[Staszek]

Maybe a dumb question. I want B&W but right now you can only get it on the Alpina.

Its not that much of a deal-breaker for me not to order the car though.

That being said, yes I know it would be cheaper and probably better to go aftermarket, but how hard would it be retrofit. Is it just the speakers and the amp, or are their much larger wiring changes that need to happen as well?

[Al Pinã]

Originally Posted by Staszek

Maybe a dumb question. I want B&O but right now you can only get it on the Alpina.

Its not that much of a deal-breaker for me not to order the car though.

That being said, yes I know it would be cheaper and probably better to go aftermarket, but how hard would it be retrofit. Is it just the speakers and the amp, or are their much larger wiring changes that need to happen as well?

I think you meant B&W (Bowers & Wilkins) not Bang & Olufson.

Secondly, it would be a tremendous undertaking to fit the B&W as there are several additional speaker placements that you won't have with stock hifi or H&K.

I can't image you'd want to hack up your interior though.

[Staszek]

Originally Posted by Al Pinã

I think you meant B&W (Bowers & Wilkins) not Bang & Olufson.

Secondly, it would be a tremendous undertaking to fit the B&W as there are several additional speaker placements that you won't have with stock hifi or H&K.

I can't image you'd want to hack up your interior though.

You are correct, fixed it. That was what I was wondering if its different panels in the interior or can you just pop out the openings.

[MystroX5]

To do what B&W has done with all the speaker placements and upgraded equipment would be so much money and a nightmare to attempt. Then you have to reprogram the iDrive, etc….. The B&W Diamond system was design as a entire ground up audio system for the X7. You are better off trading in when you can get B&W comes available again. The B&W system is THE best factory audio system I have heard in a luxury vehicle. The sound stage in any seating position is phenomenal.

[jsmonet]

Yeah, trading or just having a really good shop rip the entire car apart and swap everything + doing all the aiming and timing adjustments of everything, thus wrecking your warranty on your interior, which would be cheaper than a full B&W retrofit.

This is a lot like the bs $500 you get from BMW for getting stiffed on the touchscreen. Retrofitting missing options is a huge pain in the ass and cost-prohibitive

[Staszek]

Got my answer. Thanks, the HK system isnt horrible, but I was really looking forward to the B&O.

[MystroX5]

Originally Posted by Staszek

Got my answer. Thanks, the HK system isnt horrible, but I was really looking forward to the B&O.

You are good. HK is at least fitting for a flagship vehicle this big and you can eq it to be plenty good.

[Bigdurr40]

I did a full swap of HK system with Bimmertech Alpha Ones... So worth it.

[Lando X]

Originally Posted by Bigdurr40

I did a full swap of HK system with Bimmertech Alpha Ones... So worth it.

Do you feel this is a big improvement over hk? I have moved ahead building even with the loss of all this stuff being reported but went with the 40i in the event I have to dump it in 2-3 years after the supply chain nonsense ends. I'm planning to upgrade from the hifi to something like the alpha ones immediately and really interested in hearing if you feel it is a big improvement even over hk. Did you only do speakers or both amp/speakers?

[roxxor]

Price wise you’d be looking at probably about $4k for the amplifier and RAM modules, speakers, microphones, and trim pieces, mostly buying used of course. Assuming you have HK already, the labor wouldn’t be too bad, as the wiring is about the same except for adding a few wires for the ambient lighting in the speakers, but if you only had HiFi you’d be in for a lot more work. Coding it wouldn’t be hard.

[Al Pinã]

Originally Posted by roxxor

Price wise you'd be looking at probably about $4k for the amplifier and RAM modules, speakers, microphones, and trim pieces, mostly buying used of course. Assuming you have HK already, the labor wouldn't be too bad, as the wiring is about the same except for adding a few wires for the ambient lighting in the speakers, but if you only had HiFi you'd be in for a lot more work. Coding it wouldn't be hard.

You're talking like you've done this swap before. Why encourage what would be a failing effort?

You neglected to mention how to add the extra speakers? Cutting holes in the roof sounds like a ton of fun.

[Lando X]

Originally Posted by roxxor

Price wise you’d be looking at probably about $4k for the amplifier and RAM modules, speakers, microphones, and trim pieces, mostly buying used of course. Assuming you have HK already, the labor wouldn’t be too bad, as the wiring is about the same except for adding a few wires for the ambient lighting in the speakers, but if you only had HiFi you’d be in for a lot more work. Coding it wouldn’t be hard.

Just to clarify, I would not be looking to add extra speakers but simply swap amp (definitely) and speakers (maybe) based on what came with the hifi oem. No way would I attempt to add speakers that weren't around in the first place, can't even imagine what that would involve. Hoping the amp and possible speaker swap out does the trick.

[Bigdurr40]

Originally Posted by Lando X

Do you feel this is a big improvement over hk? I have moved ahead building even with the loss of all this stuff being reported but went with the 40i in the event I have to dump it in 2-3 years after the supply chain nonsense ends. I'm planning to upgrade from the hifi to something like the alpha ones immediately and really interested in hearing if you feel it is a big improvement even over hk. Did you only do speakers or both amp/speakers?

