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  #1  
Old 08-08-2019, 05:02 PM
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Need some help deciding on aftermarket stereo please!

Hi All, I'm new here. Just picked up my first X5 the other day. Its a 2002 3.0 with the standard transmission 5 speed. Love everything about it so far except the horrible stereo.

It has DSP and the CD Player above the MID. I have installed a GROM kit before on a 540 E39 and several aftermarket stereos on MBs, but never a BMW with DSP.

I've been researching all the aftermarket head units that look somewhat stock and have a ton of features. Aside from Dynavin which seems a bit superior to the rest (Eonon, Xtrons, Hizpo, Avin, Seicane, etc.) they all seem to be about the same to me so far. Happy to hear why one is better than another if you have experience. I'm no audiophile, but I can tell this stock stereo is awful and lacks depth so I need to replace it, plus I need bluetooth for calling, etc.

I was originally going to just gut the whole system and start fresh with like a pioneer or kenwood and rerun all the speaker wires and get a new amp, but I started to really like all the features these other units have and keeping the OBC is nice too.

So here's my question(s):

Are all these units pretty much the same except for the fact I would need to buy THEIR branded 6M cable to run the DSP? I see prices anywhere from like $180 to $400 so how much different are they really for the price?

Since this is just a spare toy car for me, I wont spend the money on the Dynavin, but it does appear to be one of the best.

My only real requirement between all of these is the volume knob, I dont want one of those tablets with nothing but touch screen.

Do you know of any that actually come ready to hook up with extra wiring for DSP and included in the price?

Are these disposable and run like shit after a couple of updates?

If I get one of these, do I need to keep the MID or CD player above it?

Seems like a lot of mixed reviews on the web and these forums about them. Appreciate any responses to help me decide, I'm really ready to just close my eyes and pick one at this point but thought Id give this a try first.

Thanks!
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  #2  
Old 08-08-2019, 08:03 PM
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i have a xtrons works great basicly a android pad in your car so has lots of stuff you can add
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  #3  
Old 08-09-2019, 02:17 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Spaceman828 View Post
Hi All, I'm new here. Just picked up my first X5 the other day. Its a 2002 3.0 with the standard transmission 5 speed.
Welcome. You've come to the right place!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Spaceman828 View Post
Love everything about it so far except the horrible stereo.

It has DSP and the CD Player above the MID. I have installed a GROM kit before on a 540 E39 and several aftermarket stereos on MBs, but never a BMW with DSP.

I've been researching all the aftermarket head units that look somewhat stock and have a ton of features. Aside from Dynavin which seems a bit superior to the rest (Eonon, Xtrons, Hizpo, Avin, Seicane, etc.) they all seem to be about the same to me so far. Happy to hear why one is better than another if you have experience. I'm no audiophile, but I can tell this stock stereo is awful and lacks depth so I need to replace it, plus I need bluetooth for calling, etc.

I was originally going to just gut the whole system and start fresh with like a pioneer or kenwood and rerun all the speaker wires and get a new amp, but I started to really like all the features these other units have and keeping the OBC is nice too.

So here's my question(s):

Are all these units pretty much the same except for the fact I would need to buy THEIR branded 6M cable to run the DSP? I see prices anywhere from like $180 to $400 so how much different are they really for the price?

Since this is just a spare toy car for me, I wont spend the money on the Dynavin, but it does appear to be one of the best.
IMHO, it's a hanging offence to install a double DIN, neon flashing, boom box in a Bimmer, but that's just me.

You get what you pay for. The cheaper units have slow CPUs and are low on RAM. The more you spend, the better the performance (operational functions, speed etc. - they are probably all similar in sonic quality). The consensus seems to be that anything with an 8-core CPU and 4GB of memory is best, a quad-core with 2GB is usable (just) and anything less is painful...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Spaceman828 View Post
My only real requirement between all of these is the volume knob, I don't want one of those tablets with nothing but touch screen.

Do you know of any that actually come ready to hook up with extra wiring for DSP and included in the price?
Some do, some don't - check the listing, 'cause you need it.

BUT.. You also need to purchase an iBus USB adapter and the iBus android app (with the extra DSP license) to enable the car's DSP amp to function with this aftermarket head unit.

iBus USB adapter - https://shop.ibus-app.de/en/shop/acc...v6-incl.-cable

iBus app - https://shop.ibus-app.de/en/shop/lic...bc-dsp-license

The app (via the adapter) sends a coded data message to the DSP amp, telling it to turn on. Without this extra kit, you will have no sound despite everything being hooked up.

