UrS4: Bosectomy (Part 1)

Since my door panel is off the car until I fix the window regulator, I thought it would be a good time to begin Nessie’s Bosectomy by installing new component door speakers. So, what is a Bosectomy? My car, like all UrS cars, came standard with a Bose stereo system. A Bosectomy is the total removal of that system.

You might ask why in the world I would do that – Bose makes a great stereo! Actually, I will let you in on a little secret – no they don’t. I won’t belabor this point, but there is strong evidence to suggest otherwise. Other people have already done a fine job of articulating this point of view (here is one of the better pieces), so let’s just move on. Label me a hater, if you must.

There are several things going on here, so let me explain. First, there is my own history. When I was in high school, peer pressure (thy name is Charles Braden) unlocked my inner audiophile. This coincided with the very early days of good, aftermarket car stereo systems, so we spent a lot of time installing car stereos. My first (and only) new car, a 1985 VW GTI, had the full kit: Boston Acoustics component speakers up front, a bunch of subs out back, multiple amps and even a very rare, separate dbx noise reduction decoder so that my mix tapes would sound good.

That was the last of my good car stereos, mostly because I soon entered a long period of my life where my only mode of transportation was a motorcycle. Years later, when I finally bought a car again, I couldn’t afford to update the stereo. Years after that, when I could afford a stereo, I didn’t want to because I was only interested in spending money on performance upgrades. When I finally reached the point when I could afford a track car and a street car, too much time had passed, I had turned old, and I just couldn’t be bothered to mess about with the Bose stereo that was in my Audi A6. It sounds fine, I kept telling myself. Don’t mess with it.

Now that I have another Audi with a Bose stereo, what has happened to make me want to rip it out? Two things. The first is my job. Though this is only a small part of my duties, technically, I am now a professional live sound engineer (or technician, if you prefer). So, my ear is coming back and I’m starting to care about how things sound again. The same cannot be said of Bose. The other thing is the iPod (it’s not lost on me that these two things aren’t really complimentary – just work with me). I’m completely sold out to it and I use it to play all of my music, except when I am in the car. I need to have an iPod compatible stereo in my car and that is what brings me back to my Bose system.

Besides the poor audio quality, the biggest problem with a Bose car stereo is that it is a closed system. In other words, I can’t just replace the head unit with a model that is iPod compatible. The head unit, amps and speakers are all designed to work with one another, and Bose uses a unique impedance that prevents individual components from being swapped-out without unacceptable issues. Bose doesn’t play well with others, so either the whole system stays, or it all goes.

Bose Bloseâ„¢, so it goes.

The plan:

Completely remove all components of current Bose system.
Replace door speakers with a component speaker system, utilizing separate drivers and a crossover.
Replace package shelf speakers with higher quality units.
Replace factory Bose amplifier with a higher quality unit.
Replace stereo head unit with a higher quality unit that utilizes iPod/iPhone control, including Bluetooth.
Hardwire iPod into arm rest.
Maintain factory look (“stealth” installation).

A subwoofer enclosure would be nice, but I don’t know if the momentum on this installation will take me that far.

So, let’s get cracking. I’m going to start with the doors. I removed the door panel like this:

Hello, what’s this? I discovered a little secret about these cars.

Audi engineers designed this lovely speaker grille, formed nicely to the contour of the door panel and almost certainly in anticipation of the best Bose had to offer for Audi’s most expensive car. What kind of tweeter did Bose see fit for a $50,000 car?

None!

That’s right, the Bose system is two 6″ x 9″ speakers on the package shelf and two 4″ full-range speakers in the door. These aren’t headphones, people!

To give some credit where it is due, I must say that the Bose door speaker module is very nice. It is a self-contained enclosure which holds the speaker, an amplifier, and a tuned port. It is shaped to fit around the window regulator. It is very good packaging.

I pulled the unit apart and took the harness. I will try to use factory wiring and connectors, where possible. In my next installment (LOL), I will show how I fit the speakers and crossovers to the doors.

Note: I wrote this post on April 12, 2008 and it has been sitting in my draft folder ever since! I don’t even have that job anymore! The car went into the hanger for mechanical repairs and it didn’t come out for months, so the Bosectomy project stalled. Let’s see if I can finish this project, before the two year anniversary. Let’s see if I can finish ANY project in less than two years.