gunnz33

I've been looking for a (reliable) replacement headunit that has a factory look for quite some time now. I have seen many different versions mentioned on this forum which has some great information about the variants. The two that seems to be the most promising are the Dynavin N6 and the Avin Avant 2 both requiring to bypass the AGW in turn losing factory sub and center speaker. This has prevented me to purchase one until now and want to know what you guys think. Both brands now offer a MOST interface module which allows you to retain all factory speakers to include the sub and center speaker as well as the AGW. It is suppose to be compatible with the HK upgraded systems that our cars have. Has anyone experienced one of these yet to see if this is the answer we have been waiting for for so long? Could this be true. What do you think?

aghakauve

https://mbworld.org/forums/w211-amg/...t-w211s-8.html

uraberg

I am interested as well, for exactly the same reason. gunnz33, Do you have any links?

That thread describes the problem, and a (partial) workaround. Not the solution that this MOST interface promises.

luisdiazelite

Modern head unit with HK premium sound... What a combo... I see light at the end of the tunnel. Install manual?

gunnz33

Heres the link. https://avinusa.com/

forcefed4door

So from what I've read you can buy the fiber optic adaptor. But says it bypasses the amp pretty much? That would be a bummer for sure. Somebody buy it and let me know😄. I all ready have a kemwood dnx 9980 installed through fiber optic. But like the android interface of that oem retrofit. Would be sweet to run waze gps app through the radio.

DVC

Hmm, I like the way you think.

uraberg

That's not how I interpret this sentence:

"The AVIN MOST-MB Fiber Optic Amp Interface allows the Mercedes factory amplifier, output from all speakers including subwoofer, and premium sound quality to be retained when installing the Mercedes AVIN Avant-2 system. This makes for a nice clean easy install. "

gunnz33

Uraberg, that's exactly how I read it. Wondering if it actually works like they say? If it does, this would be the sh--t.

E55Freak

wow..this adpater is way cheaper the the opti 1...$149 vs $550..i may look into one of these units and stereos..

forcefed4door

My bad was reading the dynavin hu info for some dumb reason. But yeh if that thing is pnp it's awesomeness for sure. So about 1k total with the optic adapter

e500slr

That AVIN seems to have alot of features but it looks like ****. It looks cheap, it just does. They should have styled the exterior and interface to look like the NTG 2.5 in the 09 cars but with more features. The interface looks cheap but the exterior looks even cheaper. I like COMAND anyway though, I don't need internet in my car and the audio is fine to me, the navigation system is simple yet effective. The only thing missing is speed camera warnings but oh well...

OCKlasse

AVIN is a game changer...especially with the MOST integration.

I will definitely be going this route.

G_Money

How many folks have gone with something like a Kenwood or Pioneer touch screen unit? How was it integrating it into the stock HK system?

forcefed4door

I went that route. Bought an opti7 optic converter. Not cheap but sounds amazing.

BagMan

Does the factory SAT and CD changer still work with the AVIN head unit?

uraberg

My guess is not. There are more complications too; What about voice control?
What about adjusting the analog clock?

DVC

You can set the analog clock through the cluster/MFD.

veryswag

i just put in a Kenwood DNN991HD and couldn't be happier. i could never go back to the stock headunit, ever. it has every feature you could possibly imagine.
its basically an in-dash 7" android tablet with garmin navigation. garmin is a major improvement over the garbage oem nav & you update with SD card and there are frequent map updates released by Garmin.
i added a backup camera, it has wifi connection /4G,i either keep my verizon dongle plugged in or hotspot from my phone, & it mirrors the screen from my Note 4, so ANYTHING i can do on my note 4, i can get on my screen & over the speakers in 10x higher quality compared to AUX or bluetooth ... & i keep a 128gb usb 3.0 plugged into the usb and my FLAC files sound perfect
..can't ask for more

Denroll

I am really hopeful for this Avin unit. I read a pretty lengthy review over on the Bimmer forums and one guy just loves it. I'd have to live with it for a while to see what the quirks are. Like how does it handle being turned off and then back on? Will it pick up playing whatever was on? Will it default to radio?

WHAT!!!??? I always did mine through the head unit until one day last year when it would only allow time to be adjusted in 30 minute increments. Actually, it used to adjust itself, then it stopped doing that first. Now it's AFU.

Worloc918

Subscribing for future updates!

agregory23

Mine was off by some odd amount (13 min or so). I could only set through the HU in 30 min increments. There is an option in the cluster to sync with HU or set manually. As long as you are getting GPS signal the time should be correct. You should see a setting under the Settings menu under Date and Time and there will be an option there to "Sync with Head-Unit." Select that and it will sync with your COMAND HU via GPS. They key when making a change is to press the "R" button. That button is actually the trip meter reset button on the left of the cluster. Once you do that it should sync up with the HU correctly.

Back on topic... I like this idea if it executes well. These things have appeared well in the past but lacked in some major area (usability, reliability, interface to OEM).

tubaprde

So, now that it's been a couple weeks has anyone purchased either the Avin 2 or Dynavin N6?

I've tried doing research on these HU's but some of the reviews I found seem suspect, whether on here, YouTube, or other forums. The bmw forums seem to speak highly of them. One even tried to get enough folks together to get a group purchase discount.

When it comes to the reviews from mbworld they seem a little suspect to me. Why are the members who review these new head units coming from people who are completely new to the forum?

I'm getting pretty frustrated at this point and beginning to think a lot of the glowing reviews are from either the distributors or perhaps the company's themselves? I really want one of these because they look so great on paper, and the bmw forums seem to approve. I just can't stomach paying $500 for an aftermarket amp, $750 for the HU, and another $400 for the install, until I see someone on here or any HK Mercedes owner weigh in.

I talked to two highly recommended audio install shops in San Francisco and both were skeptical. Apparently they've seen both of these units' predecessors and they weren't impressed.

Maybe I'll try to hit up the bmw forums and if I find a local user who has one I can report my first hand findings here.

Other suggestions are welcome!

Edit: just stumbled across this...seems to be the best unbiased looking thread yet as both reviewers are long time forum members. The first reviewer has the older unit, the second reviewer has the new N6 unit. http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?2143974-The-UNOFFICIAL-DYNAVIN-N6-E39-Multimedia-GPS-System-Thread

forcefed4door

I am also surprised people aren't jumping on the deal. The e55 hu technology is horrendous and the navi reminds me of when vhs was popular. This new avin hu, if pnp, is the answer to add such a better driving experience into this car. Once I hear of some reviews I may remove my aftermarket Kenwood for the more oem look, with the android interface.

tubaprde

Hahaha, that's a good analogy. Entering a destination with the OEM NAV is so cumbersome. The Avin Avant 2 is PNP, but the N6 is not if you have an HK system. These upgrades would (in theory) transform our W211's to modern day tech. Pretty cool stuff.