OEM Audio Plus BRZ review

[MrBodyMassage]

I recently purchased the OEM Audio Plus system for the BRZ from Mann Engineering. I installed it this past weekend. A couple of things first... as most of us know, this system was outsourced by Scion to OEM Audio Plus to be a dealer installed option on the FRS. But, OAP (as I shall now refer to them) does not have a relationship with Subaru, so if you want it for the Subaru you cannot get it from the dealer, you have to go through them. The BRZ audio system differs from the FRS in just the headunit. That being said, the OAP system had to be specifically tuned for the BRZ headunit, so it is a different system than the FRS one is. Here's the information:

"Components

Front 1" Soft Dome Tweeter
Factory Speaker Optimization
Multi-Channel 32-Bit DSP Amplifier (360 Watts RMS @ 2-ohms)
Subwoofer Amplifier (120 Watts RMS @ 2-ohms)
Quick-Sync "Plug & Play" Wiring Harness
8'' Dual Voice-Coil Subwoofer System"

That being said... installation: Plan about 6-7 hours, that way you won't be pissed if it takes that long. I had never taken my BRZ apart before, so naturally I was cautious and it took longer. The system is directly plug-and-play, meaning no splicing or modifying anything. Everything just plugs in to the factory harnesses. This really makes it easy to install.

Sound quality: I think it's phenomenal, especially for a system on a sub $30k car. This is more of a balanced, audiophile type system. If you're wanting to rattle your fillings with bass, this isn't for you. Don't think that the system doesn't put out bass though. The 8" sub really blends in perfectly with the music. Bass drum hits will thump your chest and bass guitar riffs are tight and controlled. The new tweeters have excellent highs and don't clip at higher frequencies like the stock ones do. They're noticeably better. So what about this 32 bit DSP amplifier retuner bullcrap?... It works. Not only does it drive the stock speakers with substantially more wattage, it retunes crossover frequencies, etc. The stock BRZ system had a very strong front sound stage, with the rear speakers barely even audible. This retune gives you much more of a surround experience, bringing the rear speakers into play much more, yet still keeping the sound stage in the front, just less so. It also takes a lot of the bass load off of the door speakers, making them less boomy and actually letting them play the frequencies they were designed to play. As cliched as it is, I was noticing things in my music I never had before; A tom hit here, an extra brass instrument there. This will make you rip all of your songs in 320kbps from now on. This system makes all music sound much better than before, but really shines on acoustic stuff and/or high production values. Dave Matthews, new Sublime, and Incubus sound fantastic. That being said, it's not bad at heavy metal either

Is it worth it? That depends. It's $1,099. I am keeping my stock HU forever, I don't want to cut and splice and tack on amps and subwoofer boxes that look out of place, etc. Just look at this as a factory hi-fi stereo option. Would you have ticked a $1,100 option box for a much better stock stereo system, or would you go for the base stereo and piece everything together yourself? If you said yes to the first question, get this. You won't regret it.

[acro]

Thanks for the review. Sounds like exactly what I want. As soon as they make it available for my car I may just bite.

[wrohdejr]

Where is the pictures? Would love to see where the sub is placed.

[Foobar]

Not bad, but I wonder what $1100 would get you at a local Automotive Audio shop. Does anyone know? I've always just bought off the shelf parts before and never had anything fabricated or tuned specifically for a vehicle.

[epsilonkore]

Thanks for this write up! I have been considering the OAP upgrade for my FR-S as I want clean audio (proper cross overs for each range of speaker and a dedicated woofer) but not a lot of ear piercing power. I was wondering what reviews would show, and yours is the only one I have seen so far. I am wondering how far (if at all) it would be thrown off if I had the OAP upgrade AND a Pioneer AVIC 950BT HU upgrade. With the stock unit being Pioneer, will it throw off the 'optimizations' that much?

[xjohnx]

Would this still work if you were to upgrade to an aftermarket headunit in the future?

[Tylub]

I heard this system in young's car and I can vouch that OEM audio plus is phenomenal. upon hearing macklemore's thrift shop, i went in my car and listened to it again on my stock system and I was sad lol

[ExWhyZer0]

Hopefully I'll be getting this within a few weeks. I'm opting to get my audio right before an exhaust lol.

[RMStringer]

I added a Powerbass 8 sub to my FR-s. IT has 150 watt amp. I am very happy with the system as it sounded great before the sub now i have the lower end i want. To be honest, I was very happy with factory BeSpoke system with the DSP stuff it had. I just had a few extra dollars and got a powered sub.

[tripjammer]

I wish you could get those tweeters. Does anybody know if other aftermarket tweeters will fit as easy as the ones in this kit?

[hayleybeaners]

This kit is incredible, one of the best investments to date.

[ExWhyZer0]

Well I bought mine the other day from toyotapartsoutlet. Hopefully it will be in next week. I was sad to see a grand go lol but I want my audio sounding good and feel like this car deserves this upgrade. I also plan on keeping my bespoke and stock speakers so this is good for me.

[Iddoit2er]

I bought my OAP unit just under a month ago and am taking delivery this Tues - it took a while bc I bought the carbon fiber encloser ($1500). Daniel from OAP said that the 2012 Pioneer AVIC models are indeed verified units for this unit's tuning. I have the Pioneer ACIC z140. Will post when I finish the install.

Originally Posted by epsilonkore

Thanks for this write up! I have been considering the OAP upgrade for my FR-S as I want clean audio (proper cross overs for each range of speaker and a dedicated woofer) but not a lot of ear piercing power. I was wondering what reviews would show, and yours is the only one I have seen so far. I am wondering how far (if at all) it would be thrown off if I had the OAP upgrade AND a Pioneer AVIC 950BT HU upgrade. With the stock unit being Pioneer, will it throw off the 'optimizations' that much?

[rikdrt1]

Originally Posted by ExWhyZer0

Well I bought mine the other day from toyotapartsoutlet. Hopefully it will be in next week. I was sad to see a grand go lol but I want my audio sounding good and feel like this car deserves this upgrade. I also plan on keeping my bespoke and stock speakers so this is good for me.

I recommend those guys - I got mine there also.
price is under what is listed as msrp also --
I paid and had it at my door within a week.
the instructions say it will take you 2hrs - it took me about 4-5 but still worth it.