Hey chadp...thanks for the update and I'm sorry to hear about the fiasco you're dealing with.

When you do receive the kit from ECS would you mind seeing if you can get a part number for the "Retrofit Cable set" (Item "A" in the installation instructions)? I have rear PDC and bluetooth and I'm trying to conjure up an upgrade that will leave those functions intact (F/R sound distribution) and somehow overcome the 100Hz filter (rears) built into the standard boost system.

Thanks in advance!

 

It will be late June until I can get mine installed. Good times.

 

new install date is set for the 8th. I will let you know how it goes

 

So just when I thought I was getting somewhere with this upgrade, HA! no such luck!

I received the alpine kit in the mail last Friday. It only took 4 days to get so I was thrilled to open it up. Well, thrilled until I had to look for the tweeters that were clearly not in their assigned space within the packaging. All other components rested nicely in their spaces for the journey across the pond but the tweeters went rogue and because they did, one got smushed. The pretty aluminum membrane had the nice pattern of the "protective cage" indented deeply into it. Seriously!!?? The packaging was completely fine so obviously they were not packaged correctly from the get-go. Anyway, I immediately sent an email to minigenuineparts but when I got no response as of Tuesday , I panicked and finally called (after having to add an international calling plan to my mobile account) and spoke to a super nice British gentleman named Martin whom I had actually conversed with over email when I first started looking into this upgrade. He knew exactly who I was and politely informed me that the whole crew had been on vacation over Easter and that he had just returned and had already ordered the replacement tweeter. Yay! The catch though is that it is coming from Germany, then to England and then to me. ETA is 10 days .

So, once again, stay tuned. Someday hopefully I will be able to actually report on how this upgrade performs (and it better be amazing!!!)

Redduc, at this rate, you will have installed before me!

Talk to you next week!

 

I wouldn't worry much about that membrane unless it is punctured. Mine had a small dent in it as well. ECS called to tell me before they sent the kit. I did some research and concluded that it would make no difference in the sound or performance of the tweeter. Apparently it is just a protective covering.

Less than 3 months until my install.

 

Thanks Redduc,
I actually stopped by a car audio shop on my way in to work and showed him the tweeter. The guy said it should work just fine but he was kind of a ***** so I was not sure whether to believe him or not. Anyway, I have already re-scheduled the service appt. and the replacement is on it's way so I will continue to sit tight

 

Thus continues the slowest audio upgrade race in history.

 

Thanks for the updates....we'll be watching the progress. Now that warm weather is here my convertible's Hifi sounds better with the top down. I don't get it but it is much cleaner. Must be the higher power setting and more background noise hiding the muddiness....

 

Seriously!

 

awesome info in this thread

 

amazing that this process is taking so long and you are so patient

I would have been bat s**t by now

pac

good luck

 

For those of us that have a 2007-2009 MINI Hifi 10 speaker system with the world's cheapest speakers, check out this link. https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...an-kardon.html

You can now buy the new 2010 HK speakers and retro them on an 2007-2009 without changing the amp. Everything looks stock except for the H/K logo on the tweeters.

I have not yet ordered the new speakers but you can get them through the dealer or order them from the UK at http://www.minigenuineparts.co.uk/mi..._Upgrades.html Cost is about $600 for the complete set.

These will not work with the standard boost audio system - you need the Hifi amp to power these.

 

Any updates on the alpine retrofit kit?

I have the non hi-fi in my 2009, and this kit looks very interesting, albeit at a pretty steepish price for sure.

 

The Mrs. can go to court to petition for the removal of our blow up device in early June. I will do the install soon after.

 

Drum roll please....

Install has occurred!!!

Sooo, I actually had the installation just over a week ago but I wanted to take it in for a while before I discussed it.

Here goes. Ok, first let me say that my replacement tweeter came the morning of my latest scheduled trip to the dealer. I had come to terms with the fact that the item was lost in transit from the UK and was going to install the less than perfect one that came with the initial delivery. Luckily, it came the day of my appointment. Great timing! I want to make known how wonderful Martin at Mini genuine parts was during this whole adventure. He is an extremely patient man and was very professional during my period of frustration. A perfect gentleman! I highly recommend doing business with them if anyone decides to pursue this upgrade!

