You're saying, "Not another audio install thread. There are plenty already." I've been through most of them. No criticism intended, but I haven't seen one that takes you step by step through planning and installation. So I thought I'd add one. It gives me a chance to show off my new MINI and play around with my Nikon DSLR. It also forces me to be a little more deliberate about what I'm doing. I hope you find it helpful. If not it will scroll off into thread hell.

My Background

I'm a card carying member of the 'old farts' club. I have at least 10 audio installs under my belt, the first in my dad's 56 Pontiac when I was in high school. The last is a partially complete install in my 2011 MCSC. The 4 channel amp and powered sub are the incomplete pieces of that install. I'll finish it off this summer but my fiance is driving the MCSC and she's pretty happy with the Polk Audio speaker upgrade that is complete. My 24 year old son also does audio installs for his friends and has at least six under his belt.

I'm going to start out with planning the install. I've done it the other way in the past and the end product is similar to hunting using the ready, shoot, aim approach. So this time I want to do it right. I'll pose a number of questions or steps you might ask yourself. Then I'll share the 'what' and 'why' of my snswers.

The Starting Point

We became a two MINI family on Monday when I purchased a 2005 MCS with 53,000 miles and in near perfect condition. For a 2005 it is relatively valuable because of mileage and condition. It has the base factory audio unit which is slightly better than terrible. It falls short of terrible with the windws closed at low speeds. When I crank it up at highway speeds with the moon roof and windows open, I'm treated to a fair amount of distortion.

I've been around long enough that when I put money into a car, I'd like there to be a reasonable chance of getting some of it back out. This car would benefit from an audio upgrade, and I believe would have a positive effect on resale value.

Determining Your Budget

You might be curious as to why someone that owns a 2011 MCSC might buy a 2005 MCS. I spent a week at Minis on the Dragon in 2011. It motivated me to mod a MINI. But the 2011 is still way inside warranty. So I bought the 2005 to play around with and convinced my fiance to dump her PT Cruiser and drive the 2011 Vert.

Mods in my plan include suspension upgrades, a rear speaker delete, dumping the run flats, a reduction pully and CAI unit, blacking out the exterior and a bunch of other ideas I'm banging around. There are some fairly pricey items on this list. So I want to keep the audio upgrade under $1,000. That's in the range of factory audio upgrade costs and I think for the same money I can get a far superior setup.

Over What Time Frame will the Budget be Available?

There are at least three approaches to funding this $1,000 upgrade if you don't just have the money laying around.

1. Charge it to your credit card. By the time you have paid it back it will have cost you a lot more than $1,000.
2. Save a little at a time until $1,000 has been saved. Then make your purchase. I hate delayed gratification!
3. Build your system one step at a time. It is possible to do that with an audio upgrade. Whether you have the HK upgrade or the base unit, you can upgrade the speakers first. With a base system you can do the head unit next.

There are three advantages to the third approach.

1. Gratification is sooner.
2. You test components of the system as you go.
3. You may find you don't need all of the components you had planned to purchase.

There are two disadvantages:

1. You could end up with the audio equivalent of the Johnny Cash, "One Piece at a Time" Cadillac.
2. It could end up costing a bit more money and time.

You can avoid the first disadvantage by fully planning your audio install before you buy the first component.


What are You Willing or able to Do Yourself?

This is a pretty big one as it will determine how much of the budget is spent on parts and how much on labor. Most of us are capable of a lot more than we think. That is especially true with an outfit like Crutchfield available and with this resource available. It comes down to how you enjoy spending your time, and what kind of experience you have working with tools.

In my case, I believe, "He who dies with the most tools wins", although some might say it is really, "He who dies with the most MINIs wins." "You bought two MINIs in six months? I think you have a MINI problem!"

I'm going to save the install cost by doing it myself. But I'm also going to pay a slight premium to buy from Crutchfield because their support has always been awsome.

That's enough for this post.

Tom

 

$1,000 is a pretty tight budget for an audio install even if you are doing the work yourself. For example, it is easy to spend that much on just speakers. One of those really cool motorized DVD head units could set you back $800.

What kind of music do you enjoy?

If you are into heavy metal or Rap, you are probably going to want either a powered sub or a sub and a sub amp. That is going to eat into your budget. If you are into classical music, you are going to want to focus more of your attention (budget) on mid-range and highs.

I like classic rock and country. While bass is important, it doesn't need to be bone jarring. One of the reasons I bought a powered sub for the 2011 was that the largest speakers in a MCSC are in the 6" range. I'm not even planning on powering the 2011's 6" rear speakers.

In my 2005 MCS, I have a pair of 6x9 speakers in the rear. I won't know till I try it out but they may deliver enough bass that I won't feel the need for a sub.

What music media do you use?

