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+--- Thread: RFC: Sorting out E-88 Radio/Bluetooth/USB (/showthread.php?tid=6576)
RFC: Sorting out E-88 Radio/Bluetooth/USB - b.m.wuppdich - 06-19-2024
Hi!
I got a 2010 (well, really, it was produced in 2009, only matriculated in 2010) E-88 Cabrio, which originally came with the following options (shorted to probably relevant items):
- 230 Eu Specific Additional Equipment
- 249 Multi-function For Steering Wheel
- 337 M Sport Package
- 644 Prep. For. Mob. Ph. Bluet. Interf.
- 663 Radio Bmw Professional
- 698 Area-code 2
- 6FL Usb-/audio Interface
- 710 M Leather Steering Wheel
- 856 Language Version Spanish
- 8SC Country Spec. Release Of Teleservice
I was wondering a bit why I could not set up the phone bluetooth as in the radios manual, until I noticed that the actual radio in the car was a Business CD with quite awful sound instead, so I suppose the original one went to silicon heaven at some point. Since the car is still below 100.000km and overall in very good condition, I decided to fix it. So I bought a replacement Professional Radio advertised as fitting for E-88, which probably was a bit rash. It has part no. 65129302155-01, and contains Bluetooth and a USB connector in the back. Now I already fitted it, and managed to pair the phone with the bluetooth, it managed to download the address book, but then tells me that the phone is not connected when I try to make a call. radio and cd work well and the sound is good, but obviously the previous original model did not have the direct USB entry and the hands free micro obviously goes somewhere else too. So there is a MULF2 High Basis SVS module in the trunk.
Now I am scratching my head a bit. I probably could downgrade to an older Professional radio and hope the MULF2 module still works, or, if I understand it correctly, the new radio, which is labeled "Combox" does not really need the MULF2 anymore because it has bluetooth and usb integrated. In that case, I would only have to reroute the USB/Aux connector and the voice control micro (i guess it has one... it is lower on my priorities list) to the radio connectors.
The bluetooth name says "BMW ÿÿÿÿÿ", so I guess the radio has to be latched to the VIN somehow to fill in the empty placeholder.
So my plan looks more or less like this:
- I already bought a set of cables to connect the USB/Aux connectors, so that should be the easy part.
- voice control is there, got the voice prompt if I push the steering wheel button, but it does not hear anything, so probably I need to reroute the microfone.
- MULF2 is probably no longer needed with this version, or is it? In that case I could disconnect and remove it, replacing it with a loop plug in the MOST connector.
- Not sure what to make of the phone preparation under the armrest. modern phones do not seem to have antenna connectors any more and there is little place for smartphone formats. I guess the Snap-in adapters are obsolete by now.
So I would be grateful for some informed opinion about how stupid/naïve my plan is
and for any pointers how to better get finished with it without spending more on this than on the car itself...Edit:
Oh well, it looks like I bought the wrong version of the Professional Radio, which means I would have to change lots of the cabling to reconnect USB, Aux and the Voice control micro.
This is how the connector looks like:
So it does have the fibre optics I/O, which neither the business radio that was fitted nor the professional radio I bought as a replacement had. Since the fibre optics just face a plastics sheet in the connector the outgoing optical line is just cut off. I guess this one goes to the MULF2 module, so it probably is cut off since the Business radio was mounted. Basically, when fitting a radio one needs to observe exactly which part numbers for the radio match which options of the car because that determines the most painless way to reconnect everything, I'd say.
This is the type label of the professional radio I bought:
Since I would have to change a lot to make it work, I decided to swap it for a refurbished version compatible with the production date in 2009:
I hope the MULF2 module in the back still works:
So, either I just have to swap out the new Professional radio when it arrives in a week or so and everything works again, or if the mulf2 module has gone bad I'll try the other one which needs rewiring the micro, usb and aux connectors and further analysis of the side effects of the interrupted fibre optics connection...
I'll post an update after fitting the new one.
Update:
I now fitted the older CD73 version. the middle console USB slot as music source works, voice control works, pairing a phone works, initiating a phone call via bluetooth connected phone works, they hear what I say, but I did not hear audio output from the phone yet. this may be some minor setup problem. I guess I have to code the radio to the car for some minor setting details and get the right software level in, it also shows the wrong bluetooth name and sound is probably not optimized for the cabrio. MP3 from the USB stick sounded much worse than CD. I´ll keep the other radio in case the MULF dies later on.