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A Mini rep sent me some official figures for the audio systems in the R56. Here's the info:
Standard System:
4 channels
6 loudspeakers
• 2 mid-range loudspeakers in front, 100 mm [~4 inch]
• 2 bass loudspeakers in front, 150 mm [~6 inch]
• 2 bass loudspeakers in rear, 6 x 9"
Bandwidth: 50 Hz to 14,000 Hz
Max. acoustic pressure 98 dB
Amplifier power: depends on radio,
4 x 15 W (4 Ohm)
HiFi System:
8 channels
10 loudspeakers
• 2 treble loudspeakers in front, 26 mm [~1 inch]
• 2 mid-range loudspeakers in front, 100 mm [~4 inch]
• 2 bass loudspeakers in front, 150 mm [~6 inch]
• 2 bass loudspeakers in rear, 6 x 9"
• 2 treble loudspeakers in rear, 26 mm [~1 inch]
Bandwidth: 40 Hz to 20,000 Hz
Max. acoustic pressure 104 dB
Amplifier power:
•2 x 40 W (2 Ohm) Bass
•6 x 25 W (2 Ohm)
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| 07 MCS | Pepper White/Black | Leather Lounge Carbon | Premium, Sport, Cold Weather | LSD & Sport Suspension | Comfort Access | Anthracite Headliner | Front & Rear Fog Lamps | 35% Tint | 17" Black Konig Feathers | H&R Springs | Alta Control Arms |
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PW/B MCSa, sport, premium, audio and cold weather, carbon lounge, chrome line, anthracite, cream color line, piano black, white turns, rear fogs, auto lights/wipers, PDC. Now: Garmin nuvi 660. JCW black grille trim. AC bonnet/boot stripes. ALTA 4" antenna, red CAI/boost tubes/turbo inlet hose, cat-back and 19mm rear sway bar. Eibach springs. 17" gunmetal Rota RBs in 215/45 GY F1's. For sale!
Yeah, that's the first time I've seen the specs, that' nice. 2 ohm resistance is really low in the MCS. I don't think I ever heard of a 2 ohm speaker resistance. Guess that's why you need an amp if you add aftermarket speakers (probably all either 4 or 8 ohm).
__________________ April 07:MCS SS/B/Tuscan Beige/Cream colorline interior/Manual/Conv Pkg/Premium Pkg/17" Flame Spoke/LSD/Chrome Line/English Oak/Xenon/HiFi/Anthracite Headliner. African Blackwood/Amboyna burl inlay shift knob and ebrake handle by Robin Casady (see my gallery) 19mm H-sport rear asb, Bridgestone Potenza G019 Grid non-RF tires. HTC Incredible phone.
2 ohm resistance is really low in the MCS. I don't think I ever heard of a 2 ohm speaker resistance. Guess that's why you need an amp if you add aftermarket speakers (probably all either 4 or 8 ohm).
That was also true of the 1st gen Harman Kardon upgrade, and the R56 HiFi comes from Harman as well.
Yeah, that's the first time I've seen the specs, that' nice. 2 ohm resistance is really low in the MCS. I don't think I ever heard of a 2 ohm speaker resistance. Guess that's why you need an amp if you add aftermarket speakers (probably all either 4 or 8 ohm).
There are a few 2 ohm speakers available. Infinity Kappas, and JBL Grand Touring Series are 2 ohm.
I have heard it said that you can run a 4 ohm speaker on a 2 ohm capable amp, but not the other way around.
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Robin Casady Bombadil: 2007 MINI Cooper S, R56, Pure Silver, LSD, Wood Shift Knob, Rota Slipstream 16x7, NAV, HIFI...
There are a few 2 ohm speakers available. Infinity Kappas, and JBL Grand Touring Series are 2 ohm.
I have heard it said that you can run a 4 ohm speaker on a 2 ohm capable amp, but not the other way around.
I'm no EE major, but I don't think the amp itself cares about what resistance the speaker is. I buddy bought a pair of 4 ohm speakers long ago (all stereo bookshelf units are 8 ohms) and used a standard Marantz amp just fine. The lower ohm speaker receives a lot more power is all, so it's easy to blow 'em up.
__________________ April 07:MCS SS/B/Tuscan Beige/Cream colorline interior/Manual/Conv Pkg/Premium Pkg/17" Flame Spoke/LSD/Chrome Line/English Oak/Xenon/HiFi/Anthracite Headliner. African Blackwood/Amboyna burl inlay shift knob and ebrake handle by Robin Casady (see my gallery) 19mm H-sport rear asb, Bridgestone Potenza G019 Grid non-RF tires. HTC Incredible phone.
Amps DO care about the load.
A lower resistance / impedance risks overloading the amp ... some amps simply cannot operate stably with 2 ohm or lower speakers, others will overheat and shut down, and others (designed for it) can handle even down to 1 ohm.
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Ian C. Gloucester, MA, USA (UK expat) driving GBMINI#4, aka GPMINI
Does anyone know who makes the premium amplifier in the current MINI systems? The Owner's Lounge says that the speakers are by Harman and the head unit by Alpine, so I'm wondering if the amp would also have been done by Harman. Anyone know?
Thanks for the picture! Has anyone seen pictures of the guts of this amplifier? i.e. the PC board inside there and the components on them? Yeah, I'm an engineer, so seeing what's inside the amp is really interesting to me.
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Clubman S - BRG/S, bonnet stripes; Convenience, Premium, Cold Weather; Xenon; Leatherette, Chrome Line interior, Piano Black, and new Union Jack decals on the side scuttles!