If you listen to satellite radio it will cost you a portion of your budget. The same is true for HD FM. iPod and iPhone integration (including bluetooth) costs money. So does a CD changer.

What I like about my $1,000 budget is it forces me to set priorities. I don't want to spend money on stuff I won't use. If I do, I'll have less money to spend on what is important.

For the purpose of selecting a head unit, my two most important music media are local FM stations and my iTouch. I'll have an iPhone within 3 months as my company upgrades its cell phhones. I don't own a CD. I've owned two cars that are satellite radio capable and have never been hooked on that source. I've never listened to HD radio. We do use Pandora on our home system.

After thinking this through, my system head unit needs to:

1. Offer solid iPhone integration including bluetooth for incoming phone calls.
2. Have a decent FM tuner.
3. Offer Pandora integration through the iPhone.

It would be nice if it also:

1. Played a variety of CDs (fiance, son, and friends)
2. Could be upgraded to HD radio later if I get hooked on HD.

What else is important in the head unit?

1. Six preamp outs - four will feed the four channel amplifier there is a good chance I will want to add. The other two would power a sub amp should I decide to add it later.
2. Steering control integration - Using the buttons on the head unit on a R53, moves eye contact well away from the road. I want to be able to change tunes on my iTune player and presets on the FM and adjust volume and answer the phone using steering wheel controls.
3. USB ports and auxiallary inputs - In my case I'll need at least 1 USB and at least one auxially input for an unnamed device to be added later.
4. A usable human interface.

Cool Stuff - Stuff I don't need but is on the would be nice list

1. Control over display color so I can make my night lights match.
2. A remote control so my passenger can interact with the head unit without leaning over the gear shift.
3. The ability to control the unit's iPod capability from the iPod.
4. The ability to support two phones.

Do your Research - Head Units

The single best place to do research on audio systems is the Crutchfield Web site. You can enter your MINI's specifications and it will que up lists of components that will work. In my case, I had over 100 head units to choose from. That was too many so I narrowed my list to their Signature units priced over $140 and under $350 which narrowed my list to roughly 20 units.

For those units, I dug through the specs to see which ones could be immediately eliminated (no steering wheel support, no HD upgrade path, no Bluetooth support, etc.) which got me down to 7-8 units.

I read the reviews and looked at the overall ratings. I also searched for these units in Amazon and read the comments there. The one thing you can't do on the Web is play with the user interface. A trip to an audio store adressed that issue. It is also helpful to download the manual of a unit you are considering. Most are available as PDFs.

In my case, it finally came down to the Kenwood KDC-995 at $329 or the JVC KD-A725 at $169. Neither offers steering control integration without a $70 box. The Kenwood has HD and Bluetooth in the price. For the JVC they are add-ons, $50 for bluetooth and $99 for HD. With equivalent capabilities they are $10 apart. But I'm not sure I want/need the HD.

So I went with the with the JVC. The head unit including bluetooth came to $219 plus $70 for the steering control box. The JVC offers Pandora integration through an iPhone without requiring HD, making it an extremely inexpensive Pandora solution. It also has every other item on my 'must have' and 'would be nice' lists.

I ordered the JVC, the steering control box, and cables from Crutchfield. Again, while you may pay a premium price, you are getting their experience and MINI specific installation instructions. That left me with $710 to spend on the rest of the system.

Tom

 

I'd take the same approach with speakers I took with head units. All the comments relating to the kind of music you enjoy apply to speakers. The advantage of nailing down the head unit expense first is that it defines how much we have available to spend on speakers and amps.

Review of feedback is important with speakers. But it is also very helpful to listen to the speakers you are planning to buy in a similar environment. The MINI is a very small box. It doesn't take much noise to fill it up. Of course with top down, or windows open, that is a different matter.

In my case, the decision was a 'no brainer.' I'm a fan of Polk Audio speakers. I have them in my home and I've done two installs in autos including my 2011 MINI and a previously owned Acura RSX. I've had a chance to listen to these speakers in a similar environment, top up and top down on the MCSC.

The Polk DB-6501 component speakers have a high level of sensitivity. As a result they are a legitimated candidate for situations where you don't plan to upgrade the head unit, or can't (2011 MCSC). They are pretty functional with limited power. On the other hand they are capable of handling 100 watts RMS if you add a 4 channel.

They are doing very nicely in my 2011 MCSC with standard audio patiently waiting for me to install the more powerful 4 channel amp sitting in my closet. I ordered a second pair from Amazon. Because I've already installed these speakers twice, I saved a few bucks by passing on the Crutchfield MINI specific instructions. I will adjust the crossovers for the 6" and tweeter to handle midrange and high.

I also purchased a pair of Polk DB-691's, the Polk 6x9 speakers for the rear. These will start out carring the responsibility for bass. Total cost of the DB-6901s and DB 671s was around $200.

