# BSW Tweeter specs



## jayee_2003 (Jun 6, 2008)

Say Halston or Philip,

Is okay to for you post or send me any specs for the tweeters BSW offers for the E39? I have been playing with many different aftermarket tweeters (with the standard system) but they are too bright for my taste and the stock ones just don't have the detail. Of course I am breaking the impedance matching rule. I ‘ve tried inverting polarity to add attenuation effect but still too bright. I could do resistor networks but I don't want to go through the trial and error process right now. I saw that BSW does offer the tweeter pair alone but I want to see more specs before I buy. I just want to fully examine my options before I start really brainstorming solution to my dilemma.

Thanks,

Jay


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## bubba52 (Sep 19, 2008)

*Couple of questions, based on your experience...*

1. What tweeters have you tried?

2. What size tweeters have you found the e39 will take--.75", 1", etc.?

3. What's the ohm rating on your stock Nokia speakers? I have seen some from a '98 528i that were 4 ohm, but I am told by a seemingly very knowledgeable stereo guy that the amp is set up for 2 ohm. (You mentioned mixing impedances).

4. What did you do about the mid range, for which there seems to be no good replacement?

5. Any comments on going with a 2ohm speaker vs a 4ohm? I am looking at either the MB Quart RUA 213 or the Infinity 50.9 CS, which is a 2ohm, 5.25" component setup. I have found a pair of MBQ MCD 51 mid ranges that old stock from 6-7 years ago that I will try to mangle into the midrange spot. I am keeping the stock amp setup. At a later point, I may do the BSW sub.

My goal is a modest improvement in listenability--good range, with low distortion at fairly low volumes. I am not going to crank it.


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## jayee_2003 (Jun 6, 2008)

Well I was hoping someone from BSW would answer my question, not me answering questions. And I thought you said just a couple. - 

I found the that tweeters that are less than two inches in diameter tend to fit okay as long as they aren’t too deep. Pretty much all of them were too loud for my taste and the one that came with the car was not detailed enough. I haven’t been able to find a tweeter that is 8 ohms, higher than a 20 watt rating and will fit in the mirror pod. But many others seem to like the MBs

2 ohm rating? - Hmmm. I guess you can say that if you take the two 8 ohm high range speakers and the 4 ohm woofer, and calculate the combined impedance. But that is only if there were no crossovers involved. The crossovers built in the OEM amp are designed for the impedance of the speaker. It is generally best to replace your speakers with the same impedance rating or at least close to. Going to 2 ohms from 8 ohms is a bit of a leap. I might also venture to say if you went with the 2 ohm speakers, the tonal balance would be bias to the high side and the amp will likely run hotter. 

Since I am keeping my stock amp for now, the stock mid is still there. If you can get your hands on a set of MCD 51s, I’d say get it. Look at bmwtips.com and look for a MB Quarts installation. This pretty much sounds like the other way most are going with speaker upgrades besides the BSW packages. Mind you that some BSW are probably made from the same factories as the MBs were at one time. The woofers that came out of my E39 looked like some old MBs I used to own.

The woofers mounting depth can’t be deeper than 2.3” (top mount). My MBs were too long and had a plastic magnet cover that really was for looks. After I removed the cover it fit fine. Sorry, I don’t remember what set this came from and there isn’t a part number on the speaker either. 

It sounds like you are not that sure of what you want to get as of yet and are fishing for advice. Just like fishing, you don’t know your favorite fish hole until you try it. Weigh the advice you get from those you trust and then give it a try. I know my preference is different than my colleagues but it took quite a few $$ to find out how much. But it was a good learning venture that I will not wish to be changed. My .02 worth - try going to stereo shops and listen to high end Boston Acoustics, Alpine, MB Quarts or others and select the ones that sound best to you. Bring your own CD of favorites for comparisons. If the dimensions fit then try the set in your car. 

Good advice I got from these forums is first just upgrade the front set until you find what you want. The rear speakers are just fill-in. When you found a set you like, then get a set for the rear. As I have found, there is no perfect formula for this so sorry if I don’t give you the answers you are looking for.


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## bubba52 (Sep 19, 2008)

*All good stuff*

Thanks for the comments, all very useful.

I bought a pair of MBQ MCD51s yesterday on eBay. I am trying to find a used or blown stock mid to see if and how I will have to alter the MBQ mids to make it fit without altering the car.

Your points about the tweeter and mid-bass sizes clear up my questions there. So I am just about ready to pull the trigger (or put my line in the water.)

The one remaining issue I am trying to confirm is that the stock amp/crossover is designed from 2ohm, rather than 4ohm. (BTW, I know diddly about physics). If I understand it right, I could put in 4ohm speakers all around (midbass, mid, tweet) and that would work, with some lessening of the volume and risk of distortion as the volume goes up. But if I go with a 2ohm midbass/tweet combo (e.g. with the Infinity speakers), then there will be a slight mismatch with the MBQ mids, which are 4ohm, which would result in an imbalance in relative volume at the midrange. (This ignores of course the other imbalances from using the stock crossovers). No 8ohm components involved.

Can anyone confirm that the stock, non-DSP amp/crossover (2003) is a 2ohm system? This might be confirmed, for example, by having removed a stock speaker with the ohm rating stamped on it.

Your fishing hole analogy is right on target. You might ask why the h*ll don't I just take the door apart and figure out all this cr*p myself instead of spending all this time typing? When I do get into it, I want to do it all in one go, then get on to playing with my kids and working on all the other fun projects around the house!:wave:


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## PhilipWOT (Feb 26, 2006)

jayee_2003 said:


> Well I was hoping someone from BSW would answer my question, not me answering questions. And I thought you said just a couple.....


Sorry, I don't work there any more. I'm sure someone will stumble on this thread sooner or later.
Have you tried emailing Halston? [email protected].


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## jayee_2003 (Jun 6, 2008)

Bubba,

Sorry, I guess I wasn't very clear about the amp and the stock speakers. The tweeter and mid are 8 ohms. The woofers are 4 ohm. To use the stock amp with 2 ohm tweeters and mids will drive things off what they were intending to do. Crossover components react to the impedance load of the speaker/driver and when you change the driver you change the crossover reaction. 4 ohm speakers will as well but they might be within an acceptable range. All might be well if you can bypass the crossovers and use the ones that come with the speakers but I haven't seen a way to rewire the stock amp (the crossovers are built-in the amp).

I hope others who have used these Infinity speakers can chime in and offer their opinions. I haven't tried these speakers personally but in the case of the E39 with stock amp, you'll likely to hear a very screaming tweeter, even at low volume (IMO).



PhilipWOT said:


> Sorry, I don't work there any more. I'm sure someone will stumble on this thread sooner or later.
> Have you tried emailing Halston? [email protected].


Philip,

Glad to see that leaving BSW didn't mean leaving the forum. Thanks for the help. I'll e-mail Halston later.

Jay


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## [email protected] (Sep 5, 2006)

We actually use either a 3/4" or 1" 4ohm tweeter that is matched for the vehicle. Depending on your audio system we prep them with or without capacitors/resistors to match the factory system.


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## jayee_2003 (Jun 6, 2008)

Halston,

You beat me to it. Thanks for the reply.

BSW already has the level matching so I don’t have to fuss with trial and error? Sounds good to me.:thumbup: Let me know how the BSW tweeters for a 2003 E39 with non HK amp are sold (with or without the circuitry). It is just the typical business CD, 10 speaker system with standard amp.

Jay


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## [email protected] (Sep 5, 2006)

For the 2003 E39 w/ Standard Audio your front tweeters will be with an inline capacitor 

And a plug and play harness of course


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