Bower and Wilkins Retrofit -Volvo XC90 2025

[DavidStrLondon]

Hello,
I have just purchased a facelift 2025 Volvo XC90 plus with HK sound system.
I had a BMW M4 with HK system previously,and I was very happy with the sound system.
However,the Volvo doesn’t sound as well.
It seems the HK is lacking clarity and I wanted to know whether it would be possible so swap Bower and Wilkins speakers and amplifier.
I have found conflicting information online,so trying to find out more.
HK and BW share same harness?or it is a partial or complete rewiring?
Does the amp need to be coded to the car?
Any help would be appreciated!
Thanks!

[IMAY2023]

The Gen2 B&W AUD has more outputs than GEN1. 
GEN2 B&W has 3 outputs (LOW, MID and HIGH) for each door in addition, center output has two outputs (MID and HIGH) 
GEN1  B&W has 2 outputs (LOW and MID + HIGH) for each door in addition, center output has 1 outputs (MID + HIGH) 


GEN1 B&W for 90 series and HK have the same exact wiring but  not sure if VOLVO upgraded the HK on 2025 models to have the third channel on the doors. The center does not have the second HIGH anyway. 

Here is an important part. 
B&W has minimum 6 ohms impedance for speakers and for SUB it's 8.  The HK speakers are 4 ohms and HK AUD is minimum 4. 
This means, before replacing the AUD you must upgrade the speakers because HK speakers would overload the B&W AUD and eventually burn the outputs. 

But on the other hand,  HK AUD can easily drive the B&W speakers. 
So, if you want better sound, first replace the speakers especially the MIDs and Tweeters and the center dash to two way.

[DavidStrLondon]

Thanks for the valuable info!
When does series 2 start?
Th HK has no tweeters in the rear door.Is there a chance wiring is there but unplugged?
If not there ,is it possible to install new wiring and does anyone know the amp output for those tweeters?
If HK is 4 ohm,I can also go the aftermarket route and install new speakers from Hertz/Focal/Audison.
Has anyone tried that?
On the HK, for front doors. Each speaker has its own output 
What about center speaker.
Can it be wired to the HK amp?
Thanks!

[IMAY2023]

When does series 2 start?

I think it started from 2023+. 

  Th HK has no tweeters in the rear door.Is there a chance wiring is there but unplugged?  If not there ,is it possible to install new wiring and does anyone know the amp output for those tweeters?

This is strange. It should have the tweeters maybe not the MIDs.  Wiring depends on the production sometimes they are pre-wired and sometimes they are not.  
Removing the door panel is very easy. Check the existing wiring How many channels are coming in.  If there is only one, you can connect all (Woofers, MID and Tweeter) in parallel via balancer just make sure not drop the total impedance below 4ohms.  If you have two channels coming in, you can connect tweeter and MID in parallel. 

If HK is 4 ohm,I can also go the aftermarket route and install new speakers from Hertz/Focal/Audison.

 You can always go after market.  Some folks here done that.  

On the HK, for front doors. Each speaker has its own output 

May not be true for HK.  MID + Tweeter might be in parallel. You can check and verify with multimeter.   

What about center speaker.  Can it be wired to the HK amp? 

You already have a center speaker output coming to the dash from the HK amp. You can simply replace the HK grill with the B&W grill and buy GEN1 (yellow) B&W center.  You can find used ones on ebay. Even from Aliexpress.

[DavidStrLondon]

Trying to obtain wiring diagram for my car so I can understand how the front is wired.
If tweeter are in parallel,I will need passive filter for them.
In the back my door card has only 2 speakers.i think the tweeter is the one missing but I may be wrong.
I will look for front center speaker on eBay.that should be plug and play then?
Worth upgrading the third row speakers with 2 way Bower and Wilkins?
Looks like retrofitting the entire bower and Wilkins system
 With amp is a lot of work and requires new harness?

[IMAY2023]

Trying to obtain wiring diagram for my car so I can understand how the front is wired.

Today is your lucky day :-) https://forums.spaycetech.com/attachment.php?aid=289 
If your dashboard has a grill on it with Harman Kardon label, look at the page 135. 7A_002C_External_Amplifier_Audio2+_CL90

If tweeter are in parallel,I will need passive filter for them.
In the back my door card has only 2 speakers.i think the tweeter is the one missing but I may be wrong.

No, Both tweeter and MID comes with it's own attached to it. You should already have tweeter on the rear doors. You can add B&W mids in parallel to tweeter.  

I will look for front center speaker on eBay.that should be plug and play then?

If you purchase gen1 B&W center (yellow), it's plug and play. 

Worth upgrading the third row speakers with 2 way Bower and Wilkins?

Yes, replaced my HK ones with the two way roof B&W ones on my s60. It sounds much better even with HK AUD. 

Looks like retrofitting the entire bower and Wilkins system
 With amp is a lot of work and requires new harness?

You have two options but it's not a lot of work. It just costs money to replace the speakers. I must say, there is a huge difference between B&W speakers and HK regardless which AMP you are using. 
1) You can get gen1 B&W AUD from 90 series. It's plug and play in your case. Adding the MIDs on the rear doors is not mandatory.  
But you will need to reinstall your original AUD or simply remove the power connector from the B&W gen1 AUD every time before connecting the car to VIDA.  Otherwise, VIDA would detect the HW change but most likely won't let you to do AUD reload because gen1 B&W AUD is not for your VIN#.  
2) You can get gen2 B&W AUD but you will need to add additional channels to both front doors and center for tweeters. see page 136 External_Amplifier_Audio3_CL90
You should be able to reload AUD since gen2 B&W AUD is suitable for your VIN.  However, there is always a risk that it would not. 

I have gen1 B&W AUD from 90 series for sale if you want.

[DavidStrLondon]

Thanks for the link.
If I look at the drawings,the BW has 2 outputs for the center speaker and only one for the HK.
Is this because this applies to 2023+ models ?
Early BW equipped cars only had one output for the center speaker?

[IMAY2023]

Is this because this applies to 2023+ models ?
Early BW equipped cars only had one output for the center speaker?

Yes,  gen1 B&W AUD (before 2023) had only 1 output on center dash and 2 on each door. (FL, FR, RL, RR)
gen2 B&W AUD (after 2023) added one more channel to dash and 2 front doors. 

You can buy this set. It's a direct replacement. You will just need to wire the rear MIDs in parallel to twitters on the door panels. It's very simple. 
You will hear the improvement. Then, you can always get a gen1 B&W AUD and replace yours. Plug and Play.

[DavidStrLondon]

Thanks for the link,will contact seller.
If I also install BW amplifier,I will need to swap every time I go to dealer correct?
Is the car somehow logging the install or swap or won’t “know “it ever happened?
Should I consider the aftermarket speaker route instead?or BW will be superior in terms of sound quality?