What is the best radio ?

[e46mpwrd]

Probably, but from my limited understanding its quite complicated for our cars to adopt an aftermarket amp. I was trying to go that route but could not find any resource online

Not really. All you need is the Technic harness. I used to have my stock HK speakers powered by a JL Amp. You will need to choose a model that has differential-balanced inputs, then figure out how you are doing crossovers (some JL models have the ability built in). It sounded better than the stock amp. Maybe one day I will get around to making a audio thread with more info about my setup. Although my setup is similar to Obioban's.

What you can't do is use new speakers on the OEM amp. It uses weird speaker impedances so it just becomes complicated.

You can also upgrade the amps in the BM53 radio unit, which in my opinion doesn't do that much unless it is already damaged.

[yhp2009]

Not really. All you need is the Technic harness. I used to have my stock HK speakers powered by a JL Amp. You will need to choose a model that has differential-balanced inputs, then figure out how you are doing crossovers (some JL models have the ability built in). It sounded better than the stock amp. Maybe one day I will get around to making a audio thread with more info about my setup. Although my setup is similar to Obioban's.

What you can't do is use new speakers on the OEM amp. It uses weird speaker impedances so it just becomes complicated.

You can also upgrade the amps in the BM53 radio unit which in my opinion, doesn't do that much unless it is already damaged.

A simple DIY thread would be an awesome contribution

[Bigo1087]

Subjective question. Depends on your needs.

For me bluebus + stock nav by farrrrrrr.
My phone does everything I need

I've had a sorts of dynavins, avin 1 , 2 , 3, xtrons etc

Id you want the latest and greatest , but can deal with the headache of android, avin avant 4.

If you want the most stable and best audio grade components the latest dynavin

You'll regret anything else for the most part.




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[umichchris]

whatever you do, DO NOT BUY an Avin Avant 4. worst $750 ive ever spent. their support is a joke too. ive been tracking down noise & feedback issues for months. they wouldn't replace it with a new unit after known issues throughout their production run. its cheap crap that only has the benefit of looking OEM.

id google the noise feedback and audio quality issues before considering them. unfortunately, i bought mine too close to the launch of it and these issues weren't well socialized yet. its not limited to just the E46 variant of the Avant 4 either.

i literally took mine out and went back to the OEM radio + FM transmitter until i find another solution.

[Obioban]

whatever you do, DO NOT BUY an Avin Avant 4. worst $750 ive ever spent. their support is a joke too. ive been tracking down noise & feedback issues for months. they wouldn't replace it with a new unit after known issues throughout their production run. its cheap crap that only has the benefit of looking OEM.

id google the noise feedback and audio quality issues before considering them. unfortunately, i bought mine too close to the launch of it and these issues weren't well socialized yet. its not limited to just the E46 variant of the Avant 4 either.

i literally took mine out and went back to the OEM radio + FM transmitter until i find another solution.

FWIW, they certainly don't all do that-- mine has no weird noises.

But, chinese crap gonna chinese crap.

[Epsilon]

I've been enticed by the Avant 4 many times and then I have to remind myself that it's just a cheap tablet with an OEM looking face. "Don't let that pretty face fool you."

[yhp2009]

whatever you do, DO NOT BUY an Avin Avant 4. worst $750 ive ever spent. their support is a joke too. ive been tracking down noise & feedback issues for months. they wouldn't replace it with a new unit after known issues throughout their production run. its cheap crap that only has the benefit of looking OEM.

id google the noise feedback and audio quality issues before considering them. unfortunately, i bought mine too close to the launch of it and these issues weren't well socialized yet. its not limited to just the E46 variant of the Avant 4 either.

i literally took mine out and went back to the OEM radio + FM transmitter until i find another solution.

Sorry to hear that. Personally ive had no issues other than a bad canbus which they immediately shipped out to replace.
But their troubleshooting support is quite dismal as they will simply ask you to reboot to fix all your problems. Online discussion threads were much better help

[Kcalhoun27]

A simple DIY thread would be an awesome contribution

It isnt really a simple diy. It isnt super difficult, but you basically have to splice the amp into the amp wiring harness using the technic harness and the hi/lo-in/outs. The issue is a lack of rca outputs from the HU, assuming you stay with the factory HU. Ive attached a pic of my hackjob, which i do intend to fix lol. Youll need the wiring diagram that Ian posted on M3forums years ago. After that, its just chasing wires. Bit of a pain but worth the effort imo

[oceansize]

I will throw this in for a simple no frills more modern non-oem option for those that come along later. CarPlay is super solid. Android Auto is sensitive to cord length, keep it under 3 feet. I understand the want to keep things OEM but I wasn't willing to buy the Avin and the Dynavin was much too high in cost to justify although I'm sure it is nice.

https://enfigcarstereo.com/SONY_XAV_...6_PACKAGE.html

[yhp2009]

It isnt really a simple diy. It isnt super difficult, but you basically have to splice the amp into the amp wiring harness using the technic harness and the hi/lo-in/outs. The issue is a lack of rca outputs from the HU, assuming you stay with the factory HU. Ive attached a pic of my hackjob, which i do intend to fix lol. Youll need the wiring diagram that Ian posted on M3forums years ago. After that, its just chasing wires. Bit of a pain but worth the effort imo

I probably need to do more independent learning to really get what youre trying to say, but was secretly hoping someone would make a step by step diy
Im lazy :P

[Kcalhoun27]

I probably need to do more independent learning to really get what youre trying to say, but was secretly hoping someone would make a step by step diy
Im lazy :P

I totally get that. When i did my install, i was also hoping for the same thing and learned that no one made what i was looking for. After the install, i understood why. That said, if youve done a full stereo install before, you have all the tools to accomplish the task already, you just need the wiring diagram.

for the most part, its just splicing wires. The hard part is which wires. For some reason bmw chose a lot of brown, yellow and striped wires to denote speaker wires. Masking tape with a sharpie is your friend

[M3KVU]

Just bought the Avin Avant 4 , should be here next week.

[Obioban]

What we need is a well made head unit that looks stock, has an OLED display with a dark night theme, and has reliable/consistent wireless CarPlay. I would spend stupid amount of money for that product.

Every single option is a compromise in some way. AFAIK, none of them are OLED (which seems most beneficial in a car, where you want as little ambient light as possible).

[8000RPM]

I don’t understand why BMW hasn’t produced a modern unit like Porsche Classic. Expensive but you know it’s going to work as it should. So many classic BMWs on the road with plenty of enthusiasts and clubs out there.


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[rbg]

Because bmw cares so much about enthusiasts lately!