Dogballs 115 Report post Posted June 13, 2020 (edited) For those that want High quality Bluetooth audio (and phone kit) with decent integration to the standard audio systems in Ibus cars.. Check this out: Bluebus I’ve just installed this to my E46 and it’s everything the forums and reviews are harping on about! let me know if you have any questions.. Edited June 13, 2020 by Dogballs 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
exextatic 111 Report post Posted June 13, 2020 How long ago did you order? Mine was shipped on the 28th of April, has been showing as leaving Chicago for quite a while... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dogballs 115 Report post Posted June 14, 2020 7 hours ago, exextatic said: How long ago did you order? Mine was shipped on the 28th of April, has been showing as leaving Chicago for quite a while... Yeah my one sat there for ages too.. sent late April, order no. 157. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
exextatic 111 Report post Posted June 15, 2020 23 hours ago, Dogballs said: Yeah my one sat there for ages too.. sent late April, order no. 157. Ah, I was order 49, turned up today fortunately, installation was a breeze in my E39 touring and definitely an improvement for those of us running a MK3/MK4 nav unit. Have you updated the firmware on yours yet? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dogballs 115 Report post Posted June 15, 2020 1 hour ago, exextatic said: Ah, I was order 49, turned up today fortunately, installation was a breeze in my E39 touring and definitely an improvement for those of us running a MK3/MK4 nav unit. Have you updated the firmware on yours yet? Yes, there is update 1.1.11.4 let me know your email, I’ll forward it to you.. or contact Ted and he’ll send it to you.. I believe he’s working on an update method tbc, but for now the website is not up to date... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
necsis 27 Report post Posted June 15, 2020 Good to see others in NZ buying these. Ordered mine through ECS as per Ted's suggestion, doesn't ship out until July. Can't wait to install and get it going! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 408 Report post Posted June 17, 2020 Any one installed in e39 with high OBC? not nav, no screen. I have a grom but i'd be keen to switch if this offers better sound quality and other functions Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
necsis 27 Report post Posted September 27, 2020 So I got my Bluebus around 6 weeks ago. Plug into my E39, no power on the unit, no communication. Troubleshooted everything in my car and found issues to be with Bluebus. Contacted Ted (bluebus creator) and asked for help. Unit diagnosed as DOA. I sent the unit to him for repair, he offered to pay for the shipping back to the USA which I declined as his support and firmware updates so far have been bloody brilliant. He repaired it straight away and sent it back with 3 day shipping, at his cost. Unit arrived and I plugged it in, unit now powers on and the system recognizes it, but wouldn't allow control input to adjust settings/pair bluetooth. Contacted Ted again, had a reply within 30 minutes. Plugged the unit into my computer and opened a terminal (putty on windows machines) Set a different user interface settings as some NZ/JDM BMWs Video modules are coded for TV Only or Navigation only etc. Unit is now working perfectly, such an awesome upgrade for our older cars. Highly recommended and Ted's support was 110% 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hqstu 780 Report post Posted September 28, 2020 4 hours ago, necsis said: Unit is now working perfectly Sounds like a demo coming up for myself and Ben - Rob...? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
necsis 27 Report post Posted September 28, 2020 16 hours ago, hqstu said: Sounds like a demo coming up for myself and Ben - Rob...? Yeah mate, sure thing! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
m325i 709 Report post Posted September 28, 2020 This is cool - but I have been using a Dice Media Bridge for years now, and it seems to do everything this does and more. Full OEM integration, steering wheel buttons, BT calling, USB input etc. Unless I am missing something (like is this a higher quality BT? Moot with the OEM sound system anyway), I'm not sure why this is worth any premium? EDIT: Is the Mediabridge NLA? Might be. But it was half the price of this. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
necsis 27 Report post Posted September 29, 2020 (edited) I used an AudioVox media bridge for around 3 years, it worked ok. Sound quality was good enough. However the functions were very minimal as it just disguised itself as a CD stacker. Only the volume buttons on the steering wheel worked, the next/previous track buttons did not. It would stay on until the car had gone into sleep state (nothing in the car being touched or operated for 16 minutes) - this meant my phone would keep playing a song until my phone was out of range, it wouldn't always start playing again when I returned to the car. Bluetooth connection was sometimes slow to connect and the bluetooth calling was pretty rubbish. It died earlier this year. Wasn't terrible for the price but wasn't great either. Sounds like the DICE would have been a better unit. A lot has been said on overseas BMW forms about the BT audio being much better, especially when using digital DSP, if your car is equipped. I noticed a small bump in my audio performance with my NonDSP HiFi system. But like you mentioned, my system is all factory so it's never going to be amazing. The BB can connect directly to your cars telephone circuit using the right patch cable, performing better rather than BT calling over the stereo system. It will make use of the factory microphone/addition of a factory microphone as the car should be factory loom plug tucked away. It also talks with cars systems allowing a menu to be used to adjusts settings, adjust input volume, display song info, display coolant temp. Enable settings like automatic door locking and comfort indicators etc Super quick bluetooth connecting, the BB starts and stops music properly when starting and stopping the car. And of course the ability to easily update the firmware, Ted has updated/fixed many things since it came out. You could even make your own changes as the source code is all available on Ted's Github. I really didn't want to go down the 'Android Avin' road as it ruins the look of these classic interiors. Spending $200USD to keep things factory as possible and provide a bunch of features made it well worth it to me and Ted's support has been outstanding. Yes, the media bridge units are becoming hard to find, I think you can still find GROM units on Amazon and such. Edited September 29, 2020 by necsis 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
m325i 709 Report post Posted September 29, 2020 Good feedback, and if DICE dies, it could be an option for me. FYI the DICE unit does almost all of that except the car system stuff. Phone uses a dedicated mic, steering wheel buttons all work, incl answering calls., even Siri, but that does have a lag. Displays track names, stops playback automatically etc. Just seemed weird that for such an old unit that did 'everything' - 10 years later this costs more, with pretty much the same features. Albeit not cloning the CD stacker. It's like no one knew about the Mediabridge. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NZ00Z3 187 Report post Posted October 6, 2020 Just installed Bluebus in my Jap import E46 with CD prep wiring. Plugged in easily. Head unit found it OK. Had issues paring with it and getting sound until I updated the osi on my iPad and iPhone, then it worked great. Very pleased with the device. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
