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Dynavin N7 Multimedia GPS System....New For 2018

79K views 202 replies 42 participants last post by  Darko61 
#1 · (Edited)
Ill be filling this in over the next few days and weeks but now that the N7 units are shipping.....figured it was time to start a thread!

DYNAVIN N7​

Dynavin has made substantial changes to their Audio/Video/Navigation System offerings, after 3 years with the previous generation N6 head unit, Dynavin has updated the hardware and added features to create the new N7. The goal of this thread is to keep all the relevant info and discussions in one place for future users of this forum. Please lets try to keep this thread about Dynavin and try to keep it informative, Q & A stuff....try to leave opinions and speculation out of it, there are already 100 other pages of that. Thank you in advance.




As always, they are available in a variety of shapes and sizes to fit the BMW E46, E39, E53, E90,, and an assortment of Audi, VW, Porsche and Mercedes models.

Details can be found on Dynavin's website, http://www.dynavin.com

Or my website: http://www.jandtdistributing.com/

Also you can download the install guide from our website's E46 page if you want to get an idea of what its about
https://www.jandtdistributing.com/pages/installation-setup




Im just going to go over the new and significant stuff here....there are lots of old dynavin threads here on the forums but to see the BIG ONE that started it all, and get a look at what the install is like, look here, all really old info now but still lots of good stuff in there:
Dynavin D90 (V5) thread: (The Big One!) http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=793437

And the for the last 3 years of previous generation N6 discussion you can go here:http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=1044105



What is new?


Here are the big changes.....details to follow further down in the body of this post.

-SiriusXM Satellite Radio ready with the addition of the Sirius SVX300 tuner

-Higher res, high contrast, anti glare, screen

-Capacitive touch screen

-9 Band EQ and much improved DSP audio chip

-"Android Link" for mirroring capability






Source Selection Screen

Like previous Dynavin units the MODE button brings up a source selection screen, large easy to press on-screen buttons display your most used sources for easy selection. These screens on the N7 are much cleaner and subdued compared to the brightly colored N6 "windows" looking tiles.




Swiping the screen side to side reveals the various settings menus and ALL of the potential sources.





While the Radio, Phone, and Navigation on screen buttons are fixed on the home screen the other two are selectable so you can put your most used functions there for easy access.


The front panel now also includes a programmable hard button....its the one with the 4 squares on it....you can select what you want it to do, I use A2DP bluetooth streaming a lot so I set mine to that but you can set it to access the sound menu, the camera function, aux in, whatever you want quick access to...




Digital Music: IPOD/SD/USB/Internal HD

The ipod, SD, USB, and the internal 4GB storage functions all share the same basic interface. Simple and intuitive, with selections for artist/album/song/playlist, and in the case of SD and USB, additional selections for folders/video files/picture files. The list can be swiped up and down AND a quick jump alphabetical search allowing you to jump to any letter in the lists so large libraries are no longer a problem to navigate.



Also in the name of simplicity the ipod now just plugs into the USB plug, no more proprietary cables, no more need for lighting adapters for the newer apple devices. Just use the cables you already have. The unit comes with a USB extension to get the rear mounted USB media plug to the glove compartment, console, etc... and we also have on our website flush mount USB plugs and ipod to USB cables if you want to do something a little more custom.


Album art now displays alongside the track info. As you can see, clean and refined is what Dynavin was after here....
Interestingly apps like pandora display similarly (from my iphone at least), displaying track info and album art.








BLUTOOTH PHONE

Dynavin continues to work with Parrot on the bluetooth system, its clean as ever, will display your phonebook, and has a quick alphabetical search function to jump to any letter in the alphabet. As before it works with the phone buttons on your steering wheel.

I recommend experimenting with the external mic location for best results but the mic is pretty forgiving so most locations that work cosmetically, should function pretty good as well. There is a bluetooth level and mic gain adjustment here as well so that you can fine tune the mic sensitivity to your specific install.




My favorite feature.....there is a setting in the bluetooth that allows you to activate your phone's voice functions (Siri or OK Google). This allows you to do anything with your phone hands free, make calls, request music, dictate text messages, etc...







