaker outs change to clean line level signal. 
I bet you could find some hobbyist in your area who has INPA/ISTA and can do the coding for you. Here is some info that is for 3 series bit I bet most apply to your car too.

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=641323

Lähetetty minun PLK-L01 laitteesta Tapatalkilla


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## mbradlawrence (Mar 25, 2013)

Recode not really needed. I had that low end system and used a clean sweep. Also, If bit 1 has deq I'm pretty sure the eq from the h/u is not volume dependent in that car so you could still use h/u volume control. Look for threads in e90 post from vpelectric. He's has s ton of knowledge.


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## EmptyKim (Jun 17, 2010)

jbcon said:


> As for the Audiofrog, I am trying something different. Most everyone has used the GB series equipment, which I don't doubt is stellar stuff. But I couldn't find anyone using, nor could I find any reviews on the GS series. I figured I'd save a few bucks, upgrade from my previous plan and do a public service.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I'm very interested in your progress and findings. I have the same MB Quart 200.3 BMW speakers and thinking about upgrading them to either AudioFrogs or another DIY set.


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## jbcon (Feb 15, 2010)

Just a quick update, before I take a break for a week or so and regroup. I spent the weekend finishing up the wiring harness and migrating my connections from the factory power (head unit) to the BitOne and my Amp.










Even though I've been doing this for years, and I pretty much know what I am doing. every time a system fires up and starts playing on the first try, I am amazed. With so many connections and places that something could go wrong, to have everything work on the first try is extremely gratifying. The only thig I did discover after about an hour of tuning was that I reversed the L/R inputs from the head unit into the BitOne. That set me back an hour of tuning but no harm, no foul.










Speaking of tuning, I did my initial setup and measured the distances from the speakers to the main seating position and set the T/A from there. I still need to do some tweaking, but was able to get everything else set to my liking so I can fine tune everything when I get another day to work on things. I pulled out my RTA and was surprised how flat the system was out of the box, at least between about 120 Hz and 16k Hz. Other than a few dips around 450 Hz and another at about 4k, I had a pretty flat curve considering I am using the inexpensive Quarts.










My initial impression is that for 90% of people out there the MB Quarts would do fine, I however am left wanting more, thus why I haven't spent a whole lot of time tuning the system with them in it. My next undertaking will be to swap them out for the AudioFrogs, then I can invest some time in tuning and then the final stage of developing a plan for my subwoofer system.


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## jbcon (Feb 15, 2010)

I made the decision to use Audiofrog GS series mid and tweeters. In looking around on the web, I never found a solid review of the GS since everyone seems to go for the GB series. Since this car and install is not for show, or competition and I listen to a 50-50 split between ipod and talk radio, I don't need anything to crazy. I think I will be happy with my choice.This weekend I got around to mounting the audiofrogs and I must say the GS series are pretty impressive. The GS10 tweeter mounted behind the stock grills with some slight modification. 










The midrange speakers required a little more effort, but to my surprise they fit with no issue with the windows, or door frame. Depth is not a problem with the GS series in at least the 1 series BMW.

IN order to mount them I fabricated mounting rings out of MDF. I traced the original door speakers and cut out the mdf rings and painted them even though they will never be seen beyond these pictures.



















To mount the speakers in the doors, the rings will sit on top of the speaker and screw down using the stock mounting screws.










I also added a small amount of sound deadener to the panel itself around the speaker for good measure. Since they will be crossed over at 175hz, I am not anticipating any issues with vibration, but figured while I was in the door I might as well play it safe.










I do need to spend some more time with the audison and tune things for the Audiofrogs. But out of the box I am impressed. Once I get things tuned I will do a proper review since I have not found any for the GS series.

The system at this point is comprised of the Audiofrog GS40 & GS10 and the MB Quart 8-inch from the 200.b BMW system. Each of the six speakers is getting 85 watts each and the Audison bitOne is doing EQ, T/A and Xover duties. I eventually will tackle a subwoofer, but for now need to tweak things here. To say I am impressed with the Audiofrogs would be an understatement.


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## EmptyKim (Jun 17, 2010)

Thoughts on the Audiofrogs vs MB Quarts after a few weeks?


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## jbcon (Feb 15, 2010)

Since I’ve had some folks ask, I figured I would give my listening impressions and a mini review of the Audio Frog GS 10 and GS 40.

*Mini Review- Audio Frog GS Series:*
After a couple of weeks of using the Audio Frog GS 10 Tweeter and GS 40 midrange drivers, I can say I am not as happy with them as I had originally thought. Don't get me wrong, they sound amazing and significantly better than the drop in MB Quart speakers that I had initially in my BMW 1-series. The problem I see is there are entry level speakers that have been marketed to a higher-end clientele. In comparing them with speakers I have used in the last year or so in other cars I am left wanting more.