A good number of members here have this installed and running well. The bonus is you'll get all your OBC function back - plus a bunch of extra features.

(can anyone else hear that echo....?)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Spaceman828 View Post
Are these disposable and run like shit after a couple of updates?

If I get one of these, do I need to keep the MID or CD player above it?
I tend to NOT update stuff like this unless there's bug fixes I need but YMMV.

And yes, you'll need to remove the MID and the CD Player unit to fit any of the android units we are discussing.

HTH...
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  #4  
Old 08-09-2019, 10:30 AM
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Awesome, thank you so much for the info and confirming what I will need to make sure I get when I purchase one of these units! Really Appreciate your thoroughness on this!

So basically, for a complete install of an aftermarket unit with the DSP setup, one would need:

1. 6M cable (harness) that goes to the trunk - same branded cable as the head unit
2. iBus USB adapter
3. iBus App

Do I have this right?
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  #5  
Old 08-09-2019, 03:50 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Spaceman828 View Post
Awesome, thank you so much for the info and confirming what I will need to make sure I get when I purchase one of these units! Really Appreciate your thoroughness on this!

So basically, for a complete install of an aftermarket unit with the DSP setup, one would need:

1. 6M cable (harness) that goes to the trunk - same branded cable as the head unit
2. iBus USB adapter
3. iBus App

Do I have this right?
Looks about right. I've not done this - no DSP - but there's plenty of folks on here who have and it seems this is the recipe for success when fitting an android headunit into a DSP car.

The 6m cable appears to be common as it extended the BMW sockets not the headunit-specific one. But get it from the same folk as the headunit, to be sure.
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Old 08-09-2019, 09:12 PM
LVR LVR is offline
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I’m not sure about the android stuff as I have 2 x Dynavins but if you don’t have the Nav screen then you don’t need the 6m cable as the inputs are in the dash with the Mid and CD player setup
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  #7  
Old 08-09-2019, 09:33 PM
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Originally Posted by LVR View Post
I’m not sure about the android stuff as I have 2 x Dynavins but if you don’t have the Nav screen then you don’t need the 6m cable as the inputs are in the dash with the Mid and CD player setup
While that is true for the ROW markets, it turns out that all USA-market E53 X5s came with at least premium audio (or DSP) so the amp is in the boot/trunk in pretty much every case, even if no Nav was fitted.

Rather unlike our cars with standard audio - MID and CD Player/Amp in the dash and all the speakers wired up to the front location. Installation is a no-brainer...
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  #8  
Old 08-13-2019, 09:35 AM
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I fitted my factory NAV, non-DSP, E53 with an early Eonon unit of 1GB RAM. This amount of RAM was pathetic in performance. My diagnostics showed that I was regularly using nearly 80% of RAM available. IMHO, 2GB is an acceptable level and the 4GB RAM PX5 board that I retrofitted to my Eonon is even better. Everything is extremely snappy in response and performance.

Only the factory NAV equipped units require the 6m cable to connect to the tuner cable near the battery. Routing this cable, IMHO, is by far the most painful and difficult part of a head unit upgrade for the factory NAV equipped vehicles.

I just updated my iBus app to 2.1.3.1 and all I can say is that it is an absolutely essential piece of gear (hardware stick and software) to allow Android head unit upgrades to recapture the features of the Board Computer and also allows a ton of extra functionality to be harnessed (including mild light, PCM and door locking coding).

PS: Upgrading all the speakers and adding a separate sub amp driving a retrofitted factory sub, in the rear panel behind the fuel fill opening, has increased my enjoyment of this system immeasurably. It is now, by far, the best sound system, to my ears, of all my vehicles.

Enjoy.

Mike
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  #9  
Old 08-13-2019, 04:50 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by semcoinc View Post
I just updated my iBus app to 2.1.3.1 and all I can say is that it is an absolutely essential piece of gear
2.1.3.2 came out yesterday
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  #10  
Old 08-13-2019, 04:52 PM
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Originally Posted by Overboost View Post
2.1.3.2 came out yesterday
Dang!

Guess I'll be doing another update in a few minutes

Wonder what new goodies they have in this one??????

Mike
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