E Class sounds system upgrade retro fit questions

[Stormbitch]

Yes Gizze you were correct -

This JL though is ridiculously good. I just went out side and played Live to Tell Madonna a decent 320 master and was close to being blown away.

Sound is good when you sit and stare into space hearing a song.

Get a JL do it,do it, do it.

The hertz does need the software and currently there is no software to download for it for a mercedes w212 sound upgrade. A product to me has to provide me with maximum wow per pound with minimum nonsense. Hertz sounds like hassle to me.

 

[gIzzE]

Hetz/Helix do all the leg work for you and upload their settings, however, the dealer can also calibrate the system too using a laptop and the software in the link above.

It can achieve extremely good results in regard to the soundstage and frequencies and means you can get a sound you really, really like.
However, you really need to do that yourself imho as I personally don't like a flat response, I prefer to warm things up a little, so although getting someone to do it for you may give you a flat response it may not be the sound you like.

That's why I wouldn't be worried about being supplied with a preset anyway, I would want to get in there and tweak the EQ and time alignment myself.

 

[Dr-Nab]

So all in all you'd recommend the JL XD400/4 then? ...Better get down to my local car audio specialists see what they will do for me!

 

[Stormbitch]

Where are you ? Take to Huets..

They sent me a note to say that normally this would take five hours of labour! I am asking them about this?

 

[Dr-Nab]

Nottingham, so it's about 4 hours to get to them!

 

[Stormbitch]

Right fair enough unless you were planning a dirty weekend in Brighton anyway.. fair play.

Nottingham car audio have been helpful to me.

 

[Stormbitch]

Right now I am ******....right off....

I have lived with this AMP power on power off clunk for a few days and I am going mental with it...

A 45k Car does not have a F clunk and I want it gone.

---

I have emailed the fitters for ideas and also sent this note to JL audio myself -

Do you have any ideas?

--

My installer Huet Audio Brighton have fitted this amplifier into my car.

But the amplifier makes a clunking noise when switching on the factory head unit and also when switching it off.

Is this normal for your products? And why can my fitter not remove this noise. He claims it comes from the head unit but this cannot be possible as it is Mercedes and also the noise was not present however feint previously.

Could you please let me have some form of information, or do I assume that JL amps are not compatible with Mercedes E Class.

Ends.

 

[Dr-Nab]

should try having a rattling dash pod like mine thats constantly chirping away like a cricket drives me insane 3 "fixes" later it looks like a new upper dash for me!

sounds like something's not connected right so the power up/down of the amp is interfering with the line out for the sound? I had something similar a while ago in an old car ok it wasn't an MB but I'd gone for an aftermarket sound system and the remote on the HU went across the pre out to the amp (not in a connection kinda way) with the wires in a big tangle, sorted the wires out and the pop on power up/down disappeared.

Guess it depends on how they've wired the amp in, if they've cut corners etc.. an amp is an amp whichever way you look at it, if it's the standard MB amp or an aftermarket JL amp they're going to be wired in a similar way, all you're actually doing is using something more powerful to drive the speakers?

 

[Stormbitch]

What line of work you in. your car is f amazing.

Yes dash issues - take back - customer not fit for purpose and so on.. they will fix...

Its just not right that the customer has to buy X more devices to make X work as it should in the first place.. in my case ... I am livid.. i thought I could live with it but cannot AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

I need some techinicial man

Its also is emerging that JL are not good for OEM integration.. according to another fitter due to the fact that JL amps do not have a signal sensing mechanism or time delay switch on option...

 

[gIzzE]

You amp is turning on when it gets a signal over the speaker wires, however this does't happen until you are in the car and the head unit turns on, and that is why you hear a clunk.

A couple of units will sense the ic chip in the head unit, Vibe do with their Litebox range, and this the amp will turn on as soon as you unlock the car.


Other option is find out what signals wake up/go to sleep when you unlock/lock the car and take a remote turn on signal from that.

 

[timskemp]

I've got my amp remote taken from a switched signal from the rear SAM, not having any pops with mine but am only driving a sub from it.

 

[timskemp]

should try having a rattling dash pod like mine thats constantly chirping away like a cricket drives me insane 3 "fixes" later it looks like a new upper dash for me!

Is it all the time, or only at certain times and days? Mine's doing that...

 

[Dr-Nab]

All the time, the dash pod where the dials sit has been taken out a few times and refitted, it's had felt matting put underneath it to solidify it (as it flexes very easily) but the creaking/ cricket noise or whatever you want to call it is caused by the far edge of the pod rising up and flexing against the curved perspex that covers the dials, did a 120 ish mile round trip today mainly motorways and it's driving me insane, fortunately the techs and the service manager have said if what they've done hasn't resolved it the only option is to replace the whole top of the dash and see if that works.

Unfortunately them attempting to fix that is how they damaged two of my alloys and one tyre... got a new tyre just alloys haven't been sorted yet!

 

[Stormbitch]

@DRNAB Yes - it seems that Mercedes are happy to fix it. One has to relax with these things where possible and have a kind of "knowing" that it will be sorted. To be fair to Mercedes they are quite good at getting something fixed and not arguing about in or out of warranty.

My advice might be to exercise your gentle rights and rather than piss about just ask them please to do the most they can do and then forget about it.

As for the wheels this is a tricky one. And might have been caused by the 11 year old not knowing how to drive a car with big wheels - again i think they are fair on that so long term its frustrating but they wil fix it.

Anyway we digress OP - HIJAAAAAAACKKKKK... ( only joking )

I have spoken to Huet's Car Audio today who calmly put my mind at rest that they will without question irrevocably find a way to remove this clunk noise. They are like the holy grail of show car sound upgrades.