That leaves me with around $500 to spend on a 4 channel amp, possibly a powered sub, and cables. Depending on what happens, I might have enough left to add a HD tuner to my head unit. We'll see.

Tom

 

I am looking forward to seeing your progress. Just curious though why Crutchfield says the DB-691s won't fit in the R53. Do you know they will or haven't you gotten that far yet?

 

Insuldor,

Haven't gotten that far yet, but I've been told they fit. I'll know by next weekend.

 

My gear has arrived, including the Alpine MRP-F300 I let the Crutchfield rep talk me into buying now rather than waiting. I've been through all the instructions for the JVC head unit and the Crutchfield instructions and am ready to get started.

Concurrent Modifications

This project touches three others. So I'm going to take my time and address multiple mods at the same time when it makes sense to do so.

1. Interior carbon fiber - I have a sheet of the 3M Carbon Fiber look alike. I'll be ditching most of the chrome on the interior and replacing it with carbon fiber. The inside door panels need to be removed for the front speaker upgrades. The cup holders and vertical covers need to come out to install the head unit. While they are out, I'm going to apply the carbon fiber material.
2. Rear seat delete - I plan to do a rear seat delete. The rear seat needs to come out anyway to do the rear speakers. So it will stay out. In addition, should I decide to install a subwoofer, the enclosure will be part of the rear seat shelf project.
3. Front lighting - I'll be adding fog and/or driving lights later. As long as I'm going to be running wires, I'll run two more from the battery in the rear to the engine compartment. They will remain unhooked for now.

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

The MINI specific Crutchfield instructions are fine as far as they go. However the MINI-specific instructions are silent on routing the signal lines coming out of the Alpine Amp to the speakers. The best place for the Alpine is under the drivers seat. As I see it there are two choices.
1. Route the lines directly to the speakers, eliminating use of the factory speaker wires. The major issue with this approach is getting two additional speaker wires through the tube (channel) from ther body to the doors. I've read a few thread horror stories about how long and frustrating this approach can be.
2. Route the lines back to the head unit and connect them to the outgoing factory speaker lines.

I've decided to initially go with option 2. If I am not satisfied with the results, I can always invest more time and switch to option 1. While Crutchfield was silent on these two options, they did supply a wiring harness designed to connect to the factory harness that hooks to the head unit. The other side of this harness is colored wires and an explanation of the role each wire plays. The JVC head unit also has a harness with multiple colored wires. If you were not installing a booster amp, electrical connections at the head would involve splicing the appropriate wires from the JVC harness to the Crutchfield harness.

With a booster amp, there will still be some splicing of wires between the Crutchfield and JVC harnesses. However, the speaker wires coming from the Alpine harness will be unused. Rather, RCA jacks will supply preamp output from the JVC to the Alpine. Once amplified, the speaker signal lines will be brought back to the area of the head unit. Those signal wires will be apliced to the appropriate wires in the Crutchfield harness.

Installation Order

With the above decisions in place, installation will proceed in the following order:
1. Speaker install - I will first install the door speakers. Then I will install the 6x9's in the rear quarter panel (I hope). This will give me a chance to test the speaker install before I change the head unit. I'll be taking photos as I go and will provide you with a step by step.
2. Head unit install - The JVC head unit will be next. As part of that install, I will route RCA leads to the driver's seat area and lay the speaker lines returning to the head unit. Power from the JVC will come from the fuse block in the drivers kick panel area.
3. Amplifier Install - The Alpine will be third. It is targeted for under the drivers seat, the same location used for the HK amplifier in the factory HK upgrade. Power for the Alpine will be delivered via a fused line from the positive terminal of the battery in the rear of my MINI.
4. Subwoofer Amp and Subwoofer - This is an optional part of the install. I'll decide whether to add the subwoofer after I hear the results of the first three steps. While the JVC head unit has a set of preamp outs, so does the Alpine. When I install the positive power source from the battery for the Alpine, I'll run a second cable in the event I want to add a sub amp later. If so, I'll take the preamp outs for the subwoofer amp from the closest source, the Alpine as the subwoofer amp would go under the passenger seat.

We'll, it is time to ge on with it.

Tom

 

Nice thorough write-up. If it were me I would have skipped out one the rear speakers and left the factory speakers in place for fill. Then with the same 4 channel amp you could have powered the front two speakers and wired the remaining 2 channels together to power an 8 or 10 inch sub (the polk db subs are pretty good BTW). I love the polk's for high's and mid's but they seriously lack on the bass frequencies, which is where the sub would be compensating. This method would have saved you a bit of money on the rear speakers and extra sub amp and allowed you to get some better components. However, you could still throw the polk's in the rear and not power them with the amp and use my method and save a bit of money.

Good luck on your install and keep us updated. I love watching build progress threads. (don't forget the pics!!!)

