BSW Speakers/Woofer upgrade

[Micah D. Cranman]

Originally Posted by duffin

In an earlier post, you state that the Stage 1 doesn't include the mid's since they are fine, but now you are offering a replacement. Seems kind of a flip-flop.

That's not quite what I said or what our stance has been. Our feeling has been that the midranges aren't worth replacing unless you can do it within a certain price range - just a cost/benefit thing. In the past, we hadn't been able to find a reasonably priced midrange replacement, so ultimately it wasn't worth replacing for $200 or higher (prices we were seeing to be able to do it).

Well, now that we have midrange drivers that WE produced because of this fact, the story is a little different since they are going to be in the market at $90, which is a good enough value to justify the replacement. So it's not a flip flop -- just two sides of the same coin.

[Teutonaddict]

Originally Posted by Micah D. Cranman

That's not quite what I said or what our stance has been. Our feeling has been that the midranges aren't worth replacing unless you can do it within a certain price range - just a cost/benefit thing.

Actually, Micah's been amazingly consistent in promoting the whole cost-benefit perspective--nothing you could fairly characterize as flip-flopping or even wavering. Yes, there are sonically superior options, but it's possible to significanly upgrade the factory gear for less than a grand or so...

Micah, I appreciate your frequent posting to the forum. Your willingness to share what you've learned has helped BSW customers and DIY'ers alike. As one who went the DIY route with MBQ driver swap and a complete subwoofer & amp install on my E39 M5, I very much like the notion of packaged options with an eye toward maximizing the cost-benefit curve.

I'm on the verge of a Stage I w/mids and a single 12" sub/amp combo.

Question for the BSW folks: I know first-hand what replacing the drivers in the doors is like--even have my own tools now--but what I'm really curious about is how hard it is to replace the mids in the front corners of the dash?

Thanks!
-Dave

[Micah D. Cranman]

Dave: Thanks for your kind words. We're extremely happy to be a part of the community!

The midrange replacement in the X5 is so easy it's stupid. There is a little grill cover that comes off with a little prying with a screwdriver, and then the midrange, which has two little "ears" for attachment, is removed by taking out two screws. Our replacement midranges have plates that allow you to screw the new ones back in -- wiring is just crimping a couple of butt connectors.

The ONLY hard part is that because you're close to the windshield, manuevering the screwdriver can be tough. But it's truly a piece of cake, and they sound great.

[duffin]

Originally Posted by Micah D. Cranman

That's not quite what I said or what our stance has been. Our feeling has been that the midranges aren't worth replacing unless you can do it within a certain price range - just a cost/benefit thing. In the past, we hadn't been able to find a reasonably priced midrange replacement, so ultimately it wasn't worth replacing for $200 or higher (prices we were seeing to be able to do it).

Well, now that we have midrange drivers that WE produced because of this fact, the story is a little different since they are going to be in the market at $90, which is a good enough value to justify the replacement. So it's not a flip flop -- just two sides of the same coin.

So with the mid's added to the Stage 1 package at slightly higher cost, how do you get them to match the tone of the other speakers in the package? Are all the other speakers made to matching specs? I thought the other speakers in Stage 1 were MB's?