It has emerged through research that JL amps are not necessarily recommended as the best option for OEM integration, which concerns me after I championed them here ( apologies ). The sound is good sure, but after 2 days in your silent barge of clunk on and off, it's enough to make you loose the plot and the will to live. Not Huet's fault.

The plan now is to look at JL directly and ask them why they do not have a time delay mechanism on their amps, and what makes them non compatible, and if they have comment on how to solve this matter without choosing another option.

Audison and Alpine both have time delay non clunk pop bang options - Yet Huets explained that the integrity of the sound is now a concern, by changing the amp the sound quality might not be as desirable. In their defense they were trying to get me the most sound possible and were not aware of how acute and irritating a mild clunk would be. And it is mild.

So far I would not recommend a JL amp until this thread has been modified unless there are options you have to remove noises.

-

I am currently waiting on some more technical tips from you which I can propose to them, even though they are the UK market leaders, there might be something they can still learn from anoraks.

-

A good learning curve for the E Class W212 sound system upgrade which hopefully will cure a lot of people's concerns - I will post more when I have more Intel. Additionally I will post the options open to you should you wish to fit a sub to an E Class post 2009

They are lovely people if you want to ring them for tech info 01273 441845

 

[Stormbitch]

Is it all the time, or only at certain times and days? Mine's doing that...

Yours is doing what?

What do you have?

Mine is all day most days.

 

[Stormbitch]

Harmon Kardon comparison

If you are thinking about the Harmon Kardon option and can afford it, I would recommend it, having listened to it today but...

My full thoughts are here having listened to the new CLS model with the same set up as the E Class W212.

The Harmon is better than the Harmon sound in a BMW but for true audio people I think you might feel a little let down.

Yes it has a full car of sound which is a nice feeling. As the sound engulfs you rather than is directly from anywhere. But for the money I think someone like Huets would do a better job.

Its not that I would not order the Harmon I think I would as its fun, but I couldn't help but feel there was a sort of processed sound to the music. Similarly the sound only sounded EXCELLENT on one or two tracks and pretty damn OK on most. This is a concern, as when you listen to a Bose system for example ( not a IPOD Dock ) this is tuned to sound amazing on every single song... The Bose 5.1 system for example.

The Harmon Kardon site shows you a diagram of the speakers mentioned in this OP and as you can see it has very many. Whilst this helps to have a full all car engulfing effect it concerned me.

This is a 70,000 car. And I rather think a 70k car should sound great and any upgrades there after should be nothing less than astonishing and this is just not that.

Look its very good. When you turn it up loud, but at low volume it misses class. Even Joe Bloggs I am 91 and don't care about sound would wonder why he does not get the same sound per pound as he would spending on a home 5.1 system from Bose for example. Which brings me on to my next point.

The sound system sounded "in car" to me. And I don't feel that "in car" needs to sound like its in a car, that almost claustrophobic restricted sound. I think the car is the perfect place in fact to display exceptional sound. Where else can you have a captive audience with no outside noise in a small space? Brilliant.

It is the same with Logic 7 - what is the point of 21 speakers and 5.1 sound in a car? Can't we have 8 speaker and be done with it?

I harp back to the boring yawn like Alpine retro upgrade and what made me impressed was how BMW and Alpine banged their heads together and created something marvelous for £570 fitted. Certainly the CLS would have a warmer more engulfing sound but for the price difference I think I would opt to save £1500 and be done with the Alpine. This example shows that retro or factory sound systems do not have to cost the earth. My plan would be to upgrade my E Class then do a like for like listen with a panel to see if a better sound or equitable sound can be achieved for much less money.

 

[Niks]

This thread makes me laugh lol (sorry)

 

[Stormbitch]

And whys that -

 

[Stormbitch]

I recently added a JL XD 400 to my Mercedes - which has improved the OEM sound.

I was considering adding a sub and enclosure to that - yet my mother nearly fell off her chair when I mentioned this involved cutting a hole in my rear seats.

The car is set up as follows.

2 x 6 inch front doors
2 x tweeters in pillars
2 x 6 inch rear doors.

I moved the sound frequencies to the rear doors to only play mid bass and left the fronts to power the other frequencies. It sounds remarkably nice.

So in the notion that I do not need a great deal more and DO NOT want to cut the car - I was thinking off adding the Harmon Kardon Sub that comes with upgrades for Mercedes and fitting this and powering it myself. Although this is not ideal - this allows a bit more bass - without cutting the car, or paying someone to make a carpet box!

I enclose the Mercedes Benz Harmon Kardon Car Map including the speaker.

Can you see any issues with me doing this? And would you bother adding the two surround speakers too?

The sub which is a 8x12 has a bracket and there is no need for enclosure due to reverse magnet and the hole is ready in the car parcel shelf?

Thoughts?

Alternative reverse magnet options?

Harman Kardon Mercedes E-Class Sedan - Technical Details

 

[jlb777]

Hi There Stormbitch,
I have spent the last hour reading through your forum postings regarding your trials and tribulations with your car audio upgrades, really interesting and of immense use.

I was hoping you could very kindly answer the following please:-

1 - Do you still experience the clunking noise from the amp / speakers? If not, how was this fixed?
2 - Where did Huets install the amp? I.e. boot, or hidden somewhere?
3 - Did you go for the HK sub in the parcel shelf in the end? If so, we where did you buy it from?
4 - Would you still recommend the same upgrades today? I.e. the JL amp and HK sub.
5 - Did Huets take care and respect when working on your car, I.e. not scratching anything and being careful when pulling panels off etc?

Big thanks in advance....

James - soon to be a Merc / w212 owner for first time