New Orleans Client Gets BMW Audio Upgrade for 3-Series Sedan

A client from New Orleans, Louisiana, brought his 3-series BMW sedan to Prestige Car Audio and Marine to upgrade his audio system. He wanted a system that would offer excellent detail and clarity, and much better bass. We had a look at the client’s car and then proposed a high-tech upgrade for his BMW audio system that would meet his needs.

Starting at the Beginning

A great source unit is the perfect start to an audio system, it doesn’t get any better than this Sony!

The Sony Hi-Res radio looks right at home in the BMW dash.

The interior remained relatively stock-looking, but sounded MUCH better.

We replaced his factory radio with a Sony RSX-GS9 digital media receiver. The RSX-GS9 includes an AM/FM tuner, Bluetooth hands-free with audio streaming and support for high-resolution audio files. Format support includes MP3, WMA, FLAC and DSD for amazing detail and clarity.

Speaker Upgrades

The factory rear deck was very plain looking.

Thanks to the Audiomobile subwoofer, this BMW now has great-sounding bass.

The grilles in the rear deck vent the bass from the Audiomobile subwoofer to the cabin of the car.

Our fabrication department constructed a new rear deck for the BMW.

We replaced the front speakers with a set of Focal PS165F3 components. The PS165F3 set includes a 6.5-inch woofer, 3-inch midrange and 1-inch tweeter. Before mounting the speakers, we treated the doors with a layer of SoundSkins sound-deadening to reduce vibrations and noise transfer from outside the vehicle. Our installation technicians installed a set of Fast Rings speaker baffles around the face of the woofer to help channel energy into the interior of the vehicle.

To ensure the new system was going to be able to produce clean, clear bass, we installed a single Audiomobile Elite 2510 10-inch subwoofer in the rear deck. We treated the deck with SoundSkins as well. The subwoofer uses the trunk as its enclosure in what is known as an infinite baffle application.

Compact Amplification

Both Mosconi amplifiers were able to fit in the spot of the factory amplifier.

The tiny footprint of the Mosconi D2 amplifiers made them a perfect choice for this installation.

In a small space we were able to fit 7 channels of amplification and 8 channels of processing!

A pair of Mosconi D2 series amplifiers powers the new system. A D2 80.6 DSP powers the front three-way set while a D2 500.1 powers the subwoofer. We mounted the Mosconi amps back-to-back in the left rear corner of the trunk where the factory amplifier used to be.

The D2 80.6 DSP includes an eight-channel digital signal processor. We used the processor to set up signal delay, crossovers and equalization for each speaker in the car. The result is smooth and natural frequency response and excellent imaging and staging. Everything sounds like it is coming from the dash and windshield, as though the driver is experiencing a live concert.

BMW Audio System Delivery

The client returned to Prestige Car Audio and Marine in Metairie to have a listen to his new system. He was shocked at how clear and accurate it sounded. He could not believe that a system that sounded this good didn’t take up his entire trunk.

If your BMW audio system isn’t meeting your expectations, drop by our shop. You can also reach us by e-mail HERE for more information about our services.