HowTo: Installing the Audi R8 Bang & Olufsen sound system in a PQx platform vehicle

[karldietmann]

So I installed the Audi R8 Gen.1 Bang & Olufsen sound system in my Golf Mk6 Variant (both using the PQ electrical platform). Here’s my writeup in case anyone wants to do the same.


Is replacing DynAudio with B&O worth it?

Yes, absolutely. The sound quality, immersion and max volume is fire. The speakers are very light weight compared to the dynaudio which irritated me at first, but i assume they use neodym magnets - low weight was for sure an important aspect here for the R8. It comes with speakers of 4 different diameters, which allows to generate different sounds better than dynaudio that only has 2 (a woofer and a tweeter). Also it uses an DSP instead of an Amplifier, which allows for some goodies like a center speaker, Vehicle Noise Compensation (requires installation of an additional interior microphone) and 5.1 channel upmixing.

The B&O has 12 speakers (of which 1 is a subwoofer), the DSPs power output is 465W. Golf Mk6 Dynaudio has - I think - 300W. Size comparison:



What you should consider

• Its not plug and play. You must find a way to place all the speakers. You might need some adapters, beeing able to 3D print these might come in handy, some cutting here and there might/will be necessary.
• You need to lay the wires for all the additional speakers.
• You must be ok with the fact that the sound is awsome in the front seats and only ok in the rear (where 11cm speakers are installed, dynaudio has 13cm here). Remember that the R8 is a two-seater - the 4 „rear“ speakers are surely meant to be mounted in the rear, but intented to play to the front seats.

Wiring

It's pretty basic. You'll need erWin Audi or another source to get the wiring diagram.


Part numbers

Only the 1st Gen. Audi R8 is using the PQ electrical platform. Make sure to not use 2nd Gen. parts (i guess its MQB).

Let's begin with the DSP: There have been 3 different ones in use:
- Before 2011 SW: 420 035 223 D J525 Amp High H14 0230
- From 2011 SW: 427 035 223 J525 Amp High H04 0030
- From 2013 SW: 427 035 223 A J525 Amp High H05 0110
I don’t know about the differences but would suggest to use the lastest one when planning to retrofit.

Here's the remaining part numbers for the latest DSP:



Coding the head unit

I have the MIB2 (Discover Media) installed. By trial and error I found these codings to be relevant for it to work:


(Any other values for Byte 11 resulted in the volume not be controllable OR a loud and ugly "krxkt" sound when turning on the amp.)


Coding the DSP
From all the AutoScans I found only, there were only 4 different codings ever:
- 0246122
- 0246111
- 0246121
- 0246112

VCDS' coding helper doesn't have labels for it. After a lot of testing and reserarching (coding seems to be similar to Audi TT's 8J0035223C), I think this is the coding (consider it experimental, but i'm pretty confident it's mostly correct):

0?xxxxx: Options
0 = Cell Phone Preparation & Voice Control not installed
2 = Cell Phone Preparation installed
3 = Seat Belt Microphone module installed
4 = Cell Phone Preparation & Seat Belt Microphone module installed (Standard)

Note: The Audi R8 came with microphones in the seat belt. These are connected to a CAN bus connected module (-J507-). If you don't plan to retrofit this (will do a write-up on this, too :-) set the coding to 0 or 2.

0x?xxxx: Noise Compensation
1 = GALA
3 = GALA/B&O Vehicle Noise Compensation
4 = B&O Vehicle Noise Compensation

Note: I didn't really dig into the B&O VNC feature. It requires installing an additional interior microphone in the roof lamp assembly, which I did. If setting the coding to 1, you might get away with not installing it.

0xx?xxx: Volume Adjustment
0 = No Increase/Decrease
1 = 1 db Increase
2 = 2 db Increase
3 = 3 db Increase
4 = 4 db Increase
5 = 5 db Increase
6 = 6 db Increase (Standard)
7 = 1 db Decrease
8 = 2 db Decrease
9 = 3 db Decrease

Note: Unfortunately, the head units volume control doesn't work all the range.

0xxx?xx: Activation
1 = via Remote Wire (Standard)
2 = via Signal Level

Note: The DynAudio amp in my Golf was powered by terminal 30. No terminal 15 or something. So it's switched on by audio signal level (i assume). The B&O DSP however does require a terminal 15 wire (you can get it from the MIB2). And it needs to be coded to 2, so audio is also played when Ignition is Off, but the MIB2 is switched on (manually).

0xxxx?x: Chassis
1 = Coupe
2 = Spyder

0xxxxx?: Options Il
1 = LHD
2 = RHD


Some more photos

I didn't make photos of the "easy" parts (installing the speakers in the doors), sorry. But here are some others:

Center speaker fitment (yes, it needed cutting the dashboard):


For the VNC feature, the vehicle speed seems to be relevant - it can be checked in the measurement value blocks:


Interior microphone in roof map assembly:


B&O DSP installed on the DynAudio mounting plate (plastic cover had to be cut big time to make space):

 

[karldietmann]

Installing the subwoofer

In the R8, the subwoofer is installed near the front foot well and is connected to the frunk. This spot is occupied already in my car, so I reused the already installed Dynaudio "spare-wheel-style" subwoofer in the trunk. As this subwoofer is way more far away than the R8 subwoofer, it might be beneficial to 180 degree phase shifting it (by swapping it‘s two wires). I suggest to test both polarities and see what sounds like more bass.

Comparing the B&O to the DynAudio subwoofer:


Both opened up. Notice the difference in diameter!


To make the way bigger speaker fit, we need an adaper (3D printed):


Finished:



Also I did the "closed style" to "bass reflex style" tweak, I learned about on this YouTube video. Basically the red part is a bass reflex tunnel (red) that is closed (yellow) from factory:


With a little sawing, it can easily be opened up:



Issues/ToDos

1. Testing the VNC feature.

2. The volume control isn't quite perfect in the "loud" range. After a certain point, the volume is at max - and doesn't go beyond that. I was hoping the " Volume Adjustment" coding byte could fix this, but no.


3. When booting, the head unit shows "Sound by DynAudio". I will change this to "Sound by Bang&Olufsen". Can be done with MIB2-toolbox.



And that's it. My B&O retrofit. Feel free to ask questions! :-)

 

[Dr Sheldon]

You're a braver man than me to take that on !!

Well done on getting it up and running !


Is the sound better or remarkably better than before ?

 

[Robert Z]

Impressive effort.
Congratulations

 

[karldietmann]

Is the sound better or remarkably better than before ?

Yes, by a lot. i researched for the most advanced sound system compatible to the PQx platform, and this is it. Absolutely worth it, if you‘re into listening music loud. And the (used) parts were cheap! :-)

 

[Zenerdiode]

I have factory B&O in my A4 B8 and it is a rich, immersive sound. It can be nice and loud without any distortion or speaker shredding. Am I correct that the addition microphone(s) alter the EQ curves?