Mercedes S-Class W222 – Hi-End Car Audio ESB & Zapco + Comfort Mat Soundproofing

The Mercedes S-Class W222 is a flagship luxury vehicle equipped from the factory with the Burmester sound system. While it offers good overall sound quality, it still falls short of the expectations of drivers looking for true hi-end car audio performance. In this project, we carried out a complete audio upgrade based on ESB Audio speakers and Zapco electronics, combined with full Comfort Mat soundproofing, while preserving a fully OEM interior appearance.

The installation was carried out in a plug&play standard, but without using ready-made plug&play speaker kits. Instead, we designed and produced custom 3D-printed adapters specifically for the Mercedes W222. This approach allowed us to install full hi-end audio components without any modification to the factory wiring.

The additional Comfort Mat soundproofing significantly improved the vehicle’s acoustic environment, reducing noise levels and creating optimal conditions for a high-end audio system.

Mercedes S-Class W222 Soundproofing – Comfort Mat (doors, trunk, floor)

An essential part of the audio upgrade in the Mercedes S-Class W222 was comprehensive vehicle soundproofing using Comfort Mat materials. The goal was not only to reduce overall noise levels, but above all to create stable and controlled acoustic conditions for a true hi-end car audio system.

The soundproofing process covered the front and rear doors, trunk, rear bulkhead and floor. By applying Comfort Mat butyl damping materials, we significantly reduced panel vibrations, improved structural rigidity and minimized external noise entering the cabin.

Speakers – front, rear, center channel and bulkhead subwoofers (ESB Audio + Morel)

In the Mercedes S-Class W222, we carried out a complete loudspeaker upgrade: a 3-way front stage, 2-way rear stage, a dedicated center channel, and two 20 cm subwoofers integrated into the rear bulkhead. The system is based on ESB Audio components and a Morel center speaker.

All components were installed using a plug&play installation standard, but without using ready-made plug&play speaker kits. Custom 3D-printed adapters allowed us to install full hi-end components without any modification to the factory Burmester wiring.

Installed speakers:

• 🔗 ESB Audio 5.050 – front midrange drivers (3-way front stage): view in store
• 🔗 ESB Audio 4.75 – rear midrange drivers (2-way rear stage): view in store
• 🔗 ESB Audio 5.028 – tweeters front and rear: view in store
• 🔗 Morel IR-BMW42INT – center channel speaker: view in store
• ESB MB Sub 200 – dual 20 cm subwoofers integrated into the rear bulkhead

Fiberglass spare wheel well enclosure – ESB Audio 3.10D4 subwoofer

A key part of this project was the creation of a custom fiberglass subwoofer enclosure integrated into the spare wheel well. This solution allowed us to preserve the full functionality and usability of the trunk in the Mercedes S-Class W222, while delivering significantly improved low-frequency performance compared to the factory system.

The enclosure houses an ESB Audio 3.10D4 subwoofer, a 250 mm driver designed to perform exceptionally well in compact, precisely calculated enclosures. The entire structure was hand-built – from the fiberglass mold, through final shaping, to finishing and integration with Comfort Mat soundproofing.

🔗 ESB Audio 3.10D4 – 10″ (250 mm) subwoofer: view in store

Amplifiers, DSP and signal conversion – Zapco + mObridge

The core of the audio system in the Mercedes S-Class W222 is an advanced signal path based on Zapco electronics. The entire system was designed to integrate seamlessly with the factory Burmester audio system while maintaining maximum sound quality.

To process the factory optical MOST signal, we used a mObridge DA-G2 converter, which converts the MOST signal into a TOSLINK digital output. This allows the digital signal to be fed directly into the Zapco sound processor, avoiding unnecessary analog conversions.

Installed devices:

• 🔗 Zapco ADSP-Z16 IV-12A – DSP processor with integrated amplifier: view in store
• 🔗 Zapco ST-1000XM III – monoblock amplifier for the subwoofer: view in store
• mObridge DA-G2 – MOST to TOSLINK signal converter (fiber optic to digital)

Final tuning result – a new era of plug&play without limitations

The final stage of the project was precise system tuning, which allowed us to fully unlock the potential of the installed components. Thanks to the advanced Zapco DSP processor, we achieved excellent soundstage depth, precise imaging and full control over the low-frequency range.

After tuning, the system delivers natural tonal balance, high dynamics and exceptional coherence across the entire frequency spectrum – from fine high-frequency details, through clear and expressive midrange, to fast, controlled bass. This level of performance is simply unattainable in factory systems, even in premium configurations.

This project represents a new era of plug&play audio systems, based not on pre-defined, dedicated kits, but on carefully selected hi-end components. By designing and 3D-printing our own adapters, we are able to adapt virtually any component to a plug&play installation standard, without modifying the vehicle’s factory wiring.

This approach allows us to eliminate unnecessary limitations imposed by dedicated solutions. We decide which components are installed, how the system is configured and what final sound character is achieved. The result is a fully reversible installation that preserves the OEM interior appearance, while delivering true high-end car audio performance.