Another audio thread!

[John_B]

Apologies in advance, I have read numerous threads but am a real idiot when it comes to stuff like this.

Now my Z3 is back on the road and I am driving it, I have come to find the stereo and/or speakers are pretty naff. I am quite sure some or even all of the speakers on the drivers' side are blown (I moved the balance all the way to the right on the head unit and it was silent). What's more, whichever speakers still work on the left are tinny and distorted at any audible volume levels - I'm sure this is not helped by the number of speakers that are inop! Head unit is the BMW Business CD, btw, and as far as I know there is no aftermarket amp or sub. (I checked VIN Decoder and I just have "S658 - Radio BMW Business CD RDS")

My plan would be to replace/upgrade the speakers first and then if I'm still not happy with the volume/quality, fit a new head unit, amp and sub in a month or two - Does this sound like a sensible approach? And would any speakers I bought now to replace the OEM ones still work with an upgraded head unit & amp at a later date, or are there certain features I should look for/avoid? Any recommendations for replacement speakers would be appreciated

I'm by no means an audiophile! But I enjoy music while driving, and I do find it beneficial to be able to hear it

Cheers

 

[137699]

I would definitely start with the speakers - the most fragile part of the system and the most likely to suffer from age also.
I have the Business CD RDS in mine - which I retrofitted to replace a pretty high-end Sony radio that the previous owner fitted - and in all honesty the BMW unit sounds much better.

Mine does have the HK system fitted though and I believe aftermarket units often don't power up the amps.

 

[John_B]

I would definitely start with the speakers - the most fragile part of the system and the most likely to suffer from age also.
I have the Business CD RDS in mine - which I retrofitted to replace a pretty high-end Sony radio that the previous owner fitted - and in all honesty the BMW unit sounds much better.

Mine does have the HK system fitted though and I believe aftermarket units often don't power up the amps.

Thank you, that's interesting about the Business CD unit being better than an aftermarket one, I read another comment when I was searching along the similar lines. Maybe just speaker replacements are all I need! Do you have any recommendations?

 

[TriumphZ3]

How do you remove the footwell speaker trims? Been out just now, not secured in any way (passenger side has a hole that looks as though some kind of trim clip is missing?) but they're solidly fixed in place and won't budge.

 

[John_B]

How do you remove the footwell speaker trims? Been out just now, not secured in any way (passenger side has a hole that looks as though some kind of trim clip is missing?) but they're solidly fixed in place and won't budge.

I haven't tried to get at mine yet, but planned to follow these steps (I presume(/hope) the driver's side follows a similar process!):

Footwell Speaker replacement.

Hi all this is my footwell speaker replacement! keeping the original AMP and tweeters but adding the new ones aswell! So i replaced the speakers with EDGE 305 From Halfords Currently £15 as there old Stock! Firstly remove all trim panels around the foot well there is 5/6 screws and 2 plastic...

zroadster.org

 

[TriumphZ3]

So: I need to remove all the trim panels, not just the speaker / side trim?
I have a few boxes of speakers, bought years back for some of the Triumphs and never opened so some of them should fit... just a question of getting at the old ones.

 

[Ade33]

Just resurecting this old thread rather than starting a new one.

I have the original BMW Business CD/Radio in my 2002 Z3 and ideally i'd like to keep the head unit to keep the car original

The car has two footwell speakers, two tweeters in the doors and two speakers at the back

I understand and have read that its got a preamp fitted to one of the footwell speakers..

just wondering if fitting replacement speakers and not touching anything else improves sound quality? Has anybody sucessfully done this?

 

[Trevor /chedder]

Do the footwell speakers first and get ones that also have a tweeter in the speaker. I realise that you have a tweeter in the door but I found this made a big difference. I also taped up all the gaps and holes with flash band.

 

[TriumphZ3]

That link is interesting but glosses over the footwell / speaker trim removal, and me being me I'll break something irreplaceable. Mine don't move at all so I don't want to go to Gorilla force just yet without making sure I've removed all the screws and clips. It's simple to those who know, but daunting to those of us who haven't tried yet and hear all the stories of snapped-off clips.

 

[Ade33]

That link is interesting but glosses over the footwell / speaker trim removal, and me being me I'll break something irreplaceable. Mine don't move at all so I don't want to go to Gorilla force just yet without making sure I've removed all the screws and clips. It's simple to those who know, but daunting to those of us who haven't tried yet and hear all the stories of snapped-off clips.

 

[Ade33]

Yes it would be good if somebody who has done it could give more detail.

I'm aware if you rip the lot out and put a new head unit in, bypass or remove the original preamp and fit new speakers it's likely to improve the sound

What I'm trying to find out is whether replacing 25 year old speakers with modern ones and keeping the existing preamp and head unit will improve the sound??

Has anybody done it?

