[Jazzman528]

THE DECISION

After promising myself for years to add a descent sound system to my car, and waiting through a 325IS, Tundra, Toyota FJ Cruiser and even a Passat, I finally pulled the trigger and installed a pair of FOCAL IFBMW-S plug & play speakers into my 2014 528i BMW. I considered many options, but after hearing the superior quality of FOCAL K2s over other generic-fit speakers, and also owning a pair of FOCAL studio monitors (I mix music professionally), I decided on the FOCAL integration series IFBMWs. I wish there were a way to audition the BAV Stage ones and Gladen options, but I have not found anyway to do that without buying them. No one has these on display in LA. I am writing this post because I found other posts here to be helpful and also because the install videos that I found left out a few important details that others may like to know about.








THE INSTALL

I called and spoke to at least 10 installers about different speakers and install options. Al & Eds, Pacific Audio – even some place in Orange County. All of them wanted over $130 to install these. But after watching the BAV sound video on YOUtube, [u2b]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRy5-f9OJss [/u2b] I got up the nerve to dig in dirty and tear off the door panels of this $60K+ car myself! The shop where I bought the speakers wanted $200 to install, but was nice enough to warn me to not test the speakers while the door panel is off because there is a sensor in the car that will go off and the dealer charge upwards of $170 bucks to reset it.
I picked up a pack of TORX drill bits (15,25,30 size) at Home Depot for $5 which are needed to get the door panel off. I also got a right-angle drill attachment in case I want to install another pair of FOCALs in the rear ($17). Already had a drill and a hex bit to get the speaker bolts off . The tools were simple.




The plastic prying tool that FOCAL gives you with the speakers is very effective and sturdy. I started with the passenger door and was able to pry off the wood grain strip without too much trouble. Began at the left side and slowly worked to the right until the strip sat out about an inch. There is a little clasp that can be pinched closed with the FOCAL tool to release the catch.







Next I pried off the plastic cover behind the door handle. This is a bit tricky, Be careful not to pull too hard. Takes a bit of fiddling and seemed to work best to free the right side first.






Next step in getting the panel off was to use the TORX 30 bit and remove two screws holding the panel to the door. One of them is pretty far recessed, so I took a pair of needle-nose pliers and pulled it out like the old, Milton-Bradley “Operation” board game (“be careful not to touch the sides”…LOL).




Finally, after about 30 minutes, I took the FOCAL tool and gently began prying the bottom left hand part of the panel itself. There are little white plastic “snaps” that pop out as you gently pull the panel away. Be careful not too yank the panel off too quickly as you may pop off some of the cables.










The door hangs by thick cables and I decided to just remove the old speaker by laying the panel in my lap and unscrewing the 3 bolts that hold it on.





BMW should be ashamed of themselves for the Goodwill/DAV speakers (left pic above) that they put into these luxury cars. I could not believe how cheap and chinky the factory speakers felt. The magnet was ridiculously small and the cone material was thin and brittle feeling. The FOCAL speakers (pic above) were much heavier and better constructed. (See the comparison photos below).





Getting the blue plastic connectors off of the factory speakers was difficult. I had to use the forked end of the FOCAL tool to release the clasps holding them in. Also, it took a while to find where to plug the FOCAL-supplied cable into the system. I was looking for some sort of connector or something. It turns out, you plug one end of their cable directly onto the blue connectors that came off of the factory speaker. Having this info in the video or the FOCAL booklet instructions would have saved 20 minutes or more. After that, I secured the new speaker cables to the door
with the provided tie wrap.

The first FOCAL speaker had a bent post (see photo below) which I interpreted as “non-important.” Therefore, I plugged the cable onto the post on the far left. THIS WAS THE WRONG POST. I ended up having to remove the door panel after everything had been put back just to reconnect the cable to the correct (center) post. Did I mention that I mix music for a living? I should have known better, but this time I was distracted by the excitement of it all.



As I was working, the door-handle cable popped off of the door (gray cable with black tip in photo –top right). I was able to figure out how to get it back on. There is a little clip that holds it in place. I later found out in another forum post that this would have caused the door to be un-open-able from inside or outside of the car. Glad that I got it back on.