BLUETOOTH AUDIO STREAMING (A2DP)

As with the N6, the Bluetooth audio streaming quality is now as good as plugging in, It connects pretty much immediately and works with apps like pandora, stitcher, etc... in addition to your standard media apps. In addition track info is displayed on the screen:




The steering wheel control buttons work as well, including in apps like pandora. I find that this is now my go-to choice as a music source.


RADIO, CD, DVD etc...

The radio is what you would expect, 15 presets, RDS, Pretty standard stuff here. Settings for different regions etc...




The big change here is that the Dynavin N7 is now satellite radio ready....some of you guys have been asking for that for years! The N7 comes with a cable that allows you to use the "universal" Sirius SVX300 tuner, plug and play with your N7.

Sat radio is found in the same area as the AM/FM screen when USA is set as the region in the system settings menu....Here are a couple pics of it in action (pics happen to be on our new Dynavin GM unit....not a BMW but you get the idea...):






The unit plays CDs, DVDs, etc.... same as before.





NAVIGATION

As with previous dynavin units we are able to offer our units with pre-installed, licensed iGo Primo on our Dynavin units. This program has long been a favorite of the "hacker community" and I know some of our competitors are pirating it but Im glad to say we can offer it to everybody in a legit legal way. The licenses are not cheap but we include Primo with all of our Dynavin units. This also greatly simplifies things like future map updates etc... as iGo is well established and has an easy upgrade path available via their website www.naviextras.com

Its clean and intuitive, easy to quickly search and enter addresses, all the maps are already on board so no internet connection is needed. With the newer higher res screen on the N7 the icons etc... are a little smaller on the screen while displaying more info.







A few more iGo Primo Screens...

Main Menu




Main Map screen








CARPLAY

Same as with the N6 you can add Apple Carplay capability with the add on iLink module, more info here: http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showpost.php?p=17171958&postcount=662

https://youtu.be/vtorUcDgj3o




ANDROID LINK

Info coming soon...


REVERSE FUNCTIONS

As always the new Dynavin N7 will work with a reverse camera, but dynavin continues to refine this function to work with PDC (parking sensors, if your car has them) and is completely configurable within the settings menu. You can have just a backup camera, PDC, backup cam WITH PDC displayed, or nothing at all.





AUDIO FUNCTIONS

Here is where some of the biggest changes are.....Dynavin is going after a higher end market and as such has added a lot of good audio features to the new N7. Time alignment, three band bass/mid/treble AND a 9 band EQ with separate sub control, 4 volt RCAs for clean signal transmission to aftermarket amps, and 24bit burr brown D/A converters....you old school audio guys will know what thats about.


Most of you guys probably dont know what time alignment is or what to do with it but its probably the single biggest factor affecting sound quality in a car stereo environment, this adjustment allows for you to delay the speakers at the 4 corners of the car independently so that the sound from each reaches your ears as the same time....basically putting YOU in the "sweet spot". Ive been running time alignment of one kind or another for a couple decades now, in my opinion its a MUST HAVE for any higher end system. One thing to keep in mind though is setting this wrong can also make your system sound terrible so its important to at least understand the basic fundamentals of time delay before you jump into this setting. Also keep in mind this is optimizing ONE spot in the car at the detriment to the other seating positions. So if you regularly listen to music with passengers you may not want to use these settings.




9 band EQ, self explanatory:




There is now a more advanced OEM amp integration setting....it allows you to variably set the output level of the head unit to better match your factory amp, if you find that the volume level is too high in your car and the adjustment too abrupt, turn on the factory amp setting and lower the level until the desired results are achieved. In our particular E46 shop car, turning the setting down almost all the way works best. If you are using an aftermarket amp via the RCAs....you will want to leave this setting off.





LIGHTING AND SCREEN

Dynavins have always had matching button lighting, not a big deal, but FYI, the buttons match the other buttons in the car and dim with the dash light dimmer. Nice and OEM.