Edit: don't forget some sound deadening in your door panels. It will drastically help with the increased sound quality. And look at Kenwood for some budget amps. I used one for 4 years with no issues before selling it, and even the buyer loved it.

 

Step 1: Remove inside door panel

The following image shows the inside of the passenger door on my 2005 MCS. There are four Torx screws and a number of clips holding the inside door panel to the door. You can only see two Torx screws in this image. The third is hiding behind the reflector in the upper right corner of the image. the fourth is hidden by the far right side of the padded portion of the arm rest. Note than on pre-2005 vehicles, the torx screw hiding under the padded ar rest is exposed - so you can skip the next step.



The padded portion of the arm rest can be removed by sliding an object horizontally under the pad from the front of your mini. You are attempting to depress a plastic latch that prevents the padded arm rest from being slid forward and removed. In the following photo, a butter knife is pointing to the latch. Of course, the pad has already been removed in this photo. I used the butter knife in the manner shown. You can tell when you hit the latch as resistance increases. If you push it about 1/2 inch past the point of resistance, you will be able to slide the pad toward the front of the vehicle. Sliding it will releast the rest of the connectors holding the padded portion to the rest of the arm rest.



The other screw can be exposed by pushing a screw driver or butter knife under the reflector and prying it out. It is held by three small plastic tabs on the sides and top of the reflector. In this next image, all four screws are exposed. Remove the four screws with a torx bit. I believe it is a #30 bit.



Once the screws have been removed, it is time to begin working on the clips. I used both a plastic and metal putty knife. First, I slid the plastic knife under the panel at the bottom of the door. Then, on top of it, I slid in the metal knife. If you pry the metal knife out against the plastic knife, one or more of the clips will release. Then it is a matter of working your way across the bottom and up both sides, releasing additional clips as you go.

Be careful once you reach the top. The panel can be slid up, releasing the metal clips along the top. Be careful not to bend the door lock ****. Also, you will need to disconnect the wire feeding the courtesy light at the bottom of the door. The inside of the inside door panel looks like this.



With the panel removed, the inside of the door looks like this.



Tom

 

Woofer is a relative term. We're talking about replacing a 5 1/4 inch speaker with a 6 1/2 in speaker. "How is that going to work?", you might ask. Here is the speaker being replaced.



And this is how it looks with the four screws holding it in place removed. Note that a connector from the factory harness to the speaker is the only thing holding it in place. Just after this photo, I disconnected the connector.



This image compares the old speaker to the woofer from the Polk DB6501 component system. The larger diameter of the Polk is obvious, begging the issue of how this speaker is going to fit in the old location.



If you look at the above image, you will see the mounting holes for the old speaker are well outside the speaker diameter.

In addition, the following shot shows that the height of the Polk above the mounting tab surface is well below that of the old factory speaker. This means the Polk is unlikely to contact the grill on the inner door panel.



This image compares the two Polk speakers with the Polk Mounting adaptors. The right speaker adapter has the outside tabs removed which might interfere with the door panels. They are easy to remove as they are scored, making them easy to snap off.



The Polk adaptors have holes that line up perfectly with the screw holes from the factory speakers.



Another thread indicates that the speaker lines for the factory large door speakers should be used to feed crossovers in component systems like the Polk DB-6501. I have not independently verified this fact. However only one pair of leads per door leaves the head unit meaning there is no crossover in the head unit. There is no indicator of a crossover in the door. So this statement makes sense to me. The above image also shows the taps placed in the factory speaker signal lines to feed the Polk crossover. The following image shows the line terminating in the Polk Crossover.




The Polk speaker screwed right into the Polk adaptor. This image shows the installed speaker as well as the signal wire shortly before being hooked to the crossover.



This image shows the lead connected to the Polk crossover. In addition, a third wire pair has been 'roughed in' to feed the Polk tweeter.



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Hexon,

Interesting thought on how to save a bit on this install. I'm assuming the head unit would be feeding the factory rear speakers, That makes use of the ampliflier outout of the JVC (22 watts RMS) which I don't use at all in my install. I guess the one potential flaw is the fact the subwoofer from the Alpine's two rear speaker channels is also the same logical rear channel for the rear speakers with two different levels of amplification.

In my case, I consider the Polk DB-691s to be a relative bargain in this install at $80 and I already have a 300 watt Fosgate Sub amp and two 8" Punch Comp speakers left over from a previous install. So the sub part of this install has a $0 out of pocket.

But I appreciate your input as it brings a resource to the table I hadn't considered using, the head unit amp.

Tom

 

Crutchfield's Mini instructions indicate that no adapter is available fo the tweeter location and that one would need to be fabricated. In reading through threads, there appear to be two options in fabricating the Polk tweeter install.
1, Hack the inner door mount for the factory tweeter to accept the Polk tweeter. Use the factory grill to conceal the Polk Tweeter,
2. Hack the tweeter grill to accept the Polk tweeter which would be mounted in the door inide panel rather than the door itself.

