[NealfromNZ]

One thing that I did find limiting with the 2015 ID4 idrive was lack of Carplay. I often use teams meeting audio in the car and it was just too clunky to use.

There are 4 choices to gaining carplay

• Flash current iD4 unit to id6 , tradeoff is lack of memory so factory nav will cause reboot
• Replace factory unit with later id6 hardware ( native experience but more costly )
• Plug in MMI module between screen and idrive , CarPlay audio piggyback Aux input ( except MR 12volt which uses digital )
• Replacement Android screen , audio via aux piggyback

I went with a Idrive 2018 ID6 unit, touch screen , and controller in the end. Easier path whilst keeping the car more stock like and music follows a more digital path ( or so I thought ! ) One think I did pick up on is that some of the BMW G series units don’t have the digital Most outputs anymore so needed a Europe Spec F series ECE unit. The other point of note with ID6 units is that many don’t have the GPS modules anymore. I didn’t need it as the M3 has a ATM module which does 4g / Handsfree mobile and GPS.

I found an eBay supplier Retrofitting solutions that sold good quality secondhand units and they were able to code the unit to my M3s VIN before shipping it to New Zealand. Really pleased with the unit.

Fitting

First was Controller, all the wiring is the same between iD4 & id6 units. Was as simple as popping out the console trim with a pritool, remove 3 T20 trod screws , pop in new controller , connect and push back trim.

Next came screen. Remove hvac vent trim with trim tool , undo 2 xT20 torx screws and gently lift screen up.
Remove rear connector by pressing in connector lock tab and gently pull it away. Put new screen in and reverse process.

 

[NealfromNZ]

And then the idrive unit, put down a towel in console area to avoid scratching trim. Take off centre control panel for idrive and hvac controls. Idrive unit is held in place by 2x T20 torx screws. Remove qualock connector by gently pulling top locking tab away from idrive. Aerial style faka connections have a white plastic tab that’s lifted up. Then the connectors can be pulled away. USB and screen connector just has press in lock tab to remove.

With the new idrive unit it needs a wifi antenna for CarPlay. There is a connector on the back of the idrive for this. The oem wifi antenna is on a long cable and sits under right front seat. But I opted for an aftermarket wifi aerial that was sent with unit. Simply Tesla tapped it to top of idrive unit. Not worried about non oem aerial. Simple antenna is fine for short range.

Install is straight forward, push connectors back on and they are all colour coded, insert unit into console and replace trim. Reconnect battery cable

 

[Muu]

Nice work, always nice to have OEM fit but uplift in usability

 

[THE TECH]

Nice work!

 

[NealfromNZ]

Finally got around to treating trunk floor. Ended up running with Dynamat. 2mm Thickness meant all trim and carpet layers went back into place.Its further reduced panel resonance and sub bass is quite clean now.I left the fuse box area as wanted that area to look OEM.

 

[Sonus]

Thanks for sharing the steps for upgrading to ID6. I am considering upgrading my 2016 340i F31LCI. Based upon the theft raids of BMW navigation and steering wheels here in Norway I am a bit worried about were Retrofitting Solutions source their gear. Did they disclose were the units came from? Seeing pictures on their Ebay site showing cut cables have me a bit apprehencive ordering from them. Hoping it is all legit of course 👍

 

[NealfromNZ]

I didn’t check , but pics of my unit didn’t show cut cables. I assumed they where tied in with a euro dismantling chain as they do idrive , bmw digital clusters and lots of S/Hand Msport steering wheels with brand new airbags. I do know that my unit came out of a UK car as it still had dealer details and some Nav & service history dating that stopped around 2021 at 33,000 km.

Not sure if that helps.

 

[Sonus]

I'll ask if they will disclose the origin of the parts when I plan to order. Did you need to do any coding at all or was it just plug and play? I might add the 6wb instrument cluster as well to bring the look up to date 😅

 

[NealfromNZ]

I'll ask if they will disclose the origin of the parts when I plan to order. Did you need to do any coding at all or was it just plug and play? I might add the 6wb instrument cluster as well to bring the look up to date 😅

They coded it to my VIN which sorted it most of the config , added CarPlay coding and Nav map.

I forgot to mention to them that I had coded my system to Harman Kardon and MOST amplifier. I also needed to recode Aux as wasn’t coded . The only thing left to sort was car cradle as unit it coded for wireless charger and ID6 drops USB2 ( cradle)

I got caught out with BimmerCode for coding at this point as it didn’t like the ID6 retrofit. So any coding however basic BimmerCode greys out the NBT modules from being coded. Went with Bimmer Utility which can work as standalone coding app or can sit on top of Esys. UI is a bit more complex but can also do flashing of modules when needed.

 

[NealfromNZ]

Btw, BMW wifi only CarPlay isn’t great from an SQ POV. Even Spotify at 320k becomes harsh. Similar with Apple Music. I’ll turn off CarPlay and force phone USB if I’m after greater clarity. Haven’t found a way to force usb input on the bmw for CarPlay .

