Improving the standard sound of Mercedes E-Class W213 (AMG E63)
If you go to a forum where Mercedes owners communicate, you will notice that one of the hottest topics for discussion of modern Mercedes is about sound, or rather about its absence. Owners call the standard Mercedes sound an insult, and consider improving it a long and very expensive process.
I will try to dispel this myth a little! Times have changed and now upgrading the standard sound within $2000-3000, within a few days and without changing the interior – the new reality of car audio.
I already wrote about the Mercedes C-Class W205, in which we changed the factory sound in 2017. At that time, there was no processor with an eight-channel amplifier and there were no speakers for standard installation in Mercedes. A lot had to be redone then to install the speakers in the standard places, without a processor, the sound still turned out to be a compromise. Now a lot has changed, changed for the better for Mercedes owners.
So, we got a Mercedes E-Class W213 (AMG E63), beautiful, fast, powerful, but with basic factory sound. Our task was to improve the standard audio system as much as possible without altering the car, while staying within a certain budget and deadline.
What was installed in this car at the factory – a two-component front (10 cm midrange and tweeter), a 10 cm midrange in the rear doors and a 16 cm midbass (only one!!!) in the front passenger’s footwell. All speakers are as cheap as possible. The factory audio system (if you can call it that) worked from the standard head unit without an amplifier.
What we proposed:
- the sound source is still the standard head unit (getting ahead, I will say that we have not seen such a smooth frequency response from a factory radio for a long time)
- to the front – a set for standard installation of Ground Zero GZSC 100MB
- in the footwell there are two subwoofers – Ground Zero GZCS 200MBL-LHD (on the driver’s side) and Ground Zero GZCS 200MBR-LHD (on the passenger’s side)
- for the rear we chose the middle Hertz MP 70.3 PRO
- subwoofer case Audison APBX 10 DS
- amplifier for subwoofer – monoblock Hertz HCP 1D
- the most important component is a processor with an eight-channel amplifier Audison AP F8.9
As for the factory head unit of a specific Mercedes E-Class W213, there are no comments here – there were no thoughts about replacing this source. There is one significant minus of this radio – it reads only MP3, but there is a significant plus – it produces a clean, smooth signal across the entire band. You rarely see this when measuring the frequency response of factory car radios. The signal for the new audio system was taken at a high level.
So, let’s get to work. Here is the salon, which will remain in exactly the same form after all the work:
Replacement of acoustics Mercedes E-Class W213 (AMG E63)
The first thing we did was replace the midbass in the passenger area under the feet. The factory installed a 16 cm speaker and it was only on one side… We fixed all this misunderstanding.
Honestly, all the speaker locations in this car are a complete misunderstanding!!! Installing a mid-bass speaker at the feet and covering it with a thick carpet – how is that possible? Installing a rear mid-range speaker so that the distance from it to the driver’s ear is less than from the front speaker – how is that possible? It’s good that our system will have a processor that can correct the unfortunate placement of the speakers, but…
But we have what we have – a certain budget, deadlines and the owner’s wishes – not to change anything, but to make it better.
We are changing the midbass in the passenger footwell, the standard place is recessed deep under the glove compartment, you can hear it, of course, but it could be much cooler:
Here’s what it was like BEFORE from the passenger side:
Traditionally, comparing a factory speaker with a new one – all mounting points are identical, but the difference in sound is noticeable!
A bit of beauty from Mercedes and Ground Zero (two German brands have come together beautifully in this project):
On the driver’s side, in the standard place in the footwell, there was no speaker at all, there was a plastic plug:
After installing Ground Zero GZCS 200MBL-LHD it looked like this:
In the front doors we change the center (in the door) and the tweeter (in the corner of the side mirrors), everything to the standard places.
10-centimeter factory speakers in the front doors of the Mercedes E-Class W213:
The middle part from the Ground Zero GZSC 100MB kit fits perfectly into the regular place, all fasteners are absolutely identical:
The tweeter from the Ground Zero GZSC 100MB kit was installed in the standard place in the corner of the side mirrors. The tweeter body is designed to fit perfectly into the standard groove in the corner:
The rear remains to be finished. In the rear doors we decided to install the middle Hertz MP 70.3, firstly, this is a proven option in terms of size – we connected the same ones in the Mercedes W205. Secondly, these speakers are basically good for such audio systems – this particular rear acoustics is located closer to the driver’s ear, which means we do not need either high frequencies in this place or low ones – the mids are quite enough for an overall harmonious picture.
For installation in the standard place under the Hertz MP 70.3 speakers, spacers were made, it seems to me that these little ones fit in well:
Installing an amplifier and processor in Mercedes E-Class W213 (AMG E63)
We installed two amplifiers in the audio system for the Mercedes E-Class W213 (AMG E63) – one eight-channel (thanks to this number of channels we were able to implement a full channel-by-channel setup), the second – a monoblock for a subwoofer. There is little space in the car, not to mention that the usual places for installing an amplifier, which we use in most cars, were inaccessible here. However, there was some free space in the trunk in a niche, which we decided to use to the maximum for our amplifiers.
Here in this niche we will make a structure that allows us to compactly place two amplifiers:
We made a two-tier plywood structure to which the amplifiers are attached. The structure itself is attached to the body using standard studs.
As a result, the amplifiers are harmoniously placed in the trunk next to the air suspension compressor:
Subwoofer in Mercedes E-Class W213 (AMG E63)
Oh, the subwoofer turned out to be the weakest link in this audio system, Mercedes is so well made that it is difficult for low frequencies to get through to the cabin. We even connected a more powerful sub (tried Hertz MP 250 D4.3 PRO in a case that wildly rocks a regular hatchback). There was no more bass. We listened without a subwoofer at all – without a subwoofer, the sound is completely different … Still, Audison APBX 10DS gives sufficient bass sound, although most of it is eaten up by the body type (in this case, a sedan).
But the Audison APBX 10DS subwoofer has a powerful advantage – it can be positioned with the speaker facing down, and various things can be placed on it – even suitcases! And all thanks to the plastic “legs” that come with it.
Setting up the audio system Mercedes E-Class W213 (AMG E63)
It took a long time to set up the system. It was the manual setup that took most of the time, we worked for a long time on the rear, on the midbass, which we “pulled out” from under our feet as best we could.
Overall, I really liked this audio system! Despite all the downsides of the standard speaker placement and the extremely limited space for mounting the equipment, we got the most out of each component. Full channel tuning helped to implement precise tuning.
What can be done better? It would be better in this car to install midbass speakers in the door, try to place the subwoofer in the cabin. But for this, be prepared for a large-scale redesign of the cabin and a two- or three-fold increase in the budget. Are you ready for this?)
