2004 bmw 330i amps, speakers

Yup thats what I'm telling you.

Hmm.  Most headunits today have adjustable buttons that change color and what-not.  This is something you need to pick out for yourself.. to be honest, I've had the same headunit for some 4 years now I haven't look at the market in sometime.  Nakamichi used to be an incredibly competetive manufacturer and their headunits are *very* simple and have orange buttons.  And 24-bic DAC's.   Not sure how obtainable they are these days though.. and I'm also not sure about bluetooth functionality.  But Nak definately should be on your short list of manufacturers given your specifications above. 

http://www.nakamichi.com/home.html

I'm a pretty straight forward audio guy and I'm not a big fan of complex installations .. what precisely do people need bluetooth in a car for anyway..?

One more thing.. regardless of features/price, I'd highly recommend you stay away from Pioneer... *every* week on this board someone else with a Pioneer headunit goes through 200 posts trying to figure out his ground-noise issues.  Everyone that has a Pioneer and an aftermarket amplfier will also have alternator whine.  Very cheap, cheesy, gimmicky CD players.

Yea tell me about it.  I hated my $400 Alpine for years for this exact reason until I discovered its one redeeming quality ... the onboard active xover.  Generally, you'll find that after you install a *real* system, you won't be adjusting things like treble and bass and what-not all the time like you have to with a factory system.  Looking at your equipment list, I think you will fall well into the range of "sounding good all the time" ... 

I *seriously* doubt it... and again, this particular requirement will add substantial cost/installation difficulty to your system... I'm also not sure of any headunits that do this.. I think Pioneer had a line of DoubleDIN players a few years ago that had this functionality, but you might want to ask this exact question in another thread or search around a bit with the search function...  thinking about the wiring harnesses and vehicle specific issues with this I really couldn't help you much here.

Its getting harder and harder to find a rationally designed headunit.  Or, as you are discovering, a rationally designed factory system.

I wish I could tell you a quick, easy, and cheap way to do what you want, but integrating aftermarket componets into cars like a 330 is an excercise in frusteration and unreasonable expense.  I don't buy cars that cost more than $20K because the stereos are too hard to remove.  I've passed up numerous cars because of the level of difficulty in removing the factory system.  I know one guy who got within 20 minutes of signing papers on a new RX8 ... until he tried to pull the stereo out real quick.... ya know.. see how hard it would be to remove the stereo.  Mazda's stereo cost them a sale.

The strange part is, as hard as these systems are to modify, they generally don't sound very good in the first place.

Well, finding the radio is probably going to take our OP some time...  but he does need to rewire the entire system.  scottmrtsports, you also need to take time to make sure you don't have some critical car-function.. like a factory anti-theft system or something.. built into your CD player or aftermarket amplifier.  Alot of cars now have really strange functions built into things that need to be removed in an aftermarket stereo installation.. Honda Civics were guilty of this for years. 

Normally I tell everyone they can do it themselves, but here I really would take your car to the best shop in town and see what they recommend...  I've done a Z3 and watched a old 5-series get a stereo, but someone with experience with your exact vehicle would really be in the best position to authoritatively answer all of your questions.

scottmtrsports, the installation you want done here really is quite difficult.

Thanks for your reply. I have been looking for a nice head unit that will do what I want and incorporate into my car without looking like some high school kid technocrap. The Nakamichi stuff looks great but doesn't have bluetooth capability, other than that it would be perfect and I know and trust the name.

I have been talking with local shops and installers that claim that they have done more than a few of these cars. None of them seem too worried about the factory sytem or any thing that may be incorporated into the head unit. (which is made by alpine) Because I now will be replacing the entire system. I have found that PAC makes an interface for the steering wheel controls that will fit my car and it works with Alpine, Kenwood, and a few others with wired remote connections. It seems fairly simple to install with the exception of finding the correct lead to splice into. And it's cheap $70.00

Why bluetooth? Ever try to drive a six speed around town or in commute traffic while talking on the phone? Besides if it is integrated I can crank the tunes and not miss an important call because it will mute the system automatically when a call comes in. Pretty handy if you like to listen loud.

Somehow I keep coming back to Alpine for a head unit. CDA9885 looks pretty appealing, it has bluetooth, wired remote connection, 4volt preamp outputs, and a host of other features that at least sound good on paper. It doesn't look as complicated to operate as the wifes slidebar Alpine, but also doesn't have the adjustable lighting that hers has either, only red or blue/red.

Are the 4 volt outputs a good thing? I noticed that the CDA9883 is the same except that the preamp outputs are 2 volt and it doesn't come with the remote control (optional and will ever be used) and costs about $100.00 less.

I really was considering having this system installed, but I think that I can handle it. Without the factory crap complicating things I don't think that it will be all that bad. Besides there is always the pride of a job well done and knowing that you did it yourself and the reassurance of knowing that some kid didn't screw something up and hide it, or rig it.

Scott

Talking on the phone hands free is no different than having a conversation with a passenger. The problem with phones, mp3 players, nav systems, even stereo's are that people forget where there priority's are. Driving comes first and I have no problem telling a caller to hold while I manuever through traffic. We have all seen the idiots who cannot talk and walk at the same time, but I have seen more accidents caused by people screwing with their stereo's, finding CD's, changing channels, putting on makeup, reading, eating, and just plain not paying attention to what they are doing. Cell phones are a way of life and they are not going anywhere. I just wish that people would put driving first, everything else is secondary. Having an integrated phone sytem has been proven to be far safer than holding a phone. With an integrated system you can keep both hands free to drive instead of having to take your eyes off the road to look for and fumble around to grab a phone. With the advent of bluetooth you no longer have to invest in an expensive, single use proprietary hands free sytem. If you get a new phone (which you will) you simply have to sync it to your bluetooth sytem and you are done.

I encourage everyone with a phone to add this system to their "system". It is more than a convenience, it is a safety issue. Your insurance deductable is probably higher than the cost of one of these systems. Who knows your insurance may even give you a discount for having one installed.

This, I think, is a valuable specification.  Line voltage does wonders in overriding ambient vehicle electrical noise that can produce *very* obnoxious auditory anomolies.. like alternator whine and what-not.  A 2v pre-out really is an anemic voltage and I would *never* consider a head unit with a specification this low unless it was going in a car w/o an amplfier.

Alpine is a strong choice if you an overcome that cumbersome interface we were discussing above.

Good luck dude.  Post back with updates and questions.

Well, its all installed now and I couldn't be happier. It has been a while since I have had this nice of a system in my car to listen to. I really didn't know what I was missing. I did the entire install myself and although it took longer than I had anticipated it is worth every bit of effort. I still have some fine tuning of the amps to do and I think that I damaged the factory antenna lead stuffing the head unit in, but other than that it all went well and everything is working properly without any problems with the car or the system. My seventeen year old daughter is jealous because it bumps harder than any of her friends and I find myself listening to music that I wouldn't have before just because it sounds so good. I think that I may even have become one of those annoying drivers whose system can be felt over other peoples own stereo's. Oh well lighten up and live a little.

If anyone has any advice on how to repair the antenna lead I would sure appreciate it. I kinked it at the factory plug and I think that I may have broken the wire.

I want to thank everyone who posted to this thread. I would have made some costly mistakes without your help. So thank you, and thanks to 12 volt for creating this site.

Scott