I did a test fit on the first option using the Polk Tweeter adapter for a resessed mount. The following image shows that mount over the factory tweeter mount.



This image shows the portion og the door panel that covers the door lever and the tweeter without the interior door panel.



After reviewing these two images, I saw issues with attempting to mount the speaker in the inner portion of the door. As a result, I elected to cut away the speaker grill and install the tweeter in the grill opening. When installed, it will look like this,



Note that in bashing this grill I marred some of the paint in the unconcealed lip surrounding the tweeter. The lip will be covered by the carbon fiber material I plan to apply.

Fabricating this part of the install was the most time consuming task of the install so far. Here's how I did it.

The following image shows the reverse side of the tweeter grill. The grill is plastic, supported by a number of reinforcing gussets. You can also see the Polk tweeter standing on end. Note that it is tapered so that it can be aimed in its housing. While we won't be implementing aiming, the fact it is tapered helps in fitting.



I measured the Polk tweeter's diameter using a digital micrometer at both its narrowest point (top/bottom) and widest point (middle). I then laid the micrometer on the grill. All of the grill will need to come off, all the gussets inside the grill and at least 1/2 the width of the inside circular support surrounding the grill and gussets.

I then used a hobby knife to slice through the grill at points closest to the circular surround. Then I cut through the gussets. Go easy here.
1. You are about to siginificantly reduce the strength of this piece. You don't want to end up with two pieces.
2. Use a sharp knife. The duller the knife, the more force you will need to use. If you slip while using force, this part or your fingers will pay the price.
3. Be very careful not to supply force to the tabs that lock this piece to your door. You don't want to weaken or break off one of those tabs.

Here's how the part looked with the grill removed. To this point I have only used a hobby knife. While it is tempting to clean this piece up using the hobby knife, it would be very easy to cut into the portion you wish to keep. The tool of choice for the next phase is a file with a curved surface. You can see mine in this photo. The curvature on the files surface is greater than the curvature of the grill opening. This means only the inner portion of the files surface is in contact with the grill opening as you are increasing the grill opening diameter.



This is the fiddlyist part of this modification. Use the file to gradually increase the circumference of the cutout by filing inside the opening, working your way around the circumference of the opening, until your tweeter nestles comfortably inside. Be careful of the tabs while you are doing this. Take your time. You only have one chance to get this right. If you hurry too much, you may be making a trip to your MINI dealer's parts department. In the following photo, the filing on the right piece is complete. There is still some filing to go on the left piece.



More this evening.

Tom

 

I want more!

Looking to replace my stereo head unit to get Bluetooth and iPod integration. Not sure if there is a plug and play harness for the MINI to the unit I want, or if I have to solder one together.

Great thread with perfect detail.

Thanks!

 

Newdl,

If you order your head unit from Crutchfield, you will receive a harness that will plug into the Mini factory harness that currently plugs into the factory audio. The Crutchfield harness will have multiple colored wires at the other end of the along with documentation of the function of each wire. With the Crutchfield harness connected to the factory harness, you will not need to cut any of the factory wires.

Your new head unit will have its own harness that plugs into the head unit along with documentation of the function of each wire at the other end of the harness. If you are not using a booster amp, you will need to connect the wires from the Crutchfield harness to the appropriate wires from your head unit harness. They can either be soldered or connected with crimp connectors.

If you are going to use a booster amp like my Alpine and your new head unit has preamp outs, you'll run RCA plug cables from the head unit to the amp. From the Alpine amp, I'll be bringing signal cables back to the head unit and connecting them to the appropriate wires in the Crutchfield harness. There will be some wires that will need to be joined between the Crutchfield and head unit harness.

Once my speaker install is complete, I'll move to the head unit and booster amp installs. I'll be using photos to document the above process in the same manner as I have done so far with the door speakers.

My JVC head unit supports both iPod/iPhone and bluetooth with the optional bluetooth adapter ($50). I'll be documenting that portion of the install too.

Tom

 

Tweeter update:

Last night I finished filing the tweeter/door handle piece that was unfinished in the previous photo and test fit my Polk tweeters. The fit is as perfect as I could expect to achieve.

Then I had my first 3M Di/Noc carbon fiber experience, when i attempted to wrap these two pieces and give them a carbon fiber look. If course, like an idiot I picked a tricky complex shape to cover in my first Di/Noc install. I ended up muttering a string of curses and ripping the offending uncooperative plastic off my pieces, then retiring for the evening. Here is a link to a uTube video of an install similar in complexity to what I was attempting to do. Even for an experienced installer like the hands in this video, there is a lot of fiddling.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jhB0...eature=related

Of course the object I was attempting to wrap is more complex than that in the video as it contains two overlapping circular pieces slanted on two different planes. I guess the best thing that happened is that I learned a number of techniques that don't work. I also learned that it is really helpful to not be tired and cranky when you start using a new product as things can go downhill rapidly from there.

