2004 BMW 325i Sedan stereo upgrade questions
 

Good day. Today I decided to order the DICE Mediabridge. This got me thinking about possibly doing a amp/speaker upgrade.

I would like a nice high quality system but there are a few compromises I need to work with. First, I want to retain the factory head unit to keep the dash looking stock. Second, I do not want to cut into my door panels (Not something I want to get into with this car). Third I would like to spend around $1000.

In the front I would like a set of 2-way components (Focal, Morel, CDT....) that will fit the factory mounting locations without too much modification. In the rear I would like a set of coaxial's. I would also consider a small subwoofer in the trunk if necessary. Are there any 5.25"/6.5"s that will fit in the front and/or rear?

I don't have a factory installed amp in my trunk. Is there anyway to connect an external amp other than a line out converter? If not which one do you recommend?

Finally I would like a 5 channel amp. Any recommendations?

Am I crazy or is it at all possible what I am asking?

Thanks,
Alex

Anybody?

To the top!

Looking for any suggestions!

Now I can send PM's!

Looks like you're in a hurry! First of all, are you installing this yourself? That's a lot of equipment for $1000...particularly if you want morel, focal and cdt. If you have to pay for install as well, then you're going to be way over a g. I suggest, you look at getting a good oem to after market converter like the jl audio clean sweep or one from alpine, kenwood, audio control etc...this will allow for a clean, re-equalized (to flat) signal that can then be amplified and sent to your speakers. Concentrate on the front components first and get the best (to you) you can afford. Add a sub woofer next, and get a good brand name 4 channel amp that you can use channels 1,2 for the front and bridge 3,4 for the sub for now. Eventually you can upgrade and get a sub amp for the sub and use the 4 ch for the front and rear (rear speakers can be the oem ones at first and eventually upgrade to the same brand/model in co-ax form if you want to...typically most guys are pretty happy with the oems or a cheaper rear fill speaker).

Sorry about the thread spamming. I was trying to get to 10 posts so I could PM. They must have recently changed the regulations.

Anyways, I appreciate your input. I plan on installing everything myself. As for the amp I am open to older high quality units (hifonics, zed, phoenix gold....). I also have a line on a McIntosh 2 channel (30wx2) that I could use to power the front components.

In my previous car I installed CDT CL-62CF components that I bought from a member here for around $150. I was pretty pleased with those running through a mid 90s Alpine amp and Alpine 7949 HU.

I am not sure if anyone has done anything similar to this but I was thinking of installing some 6.5" midbass drivers in the rear deck in place of the coaxials (also eliminating the need for a subwoofer). I am not after earth shaking bass I am just wanting a little weight behind bass drum and bass guitar.

I will probably go with the AudioControl LC6i or something similar for the line output converter.

Any thought about this setup?

Sounds like you have a good grip on what you want and know what you're doing. Same common sense stuff applies...choose with your ears, experience, and reputation. The bass in the rear deck can work very well as long as you get the right speakers for the job...cdt makes some heavy duty 6.5s that would be perfect for an application like that, just make sure you sound deaden and seal the deck as best you can. Here's a link:

http://www.woofersetc.com/p-5574-m6-...s-drivers.aspx

Some serious 6.5s...12 mm xmax, 30 oz magnets, and 1.5" voice coils...should do the trick and they're on sale!!

I suppose, if you're doing the install yourself you could do it for a grand. My set up for that type of a system as an idea would be;
jl audio 441 clean sweep--200.00
cdt 6.5 comps------------250.00
cdt 6.5 mid/subs---------150.00
RF power t-600 amp------330.00 100x4 @ 4ohms
total---------------------930.00+taxes, shipping, etc..

all on ebay from reputable dealers.