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So i've got a deck in my 79 528i, but unfortunatly i can only turn it up a little bit before i get this awful crackling noise when i use the CD player. So i changed the speakers in the back and when i just use the radio, it doesnt crackle. I want to change up the deck, but to start i have no idea how the stereo is mounted. So i looked at the Dash removal Tech FAQ which was kind of helpful, but i don't know how to take off just kick panels and get back there. If anyone can give me a hand, that would be greatly appreciated.

Are you using a cassette adapter to play CDs?

Regardless:
remove your ashtray.
A hex bolt resides to each side of the ashtray, inside the console, and removing them will allow you to begin removing the trim plate that houses the lighter and ash tray. There will be a pair of leads on the lighter to remove, and a pair of bulbs to remove from the ashtray area and the lighter area. Once that's gone, you'll be able to remove 2 hex bolts of the same size that hold the trim plate that holds the front of your radio head unit. The unit might be bolted or screwed by a rear fastener as well. If you remove the head unit knobs (if present, just pull them off,) shaft nuts, and/or label plate, you'll probably gain more wiggle room to remove things from behind the unit.

Removal of all this is the easier part of replacement. There is not a ton of room, if you have A/C, for contemporary head units.

Ty so much for the knowledge, i actually have a kenwood deck in there, to play cd's so yea it was mounted a little differently. Turns out there was like 6 extra bolts hidden all around that had to come off with more than a tug.
I had to pull off the ashtray, pull of the ashtray dish, get a wrench on the left and right side of the cigarette light area and rip off the bolts. From there i pulled the whole console out. After that there was 2 bolts attached to the kick panels which i removed, (easily spotted). Then there was 2 hidden bolts on each, the top left and right of the kick panels. I managed to remove the bottom of each, and broke off the top 2 on each. I had the hardest time figuring out how and where the stereo was mounted in, turns out it was sitting on top of the fan. There was metal tabs holding the stereo in around the frame, so had to force those back into the stereo and finnaly pulled it out!!
Then to realize the guy that put it in was a moron that took the easy way out on the wiring.


Thanks again

No problem, I'm glad that you managed to get it out.

Next warning:
Some modern amplified head units are very picky about being connected to a speaker system sharing a common ground. If you use one of those, like I am, you'll be required to run new wires to each speaker (or at the very least all but one of them.)

Stereos are something that people (such as me) who aren't avid car audio enthusiasts tend to live with for a long time, so take extra care to do the installation nicely if you're taking the time to do it at all. Current drains due to shoddy wiring are super annoying and sometimes dangerous. In two cases, used head units from Blaupunkt that I have owned have drained batteries within a day and a half of not starting the car. Fuse 5 fun for the e28, chasing my tail with the multimeter until I isolated it to the properly wired stereo.

Reviving and old post....

Brian - what is the negative effect of the common speaker ground you mention? Is that what causes speaker crackle?
I just changed out my factory unit for a new aftermarket one, and get a crackle when the volume is more than approx. 1/2.

If it's not the speaker gnd, do you know what would cause this? My next guess is the stock fader which I am still going through.

Thanks.

Dave

one tip guys, sometimes crackling noises when adjusting volume or fade on analog control radios is due to gunk or oxidation on the contacts in the switch. I usually get some compressed air and radio shack contact cleaner to and blow out/into the track/pot and then target with contact cleaner. Be careful to have things turned off/unplugged to avoid potential shorts, and have a towel or rag to catch any runoff - sometimes can damage certain plastic/silk screened stuff.

I fixed the 8-way power seat switches on my e28 535is that way.

mike

davec wrote:Reviving and old post....

Brian - what is the negative effect of the common speaker ground you mention? Is that what causes speaker crackle?
I just changed out my factory unit for a new aftermarket one, and get a crackle when the volume is more than approx. 1/2.

If it's not the speaker gnd, do you know what would cause this? My next guess is the stock fader which I am still going through.

Thanks.

Dave

For me, the negative effect of the common ground speaker system was that my new replacement head unit thought it was unsafe for its own amplification circuitry, and could detect that it was wired that way and then simply not produce any output at all.
I don't think that the speaker ground arrangement is directly related to crackling only at higher volumes, but I do think that a lot of older head units tend to degrade this way. Old rheostats? My favorite failure is when each change in fader position results also in "tone" changes, requiring a "tone" adjustment, which produces also a fader effect.....
When I say favorite, I'm being facetious...

I've tried troublshooting by various combinations of adding removing speaker and fader components and have come to the conclusion that the problem I have with cracklign really does seem to be coming from the stock speaker wiring.

After I get all 4 re-wired I'll know for sure.

I plan to keep all the existing wiring there intact, just in case I feel like restoring or get the need to go back to the 80's some day and play some mix tapes.