Removing B&O Amp - SYNC dependent/connected

[BroncoIsland]

Hi all,

I recently went down the speaker upgrade path on my LUX package, following this tutorial. The B&O system made it pretty difficult, and as far as I know, there's still no ForScan info for the B&O (if this has changed, please drop me a link). I had a professional do the install, but unfortunately could not get the Key 500.1 to run above 30% volume without clipping.

The professional ended up installing his own small amp on the back side of the sub, while keeping the factory amp in place. The reason he kept the factory amp in place, was because when he disconnected it, the SYNC system wouldn't work and he couldn't play music. He was under the impression the SYNC system ran off or was dependent on the factory amp, but that doesn't make sense to me. What other reason would there be that the SYNC system would not run/connect with the factory amp being removed? Would this be some B&O/DSP/ForScan dependency setting?

I ask because I need to swap out the smaller amp for one with a RJ45 for subwoofer control, but there isn't the space to mount a larger amp with RJ45 while the old amp is still there, and without the old amp, the SYNC system wasn't working. Any ideas why there was an issue removing the factory amp? Thanks.

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[WillinMA]

Honestly, your stereo person should know this, but what comes out of the factory stereo is a format called A2B...which the factory amp accepts in and converts to the high level outputs that the speakers connect to....so if you want to use your own amp (without the factory one), you need to put an a2b converter in front of it to get the amp to work properly, and the stereo itself....or use an all in one like the mobridge which will convert the signal and give you a dsp amp output to your speakers. There are 2 amps as well...the B&O run a subset (sub, fronts) and the other runs the remaining.

 

[Ksjrb03]

Step one, find an installer who is not clueless.

 

[BroncoIsland]

I'm pretty clueless too, this is my first ever stereo upgrade, and unfortunately, I live on an island where... everyone is clueless. I really appreciate the help though guys.

 

[WillinMA]

Let me know what else you need to figure out...I've done a whole overhaul of the B&O with new sub, component speakers, larger rear fills and amp...you might be better off doing it yourself as its not that hard - especially if you pay someone, you'd hope they would do all the figuring out for you!!!

 

[thenewjs]

I installed a Mobridge AMP/DSP (replaced the B&O AMP) and upgraded all the speakers with JL C2's myself in my driveway.

 

[BlarneyStoned]

The APIM (the Sync module effectively) and ACM (Radio Module) will work with or without the factory amp, it's just a matter of forscan programming the APIM which type of signal generate to the ACM. The ACM that is installed in a LUX bronco is only going to have the physical output signal that is A2B based, which as mentioned by @WillinMA requires an A2B signal converter. Your new amp will need to provide the amplified signal to your other speakers and not just the sub, or you won't have any sound other than the sub the rear pods & center speaker.

A2B Signal converters are made by mObridge, NavTV, Pac-Audio, and Metra. The previously mentioned mObridge amp kit is more or less plug and play for a Lux Bronco.

You could in theory swap in a non B&O ACM to get analog output signals for front/rear/sub and skip the A2B conversion, but you will lose HD Radio and the signal output isn't going to be as flat/full-range (even with EQ turned off it attenuates sharply above 18k Hz).

 

[BroncoIsland]

Your new amp will need to provide the amplified signal to your other speakers and not just the sub, or you won't have any sound other than the sub the rear pods & center speaker.

So just to clarify, would the Kicker key 200.4 that's already running all my other speakers need to be fed by the A2B converter? As in - the all-in-one A2B amp would need to feed back to the Key 200.4? The Key 200.4 is working, though the sound isn't as good as I would like. I'm just trying to wrap my head around this.

All the A2B converters seem pretty expensive especially given that I've already invested in the amps, dropping another $700 is tough to swallow, unless I'm not aware of some cheaper, basic converters. Sorry if these are dumb questions. I just had no idea about B&O requiring the A2B converters, and had I known, I would have just gotten the all in one amp. Now I feel like I'll have to double up on the A2B and the amp, an unneccesary cost.

 

[mObridge]

So just to clarify, would the Kicker key 200.4 that's already running all my other speakers need to be fed by the A2B converter? As in - the all-in-one A2B amp would need to feed back to the Key 200.4? The Key 200.4 is working, though the sound isn't as good as I would like. I'm just trying to wrap my head around this.

All the A2B converters seem pretty expensive especially given that I've already invested in the amps, dropping another $700 is tough to swallow, unless I'm not aware of some cheaper, basic converters. Sorry if these are dumb questions. I just had no idea about B&O requiring the A2B converters, and had I known, I would have just gotten the all in one amp. Now I feel like I'll have to double up on the A2B and the amp, an unneccesary cost.

These are two separate solutions. Our all-in-one amp is an actual 9 channel amplifier that replaces the factory B&O amplifier and takes A2B directly in. It is like a kicker amp but on steroids and with a Harvard education.

Amp link: https://mobridge.us/product/ford-bronco-amplifier-plug-and-play-a2b-copy/

The A2B converter box will convert A2B to RCA that the kicker can use. The signal we output is clean and un adulterated unlike the high level input signal the kicker is currently getting. It will make a big improvement to your sound.

Pre-amp link: https://mobridge.us/product/da-g2-standard-a2b-ford/

In the pre-amp world, we have 3 different flavors. 2 are applicable to your application, either the DA-G2 FORD Standard or the Pro.

The Standard will just feed the kicker with a line level full range signal with no ability to DSP. The Pro on the other hand has full DSP features, such as gain control time alignment, eqing ect.

If you have no experience tuning a DSP I would just go with the Standard as an wrongly tuned DSP is worse than no DSP!

Let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[BlarneyStoned]

So just to clarify, would the Kicker key 200.4 that's already running all my other speakers need to be fed by the A2B converter? As in - the all-in-one A2B amp would need to feed back to the Key 200.4? The Key 200.4 is working, though the sound isn't as good as I would like. I'm just trying to wrap my head around this.

So right now that Key 200.4 is going to be taking the amplified output of the factory amp, if you remove the factory amp there will be no signal for the Key amp to use without an A2B converter. The A2B converter will give you RCA outputs that you can feed to the Key amp.

The Lux package makes this harder than it would otherwise be to put in an aftermarket set up. Right now your most affordable option would be to downgrade to a non B&O ACM so that you get regular analog outputs that your existing Key amp can tap into and depending on if your Bronco had the factory sub originally, a line level Sub output. Because the speakers are wired differently between the B&O and non-B&O systems you will need to redo all your speaker wiring and find someone to do the Forscan programming for you. Other option would be to find another spot for your sub amp because you'll need to keep the factory amp otherwise.

Also, if you're going to bite the bullet I'd seriously recommend just getting the mObridge amp - it's not cheap but it's cheaper than all the other individual components and I'd personally have whoever did my install take back the less usable gear and hopefully they know a bit more about A2B based setups for the future.

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