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I’ve seen plenty of threads on speaker upgrades and the many options available. I’m wondering if anyone has upgraded their HK amp to a better amp? Are there even options out there to do that?
So far I’ve found that BimmerTech and Audison are the two that offer plug-and-play amplifiers. I ordered the one from BimmerTech and will follow up with the results.
I do like the sound of Audison offerings, but finding dealers locally was tough.
I ended up going with the BimmerTech amp. Come to find out I'm the first person to buy one for the F60 series, because the first bracket that came with the amp didn't fit the stock amp area. They sent out another bracket and now it fits
perfectly. Also worked with them to tune it to my choice, and it's nice to have access to the software for further customization. Thanks to the amp placement, I'm able to leave the USB cable plugged in and just hidden behind a panel I can access at any time.
It was definitely worth the upgrade! It makes the OEM speakers really shine.
Last edited by KindaCoolDad; Jan 16, 2021 at 01:23 AM.
Reason: add photo
I ended up going with the BimmerTech amp. Come to find out I'm the first person to buy one for the F60 series, because the first bracket that came with the amp didn't fit the stock amp area. They sent out another bracket and now it fits
perfectly. Also worked with them to tune it to my choice, and it's nice to have access to the software for further customization. Thanks to the amp placement, I'm able to leave the USB cable plugged in and just hidden behind a panel I can access at any time.
It was definitely worth the upgrade! It makes the OEM speakers really shine.
So you upgraded the h/k amp to this, but left the h/k speakers? Interesting, as it seems most OE stereos seem to have the speakers as weak points.
That’s not always the case. In some factory setups, the amp is the weakest link. Over time, I may upgrade the speakers. But I felt it was better to start by improving the power delivery to the speakers rather than putting improved speakers on a subpar amp.
The HK speakers sound much cleaner and stronger now. What’s more, I can fully customize the EQ settings of the amp to tailor the sound to my preference.
I'm considering this as well, so I'm curious how this is working out for others. @KindaCoolDad, I noticed you were selling a full system so I'm assuming you ended up adding the speakers as well. Curious how much each piece of that upgrade added to the system, and any additional impressions you may have. I'm coming from a prior vehicle which had a large amp and also a 10" subwoofer (aftermarket), so I'm really missing that punch. The HK system does already sound better than most factory systems, but when I turn it up a bit it seems like something is missing. I've heard it said that BMW does some equalization adjustments which actually limit that power, sort of a governor of sorts, preventing the fairly common problem of blown speakers.
As an aside: I'm tempted to re-use that subwoofer now, and I've read that the bimmertech amp even supports an additional sub. That sub is in a fairly large box -- I'd really like to fit it in the lower rear storage section instead. It's been recommended that I should keep that sub box for the best sound, but I hate to take up so much usable space with it.
The overall system is much cleaner and sharper across all volume levels. That was my biggest issue with the HK, I had to turn it up 3/4 when driving to hear it well, but the sound wasn’t clean.
Working with BimmerTech was super. Once I installed all the speakers, I did a phone call and they remoted into my laptop and we tweaked the sound based on my tastes.
The new system, like the HK, does not give you hard low bass. But the mid bass is much more pronounced, and I rarely turn it up halfway now. It’s silly expensive, and yes, a knowledgeable person could likely do more and better for cheaper. But this is worth every penny to me since it was 100% plug and play, and the remote support was solid.
Thanks a lot for those details! It does seem like I'll need at least the amp upgrade. Were you able to tell, how much of the improvement came from the amp, and how much from the speakers? I'm assuming the bass may still not be enough for me even with the full upgrade, but it sounds like a very significant improvement in any case.
I found on my old F60 the HK speakers seemed muddy. When I upgraded to the Bavsound speakers, everything was clearer, at all levels, but I also recall that the system would have been even better with an amplifier. They didn't have an amplifier but my research sent me in the same direction as above with Audiotech Fischer. Unfortunately at that time (2+ yrs ago now), they only had "profiles" that could be customized and uploaded, they didn't allow you to do your own customization in the DSP. It seems like you can do that now if I'm interpreting what's said above correctly.
If I were to do it over again, I wouldn't upgrade the speakers just yet, I'd go amp first, then speakers. Or amp and speakers at the same time.
Also, I just remembered, that there appear to be three "plug-and-play" versions of this amp upgrade which are all made by Audiotech Fischer. After digging around It's all coming back to me:
The amp with the HK speakers: louder and stronger but not clean. We tried many different tunes (at least 8), but it was flat with the highs and/or muddy with the bass. If we could do a tune in the shop, it might've worked, but we couldn't find a sound that fit.
you can swap HK amp to Match UP 7BMW. it's direct swap. No need to have a power/ground wire running through battery to trunk. If you want something simple, this is good choice.
I upgraded my HK to: Match UP 7BMW, Focal K2 front components, Bavsound center/rear/subwoofers. It's not the best but pretty good for money.
If I re-do, I will prob. get Match UP 7 BMW and all Bavsound. easier/cheaper option for decent sound.