 

[Zephyr]

How To Guide - Z3 Single Component Speakers Upgrade

My 2001 Z3 has the single component hifi system, meaning that it was the cheapest basic available back in the day. (Option S658). The Cd/radio is Blaupunkt CD43 called Business (because calling it basic seemed to cheap ) and has RDS as a feature. This unit itself has a very low output (just a...

zroadster.org

yes. I did.

 

[Ade33]

How To Guide - Z3 Single Component Speakers Upgrade

My 2001 Z3 has the single component hifi system, meaning that it was the cheapest basic available back in the day. (Option S658). The Cd/radio is Blaupunkt CD43 called Business (because calling it basic seemed to cheap ) and has RDS as a feature. This unit itself has a very low output (just a...

zroadster.org

yes. I did.

Hi Zephyr thanks for that and I have just read through your entire thread. I appreciate you no longer have the car and it's probably a distant memory.. But my question is was it worth it in the end did the effort justify the improvement in the sound quality??

 

[Zephyr]

Straight answer, no. Would not get into the trouble again. Dismantling half the car for this is just not worthed.
The guy who bought it, installed. Bremen SQR 46 and removed the amp soending another 450€ and it is still not worthed. Just throw in a cheap radio, replace the footwel speakers with a pair of mid/subs and call it a day.
The basic system in the Z is just to cover the hole in the dash.

 

[TriumphZ3]

Ok... I read through that thread, and just got confused again. Nothing on removing the footwell trims, or the rear speakers, so it's jumped the step I need - similarly many of the how-to vids on Youtube seem to dismantle the entire car, rollover bars, centre console, then show a car with the trim already removed... as for the front speakers... surely you simply remove the old speakers (once you know how the trim comes off) and replace the speaker for a better one? I'm running a Pioneer head unit and it was straight plug-and-play. HOW do the rear speakers come out? Surely you don't need to take the entire car apart, centre console, even seats out?? The guys on Youtube seem to have to and it doesn't seem necessary. Take pity on me, I'm a pensioner that rebuilds classic 1960s cars for a hobby, every nut bolt and component refurbished, I even make my own looms but some of these posts have me totally confused and seem to use jargon that means nothing at all.

 

[John_B]

Ok... I read through that thread, and just got confused again. Nothing on removing the footwell trims, or the rear speakers, so it's jumped the step I need - similarly many of the how-to vids on Youtube seem to dismantle the entire car, rollover bars, centre console, then show a car with the trim already removed... as for the front speakers... surely you simply remove the old speakers (once you know how the trim comes off) and replace the speaker for a better one? I'm running a Pioneer head unit and it was straight plug-and-play. HOW do the rear speakers come out? Surely you don't need to take the entire car apart, centre console, even seats out?? The guys on Youtube seem to have to and it doesn't seem necessary. Take pity on me, I'm a pensioner that rebuilds classic 1960s cars for a hobby, every nut bolt and component refurbished, I even make my own looms but some of these posts have me totally confused and seem to use jargon that means nothing at all.

You do need to disassemble the rear trims to get to the rear speakers I am afraid. They are mounted in the 'lateral trims' which are the bits below the turrets and that sweep right down to the door sills. And even if you could get to the speakers without removing them, the cable and the connectors go under that trim piece and join up to the loom that is under the centre storage box.

I could write out a step-by-step guide to disassembling the rear trim, but the OEM roll hoop installation guide does a good job and is what I used the first time. Please see the attachment. If you have roll hoops already, work backwards through the installation steps. If you don't have hoops, just follow the disassembly steps at the start of the guide.

for the front speakers, you need to remove the panels that cover the door seals along the bottom of the door opening (3 push-fit clips. Get your fingers under them and give them a firm and swift pull and they should come out), and the panels above the footwells (each are held on with two big plastic screws, you'll see them with a hole for a large flat head screw driver at the top of each footwell, twist them 90 degrees and they'll just fall out. Finally the two panels that cover the speakers are only held in with one plastic screw each. Drivers side is under bonnet release handle, just undo that (phillips head screw) and pull off. Passenger side is the same on the other side but obviously without the bonnet release. With those panels removed each speaker is held on with 4 bolts (8 or 10mm from memory). The passenger side one includes the preamp, so just be careful pulling it out of the hole.

 

[GDavis]

I replaced my speakers with what I considered a reasonably priced upgrade.
JBL coaxials 30's in front, 20's in the rear panel. Defo a better sound.
Binned the door tweeter altogether, rubbish. I took off the door grill and sprayed the door black in behind, then sprayed the grill black before refitting.
You will have limited choice in speakers because of the lack of room for the dome in the replacement, check how much they protrude before you buy.

I could get at everything without any issue as it was all coming out anyway, but it was definitely the right thing to do.
All the clips are available on Ebay