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It's a 2018 non B&O. I'll need to find a wiring diagram of that harness to see how it runs into and out of the amp. I was picturing it going to the amp but not out of it as well.
In this scenario what becomes the "sub pre-out"? Do you tie into the rears at the harness before the amp and and run rca's to the back for the sub or use the amped wires in the B pillars?
Edit: I'm thinking FOR-11CK is the harness you were talking about. Found a picture on Amazon and it makes more sense now as to how the wiring works.
Do you have the 7-speaker audio with sync 3? (Are all 2018s without the B/O equipped with the 7 speaker?)
I just got a 2018 XLt without the B/O and like you am considering adding a sub with my leftover LC2i from a different build. IMO the stock speakers are certainly adequate in terms of quality, it is just missing some bass.
Where red were you planning to tap in to the speaker feeds to feed into the LC2i? Behind the HU? Do you have a wiring diagram to determine L/R audio and a remote wire?
Everyone's tastes are different so I won't say you are wrong but do want to point out that a lot of times what happens when you add a sub to the stock system is the bass really overpowers the mid-range, and this is where better speakers and additional amplification of said speakers plays a big role.
Some people like a very bottom-end sound - also, younger folks can hear a higher and broader range of frequencies - but to my older ears (I'm 48) it sounds "muddy". Depends on you but don't be surprised if after you do this you'll feel like something is still missing.
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Do you have the 8” screen with sync3? I’m guessing not. I do, and the 7th speaker appears to be a tweeter in the top center of the dash.
I’m also wondering if the speakers are also upgraded over the base 6 speaker system, or maybe the HU is pushing out cleaner audio with more power. Because as I said before it doesn’t sound bad at all for a factory system, just missing a little low end (but it’s better overall than the upgraded HK systems I’ve had in BMWs).
The center is a 3.5'' mid driver that sounds pretty awful overall. When I was upgrading my system I was able to test just it with no other speakers and...yikes. When I added the other speakers back in the mix, then tried it with the center on and off I quickly discovered how much better everything sounded with it disconnected.
It's there for imaging, and I supposed when blended in to the other stock speakers it's not the worst thing, but if you upgrade the OEM speakers and add a DSP you definitely don't need it or want it. A decent DSP can do a much better job with sound imaging. I swear they just stick that stupid thing in there to inflate the speaker count, just like they count the rear coax speakers as 2 each because the built in tweeter is technically separate.
Edit: Here's a pic of mine I took with the cover off
Also, the center isn't used for any dedicated sounds - you don't lose any OEM chimes, voice prompts, etc. with it gone.
Do you have the 7-speaker audio with sync 3? (Are all 2018s without the B/O equipped with the 7 speaker?)
I just got a 2018 XLt without the B/O and like you am considering adding a sub with my leftover LC2i from a different build. IMO the stock speakers are certainly adequate in terms of quality, it is just missing some bass.
Where red were you planning to tap in to the speaker feeds to feed into the LC2i? Behind the HU? Do you have a wiring diagram to determine L/R audio and a remote wire?
Yeah I have the seven speaker with sync 3. I was planning on tapping into the rear speakers from the B pillars as outlined in Southpaws thread. There are pictures in his thread with the wire locations and color codes. I was planning to run my remote wire to a fuse in the passenger side kick panel. Fuse 23 is one that is commonly used I think. There may be others.
Stock speakers (bottom) next to my replacements (top). 6x9 in front, 6.5 in rear (I obviously went 6.5 all around as replacements):
Fun fact: Mine are from a B&O equipped Ford however the front speakers and tweeters appear to be identical to what the 7 speaker stock system has (the ones that come with the 8'' Sync 3 screen) and I will bet two dozen donuts the 6 speaker systems are the same up front too, minus the center.
For the rear speakers with the stock system, I believe they are single rather than coax otherwise Ford wouldn't claim the B&O has "10 speakers" while the stock has "7". If you count the rear doors as two each (which they do) then 4 rear + 2 front + 2 tweeters + 1 center +1 sub = 10. Stock would be 4 (doors) + 2 (tweets) and then +1 for center if you have it.
Here's the stock tweeters next to my replacement:
Also the same as the 7 speaker system and probably the 6.
Stock speakers are all paper-cone 4ohm speakers that I metered at between 3.8 and 4.2ohm. So, medium-efficient at best.
The B&O play adds a separate amp behind the rear seat - which is weak, 15-20w rms per channel and maybe 100-125 for the sub, and that is being generous - and some sound processing to add EQ and timing above and beyond what the stock has. In practice it sounds, maybe, a little better than stock, and goes a little louder. It's better in the way that a person who finishes 5th or 6th in a race was better than the person who finishes 7th or 8th.
I don't know that the stock 7 speaker system is any more powerful than the 6 speaker variant. If it is I doubt by much.
Everyone's ears are different so if you like it, you're in luck, but per my previous comment be aware that adding just a sub to the stock speaker setup might not suit everyone. It'll definitely give you more kick below 80Hz but in turn can wash out 100-250Hz (give or take) pretty easily, because the stock isn't exactly kicking out the jams in that range as it is. Whether you like it or not depends on your musical tastes, the source of said music (low bitrate mp3 or streaming for example is hard for any system to deal with) and how good (or bad) your hearing is
Yeah I have the seven speaker with sync 3. I was planning on tapping into the rear speakers from the B pillars as outlined in Southpaws thread. There are pictures in his thread with the wire locations and color codes. I was planning to run my remote wire to a fuse in the passenger side kick panel. Fuse 23 is one that is commonly used I think. There may be others.
To those of you who have used forscan to disable the factory EQ, does that also disable the bass, treble adjustments or do those continue to funtion as normal. I have an forscan compatible OBD tool on the way. I want to play around with that before I make a final decision on what I'm going to do. I'd rather not add a dsp into the mix.
07-13-2018, 01:07 PM
