Hi all - I have posted a few questions in separate threads, but thought I would start a new one on what direction I have chosen for my audio improvements.

My OEM head unit is near toast - digital display is a bunch of random dots and dashes, although when it boots up I can read it for a few seconds.

After research, I have decided to go with an Android Head Unit and stick with the HK amp and speakers. Feedback in several other threads say the HK set up is pretty good - just tune out the bass as the woofers are muddy in the low freqs. I put in a CD and it sounded good so the speakers are fine. Otherwise, I would get OEM replacements/Bavsound. And with the appropriate tuning, a subwoofer can fill in that gap. Bonus - I like the OEM style and thinks it looks better then a metra conversion w/a double din ( plus the double din sits to low and hard for me to see - I sit tall in the seat ).

So given all that - here is what I am doing:

1) Bremmen head unit from ECS. I talked with them a few times - they are running it on one their staff cars, so some hands on experience. No issues with hum, line out voltage mismatches and screen visibility with the top down. Plus you get a lifetime warranty - so if I do experience any of this, at least I can return/replace. Not sure how easy this is from the over seas distributors. The Bremmen is currently on a little sale right now and bundling this with a camera is actually cheaper then what I priced at Carnaviplayer for the comparable set up. FYI - Bremmen will come out with an advanced model in about 6 months - more memory and HDMI input.

These Android head units are even supposed to play a little cleaner than our OEM head units too ...

2) I am also adding/buying a powered subwoofer. I've seen the thread from @spikeyadrianAnd was set to go this route - but glad I measured my trunk space, as the R57 cannot accommodate the Pioneer ( vs the R56 ). With a little bit of research, I have found a powered Kicker sub that will fit quite nicely ( see photo with foam cut out of the length and width dimensions. Height is 6 inches - so still under the rear hatch ). This is a down-firing unit - so can stow stuff on top of it. One note - I will be using the rear RCA outs from the Bremmen unit vs the subwoofer out. This is what Kicker ( Stillwater ) advises, as they designed the subwoofer for two channel inputs with an internal crossover. This is not what Crutchfield recommended by the way, so it is good to go to the source. Also - for RCA's used for a subwoofer, it is advised to have good shielding ( both Kicker and Knukonceptz advised this. Crutchfield did not even bring it up .. ).

So here is what I am buying;Once installed - I will follow up with how the install went and how it sounds

 

That Kicker sub looks really good. Can't wait to hear about how it performs! Good luck with the installation, keep us informed as to how it goes.

 

Tried two different Chinese head units in my R57. Both units were almost impossible to see with the top down here in Florida. The worst was not being able to see fuel gauge or any check system indicators.

I went back to the double din and used an Atoto F7 XE Head, as this has a QLED display, this is very bright and can be seen in sunlight. Best part is I have factory speedo.

 

^ Didn't consider visibility with the top down. Will have to keep that in mind in the future.

 

Yes - FL sun is intense. I often can't read my cell phone screen. Plus - I always take some feedback with a grain of salt. I am sure mine will be washed out too - since it is not QLED. One good thing, I have a scan gauge two mounted on the other side of the tack, so can get speedo all the time from that.

 

Just a quick update:

1) Upon a little more thought on the Kicker subwoofer install, I am going to use the mono subwoofer out RCA ( with a y adapter ) vs using the Rear RCA pair. Even if this is what Kicker advised, the reason being the RCA Rear outs are tied to the equalizer and don't want this tied to the subwoofer, as I need to tune the bass out in the Front/Rear independent of the subwoofer. As an FYI - when I mentioned this to Kicker, they said that using the equalizer would not impact the subwoofer if using the Rear RCAs. Does not make sense to me ( or Crutchfield ... ).

One note - when I was exploring the Carnaviplayer unit, they told me that their subwoofer RCA is not active:I did verify with Bremmen that the subwoofer RCA ( 7 in the diagram ) is active and has 0.8 output voltage with cross over freqs at either 65,80, or 100 hz.

Find attached their wiring diagram for those interested.

 

That's the one I got, I think. Hualingan HL-8835GB. There are a bunch of folks who resell it, I got mine off AliExpress. Carnaviplayer is a reseller so they may charge a bit more, but from reports they provide better tech support (my reseller was pretty useless) so it may be worth going that route. There's also a reasonable amount of info on this unit if you are willing to search and are somewhat technical.

