Does the unit need car power, or can it be powered by USB jack to update firmware? I can see the unit on Windows on COM3 (usb), but unable to connect. Don't see the unit on MacOS.

No, it doesn't need to have 12v from the car -- it can be powered solely off USB.

I suspect your cable may be a charge only cable, or it may not be able to make full contact with the USB port inside the BlueBus.

I recommend you try another cable, and if it's still not working, then take the unit out of its case and try again.

Thanks!
-Ted

Awesome, thanks Ted!


You sent me the links for the digital dsp cable, I will get that ordered asap and installed :thumbup: And I do now remember you saying that the call volume issue had been fixed, I completely forgot to just turn the audio up during the call - doh... all fixed!

Glad you got call Audio sources! I can't wait for you to come back and post about how good the sound system sounds with the digital DSP cable :P


Everyone,

Just heard from MacroFab that there's a small delay, which will result in units being delivered to me on July 6th, rather than June 26th.

If you purchased through ECS, they have to wait for me to get all units before I am able to send them their allocations, so that's going to push out their timeline as well.

Sorry guys!
​​​​​​​-Ted

Hey Ted, Appreciate the update on delivery.


I'm sure we're all a little bummed that it'll be another 2-3 weeks but when we get them it we can call it our Christmas in (COVID) July! lol



I personally haven't waited with anticipation for an upgrade like this for my car(s) in quite some time.

Ted,
Correct. Micro USB cable was charging only. Since I'm iOS (no Android data sync cables laying around), I ordered this charging cable from Amazon, grey color should make it obvious it's data. I still couldn't get the firmware tool to run or BlueBus to show up on MacOS.
On Windows, with the new cable:

• BlueBus was immediately detected, and Windows added the device
• Solid green Power light. Nice case design allows for light visibility when mounted in the case.
• Started firmware update tool, and once the correct BlueBus COM port was selected in the update tool, the Power green light started flashing.
• Firmware update started, and red Tx light and green Rx light began to flash, with the right green light
• Once the firmware update was complete, the Power light went back to solid.

Firmware update tool feature request: Check and display current firmware revision.

Nobody seemed to have them in stock, so I ordered them from BMW of South Atlanta (competitive pricing and since they are a dealer, comes with BMW warranty). Arrived after a month, since they had to come from Germany. The cable doesn't look like anything proprietary. Looks like it's a SMA/SMB coax connector, so there may be cheaper and faster options.

Ted,
Installed the BlueBus into my e39 M5.
Great case, just fyi the clearance for the coax digital was tight. It may have been better to connect all the cables, and then fully tighten down the box screws.
Audio works great using the digital input, which is huge over the CD changer or cassette tape. :rofl:
A few questions/issues:

1. What's the shortcut to the BlueBus menu? With nav, I cycle the inputs, and once on Bluetooth/BlueBus, I press the right scroll wheel.
2. The settings menu inactivity timer is too short, 3 seconds to select, or it drops back to dashboard. Once time in the settings, it didn't time out when moving through menus, but all the other times it's a race to make a selection
3. The built in mic in car isn't working. I can hear audio from calls, but cannot send audio during calls or to Siri.

Thanks! I hope it's worth the wait :)

Glad you got this figured out! The feature request you want has been made, but I haven't re-built the tool so I can upload the new .exe to S3... oops.

It's an SMB to SMB cable with 75ohm impedance. I actually tell people nowadays to buy one from DigiKey: https://www.digikey.com/products/en/...=1&pageSize=25

Yeah, I like the tight clearance on that connector because those cables get really loose over time! The case could have been better executed, though. The PCB should be screwed directly to the bottom case, rather than the sandwich action I have going on now, which makes it hard to install the PCB flush with the bottom case <_<. Hindsight is 20/20.

For the UI, use the radio overlay button to pin the BlueBus menu to the screen (this is the button next to mode, on the E38 / E39 / E53 BMBT).

On the Microphone, what is the part number? Which adapter are you using? I see you ordered the SES and the 54 pin'r.

Thanks!
-Ted

Case: All good.
UI: OK. Pressing that switches between the BlueBus display and the Nav settings menu.
MIC: See attached. I have the blue adaptor to the 6-pin, which connects to the 6-pin cable.