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Thread: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

  1. Back To Top    #11
    Noob ejeffrey's Avatar
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    Eric
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    San Jose
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    2009 BMW 335i
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    54
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    Dec 2019

    Re: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

    Came home to a package full of wire and accessories Crutchfield yesterday! And a nice bonus was that I got 4ft. of 1/0ga cable instead of the 1ft. I ordered, so that will save some money on a future install. The Crutchfield power cable looks to be really good quality and it's reasonably priced. While the T-Spec (Metra) distribution block isn't terribly sexy, it also seems to be good quality and it is going to be hidden anyway.

    I did immediately find that crimping a ring terminal is a massive pain without the proper tool, but thankfully I was able to make it solid with an old allen wrench, a vice, and a ton of brute force.

    I made a bracket for the fused distribution block out of some scrap aluminum. First, I made a rough template out of some cereal box cardboard, then made some adjustments and transferred to another template. This was transferred to the aluminum, cut out, and bent to shape and holes drilled. Things take longer when you don't have a metal shop at your disposal, but that's how it goes.

    I also painted it satin black but the picture didn't turn out too well. I'll likely have it mounted in the car tonight which means I can run more wiring.



  2. Back To Top    #12
    Refuses to grow up... mumbles's Avatar
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    Eric
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    ATL
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    Sep 2016

    Re: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

    Great work so far, super impressed by that grille and using the bolts to form the shape!

  3. Back To Top    #13
    Noob ejeffrey's Avatar
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    Eric
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    San Jose
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    2009 BMW 335i
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    Dec 2019

    Re: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

    Quote Originally Posted by mumbles View Post
    Great work so far, super impressed by that grille and using the bolts to form the shape!
    Thanks! It's the first time I've ever pressed a grille, so it was total and complete shock when it turned out exactly like I wanted.

    I've been following your S5 build, too. Lots of nice touches, and the A-pillars are way too cool.

  4. Back To Top    #14

    Re: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

    I've got an E91 and went the simple route - A-F Match UP7BMW, Match speakers, a Helix D One sub & an Image Dynamics ID10 in a fiberglass box very similar to yours.
    I'm jealous of your kit & will be following this one.

    One learning I had - I originally went with a Massive Audio amp in the spot where you're mounting your hardware. It absolutely killed my FM radio reception. Grounding didn't help, and I didn't feel like building a faraday cage... so I changed amps & put it in a different spot.
    Here's a couple pics of my e91...





    Original amp & location - this didn't work out for me. I blame the amp.

  5. Back To Top    #15
    Noob ejeffrey's Avatar
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    Eric
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    San Jose
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    2009 BMW 335i
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    54
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    Dec 2019

    Re: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

    Got a lot of wiring done. Most of the work of running the power cable is finished and the signal cable is laid in to where it will go. Still need to run turn-on and power/ground for the DSP, but that should go pretty quickly. The zip ties that don't have the end clipped yet are a bit loose to allow for some adjustment when I wrap everything up. I had to do a lot of thinking about how I wanted to route the power and signal cable to the amp in the side panel to minimize noise, but I think this should be good.

    And yes, that is duct tape which I'm not a fan of, but I wanted the ground cable to be recessed in that channel and cable tie mounts would have pushed it up too far. I got the tape from a friend that works in HVAC and it has held really well in my attic so I'm not worried about it.

    I had made a mount for the 1200.6 amp a while back out of 1/2" MDF that is mounted to the factory amp bracket. I had to trim the factory bracket a bit to get it to fit, but it doesn't affect the factory amp so I can very easily go back to stock.

    I'm to the point in the install now where I'm probably going to have to go without sound for a while. I need to run the wire for the front speakers so those can be put in, and I need to finish the new floor trim so I can permanently mount the amps and DSP. All that involves having more than the trunk apart. Thankfully starting Saturday I'll be on vacation for two weeks (traveling for 8 days) so hopefully the timing will work out well if the weather holds.


















  6. Back To Top    #16
    Noob ejeffrey's Avatar
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    Eric
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    San Jose
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    2009 BMW 335i
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    54
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    Dec 2019

    Re: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

    Had to make some changes to the power/ground wire paths to accommodate fitment, but made more progress on getting everything connected and tied down. DSP is fully wired and the 600.4 only needs speaker wire which I'll run when I install the front speakers.







  7. Back To Top    #17
    Noob ejeffrey's Avatar
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    Eric
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    San Jose
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    2009 BMW 335i
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    54
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    Dec 2019

    Re: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

    Since I'm trying to keep the floor height as low as possible, I made trim panels out of 1/4" MDF. The lower one in the first pics has spacer blocks which support it at the front and locate it with the same dowel/hole arrangement I used for the amp and DSP baffles. It's covered in 3M 1080 vinyl in brushed aluminum finish to match the interior trim. It's hard to bend the vinyl around sharp corners like that without it tearing, so if I were to do it again I'd probably put a 1/8" round on the top (which would probably look better, anyway) and use a hair dryer instead of a heat gun for better and more even heat control.

    The upper piece was pretty straightforward, with the flip-up in the back attached with glue and filler. The front curve was formed with stacked MDF and smoothed with more filler. This panel also locates with the same dowel/hole arrangement.

    The flat floor panel just mimics the factory one. It would be nice to have the same pull handle as the factory one, but it's permanently mounted and BMW wants a ton of money for a new one so I can do without. The storage space is useless, anyway.

    The next tasks are to carpet the new floor panels, install the front speakers, and mount/wire the 1200.6.















    Last edited by ejeffrey; 12-20-2019 at 11:31 PM.

  8. Back To Top    #18
    Noob ejeffrey's Avatar
    Real Name
    Eric
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    San Jose
    Vehicle
    2009 BMW 335i
    Posts
    54
    Join Date
    Dec 2019

    Re: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

    Lots of work this past weekend and yesterday. All speaker wire is run to the front doors and to the underseat midbass, and the cable is run to the center console for the subwoofer level control. The constant power wire for the DSP had to be relocated to tap into the 600.4 amp because the constant power on the factory amp harness turned out to be constant only most of the time.

    Underseat midbass installed and enclosures dampened, midrange installed in the door panels with 1/4" MDF adapters, and the tweeters snapped into the factory locations.

    Seeing the pics now I realize that I shouldn't have zoomed in so closely, and there are lots of pics that I wish I would have taken for the front door wiring. Getting two 16ga. cables through each door was really tough. The plugs didn't have enough space to drill anything out, so I ran the wires through a small notch in the bottom of each plug but space was at the very limit. WD-40 helped ease getting them through the boots. Once inside the doors, I wrapped the wire in tesa tape and zip tied to every factory anchor point.

    I tried to get the 1200.6 mount bolted in the car, but there's so much wiring that I had trouble routing everything properly and I ran out of time. Really all that's left is installing that amp, upholstering the floor panels, and installing the sub level control.


















  9. Back To Top    #19

    Re: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

    Wow, nice work man!
    2019 Jeep Wrangler 2 Door - Morel Elate 3 way, Mmats HiFi 6150 & M2000.2, Hutchinson NDFEB 10", MiniDSP w/DL, Fiio X5

    #TRUMP2020

  10. Back To Top    #20
    Noob ejeffrey's Avatar
    Real Name
    Eric
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    San Jose
    Vehicle
    2009 BMW 335i
    Posts
    54
    Join Date
    Dec 2019

    Re: 2009 BMW 335i SQ Build Log

    Quote Originally Posted by DavidRam View Post
    Wow, nice work man!
    Thanks, love following your Jeep and crazy box builds!

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