Yes, big improvement. Sound clarity is night and day (especially at higher volumes) and subs pack an extra punch that is missing from HK. The HK amp is sufficient for the swap, but I believe you'll probably want to upgrade since you'll have Hifi. I recommend consulting with Bimmertech experts to confirm.

Also....i believe Hifi has a few less speakers then HK, similar to HK having 4 less speakers to B&W. There may be a way to retrofit the additional speakers if desired.

[Lando X]

Originally Posted by Bigdurr40

Yes, big improvement. Sound clarity is night and day (especially at higher volumes) and subs pack an extra punch that is missing from HK. The HK amp is sufficient for the swap, but I believe you'll probably want to upgrade since you'll have Hifi. I recommend consulting with Bimmertech experts to confirm.

Also....i believe Hifi has a few less speakers then HK, similar to HK having 4 less speakers to B&W. There may be a way to retrofit the additional speakers if desired.

That's great to hear and thanks for the perspective. When I hesitantly moved ahead with building this year I was strongly considering the M50 but in the end opted for the 40 after reading about some of the inconsistent option deletes and corner cutting (hedging my bets in case this model year isn't a keeper). The tolerability of the stereo was my single biggest hesitation in going this route.

I read a few posts on other threads where some felt just upgrading from the 676 hifi to the alpha one system sounded better than the OEM HK, indicating the sound quality of the after market hifi upgrade landed somewhere between the OEM HK and B&W even with the smaller number of speakers. You're definitely right though that it's less speakers, so I'm guessing your system has to sound amazing.

Crossing my fingers!

[SSM5]

The B & W is not that great. The bass is weak. The previous B & O that BMW used was much better. Find a good custom audio shop and have them upgrade the amp and speakers with Focal or something similar. It will sound much better than the B & W..

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_091ISB...0L.html?tp=105

[bradythedog12]

If that’s your opion,it probably isn’t set up correctly. You should view this excellent write up by MystroX5, who knows a thing or two about high-end audio. https://g07.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1763537. (this works for the other systems as well… and it should be a sticky!)

The lights are great too!!

[Al Pinã]

Originally Posted by SSM5

The B & W is not that great. The bass is weak. The previous B & O that BMW used was much better. Find a good custom audio shop and have them upgrade the amp and speakers with Focal or something similar. It will sound much better than the B & W..

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_091ISB...0L.html?tp=105

Absolutely false.

I've been an audio engineer for more than 10 years and once you set the EQ curve properly the B&W is one of the best systems in any car at any price point.

It's good enough that our studio owner tests mixes on it, so I'm not sure what you're smoking, but put it away.

[BMWSCOTT11]

Originally Posted by Staszek

Maybe a dumb question. I want B&W but right now you can only get it on the Alpina.

Its not that much of a deal-breaker for me not to order the car though.

That being said, yes I know it would be cheaper and probably better to go aftermarket, but how hard would it be retrofit. Is it just the speakers and the amp, or are their much larger wiring changes that need to happen as well?

Does anyone know if the Harmon Kardon system is what is standard now in the X7s, or is it a cheaper version than that.

If so, how does it sounds…I'm a bit of an audio snob.

[Lando X]

Originally Posted by BMWSCOTT11

Does anyone know if the Harmon Kardon system is what is standard now in the X7s, or is it a cheaper version than that.

If so, how does it sounds…I'm a bit of an audio snob.

I don't have build sheets for alpina, but on 40i it's hifi only and m50 it's hk only based on model year component restrictions

[dmanb2b]

If anyone is interested in the bimmertech swap, let me know, I may be able to help with pricing as my friend is a dealer. He just upgraded from HK in his f15, an amazing difference.

[Al Pinã]

Originally Posted by BMWSCOTT11

Does anyone know if the Harmon Kardon system is what is standard now in the X7s, or is it a cheaper version than that.

If so, how does it sounds…I'm a bit of an audio snob.

Base HiFi you'll get in a 40i is pure rubbish. Not befitting of a $80K+ vehicle.

The H&K is adequate, much improved from the previous gen I had in my X5.

B&W is a revelation in sound. Truly peerless in the industry compared to what I've heard from Merc and Audi.

It's really sad that it's only available in Alpina now.

[FSB]

Originally Posted by Staszek

Maybe a dumb question. I want B&W but right now you can only get it on the Alpina.

Its not that much of a deal-breaker for me not to order the car though.

That being said, yes I know it would be cheaper and probably better to go aftermarket, but how hard would it be retrofit. Is it just the speakers and the amp, or are their much larger wiring changes that need to happen as well?

Hi, Staszek.
It looks almost impossible to retrofit B&W in X7 under warranty. I made retrofit of electric hitch on my X7, but B&W is much harder option.

Me reccomendation is to start with H&K. It sounds very well