[Matt214]

UPDATE!! After the amp install (which I outlined below) I went ahead and ordered the full Alpha One Speaker upgrade as well. Again, perfect plug and play factory fitment and the high quality was very evident. I do recommend doing the Alpha One speakers along with the amp as they do work nicely together. What really rounded out the whole upgrade was the personalized tuning sessions with Mac, over at Bimmertech Audio. He was so friendly and patient and truly is a master of his craft in tuning/understanding these audio systems. He stepped through tuning the DSP file to get the right sound. It's a live tuning session so you'll have him on the phone, while he is remotely making adjustments to the software of the Amp. I was listening to some of my favorite music as he made the adjustments, until we hit the sweet spot. I have to say I was impressed with the product but I was blown away by the customer service and support, after the sale and install!

Initial Post:

I figured I would share since a number of people are asking/interested in amp and speaker options to help bring our Harmon-Kardon sound systems up to a level of output quality, expected in a car such as our G80s.

I went ahead and ordered the Alpha One amp and I do have to say, it's a handsome improvement over stock. I currently have the stock speakers but plan on upgrading those to the Alpha One full set, as well.

Install took a couple hours. The written instructions that come from Bimmertech seem to leave a few of steps left to you (the installer) to figure out so I recommend watching the install video as it makes everything much more clear. I'm a self-taught mechanic and also have done a number car audio installations in the past so I was able to get through it fairly easily.

Once installed, I was pleased with the plug-and-play set up and how it all tied off rather cleanly. Bass response was very noticeably improved and it was a clean resonant bass. Not pushy or thumpy. Vocals were ringing true and much clearer and powerful at increased volumes. Take a look at the pics as I moved through the install and hopefully it will help some of you decide on whether it's an option for you or not!

[SenmaS]

Nice and tidy job!

They've got an installation video for the G20/G80:

[biggripper]

I’ve already decided to move ahead with a trunk sub to see how that rounds things out for me. In your opinion, would this amp be relatively easy to integrate into that type of setup? Do you think there would be any upside in doing both? Also, I’m not sure how/if it would work with the standard add-a-sub adaptor from technic PNP.

[Matt214]

Originally Posted by SenmaS

Nice and tidy job!

They've got an installation video for the G20/G80:

Thanks! Yes I watched that video to get clarification on the how to connect the harness correctly. I probably should have watched that instead of attempting to use the written instructions that they sent.

[Matt214]

Originally Posted by biggripper

I’ve already decided to move ahead with a trunk sub to see how that rounds things out for me. In your opinion, would this amp be relatively easy to integrate into that type of setup? Do you think there would be any upside in doing both? Also, I’m not sure how/if it would work with the standard add-a-sub adaptor from technic PNP.

It appears that it would be easy to add a sub, with this amp. When I was speaking to the rep, he mentioned that they include the 'remote out' connector which makes it basically 'sub ready'. I'm going to do the full speaker set and see how the system sounds before considering a sub but it's good to know it should be easy to add on.

[josephx66]

Does anyone have a link to the correct amp to buy?

[Matt214]

Originally Posted by josephx66@gmail.com

Does anyone have a link to the correct amp to buy?

https://www.bimmer-tech.net/speakers...lifier-for-bmw

Use that link but you need to enter your VIN to get the exact version for your vehicle. Once you enter your VIN the price also changes as well, just as a heads up.

[Matt214]

Originally Posted by biggripper

I’ve already decided to move ahead with a trunk sub to see how that rounds things out for me. In your opinion, would this amp be relatively easy to integrate into that type of setup? Do you think there would be any upside in doing both? Also, I’m not sure how/if it would work with the standard add-a-sub adaptor from technic PNP.

biggripper , just wondering if you added that trunk sub? I was thinking about adding one to get that extra bass to really round out the sound as well. The Alpha One set up has really clear full sound but I think some more bass would hit that perfection point. Curious what you chose, if you have done so!

[biggripper]

Originally Posted by Matt214

biggripper , just wondering if you added that trunk sub? I was thinking about adding one to get that extra bass to really round out the sound as well. The Alpha One set up has really clear full sound but I think some more bass would hit that perfection point. Curious what you chose, if you have done so!

I did end up adding a powered 10” JL. I’m pretty happy with it. It took a while to tweak settings between the HK EQ settings and the Amp settings to get a good blend. I’m pretty happy with it overall but it’s still not as good as the system I had in my F82 which had a multichannel amp set up to band pass mid bass and power to the underseat woofers and sub bass to the trunk sub. If you have the time and want to spend the cash that is the best. That system cost me $2k self-installed back in 2018. This current set up probably cost me $800 and I’m pretty happy.

Also I will say that throwing my usual preconceived notions EQ settings out the window helped a lot. I normally would dial the bass back down on most systems and EQ from there if possible. In this car for whatever reason it just sounds bad. Once I turned the bass level up a bit it was better and made dialing in the EQ easier. Adding the sub just adds in a little bit extra.

See more here on the EQ setup that worked for me

https://g80.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=2065896