Kevin,

Can you tell me how this system will interface with an R56 w/ HK?

 

Certainly - installation is the exact same as it is for the R56 HiFi. The 2010+ HK system uses the same wiring harness as the HiFi - same colors, same connectors (the only difference between the HiFi and HK harness is that the HK has a larger power wire).

I'll clarify the installation instructions shortly to make a note of it. You can find them under the "Installation" tab of the product page - http://www.integralaudio.com/mini/mi...er-system.html

 

Thanks Kevin.

I have another question. After reading through the PDF, I see that the only way to control the volume of the sub is through controlling the amount of signal going to the amp by adjusting front-to-back fade. I'm concerned that this may not give me quite as much flexibility as I may want as far as really dialing in the sound. What controls are on the included amp?

 

First, that's not the only way to control the sub volume - the ARC amp has a full complement of controls including independent gain controls and a fully variable crossover. The front-to-rear Fade setup gives you the ability to control sub volume on-the-fly from the head unit, and is there if you want to turn the bass up or down to taste. In a well-designed, well-balanced system built for sound quality you shouldn't (and don't) need it, EXCEPT to compensate for issues with source and/or recording levels - a common problem with todays mix of inputs that includes Radio, Siruis, CD, and various sources of MP3, etc.

Second, I think you'll be surprised at just how much control you get with the fade setup, and here's why: If you look at the recommended initial settings in the instructions, you'll see that the Fade is set quite far to the Front, and the ARC Audio amp gain is set relatively high. This means that the ratio of subwoofer volume is high relative to rear speaker volume. This is exactly as is should be - the rear speakers should be primarily for fill (contrary to common mis-perception - and your system will sound far better this way due to largely removing the distortion of the crappy rear speakers from your soundstage). The end result is that moving the fade to the front or rear just a notch or two results in a big change in the subwoofer volume and a virtually imperceptible change in rear speaker volume. The bottom line is that you should have no concerns about having enough control to dial-in the sound to your preference.

Keep in mind that this subwoofer system lays a foundation for our upcoming plug-n-play Front Soundstage upgrade (available around the end of this year). The increased efficiency of the speakers in the Soundstage upgrade package will give you even more control of subwoofer volume on-the-fly by increasing the relative level of front-to-rear speaker volume, giving you another "lever" to pull in adjusting the sound, if you desire.

 

Can you give some more info on this? Not interested in the sub upgrades but I have been looking into various options to upgrade the HiFi door speakers and potentially tweeters.

 

Glad to. First off, you probably want a subwoofer more than you think you do. A quality subwoofer isn't about big booming bass (though it can do that if you want it too!) It's about reproducing frequencies that require moving a lot of air - from 80-100Hz on down - something a 6" (and the vast majority of 6x9"s) just don't do well. If you look at it in the frequency domain, nearly a third of music is below 100Hz. That's a lot of music that is not being reproduced or is being produced poorly, unevenly, and with high distortion in the factory systems - and your ear knows it. When those lower octaves are missing - even from purely acoustical music - the ear discerns the balance of what it hears as "harsh", "tinny", or "thin". As Walter mentioned earlier in this thread, he swore that I must have done something to his front speakers when all I had done was install the 1100S subwoofer system. Suddenly he was getting a lot of the music that was missing previously, and everything sounded better as a result - this is the foundation I was referring to.

The Soundstage upgrade will replace the front midranges and tweeters with very high quality, high efficiency speakers designed to work specifically with the various MINI systems (there will obviously be different upgrades for the HiFi and Standard systems). All speakers will include our own custom adapters and the factory connectors.

Caveat: We have not yet decided whether the Soundstage upgrade will be available without the subwoofer system, for all the reasons described above.

 

I agree with you about the importance of a SW as a foundation. I am curious, though about the front sound stage upgrade that you mention. As I stated earlier I would be looking at these upgrades from the standpoint of how they would integrate with and impact the H/K system.

 

Everything we do at Integral Audio is focused on integrating with (hence the company name ) the factory system. We try to keep what's good, replace what's bad, and add what's missing - all while avoiding visual changes to the vehicle, keeping installation simple enough for the DIY customer, and keeping costs reasonable - to meet or exceed the level of (very) high quality that we demand.

Keep in mind that we are still in the prototyping and testing stage, so everything that follows is preliminary and subject to change - but it should give you an idea:

In both the HiFi and H/K systems the door midrange and A-pillar tweeter get the same signal from 1 channel of the amplifier, from about 100Hz on up (the lower door speaker only gets from about 40-80 Hz). The tweeter has a (very cheap) inline capacitor to block frequencies below 8.5kHz, and the midrange speaker gets the full signal from 100Hz up. This causes all kinds of problems just from a basic layout perspective, and is compounded tremendously by the fact that ALL the components (mid, tweet, cap) are of very low quality (MINI likely pays about $3/ea for the tweeter and $4/ea for the midrange in the HiFi, about twice that for the H/K)The amplifier in both systems does a bit of DSP to attempt to compensate for some of the deficiencies, but not enough. Our Soundstage upgrade for the HiFi and H/K systems will replace the door midrange and A-pillar mounted tweeter with specially designed, high-end speakers and passive components specifically designed to address and correct these issues. It will do what MINI should have done in the first place, but didn't**.

