After seeing the products available for our R50/R53 brothers, I was sadly disappointed that no similar product existed for us R56 owners. I stumbled across Roadster Sound and they had not yet released their R56 version yet. Not too long ago I was informed they had a R56 prototype and I jumped on board to try it out! Its a pretty amazing little box to be honest, fits terrific, sounds AWESOME and looks simple, clean, could pass as factory! So what we have here is my full detailed installation of the sub enclosure, along with the rear 6x9 swap out.

The enclosure itself is easy to assemble (attaching driver, amplifier etc) and fits quite nicely in the boot. The false floor is very solid, the grilles can support substantial weight. They did not bend, crush or deform even with 3 flats of water bottles stacked up! Solid enough for me.

Oh, and the sound? Brilliant. I have been skeptical of shallow mount subwoofers for years, but for no good reason to be honest. Once I got this thing wired in and fired up, I was astounded. Such volume and body from such a shallow little device.

For anybody looking for a great looking and terrific sounding subwoofer enclosure, I highly recommend the enclosure from Roadster Sound.

Cheers.

***Note the attached pdf file also contains rear 6x9 replacement instructions***

 

I have one of their enclosures in my M and am happy with the quality, good to hear another positive review of the Mini version. Apparently the r53 version does fit the r56? According the Roadster Sounds and some people here they've been using them for awhile without issues.

 

I am starting this project in m y 05 MCSC

 

Hi all,
I just wired my 2009 astro black mini S this past weekend preparing for a roadster sound enclosure with the earthquake 12" Shallow mount sub. I have the 10 speaker system complete with the NAV head end... At first i was ready to take the car to a local shop to do the install for me. since i am a residential audio/video installer, i kinda wanted to do the install myself, but as an installer, i know what complications lie ahead and to allocate triple time for something u think is going to take no time...well, i debated the enclosure by roadster sound and DIY install, or local shop...hmm...i went back and forth with a "kevin" from roadster sound. the guy has no ties to anyone other than roadster sound but yet was BEYOND helpful with anything i had questions about. i asked his recommendations on subs, amps...wiring...how to's...he was absolutely the KEY ingredient to my installation(if not for kevin & his guidance, i'd have taking it to a local shop and have without question been dissapointed) he was always responsive via email(im talking at the most a couple hours)...i took his recommendation on using the earthquake sub(which i found online fairly cheap and ordered it) as well as using the JL audio G1700 as the monoblock amp for juicing this thing...got that online as well. wiring up the mini was pretty simple(time consuming though). so if planning on doing this, you definitely need a solid saturday as well as maybe some extra time in afterwards(sunday) to dial in your new sound...for wiring i ran 4awg power cable from under the hood to the boot(battery is in front on the 2009). ran an 18awg cable from the fuse panel under the passengers side footwell to the boot as well(this is your remote turn on wire(Fuse#32)). i used a 4awg 18" foot cable as my ground in the boot. this was done after all the paneling was removed: rear panels in the boot, rear seating area as well as rear seating had been removed. no worries though, just a few clips, a total of 8 screws and ur mini is gutted!..the enclosure fit like a glove. i honestly was impressed(since manufacturers usually get it almost right and thats nearly half the time..) this thing from roadster sound was on the money! i checked to see if it fit(of course it did), i then used some speaker wire to tap into the rear 6x9 speaker wires(using a vampire tap/t-tap connecter) and ran those lines to the boot as well--these are the signal lines for your new amp. i spliced the ends to RCA connections(could use a output converter, but the g1700 does not require it)...after all the wiring was complete, i then fit the enclosure into the boot, bolted it down using the step by step instructions provided by "kevin from roadster", and that was a breeze. wired everything up, connected the sub and kicked it on...i was skeptical at first, since i took the recommendation for a sub i never heard of-the earthquake(instead of my choices which were a rockford or soundstream shallow). kevin was again on the money with the sub..sounded incredible....the install looks factory..if anyone is debating doing a sub, definitely consider this enclosure...stealth, clean and sounds great...after the great support from roadster, i couldnt resist writing this review..again, like i mentioned, an install can become very smooth, easy and totally understandable when you have someone in your corner if you get stuck....Big thanks to Kevin!..if anyone has any questions or needs any assistance, i just got thru with this, so its still fresh in mind...gimme a shout...
i also installed a bass **** in the front under my window swtches..see photos..

 

that looks clean! i may have to try this when my MCS arrives.

 

thanks..well, if u need any help, just PM me and i will be happy to assist you...

 

Couple of questions for you two.

1) What amp did you guys go with and why?
2) If you had to do it all over again, would you go with the Earthquake 12 or a different brand?

OK, I lied, one more question, why did you go with 4 gauge wire? Seems like overkill and a pain to hide.

Thanks, in advance.