R56 speaker replacement how-to

[jrunner192]

I need some advice on putting the 3.5" speaker shroud back in place on the driver's side. I've gotten everything back together, but the switch for the outside mirror adjustment does not stay in place. I still have a little metal clip left over and I'm pretty sure that it is what holds that switch in place. However, I don't know where it goes.

If anyone could offer their advice on my situation I'd appreciate it.

[MotorMouth]

Originally Posted by jrunner192

I need some advice on putting the 3.5" speaker shroud back in place on the driver's side. I've gotten everything back together, but the switch for the outside mirror adjustment does not stay in place. I still have a little metal clip left over and I'm pretty sure that it is what holds that switch in place. However, I don't know where it goes.

If anyone could offer their advice on my situation I'd appreciate it.

The good news is that you are correct. That clips holds the switch in place. The bad news is that switch is a pain in the butt.

There are at least two of those little clips, maybe three.. look at the other one to get an idea where/how it goes. That switch was the hardest part of replacing any of the speakers.

[jrunner192]

Yup. I yet back out to take a second look at it and saw the little scratch marks that the clips had made on the switch and then realized that I was missing the second clip. After a little searching I was able to find the second clip and pop everything back together.

Now that I know exactly what everything back there looks like I need to figure out what to put in my car. I have a friend that can get me a very good deal on some CDT ES-610 components. The thing is, I have the standard system. So I would probably have to fit the midrange in the 5.25" spot and then take out the 3.5" and put the tweeter in its place.

All of this is assuming I can figure out a good way to run the wires from an amp and the cross-overs into the doors.

Now I just need to find an amp small enough to hide and run the front components. Any suggestions on a place with enough space to place it?

[MotorMouth]

Originally Posted by jrunner192

Yup. I yet back out to take a second look at it and saw the little scratch marks that the clips had made on the switch and then realized that I was missing the second clip. After a little searching I was able to find the second clip and pop everything back together.

Now that I know exactly what everything back there looks like I need to figure out what to put in my car. I have a friend that can get me a very good deal on some CDT ES-610 components. The thing is, I have the standard system. So I would probably have to fit the midrange in the 5.25" spot and then take out the 3.5" and put the tweeter in its place.

All of this is assuming I can figure out a good way to run the wires from an amp and the cross-overs into the doors.

Now I just need to find an amp small enough to hide and run the front components. Any suggestions on a place with enough space to place it?

depending on the size of the amp there is a hole under the passenger seat under the carpet - filled with a square piece of styrofoam. Kinda like the one in the boot where the toolbox goes but not as big.

[jrunner192]

Sounds promising. I'll have to take a look at that. What is the rough dimensions of that spot?

Where is the amp located in the HIFI system? I was thinking that there might be room behind the rear trim panels, but I'm am doubting that there would be enough room to fit a 9" X 12" X 2.25" amp.

Also, has anyone run new speaker wire into the doors, and if so, how did you run them?

Thanks.

[JHRichards]

Good day -- Coming back from the Dragon meet, my little car developed a problem I have traced to the right front door woofer - it rattles when closing the door, and occasionally sparks and sputters and gives a static buzz when the car vibrates a lot (like when passing a big truck) - even when the radio is turned off. I suspect a loose wire or the like...

Can one just pop off the plastic ring around the woofer ... or do I have to remove the entire door panel cover to get in there? Is there anything I should consider or watch for as I try to remove the door cover panel?

Assuming the speaker has gone bad, are there any matters I should consider as I replace it? I am not looking for super hi fi, so I am not asking how to upgrade the system, just looking for tips on how to get the job done without leaving any dead bodies. I am fairly handy and have tools, - is this something I can do - or should I pay some high school kid to fix it...?

Thanks. /// JHR ///
=========================================

[MotorMouth]

This thread gives fairly detailed instructions:
http://www.northamericanmotoring.com...ad.php?t=95211

[manoo]

hi, i have a 03 s and my speakers are starting to vibrate horribly in the front doors. how do i replace them, meaning what is compatible with the hk system. someone has a pair of mb quart speakers for sale that i would love to install and they are 5.25" but are 4 ohm speakers. is it possible to use them when the original speakers are 2 ohm.
thanks,
confused about power

[LynnEl]

For the 2007, that is, the R56, is the HIFI upgrade the same for the Cooper and the S in terms of speaker placement, sizes, ratings? If not, what's different? Thank you!

[MotorMouth]

Originally Posted by manoo

hi, i have a 03 s and my speakers are starting to vibrate horribly in the front doors. how do i replace them, meaning what is compatible with the hk system. someone has a pair of mb quart speakers for sale that i would love to install and they are 5.25" but are 4 ohm speakers. is it possible to use them when the original speakers are 2 ohm.
thanks,
confused about power

Can't say about the the HK system as I haven't replaced any of those. However, the vibration you mention may not be the speaker. Search the r53 trouble forum for a fix - it's not uncommon. You may just need some thin foam in that area.

Yes, you can use 4 ohm speakers instead of two ohm. Just don't try a 2 ohm speaker where there used to be a 4 ohm.

Originally Posted by LynnEl

For the 2007, that is, the R56, is the HIFI upgrade the same for the Cooper and the S in terms of speaker placement, sizes, ratings? If not, what's different? Thank you!

The same!

[LynnEl]

Thank you, MotorMouth. Now, does anyone nearby Crutchfield want to bring your R56 over there so they can do measurments? I am sure they will have to do some dismantling, but it will be worth it so I can get the info from them.

[DyeLooper]

Originally Posted by MotorMouth

Just don't try a 2 ohm speaker where there used to be a 4 ohm.

Enlighten me! Why?