Another feature new to the N7 is that you can change the accent color of the interface to match the color scheme of your car....most of the text in the interface is white on black so I'm just talking about the accents and lines on the various screens, on the older N6 these accents were always red....On the new N7 there are 4 colors to match the 4 common automotive interior lighting scheems:



In most of the pics on this page I have it set to orange as that happens to look good in the E46 orange lit interior. But I also like the looks of blue....



Ive asked dynavin to add a couple more colors as well (I would prefer grey so the entire interface is monochromatic, I'm boring like that :D)


Now this next thing may not sound like a big deal at first, but for day to day, real world use....its HUGE. The LCD dimmer can be configured in multiple ways and the dimming amount is fully adjustable. There is now an onboard ambient light sensor as well. SO you can set the unit up to dim when your headlights come on OR when the sensor sees its getting dark, or you can dim it manually. There are pros and cons to each approach and the overall ambient lighting where you are at and your headlight use habits will dictate which setup will work best for you. The adjustable LCD dimmer looks great as it does not just darken the screen as most "dimmers" do, it dims the backlight, so there is no "LCD glow" at night. Between the nicely dimmed screen and the clean white/red on black interface this is the best looking aftermarket unit at night ive ever seen

A night pic in my E92,





E46 night pic.....




NEW SCREEN.

This new screen is a BIG DEAL....Screen visibility has always been an issue in the past, especially on the E46 and E53 since the screen is angled back where it can be hit with both direct lighting from above, and the reflection of the back window. The N7 has a new screen that is both VERY black and resistant to washout, but is also anti glare and resistant to reflection.

You can see in the pics throughout this post that the screen is very high contrast and unlike many LCD screens, it is VERY black in color. In the picture below I tried to make a worst case scenario....I opened the sunroof to let the sun shine directly on the screen from behind the car, then I put the camera into position where the back window was reflected directly on the screen. Note that you can still clearly see the text on the screen, even in this challenging situation.




This pic is from my actual driving position, the rear window reflection is only in the corner, sun still shining directly on the screen though.




In addition, the touchscreen is now capacitive, so it is much more responsive and accurate than in the past.



ETC...

You can set the boot screen to whatever you like. Put it on a SD or USB and select it as your boot screen, real simple. A word about start up.... The N7 has about a 20 second boot time BUT dynavin has done something clever, the unit starts booting when you unlock or open a door.... and it does not fully turn off until about 5 minutes after you shut the car off, it goes into a standby mode. So in regular use, running errands, that sort of thing, you wont see the boot screen much, or if you do its only for a few seconds. I like things clean and OEM so I went with this in my personal car....




Dynavin has moved the Canbus (or iBus in these BMWs) interface inside the unit on the N7....so the wiring is somewhat simplified and there are no external modules to install. In addition this allows updates to the CAN interface via firmware updates. No special tools or hardware required, simplifying things for everyone.




The N7 uses an oem style Fakra antenna plug on the unit so that the cars antenna can plug directly into the unit without any adapters. One less thing to install, one less thing to go wrong. For those of you with the old style antenna they provide an adapter.






There is still an OBC display but at least on the E46 it doesnt show much....just a couple temps, not all the readouts will work with every car, your results may vary:





On my E92 there is a lot more, the newer canbus based cars have more data available, still though it depends on the particular model, options, etc...:




Finally, a word about updates. As with the N6, the N7 has updatable firmware. They have built into the unit (and their new website) an easy update path so that as they develop and activate new features it will be easy to update the units. Don't expect huge, earth shattering, changes in the firmware updates. But just know that refinements, bug fixes, and new features are possible, and easy to apply to existing units.



Finished look:






Ill keep adding to this post as we go, ill try to make it a inclusive resource for all the new, relevant, N7 info.
 
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#4 · (Edited)
Go to our website, pricing, accessories, etc... is all there: http://jandtdistributing.com

We have units for a bunch of BMWs.....E46, E39, E53, E90, E8X, E60, etc... Other german makes as well, Audi, Porsche, Mercedes, VW....see our website for details.
 
#7 ·
#9 ·
2 years, in the event of a warranty issue you deal us here in California, no run-around or overseas return shipping issues. :thumbsup:
 
#25 · (Edited)
These guys are great with any warranty issues! My navi card reader stopped working and they reached out to me to repair it, with a quick turn around time. Kudos to Jeff and Brittany for outstanding products and service.