If I had to classify them, I would say they are a good OEM upgrade for anyone wanting to get better sound out of their OEM speakers. While the MB Quart 3way set (BMW 200.3) are considered the same thing, the Audio Frogs do sound better. The highs are Hi and the mid's sound good as well, but if you're looking for a full breathy sound with lots of nuances then these are not it. I admit since I am using an IPod, even with Loss-less content, I don't expect as good of sound as I know I could get, but having used this source in multiply cars I am still left wanting more.

To offer where I am coming from, in my last car I was using CDT Audio HD mids and the DRT-26 modular tweeter setup, between the Aluminum and Titanium dome tweeters. I also have an extensive collection of old school MB Quart's including Q and NX titanium dome tweeters, so I like my music bright. But, at least with the CDT's its more than bright highs it’s what I call a breathy sound, especially with female vocals. You know that sounds where you can hear a singer breath between cords, or the reverb from a guitar string as someone picks the string next to it? The Audio Frogs don’t have that breathy sound I desire.

Bottom line, if I was willing to come off the hip and buy the Audio Frog GB series, I suspect I wouldn't be as disappointed, but considering this is a budget build that I had only budgeted so much for mid’s and high’s I am disappointed. For my system, I have actually moved back to the CDT Titanium, despite having solder leads on to the tweeters and wedged them in the factory tweeter locations, due to having sold the modular mounts in another car. 

The CDT’s ability to cross over below 1400 Hz also helps I think with an inadequacies of the GS40 midrange. I really can't recommend the GS for anyone who really appreciates good sound, I only wish there had been some reviews out there before I bought them, but I found zero information or reviews to even give me a slight indication of their sound. I am left reminding myself of my own rules… if you can’t touch it, watch it or feel it before you buy, don’t buy it. Although in this world of internet only sales, it’s getting harder to be able to buy Consumer Electronics locally any more. Its like big screen TV’s… I personally will never buy a set that I can’t sit down and test with my own content and at a distance conducive to my viewing that I’ll do at home. When was the last time BestBuy ever let you bring your own Blu-ray or moved a TV off the 3 feet wide alses they have. Answer, never….

Overall, I let myself get wrapped up in the marketing of the AudioFrog company and didn't use my better judgment. I really like the idea of a company started by and run by enthusiast and do not doubt that their GB series is some hard core stuff. However, what I know about the industry, you have to have a dollar lead line in addition to the SQ line when it comes to speakers and I don't recall the last time I was happy long term with a dollar lead line of speakers. I admit my hearing at 45 years old isn't what it use to be, but having had hundreds of speakers over the years. I can honestly say that for my money... they do not make them like they use to anymore.

-------
As for as my install; I don't want to go back into my door anytime soon, so I am keeping the GS40 in play for a while longer. I will figure out my next move and determine if I want to invest in something better or bring back either the old QM100 midrange from the Quart Premium Series I have, or go with a more DIY solution like the Dayton Audio RS100 I have a pair of as well. Either way, I suspect I will get a fuller sound than what I have with a more old school approach. 

I've learned a couple of things that I can pass on with the speakers I have used in my BMW since I bought it. The Audio Frog GS line is a good oem replacement for the average consumer, but not a low-dollar replacement for an audiophile, or enthusiast on a budget. And, the MB Quart BMW 200.3 seperates are an entry level, oem replacement best suited for those with the base stereo who want good sound. Although disappointed with the Mid and tweet, the MB Quart OEM fit 8-inch midrange for the time being does offer great mid-bass without having to hack up my car.


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## jtaudioacc (Apr 6, 2010)

sounds like it's time to do some more tuning...


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## jbcon (Feb 15, 2010)

I might agree if I hadn't have already spent about 8 hours collectively adjusting the Audison Bitone in my system. After about 7 and a half hours of adjusting things with the Audiofrogs installed, I was able to get the sound I wanted and a solid EQ curve in less than 30 minutes after I installed the CDT's. Again, it wasn't that the GS10's sounded back, they just didn't offer me the dynamics I was looking for. I do love their build quality and mounting options though.


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## EmptyKim (Jun 17, 2010)

jbcon said:


> Since I’ve had some folks ask, I figured I would give my listening impressions and a mini review of the Audio Frog GS 10 and GS 40.
> 
> *Mini Review- Audio Frog GS Series:*


Thanks for posting your review. I'm still in search of my next step as I feel the same way about the MB Quarts as you.


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## cvjoint (Mar 10, 2006)

Hmm, perhaps a different theory exists that I can contribute. What if the Audio Frog gear is lower distortion and therefore less interesting? At the core, this hobby is about removing "fingerprints" or specific audio signature. When seen as such, it's not a sexy proposition. 

