- 4/6/17: Added subwoofer box options
- 4/6/17: Added head unit options
- 4/12/17: Added "getting signal" section. Thanks to Doug97GXE for the input
- 5/25/18 Added new gear available
**More coming soon**
Subwoofer Box Options
We all agree the B8 is a great car. Unfortunately, it’s free-air subwoofer in the back deck is severely lacking when it comes to bass. That’s probably why a new subwoofer is the most popular upgrade for stereo fans. Let’s start there.
Custom Fiberglass Box
Mr. Spectacular has done a couple runs of right and left side trunk cubby fiberglasss boxes in 8” and 10”. These are available here: https://www.akrucarbon.com/product-p...r-side-sub-box Trunk pockets will need to be cut out from whichever side you install into.
QuattroRocket's box
SteveYem's box
B8 Subwoofer Shop
A new addition to the fold is the B8 Custom Subwoofer Shop located here: https://etsy.com/shop/customsubwoofershop
These come in 8” or 10” and utilize the passenger side trunk pocket. These don’t require any cutting of the carpet doors or relocating equipment to be able to go back to stock easily, but don’t sit as flush to the trunk wall due to having less room to work with. Many finishes and materials are available.
Stock Location Replacement
If you’re not a basshead and just want a bit better low end response than you’re getting now, replacing the factory sub with a better free air unit could be the answer. For this install, you may need to fight rattles on the back deck with sound dampener. Popular drivers for this install have been the free-air subs from Pioneer, such as the TS-SW841D. Some people have been able to use the factory amp to power these, and some have used aftermarket amps.
Jnicho1's setup
Hatchman's sub install
Head Units
With the B8, Audi integrated some non-audio OEM functions into the stereo and display unit, which made it more difficult to swap out head units.
Alpine
Alpine has a line of head units called "restyle" units, meaning they are made to go into a specific vehicle with OEM integrated functions maintained or even improved for said vehicle. The good news: Alpine makes one for the A4/S4/Q5. The bad news: they only make it for Europe. So what is a Concert stereo owner in the US to do?
You can install this in North America spec cars, and here's the tradeoffs:
Pros: 3 sets of 4v pre-outs, EQ, bluetooth phone and audio, NAV, HDMI input, high-res touchscreen, and previously unworking buttons being activated such as nav and talk commands. All OEM functions work correctly. Alpine also has a great install video on Youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwiPIYcLQ9Q
Cons: Head unit, left hand drive kit, rear camera and camera trunk handle mount, and updated US maps may run you $1500+ USD. You will also lose AM frequencies and the optional DVD player is coded to region 2 (Europe). There may be an optional region 1 unit that could work in this Euro head unit, but I would need confirmation from someone who has done it. If you plan on keeping the B&O amp, you'll also need to call Alpine Europe to get an extra part to adjust the signal level. Otherwise you will have a slight hiss over your audio.
Compatibility with different OEM stereo levels: This head unit is primarily made for Concert stereo with no nav or bluetooth audio, as they will see the most value. This unit is not compatible with Nav and MMI cars due to the optical connection between the head unit and amp. With that said, if you have nav but not MMI (does that exist?) and also changed out the amp to use the preouts from the Alpine, I don't see why this setup wouldn't work for you. If someone has done this head unit and aftermarket amp install with MMI, I would just want confirmation that this setup works before posting it here.
Chinese Models
There are various Chinese models that are "similar" to the Alpine, or just add certain components, such as bluetooth or HDMI, but there is little info in the forums about experiences using these. Please feel free to verify if you've used any of these successfully and we'll get it added to the thread. Some examples are:
http://www.carnaviplayer.com/audi-a4...ad-unit-p-1091
www.auto-electronics.com/index.php/dynavin-n6-a5.html
Getting signal with the factory head unit
For those of you who want to retain the factory head unit, but use aftermarket speakers and amp, how do we get that signal to the new amp?
Line-out convertors
When planning on upgrading just the subwoofer, the stock B&O subwoofer output is said to put out up to 80 watts. This is not a power level a typical LOC is used to seeing, and cheaper ones will not be able to handle this power level. The same goes for high-level inputs on amplifiers. Some have been able to deal with input power level, and some haven’t.
To stay with the “you get what you pay for” theme, the reigning LOC king is the AudioControl LC2i. This is a high-end converter with level controls and a processor for restoring low bass levels that a head unit may cut levels to, to try and protect OEM speakers.
Let’s say you’ve decided you to upgrade more than just your subwoofer. Things get a little complicated here. Let’s dive into it.
If you have B&O, here’s your wiring diagram.
Using this diagram, you *should* be able to tap into the correct wires for your high level inputs. I say *should* because as you can see, Audi decided to use the same color wires twice, once for the woofer/tweeter combination wire, and once for the midrange. I personally, don’t know how/if the midrange is crossed over, but deduction tells me that the other set that goes to woofer/tweeter is a full range signal.
Finally, for you MMI/Nav guys, you can tap right into the optical cable that goes to your amp for a clean, full range signal. The most popular of these are the Audison “Bit” line. Not for the faint of heart, these are very powerful DSP’s with a plethora of inputs and outputs, auto and manual EQ’s, multiple crossover types for each channel, remote control, etc, etc. etc…
If you’re going for that great sounding system, you need to be able to EQ your setup to eliminate those frequency peaks and valleys. Three of the most common ways to do that currently for your Audi is the Audison Bit line, the JL Audio Fix, and the Alpine X701D head unit.
UPDATE 5-25-18
Updating the thread with new gear!
Alpine X702D
Alpine has released their next revision of their OEM integrated head unit for the B8 and Q5. This version includes Apple CarPlay and Android integration.
https://www.alpine.co.uk/p/Products/...audi/x702d-a4r
AudioControl ACM-1.300
AudioControl has come out with a mini class D single channel amp with a built-in LC2i for higher power high-level inputs and factory system bass correction. This thing is only 9" x 3" and perfect for a subwoofer upgrade. Rated for 300 watts at 2 ohms.
https://www.audiocontrol.com/car-aud...iers/acm-1300/
12" Subwoofer corner box
The Audi B8 Custom Subwoofer shop is now carrying 12" corner boxes.
https://www.etsy.com/shop/CustomSubwooferShop
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