I'm not giving up. I've thought through a strategy for attacking that piece. I'll give it another shot this evening. I'm not going to put a tutorial on installling Di/Noc on this thread, but I will take documentation photos. At some point in the future, I'll document the Di/Noc installation on my MINI.

Meanwhile, I need to do the rest of the Di/Noc work on my doors before buttoning up the door install. So be patient, it may be a few days. Wish me luck.

I did have the pleasure of listing to my 6" Polks yesterday and today. Of course they are weak on bass (which I expected) and weak on highs. Because they are receiving Polk crossover signals, there are no highs going to these speakers. Highs are being routed to the uninstalled Polk tweeters. But the midrange sound is much clearer and crisper than from the factory speakers.

Tom

 

This is shaping up to be the best write-up anyone has done yet. I would suggest that anyone with a steady hand and patience should use a dremel with the routing tool that looks similar to a drill bit. This will make easy work of the tweeter grill. I was able to mount my Hertz tweeter housing inside the ring where the grill used to be and secure the housing from the back after bending the mounting ring in the back (which also came with the tweeter). Then I installed the tweeter pod, so it is now adjustable. Great advice about the tabs on the door-handle/tweeter-housing rings. I broke several off and have to deal with that whole double-ring assembly popping loose daily when closing my door.

I look forward to the rest! Also, if the Di-Noc doesn't work out I may have an alternate solution to try depending on the shops in your area.

 

ACT 04,

Yes, the Dremel is another solution that would work. At 65, my hands aren't as steady as in the past and the file is less likely to wander off target than the Dremel in my case. My mod took about 15 minutes per grill including the initial work with the hobby knife and the work with the file.

I think I can lick the Di/Noc issue, but we'll see.

One thing I haven't discussed or illustrated is how I did the speaker connections. I'll post a few photos and description tonight including how I'm going to deal with the fact the tweeters are connected to the inside door panel rather than to the door itself, which means they need to come off with the door panel.

And thank you for the compliment on the writeup. I'm not really inventing anything new here. What I am doing is pulling togehter all I've learned from visiting at least 20 audio threads including the R56 thread I used in plotting the install in my R57. To a great extent this install gives a lot more options than I had on my R57 in that it is relatively easy to swap out the head unit in a R53 and nearly impossible in a R56 or R57.

Tom

 

I realized I hadn't address speaker wiring to this point other than in general terms, so I thought I'd address it now.

Speaker Polarity

The following image shows the factory speaker wires that were originally hooked to the factory 5 1/4" door speaker. At this point, I've clipped off the factory connector and crimped on a wire connector. On the other side of the connector is the Polk wire pair that runs to the Polk crossover. You can see that one of the two Polk wires has a red stripe. That is the positive lead. The unstripped wire is the negative.



It is hard to tell from this image that one of the two MINI factory wires has a red stripe. The other has a brown stripe. In another thread an author stated that the brown stripe wire is the negative lead and the red stripe wire is the positive lead. So I spliced the Polk wire with the red stripe to the MINI wire with the red stripe. The unstriped Polk wire was connected to the MINI wire with the brown stripe. At the other end of the Polk wire, the red stripe wire is spliced to the positive terminal of the crossover. The unstriped wire is spliced to the negative terminal of the crossover. In wiring the two Polk speakers to the crossover, the same polarity convention was followed.

But what if the poster is wrong about the polarity of the factory wires. The short answer is that it doesn't matter as long as the same convention is followed whereever speakers are wired. "Why is that?", you might ask.

When an amplifier sends a signal to a speaker it is an electrical signal. The speaker translates that signal into air pressure by moving the speaker cone in and out. When the cone is moving out, air pressure increases. When it moves back in, air pressure is decreased. Your ear receives these air pressure waves and translates them into sound.

When two speakers process portions of an audio signal, we want the cones to move in the same direction at the same time. When that happens, the pressure waves reoinforce each other. On the other hand, if one speaker's cone is moving out when the other is moving in, the two pressure waves partially or completely cancel each other out. When one speaker is moving out when the other is moving in the speakers are referred to as 180 degrees out of phase.

This is the principal used by noice canceling headphones. They take incoming sound waves and produce a 180 degree put pf phase wave that matches the incoming sound wave. The incoming wave and the headphone generated wave cancel each other out. You hear nothing.

So the rule is, that you want all your speakers to be wired the same way (in phase) so they reinforce rather than cancel each other. If you are going to wire one speaker backwards, wire them all backwards.

