Stereo Stuff

The GPMINI stereo saga continues 🙂
Initially I tried just the Alpine HU; it improved the sound but I still wanted more (don’t we all!)
Next, I tried Dynamat and new door speakers but the Kicker speakers were awful and have been trashed.

Meanwhile, other GP owners have recommended MINIs DPSM (Digital Power Sound Module) system – if you search you can get it discounted up to 20% and at $1400 it’s not a bad price compared with equivalent aftermarket options, giving you new front component speakers, rear co-axial speakers, an 80W RMS x 4 channel digital amplifier, all the wiring for a “plug-and-play” install, and a fully stealth result – on a stock MINI at least!
So, I bought a system from MINI of Peabody and spent the last day or so installing it …

Installation is quite simple if you know how to pull the interior panels out of your MINI, you’ve had some basic stereo install experience, and you can follow directions.

I installed the new door speakers first, and they made a noticeable difference with the Alpine HU even before installing the amplifier … Next I ran the new wiring harness – behind the stereo you disconnect the original plug and put it into a socket on the DPSM harness; a new plug from the harness then goes into the stereo and the other end of the (long & heavy) wiring goes to the rear right of the trunk. No problem with my Alpine HU – the plug just goes into its adaptor instead of into the stock stereo. You do end up with some hefty plugs / wiring to hide away, but there’s easy space behind the glove box which you should remove during installation.

The DPSM amplifier installs in the space behind the access panel in the rear right of the trunk (same location as the H/K amp – but since DPSM & H/K are incompatible, that’s not a problem). The kit appears to use the H/K bracket, so you have to drill four holes in it for the DPSM, but then installation is simple.
The included fuse holder is impressively big; the one non-plug-and-play step is that you have to cut to length and connect the B+ cable from amplifier to fuse holder – this is because the same kit can do the MC (with battery in the front) or MCS (with battery in the trunk). Tightening the fuse holder was the one REALLY challenging task for me – it’s a very tight fit (which you want, to ensure no arcing).

 

Finally, the rear speakers … in a normal MINI it would be easy, replacing the original rear 6×9 speakers with the DPSM ones – plug & play again. But in GPMINI there’s no position for the speakers although luckily the stock wiring is present (needed since the DPSM runs speaker signals from amplifier up to the original stereo wiring connector, then uses the original wiring to get the signals to the speaker positions).
So … I made a couple of temporary speaker enclosures; and yes, believe it or not, I used cardboard boxes and duct tape!

Thankfully everything worked perfectly the first time when I switch on; all four speakers are working and there’s a LUDICROUS amount of volume available! My Alpine is rated 18W RMS and has a volume range of 0-35; I typically listened at between 11 and 15 depending on content.
With the DPSM I’m listening at around 6 – turning it up to the old range is already too loud; I can’t imagine the volume if I take it up into the 20s or higher …
Of course I’ve gone from 18W x 2 to 80W x 4 so there’s bound to be more volume – but there’s no loss of clarity. I’m sure you’d get similar results with the stock stereo which probably is rated around 15W RMS.

What next?
Although my cardboard speaker enclosures are working, they’re probably not the best 😉 and they don’t look all that great (I suppose I could paint them!) … but I plan now to have a proper enclosure built, replacing the GPs storage-instead-of-rear-seats area.
I’m still going to have a couple of 6″ JL Audio subs put in there too. I don’t feel like there’s the same level of bass as there is in GBMINI (which has those same subs installed) – of course the rear speakers might do better in a real enclosure, but I also like having the ability to control the subs separately (the Alpine has a sub level output adjustment).
So … watch this space! And if you’re in the area, listen for me coming 😉

This is a tale of failed experiments on GPMINI … don’t read if you don’t like failure!

The plan: quieten GPMINIs interior to reduce the rumble of road noise, and install new speakers to improve the (sub)bass response.
Actions: install loads of Dynamat Extreme on all the panels I can access, and install Kicker KS6.2 speakers which look to have great low frequency performance!

 

Results: The Kicker KS6.2 speakers are HORRENDOUS! They only stayed in GPMINI one weekend – and that was because I didn’t drive it! There is so much high frequency from them, they’re incredibly harsh and gave me a headache within 5-10 minutes of listening to them. Turning down the treble on the HU didn’t help much, it just made everything sound muddy. I’d selected the Kickers to get more low end – but they didn’t seem any better at that either! So the stock speakers went back in.

I first drove GPMINI with all the Dynamat installed but none of the rear panels back in. It was amazing how LOUD the exhaust noise was – of course there’s two air vents at the back of the MINI that were not covered by the trim piece under the hatch … I stuffed them with foam, and I re-installed the carpet that covers the battery (and has some good thick foam sound deadening on it); that got the exhaust noise under control again.
But I can’t claim any noticeable reduction in road rumble from the tires, due to the Dynamat Extreme. It claims exactly that – to reduce road rumble – but it doesn’t seem to make much difference (and I added 20lb of Dynamat to the car!)
Of course when I add the rear panels back, there might be some further noise reduction, but the Dynamat is no “magic bullet” for quieting GPs!

My next plan is to stick some foam batting to the back of the trim panels before I re-install them – maybe that will help (at least it won’t add much weight!)

As for improving the stereo, I had an idea to install a subwoofer in one rear foam storage tray but I’ve decided now that all this DIY experimentation isn’t good for me – it’s very frustrating when it doesn’t work as I’d hoped! So, time to find an expert …

After replacing the blue LEDs in the Alpine stereo for GPMINI, I’ve finally succeeded in changing all the green LEDs too – compare the new and original:

This job was a nightmare, even with reasonably suitable tools at work, due to the tiny size of the “0603” LEDs:

The more I did, the harder it got – just trying to see which end was anode and cathode is almost impossible, and the LEDs are connected in pairs on the board so if one didn’t work, two would be off! In the last picture I’ve changed all of them (took about 1-1/2 hours) but two are off – I had to resolder both because I couldn’t tell which one was the problem 😦

Anyway, it’s done! And it does look much better than blue & green in GPMINI … I originally planned to modify the second Alpine too (that will soon go in GBMINI) but I don’t think I will now; it was simply too frustrating.

(if you’re thinking of doing something similar, I used Digikey p/n 160-1121-1-ND for the two larger LEDs, and 160-1180-1-ND for the many small ones)