[JustAWhisper]

Hello all.

I just bought an M2 in September, and like many people here, quickly noticed the HK audio system is hot garbage. I was quite surprised and disappointed, considering my E46 M3 also has an HK branded audio system that I mostly liked, and while people have complaints about that system too, it's pretty decent compared to this.

From searching a bunch of prior threads (including the Strangelove one) over the last month, it seems that an upgrade to all of the front speakers (except center channel which most people unplug) is a good starting point, which will hopefully fix a lot of the clarity issues. However, I'm not sure if it will fix the pathetically weak bass. From what I read, replacing the under-seat subwoofers won't do much without replacing the amp, which is both expensive and a PITA due to electronics integration issues. Does that sound about right?

So I'm trying to figure out a path forward. I don't mind throwing a little money at the problem, since I plan to keep the car for a decent amount of time, but I was originally hoping to keep it to 3 digits (<$1000). I can DIY stuff to an extent, but I don't like cutting or modifying components to make them fit. I'm also skeptical of my ability to tune an amp as I have no experience doing that.

Unfortunately, it seems replacing the amp at all will bust my $1000 soft cap, as the only one that seem to work are the MATCH UP 7BMW one or the vendor modified ones from Bimmertech and Bavsound.

Since it's Holiday shopping seasons and there might be some deals out there, I wanted to ask a few questions to help narrow down my options and potentially buy something in the next few weeks.

1. So the Eton speakers seem to be pretty popular for front replacement; how plug and play are those? It seems they are made specific for BMW's, which is a good sign. Unfortunately, I'm having trouble finding them available at a mainstream store in the US, or frankly any English documentation on them at all (instructions for installation, etc.). Is there a good website in English that talks about them in more detail?

2. the rear speaker replacement recommended in the Strangelove thread is available, but Crutchfield says it does not fit, so I assume modification is involved, but the Strangelove thread doesn't specify what that is. Can anyone clarify that?

3. Obviously the two big American BMW audio companies, Bavsound and Bimmertech, have probably the most plug and play kits on the market. But they're kind of pricey. I'm also disappointed that you can't customize their kits to delete the center channel upgrade that will probably be unplugged. Bimmertech for whatever reason insists on making you buy the subwoofers first. Is that just a weird website thing, or do they really insist on buying the all-inclusive kits?

Moving on to amps.

4. The MATCH UP 7BMW amp is the most widely recommended here on this forum. I found it for $1000 at Crutchfield, so it's easy to get at least. Unfortunately documentation is still a little limited, but Crutchfield's website is helpful. It looks like tuning is pretty easy, but does it come with a default DSP setup that works with the stock speakers? I find when learning a new skill like this, it helps a lot to have a decent default to start from, and then I can figure out incremental improvements. If I'm starting completely from scratch, that would be a lot more difficult and time consuming.

5. I've seen a bunch of negative posts about the Bimmertech PP86 amp, but nothing that clearly states what the problem is. Is it just a more limited capability compared to the MATCH UP one? They're both made by Audiotec-Fischer.

6. Bavsound discontinued their tuned MATCH UP amp and have just introduced a new amp to replace it. Initially they set the price at $1600(!), but now it shows about $1100 on the website. I haven't seen much info about it, and no one has talked about it here on the forum yet. Does anyone know what's different about it compared to the previous amp? It looks like they changed to a different base model, as the picture doesn't look like the MATCH UP one anymore. I'm curious if anyone has any more info on it. I asked Bavsound, but the customer service rep said details TBD. I guess they're still getting the product finalized. One thing it does seem to suggest is that there is no custom tuning allowed, and you need either a full stock speaker setup OR a full Bavsound setup. This suggests that having Bavsound speakers with stock subs is not an option, though maybe it isn't that big of a deal.

7. Is there any obvious options I've missed? It seems like the number of things that actually fit are pretty limited.

I appreciate any thoughts people can share.