It works quite well and I'm pretty happy with it. Screen and indicators could be a bit brighter, but I haven't had any major problems after switching to non-polarized sunglasses (they messed with the screen too much). My only other complaints is that it takes a bit to boot up (maybe 30 sec to fully boot and connect to wireless AirPlay) and the turn signal and warning lights go through that little audio box and sound kinda janky. But otherwise it works great for nav and music and I'm really glad I did it.

The stereo quality is SO MUCH better than the base R56 system. I'd upgraded the speakers with the original radio and that helped a bit, but with the new head unit everything just sounds better. The equalizer is a nice touch too and is pretty easy to use (I have a CarPlay upgrade on my other car and the equalizer on that is a PITA). If you have any issues ping me, I just installed it a month ago and I may be able to help if you get stuck.

Who mentioned the upgraded unit? I'd be surprised if they upgraded it given how old the R56 cars are, but that would be cool. I like this enough that if they came out with one that were a bit faster/better I'd probably upgrade.

 

Yes - it seems that the shells might be universal, but then they can be configured differently ( ie Carnaviplayer does not have a working subwoofer out - per their feedback, while the Bremmen does ). Doing a quick search for the Hualingan HL-8835GB - it looks like the back is different then the Bremmen ( but functionality could be the same ... ).

I communicated with the support guy for Bremmen via Whatsapp and Wechat - and he also emailed me. He was very responsive and sent me photos of the install too. He might have been using a translator - but no issues in understanding.

And as you - I'll learn to live with the quirks ( turn signal sound, slow boot up - ie like my cell phone LOL ... ). Do you have a softtop - on the screen brightness question ? Are these your performance specs: Eight-Core Rockchip PX5 Industrial-Grade Chips, 1512MHz Cortex A53 CPU, 4GB RAM ?

Thanks for the offer - I will let you know. I might not install until the following weekend.

For the upgraded unit - that info came directly from ECS. They expect it in 6 months. I did not want to wait and have no need for HDMI. As long as their is enough Ram and the chip is fast enough. I did hear that you need to clean the memory out occasionally ..

 

Yeah, the specs are supposedly the same on the one I have. This is who I ordered from, they ship from the US so it came pretty quickly, less than a week IIRC: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256803979491071.html

The model I got is only for cars without the nav system from Mini (I had the big center speedo and base radio). I have a hardtop: the screen seems bright enough for me but the fuel gauge can be hard to read in the sun during the day, might be a real challenge in a convertible.

Mine has built in Google maps but it doesn't work without a WiFi or cellular connection because it didn't come with offline maps. I think some sellers include a mapping program with offline maps but mine did not. This wasn't a big deal as my wife and I use it with CarPlay, and Apple Maps works fine. I did hook it up to my home WiFi and download some other free mapping program and a full offline California map as a backup. You can change which app pops up when you hit the "Nav" button...I figure that's useful in the unlikely event I lose cell service on my phone or something.

The back of the Bremen unit looks the same as what I got so I think they're the same. I'd be really surprised if the sub worked on one and didn't on the other, so one of the vendors may not be giving you the right info...may want to test it before you button it up. I don't have a sub hooked up but the diagram says "unutilized" for that plug. It comes with an external microphone but you don't need to use it, there's a built-in mic on the front that works well.

Oh, and if your seller did not include one, get yourself an antenna extension for the car's black antenna plug (30/31 in the picture below). Mine did not include it. I was able to do the job without it but the antenna wire is very short so the extension would've made life easier. I think this one will work:
Useful FAQ from another reseller: https://www.sigmacarstereo.com/8835-faq
Install guide (this is fairly basic but was more useful than some of the other info online): https://www.sigmacarstereo.com/docs/...tion-guide.pdf
Backside of my unit: https://www.sigmacarstereo.com/docs/...5-backside.jpg
Hookup and wiring diagram: https://www.sigmacarstereo.com/docs/...835_LRG_09.jpg

 

You are right - the back look the same. I was just looking at the numbering schemes.

We will see on the subwoofer out. I was actually given specs from the Bremmen Tech guy, so am hoping it is live.



And it is listed as an output on ECS's website.

 

This is the exact same one that ECS sells, albeit a few dollars less

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-bremmen-...t/002480brp16/

How long did you get - 1 foot ?

Thanks for all the info - you have collected a lot !

And

 

I didn't get one so I had to do it the hard way, lol. It's just kind of a pain to seat that wire as you're installing it because it's very tight. 6 inches would be more than enough, 1 foot will work fine.