Moving to the tweeters (with the door panel still off and out of the way), I popped the shark fin-shaped tweeter housing off and popped out the old tweeter. I could not get the blue cable connector to pop off, so I got frustrated and cut the wire! I have no plans to put back the factory tweeters, but I can splice wire if needed later. The housing has some weird foam and scotch tape holding the tweeter casing in place. Really BMW? Foam & tape?




Now it’s time to put the FOCAL tweeters into the BMW housing. They come in their own housing which you have to disassemble piece by piece. There is an outer plastic housing and then a small grill that needs to come off (the grill is not needed because there is one built into the BMW housing).






Takes a little puzzle-solving to get the old tweeter out and seat the new one. Look for a notch pattern and keep the wires toward the bottom of the shark fin housing and the tweeter will pop nicely and firmly into place. FOCAL machined this precisely!
Stuff the foam back into the housing and pop the whole housing back onto the door –making sure to leave the wire hanging out to be connected. Be careful to take your time and align the housing exactly as it was or you may get a gap between it and the door panel (as I did the first time). This is easier to do with the windows rolled down.
Next, replace the panel by lining up the white snaps (see pic below) to the holes in the door frame. The best approach is to tilt the frame down and slide in under the tweeter housing first, then drop the other side down flat to the outer edge. Remember to pop the little, black lock stem back through the hole in the panel so that it will pop up and down when you unlock the door. Very important! (SMILE)



I was ready to spend another hour putting the door panel back on. I thought that it would take forever. But it was back on in under a minute. Once I started hearing those little white snaps pop into place, everything just flowed. REMEMBER TO REPLACE THE TORX SCREWS before replacing the wood grain trim and the plastic handle cover. I forgot to do this on the second door (because by then I thought I was a pro installer and rushed it). The first door took me like, 2.5 Hours to do, but I was going really slow trying to do it right. The second door was like 45 minutes - hour.

THE VERDICT???? (HOW DO THEY SOUND……)

The new speakers sound fuller and clearer with pronounced lower mids/upper lows -very nice. The tweeter are super natural and transparent. Putting my ear to the tweeter, the hi-hat cymbals sound like I have my head next to the actual cymbal – not a speaker! I have heard that these FOCALs take a week to break in, but I am very happy with how they sound on the first day. However, the center channel speaker (still factory) seems to be more prominent now and is winning the volume war over the FOCALs slightly. I may decide to dsconnect that or add a FOCAL there as well (however, right now they only come in pairs so let me know if anyone out there wants to split the cost of a pair for the same purpose?)

THE FUTURE

For me, this was the way to approach an upgrade – start with just a pair of great speakers and work up. What had kept me from doing an upgrade all these years was the cost. Dropping $4500 on a set-up just kept me away. But now that I have jumped into the pool, I am sure that I will be adding a second set of these ISBMW FOCALs to the rear , a processor (Audison But one or JBL MS-8) and also getting a multi-channel JL amp to power the 4 to 5 speakers and the subs under the seat. I also suspect that since the FOCAL integration subs are out, I’ll upgrade to those as well. But I am waiting to hear some reviews on those and also to see how happy I would be with just more power to the factory subs first. I feel like I am making my little dream come true. I love music deeply (Jazz, R&B, Rock, Gospel, Hip-hop, Electronic, Deep House) and can’t believe it has taken this long to get a system. But living in LA, you spend too much time commuting not to have great sound. BMW needs to step up their audio game. Even the HK systems and upper end factory systems are booty. The car itself is baddass tho’! Maybe BMW stands for “But More Woofers” please. Cheers!!!

[combatbmw]

Very cool I was just reading about these speakers.
So you only did 2 speakers correct?
if so do you plan to do the rest?

How much did you pay for the speakers?
Thanks

[lsturbointeg]

Awesome write up! Will the speakers work with an aftermarket amp? Just wondering if the rms ratings is designed for the factory amp only? I'm running Focals in my Titan and I love em'! I would just disconnect the front speakers and run Focals in the rear. I've run 8's subs in my tundra and it hits pretty hard. Wondering if there's any 8's out there that'll do the same using the same enclosure under the seat? Maybe some shallow RE's?

[paul223]

Now you can upgrade center channel too, woofersetc.com has focal 4" midrange speaker. But you need to cut some surrounding foam to make it fit.

[Jazzman528]

Originally Posted by combatbmw

Very cool I was just reading about these speakers.
So you only did 2 speakers correct?
if so do you plan to do the rest?