But I use CarPlay for the work commute to get teams audio which is a step up from running Bluetooth for the call.

 

[NealfromNZ]

Small win today. I have a iPhone wired car cradle which charges phone, improved 4g reception and should do usb audio via the phones lightning connection.

With the retrofit of Idrive 6 BMW the USB2 port wasn’t operating as BMW moved to wireless charging cradles.

I took me a long time , but started going through usb coding. USB2 / cradle came back into life with one parameter change in the end.

 

[NealfromNZ]

Discovered a great way to flip between Mobridges DSP maps. BMW has a assignable macro function to keys on idrive.
So on the surround toggle menu option you can assign it to a memory button to function like you would with radio stations.

Basically I highlighted the surround toggle and held down a memory key (7) . So when I hit the 7 key the amp will flip between my single seat and multiseat tune 😀 No more flipping through menus .

 

[Sonus]

I see a paid for trip to Norway in your future. Only thing I ask in return is a complete install in my F31LCI when you're here🤣

 

[NealfromNZ]

Lol , a trip to Norway is on my “living list”

Hope you don’t mind my staying for a year or so while I do your install 😀

 

[NealfromNZ]

Was tracking down a buzz / resonance that was occurring at around 160hz . There was quite a dip in an RTA on one side.
Turns out that the one of 4 posts on the underseat BMW enclosure had broken again ( brought second hand part that didn’t ship well ) and the buzzing was the speaker cover.Have given it a re-glue so hopefully it hold this time.

Added some Dynamat to the enclosure and to the panel it sits on. The very scientific knuckle wrap test was better after. Will let the glue harden overnight.

 

[NealfromNZ]

DSP Tuning

I'll start with the Sub. It's a old Boston SPG555 with a Passive radiator. The sub has an Xmax of 22mm and xmech is close to 4 inches. It can move some air ! The PR is tuned for 35hz so as per Boston Acoustics default. The box has a volume of 1 Cubic Foot. I've never got around to doing an RTA in with the sub sitting in a field to see what it's true frequency response looked like. I'll do that at some stage.

When I put the sub into the M3 I was a bit of a loss as to why it dropped of quickly at 60hz , but then bounced back around 100hz when doing a full sweep. With a LPF of 80 hz it was usable to an acoustic 60hz. I hadn't modelled cabin gain and just assumed that in this sized car I'd get good cabin in the sub bass frequency.

Using REW room simulator it becomes apparent why the bass behaves this way. I used the following approximate measurements for the model
Firewall to Trunk at 3.3 Meters
Inner door to inner door at 1.6 Meters
Height of cabin 1.0 meters

The Sub is following the cabin gain / modal to a large extent , There is quite a dip at 75hz. For the Sub I'll use it to 60hz acoustic.

Blue , Cabin gain / Modal Model
Orange , Sub sweep no EQ
Green , Target Curve for Sub

 

[NealfromNZ]

Here is the raw sweeps for tweeters , 4 inch door mid bass, 8 inch under-seat woofers & Sub

Here is the intended crossover points
Tweeters 3500hz - 20khz
Door Midbass 175hz-3500hz
Under-seat 45hz-175hz
Subwoofer 80hz

 

[NealfromNZ]

I must come back to my DSP tune at some stage.

In another thread there was a brief discussion on BMW BMW B&O coding and maps availble to switch @mobridge dsp profile maps. To recap Mobridge has 4 DSP profile slots but BMW F series NTB4-6 only has two dsp profiles to toggle on the idrive.

Was looking and the later BMW idrive options and there was a change from B&O to B&W for higher end audio options around 2017 or Idrive 6 units. B&W menu has 5 dsp sound maps. Fraser mentioned that earlier BMWs used to have 3 maps and Mobridge had mapped them to the DSP profiles. So I recoded my Idrive 6 unit to B&W and low and behold the first three B&W sound profiles correspond to the first three Mobridge profiles. So I’ve gained an extra dsp map with simple coding change. Fraser mentioned that they maybe able to workout mapping for the 4th Mobrigde profile in a diagnostic session so watch this space.

Coding is straightforward. Bimmer Utility and no doubt BimmerCode expert mode can turn the menu on.

 

[NealfromNZ]

Update

Had a remote session with Mark from Mobridge. By sharing a remote laptop session Mark put the amp into diagnostic mode and had me cycle through the BMW profile menu options. From there he was able to get the menu data codes being sent. A few days later he sent me an updated amp software to test.

So now I'm able to use 4 Mobridge DSP profiles and selected them via the BMW Idrive menus above. On the Idrive I have saved the B&W to one of the console memory keys. So when I hit the 7th memory key I'm straight into the DSP menu. No doubt Mobridge will release a production version that can cover both 8.1.1 AMP and G2 Pro DSP.

I must say, the support from Mark & Fraser of Mobridge has been superb throughout my project. First from basic one on one with the DSP setup and then again with feature request. Very happy customer

 

[NealfromNZ]

Did a rap sheet that I'd forgotten about.