Upgraded SR Partial Audio to Full Premium

[HappyWino]

Does fade and balance work as expected after this upgrade?

 

[Wampa]

I bought the same Soundstream PN5.640D amplifier but am getting some noise on my rear speakers. I'm not sure if it's something with my amplifier or my connections. I connected the 3 GND wires from the input wire harness together and connected it to the car chassis GND where the amplifier GND is also connected (at a bolt behind the rear tail light). Did you have any noise issues? Also in "Step 10", did you connect your GND near the Penthouse 12V?

Try disconnecting the 3 GND wires on the input harness. I left those disconnected for my setup. And yes, I used the penthouse connections for both power and ground.

 

[m3tez]

Thanks, yes that removes the crackling noise. I guess these ground wires are not needed. I still have a low hissing sound coming from the rear speakers. I’m going to try rerouting my power wire to see if that helps.

 

[m3tez]

No luck I still have the hissing sound. I rerouted the power wire away from the speaker wires and also moved my GND to the penthouse ground but still have the hissing sound.

 

[m3tez]

Does fade and balance work as expected after this upgrade?

It will follow where you tap the signal. The rear deck speakers are tapped from the rear door so it will follow. But for the front mirror tweeters if you tap from the rear door it will not follow. You would need to tap the front dash speakers for this.

 

[RobC]

Why is it needed to tap another speaker for the audio feed? Presumably the speaker wires to the unused speakers run somewhere? Why not just find the end of them and place the amp there? Or are the speakers present but no wires at all? Where is the 2nd amp in the premium interior fed from?

 

[640k]

Why is it needed to tap another speaker for the audio feed? Presumably the speaker wires to the unused speakers run somewhere? Why not just find the end of them and place the amp there? Or are the speakers present but no wires at all? Where is the 2nd amp in the premium interior fed from?

they don't. that's the point. see first post.

 

[640k]

curious if anyone has found a consistent/reliable source for the OEM subwoofer. i've been contemplating building my own enclosure and decided that i'd rather just stick with OEM for reasons. eBay's listings are a crapshoot right now.

 

[Kevy Baby]

curious if anyone has found a consistent/reliable source for the OEM subwoofer.

Try this post earlier in the thread:

You might be able to order the subwoofer from Tesla part for around $240 based on this post

 

[AdamMacDon]

No luck I still have the hissing sound. I rerouted the power wire away from the speaker wires and also moved my GND to the penthouse ground but still have the hissing sound.

Do any of the speaker input wires go near wires with serious power running through them? Could be interference from that. Best way to test is leave the car on so you can hear the hiss, and move the input wires around, and lift them up in the air away from everything to see if it alleviates the hissing.

 

[m3tez]

Do any of the speaker input wires go near wires with serious power running through them? Could be interference from that. Best way to test is leave the car on so you can hear the hiss, and move the input wires around, and lift them up in the air away from everything to see if it alleviates the hissing.

I tried moving the wires around as much as I could and also tried disconnecting the inputs to the amp and the hiss is still there so it seems like it’s coming from the amp. Sitting in the front seat the rear speaker hiss is only slightly noticeable, but if you are in the back seats you can definitely hear it. I called Soundstream support and they suggested returning the amp, but I’m not convinced a replacement would fix this issue. Everything else about this amp is perfect for this setup. Do you have this same amp and no noise issue?

 

[Kevy Baby]

I tried moving the wires around as much as I could and also tried disconnecting the inputs to the amp and the hiss is still there so it seems like it’s coming from the amp.

You did step 1 of how I would have troubleshot (troubleshooted?) this issue.

The next step would be to test the output side. If you have a couple of bookshelf speakers (even just one), run the output to them and see if the hiss remains (probably will, but still a good check)

Finally, I would test the power source. Find a completely independent source: we used to use a cigarette lighter plug with alligator clips at the other end and plug it into a separate car. If you still have the hiss at this point, you have isolated the issue to the amp and you should return it.

But what do I know? It's been a long time since I did any work like this.

 

[Wampa]

I'll check mine tomorrow and see if there is any hiss from the back seats. My speaker come close to the power plugs without any noticeable interference.

 

[m3tez]

You did step 1 of how I would have troubleshot (troubleshooted?) this issue.

The next step would be to test the output side. If you have a couple of bookshelf speakers (even just one), run the output to them and see if the hiss remains (probably will, but still a good check)

Finally, I would test the power source. Find a completely independent source: we used to use a cigarette lighter plug with alligator clips at the other end and plug it into a separate car. If you still have the hiss at this point, you have isolated the issue to the amp and you should return it.

But what do I know? It's been a long time since I did any work like this.

Thanks, great ideas! I tried your bookshelf speaker idea and the hiss is still there. I didn’t try an alternate 12v though in fear of blowing a fuse/circuit or something. I believe the only safe place to connect an amp in the m3 is the penthouse 12v.

 

[m3tez]

I'll check mine tomorrow and see if there is any hiss from the back seats. My speaker come close to the power plugs without any noticeable interference.

Thanks, also another interesting thing I found is you don’t need the remote wire when using speaker level inputs with this amp. You can try disconnecting the remote wire, fold down your rear seats so you can see your amp power light from outside, close all your doors, and wait 1-2mins, the power light on the amp will turn off.

 

[Chetanh]

So are the Locations A and B marked in the figure actually speakers the come with SR+?
Also, does the SR+ has speakers in locations C

 

[m3tez]

So are the Locations A and B marked in the figure actually speakers the come with SR+?
Also, does the SR+ has speakers in locations C

Yes, A,B speakers are installed but not connected in the SR+. Yes, the C speakers are all connected and active.

 

[Chetanh]

Thanks. so out of the box (factory i guess..lol) 7 speakers are active. Why is sound still so shitty compared to a 2011 BMW and poor compared to a 2007 Camry?

I really want to do this upgrade but am not very handy and have never worked on car electronics before, so am gathering as much information as i can before i try this.. Thanks

 

[m3tez]

Thanks. so out of the box (factory i guess..lol) 7 speakers are active. Why is sound still so shitty compared to a 2011 BMW and poor compared to a 2007 Camry?

My previous car was a 2012 BMW 535 with HK premium speakers. I would agree the default SR+ speaker setup is not as good, but after the upgrade of connecting the rear deck speakers and adding a subwoofer, it makes a huge difference and I think it is much better then my previous BMW.

 

[Chetanh]

That is encouraging. If it is better than a 2015 5 series, then it will be definitely better than a 2011, 3 series.
Did you also install the sound installation around the glass roof?