Ok, with that said, after a week of evaluating, I must say that I am very happy with this upgrade. I can't say that I am satisfied beyond words but this is definitely an improvement! The sound quality coming through the front speakers is way better! What has me the most amazed is how the sound in the rear speakers has changed. I am convinced that the "wire swap" discussed on this thread and some others was worked in to the new harness because it is double the sound coming from the rear. I think that should be a good thing but I find it a bit odd that though they are not amplified, they now seem equal, if not greater in output. The volume is good but unfortunately the sound quality of the rear is no where near that of the alpine speakers in front. Over the past week, I have actually faded to the front almost to level 4 because I felt like the sound stage was based at the rear while I prefer the sound quality from the front. Odd! I assumed that the front speakers would have even greater output and the rears would simply become fill. That is not quite the case. The sound from the front is more refined but the volume almost matches the rear. So now having faded to the front, I feel like the overall sound experience is better and more balanced. Perhaps others will like everything balanced out but I prefer quality over volume. The bass response is great. Not as deep as i had thought it would be but SO much better. The highs are nice and crisp and it is amazing how much more the sound seems to invelop you with the tweeters added to the A-pillar. They sound great and look great. The little alpine emblem is a nice touch (they only come with a teeny tiny piece of double stick tape on them so I actually super glued them to the cover so that they would not fall off during dashboard dusting - also for the other OCD people out there, note you can line it up with the holes on the speaker cover to keep both sides level ).

Anyway, just like the crap stock system, this upgrade has taken some time to get used to. After working through a variety of music, I have all of the adjustments made and as of this morning, for the first time, I actually felt good about this investment (and the preceding run-around)!

So to summarize:
Bass: MUCH better all around
Mid: well balance in the front, a bit muddy in the rear
Highs: MUCH more refined. Not to sharp, not too soft and the tweeters look great!
Overall output: MUCH improved and as I mentioned, strangely increased in the rear while nicely balanced in the front. For me, fading to the front is the way to go.
Total investment: approximately $900. Quite a chunk of change and honestly, if I was not fortunate to be in the position to be able to afford this, I do not know if I would have done it. It is hands down an improvement and according to the tech was a pretty straight forward install. That is comforting to me and so is the fact that I had a MINI dealer install it. They did a a nice job and returned my car to me in great shape. If peace of mind is important and you have some cash available, I would go for this. If not, for the money, you could probably get a pretty sweet after market system that replaced all speakers.

I will be very curious as to how Redduc feels about the upgrade when he is able to install it!

All in all, I am very pleased!

Hope this helps anyone considering it and please throw out any questions.

 

I'll bet that the reason that the rear set sounds louder is because the rear speakers have a higher sensitivity ratings. Sensitivity is expressed in decibels (sound level) per 1 watt of power, so junkie drivers are like 98-100 vs 91-93 for higher quality drivers. Most junkie speakers have high sensitivity because they are used in low power applications, high power amplifiers are expensive. Every 3db (sound level) in driver output requires about 10x power increase. So you can see how this becomes an issue very fast.

The problem you will have is finding a set of 6x9's that have good sound quality (to match the Alpines) with a sensitivity high enough to not require a additional amplifier. The other solution would be to find a set of 6x9's Alpines and use an amplifier. I say Alpines because it may be easier to find a pair that have a similar "voice" to what you have installed.

Good Luck!

 

Congrats Chad! I have another three weeks to wait and am really looking forward to the upgrade.

 

redduc, Have you received the actual Alpine upgrade kit yet?

If so, I was wondering if it be possible for you to give me some detailed information about the wiring harness that comes with the kit. I am looking to install a Focal 3 way system with an amplifier. It would be great to have a plan for my amp to headunit wiring job. Obviously, it wouldn't make sense for me to buy the kit when all I needed was the wiring harness. But if that harness was available I would buy it, but I don't think it is.

The "Retrofit Cable Set" measurements and photos of the various connectors would give me a good starting point to work from. Any chance you could help out?

Cheers

 

Sure, no problem. There is a set of factory install instructions earlier on in this thread as well.

 

There are also pre-made cable assemblies available from newministuff.com. Mike there is a great resource for audio upgrades as well.

 

Hey Chad,

Do you mind if I ask what your cost breakdown came to on this? I ask because I just got an email from one of my local dealers, quoting me $1,700 to do the upgrade! Wow!

I can get the complete Alpine kit through genuineminiparts for $590, delivered, plus an additional $177 on new A-pillar covers, so total parts should be closer to $767.

How many hours of labor did the dealer charge you for the install?

I emailed them back, pretty much calling BS on their high quote, so we'll see where this goes.

 

$900.00 labor?! Holy crap! I am going to spend $15.00 on trim removal tools and do it myself. All the panels that need to be removed are so carefully documented on NAM I feel more comfortable with me doing it than a stranger.

 

The alpine upgrade is 420.00 inc shipping at http://www.schmiedmann.com/

 

For those that have installed this kit. I was talking to one of my part guys at my local dealership and he was telling me some of the parts that come with it and that they have to order. What is the multi function box cover? He had no clue. Tom Bush here in Jacksonville is advertising $699 before installation and tax. Which is not much more expensive then ordering of the web and shipping it and since I am audiotarded it might not be a bad deal. I went straight to the source and called Alpine to see if they know what series speakers they are. I figure I might get the 6x9s also so that I have a full system and I will probably add a 20 to 400 watt amp to help them out too. And I as spoke to Alpine I realize that was the wrong place to go because they could not help me out.

 

The