Upgrading my BMW 6 Series GT's audio setup: Was it worth the investment

Based on my requirements and my 630d's current setup, I was recommended the Match UP 10 DSP along with a compatible wiring harness to make it plug-and-play.

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Audio Upgrade

I had started a thread in the ICE section with regard to tuning the sound system for a better and clearer audio output. My listening is mostly vocals, classical and electronic. What I found lacking in the stock setup was that clarity which came only when you turned on the volume to more than 50%. After a bit of tweaking the EQ, things did improve. And the other difference was when playing via USB vs. streaming. After some research and some superb advice from fellow BHPian Shon, I decided to take the plunge to upgrade the factory HK amp to something better.

Starting from iDrive 7 onwards, BMW have switched the Amp setup, so now we have a Receiver Audio Module (RAM) along with the Amp. Due to this split setup, the HK Amp has been downgraded from 600W to 464W since then. The number of speakers remains 16 though. Now, the audio quality isn't terrible, perfectly fine for those listening to casual music/radio etc., My problem was with the audio clarity, tone especially in low volume settings. This was the motivation behind this journey.

I also wanted something that was plug-and-play. Match was highly recommended for its compatibility with BMWs. I reached out to AutoCorsa Bangalore as their parent company Concept 12V was the distributor for Match/Helix here. I met with Roshan, the engineer over there, and he explained the variants and understood my needs. He knew his stuff, was very helpful, and did not try to sell anything that I did not need. He also demoed an F30 where they had installed the Match DSP with Focal speakers with Helix trunk subwoofer and I could make out the difference in clarity. No distortion and clarity was maintained from low to higher volume levels. After inspecting the 6GT's setup, he recommended we use the Match UP 10 DSP along with a compatible wiring harness to make it plug-and-play.

We finalized a date for the installation and blocked a timeslot for the same. The installation itself was fairly straightforward - the DSP needs power, which was tapped from the battery. The workmanship and attention to detail was really good. The first thing they did was hook up a battery charger to ensure the battery was topped up. I enjoyed watching them go about measuring the power wire, sheathing it and then using a heat shrink on the terminals before piping it under the frame support. Everything was neatly cable tied and one would only know the battery was tapped by looking at the massive fuse coming out of the battery +ve terminal.

The Match-supplied harness connects to the factory wiring on both the RAM and Amp side. After this, Roshan proceeded to connect the DSP tuning software with the Match DSP via the supplied USB cable. The DSP software automatically upgrades the firmware on the DSP if it is out of date, and it proceeds to promptly flash the DSP. However, the flashing failed midway and the DSP was effectively bricked. So, Roshan sent out his person to get another DSP and we did the same and that also ended up getting bricked with a failed flash. After some troubleshooting, we could not un-brick the DSP so called it a day and Roshan mentioned he would get in touch with Match in Germany to get this resolved.

Couple of days later I received a call from Roshan that the DSP was fixed and flashed with the latest firmware and we were good to go ahead with the installation. So, I made an appointment today and got the installation done. Again, a thorough job by Roshan - he set up a mic in the driver's seat and played the pink noise clips and then proceeded to tune the DSP. Post that he asked me to play my fav music and boy what a difference it made.

I played L.Shankar's Who's to Know streamed via Apple Music and it was just amazing. It just felt like all the speakers in the car just came alive. I could distinctively hear the instruments in the background which made it an immersive experience. The clarity was something to be experienced in person. The best part about the Match DSP was that the software is very capable, wherein one can configure the channels via the software itself instead of having to go back and change the wiring.

Was it worth the investment? I would say a definitive yes. Long drives would be even more enjoyable with this setup.

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