[MotorMouth]

Originally Posted by DyeLooper

Enlighten me! Why?

Unless the amp is designed to work with a 2 ohm load you will draw more current through the amp than it can handle. The extra current will cause the amp to overheat and "meltdown".

Conversely a 4 ohm load on an amp designed to be able to handle a 2 ohm load will draw less current and the amp will run cooler.

[Paul]

Hi LynnEl, Aaron posted the measurements for the various speakers in post #1. I received my Crutchfield catalog the other day - lots of nice hardware in there

[DyeLooper]

That makes sense. Thanks for the info.

[familiarstranger]

aaron did you get back to the headunit at all or just change the speakers?

[MotorMouth]

Just a note - the head units seem to be identical between the standard and HiHi units. The inputs to the HiFi amp are speaker level - not line level.

[MotorMouth]

I had a pro shop install a boston gt-40 amp in my MINI yesterday. Great news for those who like stealth installs - under the passenger seat carpet there is a large hole kinda like the one the tool box sits in in the boot. It normally has a large peice of styrofoam in it. The shop cut the carpet (neatly) and took out the foam. The amp which is 14" long fit easily in the hole! The amp does not sit any higher than the carpet was originally so that mean full movement range for the seat.

The amp is specced for 4x45w @ 4ohm. I had originally planned power both the front and back speakers off it. However, the shop recommended I bridge the amp and only power the fronts from it to get ~90wattsx2 since the frontspeakers are rated for about 100w rms (and leave the back 6x9's powered off the stock amp). Since I was already concerned that 45w wouldn't be enough I took his advice. I'm glad I did. When I went back to the shop about an hour before the install was finished I was reading through the owners manual for the amp. When bridged it is not 90x2 as I was expecting. It is 145w RMS x 2 @4ohm!! That is plenty power to get the speakers VERY loud without distortion. The focal speakers are known for being able to handle well above their rated power. I also had the shop install deflex pads behind the front 6" drivers - research them. They are worth it.
The install took the shop about 12 hours total over a couple days as they had to trace out all the stock wiring to figure out inputs/outputs at the hifi amp. They also installed an very nice speaker level to low RCA signal converter since the amp didn't have signal level inputs on it. Everything is very stealth. Just by looking you can't see any signs of an aftermarket stereo (except through the speaker grills!).

Now how does it sound? awesome! First it will get very loud without disortion, midbass is incredible and thumps very hard- maybe I should say it attacks! mids and highs just sound sweet. The music is very detailed - you can hear stuff you may not have heard before except on really good headphones. It doesn't fatigue your ears even after playing loud for quite awhile (edit: set the tweeters to -6 db in the crossover or your ears will bleed). I've listened to a range of music so far from classical to jazz to rock to Ministry. During the song "stigmata" by ministry there are a couple sections where the drummer goes off on a double bass drum - rapidly kicking the crap out of them. My jaw dropped when I heard it. You can hear some decent low bass but I still plan on adding a 10" sub and another amp to the boot to get the really lows louder.

The two subs I'm researching at the moment are the rockford fosgate f3sd210 and the boston acoustics G1 - both are shallow mount low air space subs. I'll probably mount it in a false floor to keep my storage space. Gut instinct tells me the BA would be the better choice just because I'm not a huge fan of RF. For the amp I'm thinking of the boston gt-20. It puts out 165w rms x 1 @4 ohm or 220 rms x1 @ 2ohm which should be sufficient. It's also small enough to mount hidden in the passenger side boot panel.

after researching it looks like I'm going to go with the Boston Acoustic 10" G1. It goes down to 24 hz and the sensitivity is a bit higher than the RF sub.

[Robin Casady]

Originally Posted by MotorMouth

I had a pro shop install a boston gt-40 amp in my MINI yesterday. Great news for those who like stealth installs - under the passenger seat carpet there is a large hole kinda like the one the tool box sits in in the boot. It normally has a large peice of styrofoam in it.

Do you have DSC? I think it is the DSC computer that goes in that space. I may be mistaken. Anyway, it might be helpful to know the specs of your MINI. Do you have the NAV, HIFI upgrade, etc.?

[jrunner192]

You might also take a look at some of the subs at Elemental Designs. They make a new shallow mount sub that would work perfectly in a false floor application.

One question. On your install did they run new speaker wire into the door or did they just use the stock wiring? I'm interested in doing an install in my car in the hopefully not to distant future but have no idea how I would effectively run the wires into the doors.

Thanks.

[MotorMouth]

speaker wires - new wire ran to tweeter. new wire ran to somewhere under dash to crossovers. stock wire from crossovers to mid/woofer in door. I didn't hook them up so I'm not sure exactly where they run.


nope, I don't have dsc. I'm the one who suggested DSC might have something to do with that box, remember?
I do/did have the HiFi. no nav system. custom white viper stripes =)

[Skuzzy]

Very nice MM. I am finally getting to prep for my installation. Found out Mini/BMW does not sell or allow ordering a Service/Technical Reference Manual for the car. That sucks huge.

Going to make it a bit more difficult to do many of the things I want to do. Hehe, a bit more difficult is an understatement. I'll have to weigh the risks of breaking stuff against the vaule it might add now. What a pisser!

I have had a service manual for every new car I have ever owned and took it for granted I would be able to order one.

[oPossum]

Originally Posted by Skuzzy

Found out Mini/BMW does not sell or allow ordering a Service/Technical Reference Manual for the car.

Who told you that?

Official MINI online service manual

[MotorMouth]

Originally Posted by oPossum

Who told you that?

Official MINI online service manual

1 year subscription - $2500

[MotorMouth]

Skuzzy, did you ever install your speakers?