Yeah, I literally had all that stuff downloaded before I did the install last month so it's all fresh in my mind.

 

Here's the one that I got when I did mine:

 

How long did it take for the install ? Anything you would do different ?

 

It took me the most part of a day to install mine. AGREED on the extension.

For the subwoofer, I am not sure but it might be enabled in the factory settings. I don't have one but there are different options enabled/dissabled in this menu. I changed a few things in this menu but it has too long since doing so.

If you want to get in there and see what is available the "factory menu" is accessed via password m123456.

 

Also, if yours is like mine, the vehicle time settings were in the radio, you cannot change the time that displays in your tach. Someone found a work around buy using ISTA to reset your service times, it also sets the clock time.

 

Eh, I dunno, 3 hours for in and out? Then a bunch of time for setup and stuff, figuring out the software settings, etc. (e.g., by default it goes to a backup camera when you shift into reverse even if you don't have a camera, so turning that off; upgrading the radio software and getting that to work properly, connecting CarPlay etc.) But I'm pretty experienced working on cars so if this is your first time I'd plan for longer. There are some videos online but honestly the basic PDF I linked to above was the most useful for me. Toughest bit IIRC was remove & replace of the two little covers in the windshield defroster vent, and then R&R of those two screws (it's kind of blind so a mirror helps). I also had a lot of trouble getting the speedo unclipped at the top and removing it, and then when it did come out it did with a jolt and I scratched the face a bit.

(Note that I really, really hate interior work. Too many annoying tabs, stuff to remove, and fiddly, easy-to-break plastic bits. First time is always the toughest, now that I know the tricky bits I could probably do it a lot faster. But don't feel bad if you're mid-job and stuck or something as that's par for the course, lol)

Make sure you have a decent set of Torx screwdrivers. Don't quote me on this but I think most of the screws were T20, and the ones by the tachometer were bigger...T25 or T30? Best to have a full set if you're going to work on German cars.

Stuff I'd do different: get the antenna extension Oh and also get a USB adapter cable if you have in-dash USB! I got this one and only used the cable portion:

If you have the USB/Aux ports in the center dash they won't work after the new radio install. The new radio has two USB-A female cables. Rather than run both those out of the dash, hook the adapter cable up to one of them and plug the green connector into the dash USB port: that'll give you easy access to a port and a nice, clean install. It may only be USB2, I dunno, but that should be all you need for most stuff.

The other thing I wish I'd done is install a backup camera at the same time. Or at least installed the cables for it to the back of the radio and routed them somewhere later for camera install. I realized after the fact it would be nice to have the backup camera. They're really cheap, but I've been putting it off just because I don't want to remove the whole d-mn dash again to install it.

Another thing I remembered: I wanted to be able to use the onboard GPS, so I installed the GPS antenna on the far right of the dash. I ran the cable out the back of the center stack, behind the glovebox, around above the footwell fusebox, and then up the side of the dash and tucked the cable between the dash and the windshield. It's easiest if you remove the a-pillar, and then there's some trim above the fusebox and on the right side of the dash you can take out to make it easier, IIRC. The GPS antenna might work if you tuck it behind the radio, but my guess is you'll have signal issues. If you're just going to use Android Auto or CarPlay then I don't think you need to do this, but I wanted the onboard GPS as a backup.

The little noise box I ran out to the left and stuck up under the dash in the driver footwell. Kind of up above your right knee: if you reach up behind there there's a flat area where you can just stick it down to hide it.

For the stock antenna connectors in the car's harness you only use the black plug for the radio. The other two are the stock satellite antenna and maybe stock GPS? Just leave those unplugged.

Is that for the same head unit model? On the HLA model the factory password is 318, but there re a bunch of other units from other companies. I don't recall seeing a sub output option on the one I installed but I don't have a sub so I don't know.

Yeah, with the HLA unit you cannot set the clock in the tachometer after installing the new head unit, at least not for the later R56 cars like mine. I used NCS Expert or Bimmergeeks ProTool to set it...I forget which one. Anyway, there's an option somewhere in there to just directly set the car's time & date from your computer clock time, it worked fine. Just took me a while to find it in all the options. I think it was ProTool, somewhere in the cluster expert settings?

That reminds me: I usually ProTool to do coding on the Mini, but with the Android radio installed it would crap out and not work. The radio is on the Canbus and apparently it confuses ProTool. I had to pull the radio fuse and then ProTool worked fine. NCS Expert worked okay with the Android radio powered.