So basically, we replace crappy speakers with really great specialty speakers and some missing passive components. As should be obvious from the above discussion, you can't simply use off-the-shelf aftermarket components - you'll introduce more problems than you solve.

We have lots and LOTS of tests and response graphs that illustrate the above discussion for each of the MINI systems, and will be putting those up on the website and probably posting them here as well, but not any time soon.

**Not that I necessarily blame them - it comes down to dollars, and quality sound comes from quality components, and those don't come cheap.

 

I can tell you from running this that the fade control really gives me all the level adjustment that I would ever need. I'm guessing that you would like to control *just* the subwoofer's output specifically, but if your goal is to keep up with differing inputs, I'm able to do that with ease using the MINI's existing controls. I do like it that way.

 

Boy, it's been awhile... Kevin's been a busy, busy man.

Currently, the Kid is in Brooklyn for a four day stay. Kevin will be testing the Soundstage prototypes with the hopes of having them in sometime in May. He's also swapping out my sub and amp (both were works in progress) for the final version which some of you already have. Must of the changes were minor having to do with making installation easier, but I'm psyched to be getting the Arc Audio amplifier which will be replacing the Rockford Fosgate.

Oddly, the last post in this thread dealt with a remote level control for the sub - something that was not part of the original design. Kevin has decided to include it in the system and will be installing that also. I happened to motor back to my place in a friend's R52 that Kevin had been working on. It had the remote level control and I have to say that I really like it. It may all be mental on my part, but I felt like I was really able to fine tune the bass.

 

Sounds great that the system will have the remote gain control for the amp! Now this makes me want this setup even more!

 

any videos of the bass?

 

I haven't, but gothm has. It's HERE.

 

yay saw gothms right after my post.. damn i want to demo my car for somthing thats sick

 

I'm ready to purchase this now. My MINI will be complete once I get this system. I tried ordering it but it says there are no shipping options available to my address (live in Vancouver, Canada). Kevin, could you help me out?

 

bspence88,

Try entering your postal code with no spaces. That should get you an accurate shipping quote.

We're working on a fix for this - my apologies for the trouble. If it still doesn't work for you, please email your phone number to support@integralaudio.com and I will call you and take care of it via phone.

 

There we go. $67. That's a fair shipping quote considering,. However having trouble going through the checkout... I keep getting a timed out error. I sent you an email. Give me a call when you can.

 

You won't be disappointed, bspence. Got back a little while ago from Kevin's shop - he installed the upgraded version of the set-up that began this thread. It sounds fantastic - bass feels even better and tighter and the remote gain control for the amp adds a whole other dimension. Enjoy!

 

That sounds great to hear. I think I've read every thread imagineable in these forums... Nothing but good reviews (other than the one guy getting amateurs to install his). I can't wait to complete my MINI with a sick system. I have a friend in the music biz who will help me install it/tweak everything so it sounds perfect. Anything I should know before we attempt install?

 

(paces back and forth awaiting R57 availability)

 

Just follow Kevin's installation directions to the *T*. He has thought of everything down to the last detail and has gotten this as close to plug-n-play as can be. And when you take it out of the box, the quality of everything in there will let you know this was money well spent. And then you'll fire it up and know for sure.

 

Not knocking Kevin becuase he is great and his directions are excellent but my car threw him for a loop. I have a 2009 JCW. My car does not have that compartment in the boot on the right side like most 2nd gen MINIs do. So he had to improvise and put the amp under the drivers seat. He did an excellent job with the install. I am very happy with it. And very happy with the improved sound in my car.

Here is a pic to explain better. See on the left there is a small compartment where the amp goes. Well there is supposed to be one on the right hand side where that slime kit an towels are. I do not have one.



Just waiting on the upgraded front "Soundstage" speakers. Any news on when that will be ready for the R56 HI-FI stereo?

 

So that was your JCW he was telling me about about today.

I'll let Kevin chime in on availability with the Soundstage upgrade. But if it helps, that's the main reason my MINI was in Brooklyn for 4 days this week. He did the testing for those speakers and if all goes well the prototypes will be in my car by May/June.

With the remote gain now installed, Kevin also tweaked the *balancing* of everything and my stock speakers somehow sound better now - but once the Soundstage goes in I think the sound will be off the charts.

 

Thanks for all the info.

Will the soundstage front speakers eventually become a part of the package? If so, Would I be able to purchase just those when they become available? Man, I'm excited to tweak my system.

 

Sounds delicious =)

I have the HK in my incoming MINI. I'll definitely be looking at this.