Thanks

Yep, just 2 for now. Went to buy another pair today and discovered that the ifbmw model does not fit the center or rear slots. So I am looking at other options for the other speakers
9How much did you pay for the speakers?

$499 USD

[Jazzman528]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

Awesome write up! Will the speakers work with an aftermarket amp? Just wondering if the rms ratings is designed for the factory amp only? I'm running Focals in my Titan and I love em'! I would just disconnect the front speakers and run Focals in the rear. I've run 8's subs in my tundra and it hits pretty hard. Wondering if there's any 8's out there that'll do the same using the same enclosure under the seat? Maybe some shallow RE's?

Thanks. Yes, these are rated to work with aftermarket amps. 85w peak, 45w cont
But also sound good with factory amps. Focal makes an 8inch that drops directly under the seats. Probably gong to get those as well.

[Jazzman528]

Originally Posted by paul223

Now you can upgrade center channel too, woofersetc.com has focal 4" midrange speaker. But you need to cut some surrounding foam to make it fit.

Right, the thing is.... I realty don't want to cut it. My dealer can order a single FOCAL ifbmw and cut it to fit the center channel. But BAV sound makes one that drops right in. Bav sound makes speakers to fit your exact Bmw, full car. So... I may get the FOCAL for the center and modify it to fit. But then go Bav sound for the rears with no mod.

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by paul223

Now you can upgrade center channel too, woofersetc.com has focal 4" midrange speaker. But you need to cut some surrounding foam to make it fit.

Would u know the model #? And So I'm guessing no tweeter?

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by Jazzman528

Thanks. Yes, these are rated to work with aftermarket amps. 85w peak, 45w cont
But also sound good with factory amps. Focal makes an 8inch that drops directly under the seats. Probably gong to get those as well.

Is it just plug and play for the subs? Model #?

[Jazzman528]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

Is it just plug and play for the subs? Model #?

The subs are plug & play. Model # is FOCAL IFBMW-Sub.

$399 each!!!

[paul223]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

Would u know the model #? And So I'm guessing no tweeter?

Focal 4v3241 with cdt audio ex-530 crossover & cdt drt-26s tweeter. Crossover is under the speaker, it fits there fine. I had cdt HD4 in center before, but it was not efficient as the spec stated and could not play well @ 130 - 150 hz. Focal plays well down to 120hz plus it is more efficient as well.

[Jazzman528]

Originally Posted by paul223

Focal 4v3241 with cdt audio ex-530 crossover & cdt drt-26s tweeter. Crossover is under the speaker, it fits there fine. I had cdt HD4 in center before, but it was not efficient as the spec stated and could not play well @ 130 - 150 hz. Focal plays well down to 120hz plus it is more efficient as well.

Oh hell yeah!!! That looks super sweet man.
I may just have to cut into the foam after all!! Lol

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by Jazzman528

The subs are plug & play. Model # is FOCAL IFBMW-Sub.

$399 each!!!

[paul223]

Originally Posted by Jazzman528

Oh hell yeah!!! That looks super sweet man.
I may just have to cut into the foam after all!! Lol

You don't have to cut much foam if you install focal model i have. Probably just two notches for bottom two tabs. Previously, I had fitted CDT HD 4", that is why surrounding is bigger.

[CAF10]

Another alternative is to install RS-100 with an adapter. Perfect fit without hacking up any foam. If anyone interested, the ABS plastic adapter is available on E-bay. Since the Focal is rated at 4 ohm vs. OEM 2 ohm, the center will louder than the door speaker, even though the Focal has similar efficiency.

[Jazzman528]

Originally Posted by paul223

You don't have to cut much foam if you install focal model i have. Probably just two notches for bottom two tabs. Previously, I had fitted CDT HD 4", that is why surrounding is bigger.

Ok cool. I think I am going to go with the IFBMW-S model for the center speaker, but have the shop cut the housing of the speaker to make it fit. It will match the door speakers better in sound.

The center speaker is a 4" with 3 holes, but the housing is smaller than the focals, so you have to alter them to fit.

[fung0001]

Ivgot a pair of focal like yours
Still missing the center...
Will the focal fits into the front/ rear door holes as it is much thicker than stock speaker

[wheresmy5]

How do these compare to the bavsound?

Also, how do the underseat woofers from focal compare with the ones from bavsound?