I think of anything else I'll let you know, this stuff is all reasonably fresh in my mind.

 

Found the screenshot I took to remind me for next time. This is the job in the KOMBI (instrument) module to set the date and time in ProTool, BTW. It's in expert settings which is why it's in German. Executing this job sets the date and time using the values on whatever device you're using (Android tablet, in my case).

For ProTool to connect you need to pull fuse 45 to cut power to the new radio.

 

In English. Just leave the argument blank and hit "execute".

 

Mine is a HLA (at least that is what it is listed as in the Bluetooth connection) I am sure your password doesn't work, mine would for any would be users. As stated, I don't have a sub either so I wasn't looking for it in the settings. Thought it might be worth a try though.

I purchased a new USB/Audio in adapter that had the USB C plug and RCA connectors, replaced my existing plug in the cubby hole.

I think it was you that replied to my post in BimmerTools forum about pulling the fuse to get it to work. I hadn't thought of trying that. I was getting close to my 30 day period and couldn't get it to work so requested and received a refund from them, I no longer have it. I got it to program the JCW big brakes on my car. After much research trial/error, I figured out how to do it via NCS Expert.

First time I was taking my time labeling and being careful. Since then I did something else in the radio compartment and had it apart/back together in two hours.

Yes the vent Torx screws were/are a total PIA to get out/in.

I did do a backup camera when I did mine. That was the other reason I purchased one. If you every drive a R58 Coupe and try to back, other than your side mirrors, the rest of the back is a blind spot.

ISTA wasn't that hard to learn and worked fine for the clock reset. I saved instructions on how to do it every Spring/Fall.

 

Yeah, that was me, lol. Interesting on the factory code: I thought that was set by the manufacturer and was the same for all HLA units but I guess not.

Right, NCS Expert still works fine with the new radio installed. I actually have both software tools working, I just much prefer using ProTool: it's infinitely more user friendly and makes it harder to mess up (like, I like that you can easily make backups of the module before editing). But I think ProTool gets to the radio module, doesn't see what it's expecting, and craps out. As long as the radio isn't powered up it works fine.

While I'm thinking about it, some other stuff I remembered:

- Another thing to do in the factory menu is adjust the relative volumes, otherwise the CarPlay announcements are too quiet. Set Radio to 5 and set System to 15 or 20.
- There's a link somewhere to an updated radio app that works better, mine came with an older version. Be sure to set it to US tuning in the factory settings or it won't work right
- The factory settings menu also lets you change the logo to a Mini one, see the FAQ link above for instructions. You can make your own logo or I found one already made for the HLA unit by searching

 

I just checked and both factory codes work on my unit, they take you to the same menu. I don't see any settings for subwoofer out anywhere so I guess it either works or it doesn't.

 

Wasn't sure, thought it might be worth a try. Some things are programming, some are hard wired if you know what I mean.

 

Hi All - I caught a bug that is going around Florida now and am just starting to feel better and catching up on this thread:

Responding to prior posts in no specific order -

1) I did order the 1 foot extension from Amazon - thanks for reinforcing this

2) @Gubi - For the USB adapter cable in the Amazon link I think I have the USB port - I need to check. But if I do, just plug the back end of the Amazon unit to the OEM port ( see photo ). I'd rather have USB C - but still cool. Is this what you did @DogfaceSGM ? What adapter did you buy ?

3) For Subwoofer - if the subwoofer rca out is not active or does not deliver a good signal, I'll use a LOC and tap off the rear woofer. I talked to the local Mini technician - and he has installed a few of these units. He has had a to use a LOC a few times, other times not ... interesting. When I did use the LOC - he described the RCA outs signal as 'mushy'. Having an independent subwoofer signal is best, but think I can trick the tune with a LOC if needed ( recall for the sub - I want to lop of the signal to woofers below 65 hz. and freqs are preset at the HK amp).

4) I did order the back up camera from ECS - it will require a little massaging to fit ...

5) Find attached the pdf Bremmen sent - same photos - but customized to my mini


6) I'm actually not a big Andriod Auto / Carplay user - but my oem head unit is toast. I just want to be able have a decent stereo, decent talk radio ( sirius app ), back up camera and OEM look ... but I could grow into it

 

I had the stock mini USB-A and aux ports in the lower center dash. What I did is just run that Amazon cable from the new radio's USB-A port to the existing USB port in the car. The Aux port I just left, it's not doing anything any more.