I've found some delight in lowering intermodular distortion with AMTs and planars in my systems over the years but that's really the exclusion. But past that improvements in switching from one dome to another or from one cone to another, ideally should give you the original recording back without any sparkle. 

Unfortunately the last time I worked with an MB quart is a decade ago but I believe that their tweeters present some breakup in the audible band and that's what gives them the "flavor." Audio Frog strikes me as a reference set, trying to reproduce the signal faithfully. You shouldn't be able to tell the brand of the speakers you have just by listening to them... Not sexy, I know.


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## mclaren1885 (Feb 15, 2012)

+1 to what cvjoint said, maybe the OP prefers the distinct signature of speakers like say Focal. Many love Focal, some don't prefer them. If that's not the case here, then there must be some tuning issue like JT mentioned. 

Having installed, tuned & heard quite a few GS sets, I am yet to hear anyone who hasn't liked them so far if the tuning was spot on.


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

I can say this about AudioFrog, after hearing them in a truck and the processor accidentally being set off (no eq or crossovers applied) I'm having a hard time NOT running them. Once the tune was turned on they were flat out amazing. 

I agree with JT, I'm sure it was the tune that was the issue. Or it could be that you simply don't like reference audio, and that's ok. Or maybe with your admitted hearing loss you like the extra sizzle you get with CDT.


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

jbcon said:


> I might agree if I hadn't have already spent about 8 hours collectively adjusting the Audison Bitone in my system. After about 7 and a half hours of adjusting things with the Audiofrogs installed, I was able to get the sound I wanted and a solid EQ curve in less than 30 minutes after I installed the CDT's. Again, it wasn't that the GS10's sounded back, they just didn't offer me the dynamics I was looking for. I do love their build quality and mounting options though.


Lack of dynamics is usually a power issue. You may like the German Maestro line.


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## SkizeR (Apr 19, 2011)

im with the other guys. a lot of guys really dont realize how much of a difference tuning can make. after tuning a system that comprised of a 3 way set that cost less than a hundred bucks, i was floored at how good i was able to make them sound.


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## cvjoint (Mar 10, 2006)

Ahh, I do see the GS series have no shorting rings. The GB series have them and the motor is neo to top it off. Yes the design can certainly be improved. Past that if you want even more clarity you could try a very stiff cone with a large breakup and filter it heavily well before breakup. That should get you better energy storage behavior than these poly cones if you set the crossovers properly.


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## JoeHemi57 (Mar 28, 2006)

Thanks for the install pics and review, i have a 228 with the base system and set up looks pretty identical. I saw those MB Quart earlier and have been considering the Helix Match full 3 way set also. 

Just started looking at the AudioFrog GS42 earlier and thought i might do those in the doors, upgraded underseat woofers and some kind of 10" sub in the trunk. I was going to do the Technic harness with a JL XD600/6 or Arc XDiv2 amp.

It sounds like you prefer very bright highs which the Quart, CDT and others have but not for me so maybe the GS42 will work. I would like to try the Morel Tempo Ultra 402 maybe as well. I'm on a budget too, was hoping to keep equipment alone around a grand if possible.


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## JoeyF228m (Jun 28, 2016)

Lost my password to other account, still looking for some speakers for my 228. Do you think upgrading the door speakers with some Match by Helix or Rainbow application specific 4" coaxials would be worthwhile? They don't cost much and i'm thinking a powered subwoofer will give me the bass i need. Where would you suggest getting a signal from for one though?


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## jbcon (Feb 15, 2010)

Depending on whether you have base, or one of the upgraded system changing them out with either Helix, rainbow or something else will make a huge difference, especially if you add more power.

As for the system in my car I spent a lot of time tuning it, but the lower line Audio Frogs didn't cut it for me. I can't speak for the GB's b/c I don't have $300 for tweeters and another $400 for mids in my budget. 

For now, I am running my old MB Quart QM100 Premiums and CDT DRT-26 and am extremely happy. I am working on a sub enclosure for the trunk and amp shroud for the under side of the parcel shelf that I will update everyone on when I have some time. 

I am nearing the finish line and once everything is complete, will revisit the drivers and may come off the hip and give the higher end another try.


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## CLK63DK (Nov 20, 2010)

nice work!

However I would relate your tuning problems to the radio not being coded to the hifi system. At the moment you have a heavily EQ'ed curve coming out, that you then try to flatten with the JL, just to do another RE-EQ with the Bit-One.

Having build more than 7 systems in the E8x and e9x series in the past 2 years, where 2 systems was exactly the same in 2 different E91 with Hifi and non hifi options, I can only say that the 50€ spend on the coding of the radio was an eye opener.
Not only do you get a flat full range curve from all 4 channels, you also get 4V pre-out that will sound better w the bit 1

If you regret - you can just code it back to non hifi again - but I beg to differ that you will like the change


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