Harman Kardon/ B&O audio retrofitting

[Mnfamilyguy2020]

[QUOTE=mjposner;26870407]I had the B&O in my 2013 and the HK in my 2016 and to be honest not much difference. Perhaps my 59 year old ears are shot from too much loud rock back in the day. I also ran a custom sub in the trunk and I haven't bothered to hook that up yet in my 2016. Also, I have a cab and the top is down a lot so that greatly reduces acoustics. I would just do a seat sub upgrade and some focals plus the trunk sub if anything.

Can Carly unlock B&O profiles?[/QUOTE

[doggboy]

I have the B&O system, and as others have said, once you set the EQ properly it is a darn nice system if not the best factory system I have heard. I used to compete and while it is not as good as my old system with ID pro horns, ribbons in the pillars, illusion audio nd8 mids and a DIYMA12 sub all powered by Soundstream Class A amps, it is darn nice and better than some custom systems i have heard.

[Mck444]

I have the B&O in my 650, it's very clear but I feel like it lacks a bit of "oomph". There's a slight difference between the HK and the B&O but it's honestly not worth the price difference. B&O just wouldn't be worth whatever it is to retrofit, best bet would just to go custom.

[mjposner]

If you want ommph add a sub:

[patchesj]

I posted something about this. You must make adjustments to the B&O system to optimize. I am still not sure why it is not set this way from the factory, but do this first and then decide if the B&O isn't good enough for you...

https://www.6post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1741045

[Mnfamilyguy2020]

Originally Posted by mjposner

If you want ommph add a sub:

Attachment 2452644

Oh my.... I’m having flashbacks to 1987, life was so much easier then..... i haven’t seen a box like this in quite some time.

[mrjsmith88]

Originally Posted by pf10

Looking for someone in NY/NJ tri-state area that is good with BMW audio retrofitting. I'm looking to upgrade my current system.

Check it out I took out the whole Harmon Kardon in both my vehicles

Sound System In X5M https://f15.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1788354

[TON-III]

Originally Posted by SpooldYou

The B/O system needs to be tuned correctly as out of the factory from BMW it is set Flat across the board.

This is very true !!!

I do have S677A HIFI SYSTEM PROFESSIONAL DSP in my car and I was not that satisfied to it in early days ..... I got new Rockford Fosgate

https://www.audiokit.fi/tuote/rockfo...kaiutinpaketti

front speakers ( 3 sets) and new subs installed with some absorb liners and it really made a difference !!!

Low end is nowadays very sophisticated, bass is 'dry', very accurate but still some elephant ear vibration every now and then coming trough.

Still, the final output of the sound quality is depending from the source, some times even radio will have a good lead, mostly it's everything else.

[stmoore01]

You need to remember the the B&O system is tuned to be as natural as possible as are all their speakers. By Natural Sound they mean that the reproduction is faithful to the original recording. Everything is subjective to individual listeners and some people prefer more highs, most more lows. Most aftermarket systems are not designed with "Natural" in mind as almost all exaggerate the bass output. But if that is what you want, that is what you should get, it's your money

The final tuning decision is BMW's not B&O's. It is the same for all the other OEM's that use the B&O system. In the referenced thread they talk about a dynamic bass algorithm that kicks in at lower volumes. That is a feature of all B&O systems both home and car that gives a perceived fullness at lower levels. It is called Dynamic Loudness and slowly cuts off as the volume increases.

I spent 5 years as the US key account manager for B&O. The final characteristics of the system is a collaboration between BMW & B&O sound engineers and of course the limitations that the car puts in the system design and the spaces allotted to the drive units. Overall the system has terrific imaging is insanely clean and clear and generally doesn't distort at high levels. Other factors that limit the system are of course cost based.

One thing they do in some of the Audi systems (A8, A7, Q7) is that all drive units are in sealed cabinets so that you have much tighter control over every driver in the car. This makes it much easier to properly amplify and tune the systems.

I hope I provided a little insight into the process behind why the systems perform as they do. If you have any specific questions you can reach out to me directly and I can attempt to answer you.

[patchesj]

Originally Posted by stmoore01

Overall the system has terrific imaging is insanely clean and clear and generally doesn't distort at high levels. Other factors that limit the system are of course cost based.

Exactly... I posted a thread showing where I used testing equipment to measure and adjust some of the frequency response concerns, but overall this is an extremely "clean" system. Most consumers actually do not like distortionless and uncolored sound. It's too real, and can actually be perceived as tiring to listen to. The other issue with clean systems is they tend to reveal any problems in the source material. So don't expect a lossy MP3 from your iphone to sound any good.

If you aren't an audiophile, don't spend $5k on a car audio system designed for audiophiles. Go get a system installed that sounds the way you like it.

But if you want an extremely accurate factory system and happen to find a car with the B&O in it, it can be made to sound better with proper adjustment.