Connectors

In this install, you will be doing a lot of wire splicing. You have two basic options in splicing wires.
1. Twist the wires to be joined together. Solder the wires. Wrap the connection with electrical tape or cover with shrink wrapped tubing.
2. Attach crimp connectors to wire ends and join wires to each other or too other connection points like screw terminals.

If done properly both offer lasting durable trouble free connections. If done improperly either form of connection may fail. I've done both since I received my first Radio Shack kit when I was 16.

In a workbench environment, I might solder my connections. I know how to avoid bad solder joints. I can also use a mechanical third hand to hold the wires while I hold the solder in one hand and the soldering iron in the other.

An environment like an audio install environment in a vehicle like a MINI, you need to be part contortionist. In addition, you may not have a reliable third hand to solder connections, which increases the likelyhood you will end up with a cold solder joint. On the other hand, you can hold a crimp connector on a wire with one hand and crimp with the other. The following image is a CalTech box of crimp connectors I bought at Farm and Fleet for around $20. With 140 connectors, i should have enough for this audio install and more. The only tool needed to use these connectors is the wire stripper in the photo. It can be used to cut wires, strip them and attach a crimp connector.



If you look at the image of the Polk/MIN splice one image back you will see the two crimp connectors I used to join the wires. Crimp connectors have a metal sleeve on the inside with insulating material on the outside. The internal sleve terminates before the end of the connector, allowing the insulator to protect the joint. Attaching a wire to a crimp connector is a three step process.
1. Strip the wire so about 1/4" of bare wire shows. Most wire strippers are labeled with the wire size for each strip groove in the wire stripper. Once stripped, twist the wires together to keep stray wires from escaping the crimp connector, potentially causing shorts.
2. Pick an appropriate sixed crimp connector. You want the sleve to be very slightly larger in diameter than the wire. Push the wire into the connector. The bare wire should slide into the metal sleeve. The wire will stop going in when the wire's insulator runs into the end of the sleeve.
3. Use the wire stripper to crimp the connector to the wire. The crimp recesses at the end of a wire stripper are ususlly color coded to match the color of the crimp connector. You can see the color codes at the top of the crimp connector in the above photo. Make sure you only crimp the portion of the connection containing the metal sleeve. If you crimp outside the sleeve you will squash the connector and potentially damage your wire.

If you review the Polk/Mini wire splice two images back you will see I crimp each crimp connector end twice. Doing so increases the strength of the connection and reduces the possibiliity of a bad crimp joint. If you look back to this thread you will also see I used crimp connectors at the end of the wire being connected to the Polk crossover. This provides a more professional connection and greatly reduces the possibility of a short caused by stray wires wrapped directly around a screw terminal.

 

The tweeter is a special case as it is attached to the inside door panel. Take the door panel off, and the tweeter needs to come with it. It makes sense to incorporate a disconnect in the tweeter wiring so the interior door panel can be moved away from the door.

Crimped connectors allowing disconnects are available. However, in my experience, they are a pain to use. On the other hand, Molex connectors can be used to maintain proper polarity, are easier to disconnect, and provide mechanical reinforcement of the connection.

I stopped down to Radio Shack and picked up two male and two female Molex connectors, packaged in pairs. They run round $2 a pair. While you are there, pick up at least one extra set as the pins are easy to damage. I also picked up four line and six line pairs in case I need to use them later in the installation. Total cost ran around $12.50. The following is an image of the contents of a 2 line male/female package along with the Polk tweeter with signal wires shortened to around 15". If you take the same approach as in the install, leave some slack in the lines so you don't damage the wires or connectors as you pull the inside door panel away from the door.



I don't use a wire stripper in attaching Molex pins. Instead I use a pair of needle nose pliers. The following photo shows two male connectors, one crimped and the other ready for crimping.



As the image of the right hand pin shows, there are two pair of tabs used to secure the wire to the connector. As the image of the left pin shows, the inside tab pair has been bent over the bare wire. I use the needle nose pliers to bend one tab at a time. The outside tab pair is bent over the insulator. The primary job of the outside pair is to provide strain relief. Note there is also a spot in front of the inside pair of tabs for a drop of melted solder to further secure the wires. I don't solder my Molex connections. Also notice the barbs sticking out of the middle of these connectors. When these connectors are slid into the back of the Molex connector, the barbs are compressed at first. When they are all the way in, they are released, making it very difficult to pull the pin back out fo the connector. This means you need to pay attention to polarity when you push these pins into the connector.

The following image shows the male side of the Molex connector after the pins have been pushed into place from the rear of the connector. As you can see, one side of the connector is square. The other side is terminated in a triangular form. I followed the convention of pushing the positive lead into the triangulated side and the negative lead into the square side.




The process is the same on the door side of the connection. First, I installed female pins on the door side wire.



