F30 Entertainment and Communication
The speaker systems in thee F30 are available in 3 different specification levels:
Base (Stereo) – the lowest-level BMW sound system, unavailable in the US and Canada. It consists of 6 speakers (4x Midrange, 2x Underseat Subwoofer) which are powered by the iDrive head unit with no additional BMW amplifier.
Hi-Fi – an option one level above the Base system. Hi-Fi has 9 speakers (5x Midrange, 3x Tweeter, 2x Hi-Fi Underseat Woofer) and an 8-channel amplifier with digital equalising. Only 7 of the 8 channels are used
Harman Kardon (S688A) – the top-tier BMW audio system available in the 3-Series. It contains 16 Harman Kardon BMW speakers (7x Midrange, 7x Tweeter, 2x Harman Kardon Underseat Woofer) and a 10-channel amplifier connected to the head unit with fiber optic cable. (NOTE: The Top HiFi system has a digital 10-channel amplifier. However, only 9 of the 10 channels are used.)
Base/ Basic Audio
This is the lowest-level BMW sound system, unavailable in the US and Canada. It consists of 6 speakers (4x Midrange, 2x Underseat Subwoofers) which are powered by the iDrive head unit with no additional BMW amplifier.
HiFi Sound Systems
This is an option one level above the Base system. This consists of 9 speakers and a seven-channel amplifier integrated into the loudspeaker system. The amplifier has no MOST bus connection and instead receives the switch-on signal via a separate line. Seperate speakers are installed in the HiFi system for the treble and mid-tone ranges.
The HiFi system also has a mid-range speaker positioned as a centre speaker.
Top HiFi (Harman Kardon) and 'MOST' Sound Systems
This is the top tier BMW sound system. It consists of 16 speakers in total, with a 9-channel amplifier incorporated into the Sound system. The AMP is a bus connection in Media Orientated System Transport (MOST)
The speaker panels are usually labelled with the 'Harman Kardon' lettering. For e.g. in the mirror triangles where the tweeters are stored (See Below)
Speaker panels labelled with the 'Harman Kardon' lettering, a tale-tale sign of a Top HiFi (MOST) system
The Top HiFi sound system is equipped with a load logic separator in the F30, meaning the amplifier electronics are supplied with a separate voltage line.