Jeff, is the wiring the exact same as the N6, plug and play with my existing N6 wiring/fakra cable?
 
#12 ·
A couple of hours in the garage later and its all done. Pre made harnesses and detailed YouTube videos made it pretty much trouble free. My only disappointment was that the supplied microphone was completely different from what was in the video. Made installing the Mic in the factory location a PITA. Still, super happy with it. Feels and looks factory.
 

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#13 ·
Flynavy80,
Were you able to get the bluetooth microphone in the factory location? And how well does it work in that location? I am going to do my installation soon so any tips on installing and routing the microphone/wires would be appreciated. Also, did you install the GPS antenna on the metal crossmember under the dash or somewhere else

Thanks
 
#14 ·
Short answer yes, Mic fit in the factory location fine. I'm going to pull out the vent and wire in my backup cam this evening. When I get back in the house I'll let you know how I chose to route things and see if i can get you a photo of what I did with the Mic. Warning, it's not pretty. :)
 
#15 · (Edited)
ragtop69,
Fighting with that poorly fitted Chinese backup camera took more of my evening than I had planned. Still won't come on. I think I'm not getting enough voltage through the backup lights. Whatever.
Sorry I wasn't able to get any photos of the microphone tonight. Just didn't have time. I routed the wires down from inside the dash to the passenger side foot well. Just tucked them up behind the plastic undertray that is below the glove box. Routed both the satellite and mic wires along that same path. When I came to the door jam, just ran them up the trim, then on the front side of the A-pillar where the mic wire JUST tucked behind it. Then around the top side of the windshield. Pretty much what everyone does. When it came to the mic in the stock location. I just made sure that I attached the mic aiming somewhat towards the driver's seat through the little vent that the factory mic hides behind. If you watch the video from J&T distributing, they have a mic that is surrounded by foam. The one I got was in a hard plastic mount that was clearly intended to be placed on the dash or somewhere on the windshield. (had a little plastic holder it clicked into and an adhesive backer) It was rounded on one side, flat on the other. In order to make the mic face down and towards the driver, but still be BEHIND the factory mic slots, I had to try to get this hard plastic round piece of s*** to sit against a flat plastic vent. Seeing no way to achieve this well, I just used a lot of electrical tape and sort of "strapped it down" to the mic cover. I'm not sure if this make sense, but once everything was back together, it looks 100% factory and you don't see any mic or wires at all. Sound transmission was good.

As for the satellite antenna, I wound up placing it on the dash just next to the passenger side A-pillar (again, like in the J&T install video). You can see in the last photo that I posted above, the satellite antenna just next to the A-pillar. I really don't like the way that looks, so I'm going to try it under the dash somewhere behind or above the vents. I'll let you know if I notice a difference in reception. Good luck with the install. If you've done any kind of car radio or basic routing of wires, this will be no different.
 
#28 ·
No, its the same setup as the N6, carplay is treated like a separate source and is essentially a separate device, so you can play internet radio, pandora, etc...from your phone, but not FM/AM while using carplay.
 
#30 ·
All you early adopters....after you get your Dynavin installed make sure you visit the Help section of our website and update your firmware if needed.
 
#32 ·
My install is almost done. Everything works. To damn cold to run the backup camera wiring but I did test it without the reverse feature and all is well.
Calls are clear through Bluetooth on both ends using a Note 4 with Android 6.01.
Nav works fine, I haven't updated the software yet.
Increased clarity of FM stations, 16 year speakers sound better.
Need to explore more, but so far I love it.


Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk
 
#37 · (Edited)
I put the mic in the grill area of the roof compartment that houses the sunroof switch (obviously not available on a convertible).
The mic supplied can have the mount removed (for dash install) and, if using the overhead grill, the protective casing can be removed to make a smaller foot print.
Use 3M double stick tape.
I put the GPS node on the dash, up against the passenger A Pillar. I read this was a great location, but thought it would look goofy, until I got into a 2017 VW and saw one in the same spot. It's too small to notice,is black and matches the dash.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk
 
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