Then I slid the pins into the back side of the female connector, positive lead on the triangular side and negative lead on the square side. Once both the male and female sides of the Molex connector have been assembled, it is a simple matter of pushing the male and female connectors together until you hear a click. In this image you can see the joined connector. You can also see the tweeter temporarily installed in the plastic part surrounding the door handle and speaker. If the inside door panel had been reinstalled, the tweeter installation would be complete. But before finishing the install, I need to do the carbon fiber thing to the door panels, permanently mount the tweeter in the surround, and decide how to secure the slack in the tweeter wire.



That's it for now.

Tom

 

Dang, you went pretty hard core with this.

 

Which side under the seat are you looking at for the amp? (driver/passenger) Also how are you mounting it? I'm thinking about putting my amp under the driver side seat atm, but I'm not sure

 

Haibane,

I plan on putting the amp under the drivers seat. That's where the HK amp il located in the factory audio upgrade. I haven't thought through the method for mounting yet.

Tom

 

Not sure what you mean by factory audio upgrade, but my HK amp is in the rear right quarter panel

 

Haibane,

What year?

Tom

 

At this point, I have three tasks left, (1) affix the crossovers, (2) mount tweeters in handle/tweeter bracket, (3) button it up.

Affix the Polk Crossovers

I din't like the idea of crossovers rattling around in doors. The following image is my Polk crossovers with the cover removed. Note the screw holes. Just to the right, you can see the hole I drilled in the inside portion of the door sheet metal. I took a 6-32 3/4" screw and mounted the crossover to the rear side of the panel, securing it with a nylon nut. Before securing it I cobered the crossover with a sandwich bag to provide rain protection. That's it - secure and waterproof.



Mount the Tweeters

I had filed the holes in the bracket surrounding the tweeter that allowed the tapered Polk tweeters to be pushed almost 1/2 way through. I secured them in place with GE Premium Silicon Glue. I used this product as I felt I had a fighting chance at removint the tweeters later should they need to be replced without damaging the part.



Reassemble the Door

This is a matter of reversing the disassembly process. I had two wires to reconnect. The first was the wire feeding the courtesy light at the bottom of the door. The second was the Molex connector that connects the tweeter to the rest of the harness.

I fed the tweeter side of the Molex connector through an opening in the factory tweeter surround. I had to break out a bit of the tweeter surround so the Molex would pass through the opening. You can leave the surround and tweeter hanging from its wire as you go through the first few steps of the dorr panel reinstall.

Once the wires are connected (you left plenty of slack in the tweeter wire, right?), start at the top.
1. Ease the door lock lever into it's hole.
2. Tilt the door out from the bottom and align the top of the door panel to the clips along the top. You can tell if you are aligned properly horizontally if the door lever is in the middle of the hole in the inside door panel. You need the top of door closest to the window to cover all the clips aling the top.
3. Rotate the door in the direction of vertical. Peek around the edge of the door in your left hand to make sure the top plastic connector is aligning with its hole. If everything lines up., give the door panel a smack right over the plastic connector to secure it in place. Repeat on the other side of the door.
4. Work your way around the sides and bottom of the door to set the other plastic connectors in place. When you are near the bottom, make sure no wires are hanging down between the panel and the door.
5. Reinsert the four torx screws.
6. Push the tweeter/dorr handle surround into place. You may need to smack or lean on it a bit to get the tabs to lock into the door.
7. Push the reflector into place.
8. Push the padded arm rest back into place. You will be able to tell when you have it in the right place. Press down on the end that covers the Torx screw (2005+) and push oor tap the padded rest away from the front og the car. It should slide about 3/4" to the left and lock in place.

You're done. Here's how my doors ended up.



In my contest with the 3M Di-Noc material, I'd score 1 for Tom and 1 for Di-Noc. As you can see from the photo, my formerly glossy door interior panels now have a carbon fiber look. On the other hand, I was totally unsuccessful installing the Di-Noc on the door handle, tweeter bracket. So I gave up after five attempts, and spray painted them with flat black Krylon. Overall, I like the effect.

I fired up my factory head unit and made sure all four Polk speaker's worked. You can test easily with the balance and fader controls..

Sound Impressions

With the fader set all the way forward, the Polks were much clearer than the factory speakers. In addition, the tweeters appear to significantly outperform the factory tweeters from the standpoint of frequency response. I believe the Polks deliver similar volume to levels the factory units on the same head unit gain setting.

With the fade set to near 50/50, the 6x9 factory speakers in the rear delivered much stronger bass. But as I moved back and forth with the fader control, it was clear that while the larger rear speakers delivered improved bass, the sound is muddier. I can't wait to replace the factory rear speakers with the Polk DB-691s.

For those of you with a very limited budget, the $120 I spent on the Polk DB-6501's used in the front door speaker upgrade was well worth the money.

Tom

 

Tom, I am using a 2005 mini cooper. Install looks great by the way. I'll try and take pictures when I get around to mine. Still waiting on my speakers to come in though

James