+1 for the engineers...I am a mechanical so the guts make me
Quote:
Originally Posted by driveblind
Thanks for the picture! Has anyone seen pictures of the guts of this amplifier? i.e. the PC board inside there and the components on them? Yeah, I'm an engineer, so seeing what's inside the amp is really interesting to me.
__________________ Murial was ordered 10.17.2007 BRG/W, white turns, cold weather, sport, convenience, rear fog, LSD, 6 MAN, auto ac, pdc, anthracite, lounge redwood, oak, ipod JCW Stage 1, cocomats
Status: Production started 10/31/2007 Halloween Car Finished 11/05/2007 Arrived on the Frisia 11/22 dealer delivery December 5th.
I had the old H/K amplifier apart for a few minutes (sorry, no pictures) but there's not a lot to see ... surface mount with a few large parts (DSP probably), and lots of heatsink mounted transistors (actually more likely FETs).
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Ian C. Gloucester, MA, USA (UK expat) driving GBMINI#4, aka GPMINI
GBMINI - thanks anyhow. It's the "few large parts" that I'm interested in seeing, so I might just have to crack open my own once I get it. Was it pretty easy to unmount it and slide the case open?
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Clubman S - BRG/S, bonnet stripes; Convenience, Premium, Cold Weather; Xenon; Leatherette, Chrome Line interior, Piano Black, and new Union Jack decals on the side scuttles!
Has anyone made a wireing harness T connector for the HiFi Amp?? IT would be so nice to just plug in a T harness at the hifi amp to add speakers/subwoofer, amps... I can't beleive nobody has made one??? I know newministuff has a harness for the back of the radio, but who wants to take that mess apart.
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07 MCS| DS/DS| Grey/Carbon Black Leatherette| Conv., Premium, Cold Pkges| Sport Pkge w/17" web spokes| Nav| Alarm| LSD| PDC| Chrome Int, Ext & bonnet Scoop| Anthracite headln| Front & Rear Fogs| HiFi| 20% Tint| Ordered 06/02| Born 6/15| Shipped on Undine 6/19 | Home 7/3/07
Yeah, that's the first time I've seen the specs, that' nice. 2 ohm resistance is really low in the MCS. I don't think I ever heard of a 2 ohm speaker resistance. Guess that's why you need an amp if you add aftermarket speakers (probably all either 4 or 8 ohm).
If you run 4ohm speakers with the factory amp, it will not be working as hard as it would with the factory speakers. Damping factor is probably significantly improved by moving to 4ohm units, but the achievable power output will decrease. How much it decreases depends on the topology of the amplifier.
Due to my limited budget I did not upgrade to the premium audio system when I ordered. Any odea how the base system sounds (I understand this is rather subjective). My dealer did not have any of the cars on the lot equiped with the standard system.
Thanks
Art
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ArtP
On Order: MC 6MT,Chili Red, Bonnet Stripes, Cold Weather Package, White Alloys, Chrome Line Exterior, MultiFunction Wheel Ordered 6/16, Scheduled for Week 28, Completed 7/11
Due to my limited budget I did not upgrade to the premium audio system when I ordered. Any odea how the base system sounds (I understand this is rather subjective). My dealer did not have any of the cars on the lot equiped with the standard system.
Thanks
Art
Let me put it this way. The "improvement" you get with the upgrade is not worth the $500. Or any amount, in my opinion. To me, an upgrade should get you: 1. cleaner sound and 2. more power. The Mini upgrade is marginal at best on the first account and worse on the second. While the amp does have more power, the cheap speakers can't handle it. At some point in the future, if you have the money, you can do much better after market.
__________________ BlooMeeni - 2004 Mini Copper, Auto A/C, HK Stereo, Leather, 5sp.
I'll report back this afternoon on how the low end system sounds. Pick up my Mini at 10 am central time. I am also interested in upgrades. Have never owned a factory upgrade that was better than even a mid grade aftermarket unit so I will be doing upgrades soon.
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08 MCS CR/B, 6 spd, LSD, sunroof(that doesn't open when hot), white signals
Let me put it this way. The "improvement" you get with the upgrade is not worth the $500. Or any amount, in my opinion. To me, an upgrade should get you: 1. cleaner sound and 2. more power. The Mini upgrade is marginal at best on the first account and worse on the second. While the amp does have more power, the cheap speakers can't handle it. At some point in the future, if you have the money, you can do much better after market.
If you install new speakers yourself, the HIFI + new speakers would cost less than $1,000. What can you get aftermarket for that price? I was under the impression that aftermarket upgrades would start around $2,000.
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Robin Casady Bombadil: 2007 MINI Cooper S, R56, Pure Silver, LSD, Wood Shift Knob, Rota Slipstream 16x7, NAV, HIFI...
April 07:MCS SS/B/Tuscan Beige/Cream colorline interior/Manual/Conv Pkg/Premium Pkg/17" Flame Spoke/LSD/Chrome Line/English Oak/Xenon/HiFi/Anthracite Headliner. African Blackwood/Amboyna burl inlay shift knob and ebrake handle by Robin Casady (see my gallery) 19mm H-sport rear asb, Bridgestone Potenza G019 Grid non-RF tires. HTC Incredible phone.
[Guinness--- Its A Mans Drink ]
Murial was ordered 10.17.2007 BRG/W, white turns, cold weather, sport, convenience, rear fog, LSD, 6 MAN, auto ac, pdc, anthracite, lounge redwood, oak, ipod JCW Stage 1, cocomats
BlooMeeni - 2004 Mini Copper, Auto A/C, HK Stereo, Leather, 5sp.
