Car Audio Stereos

For a car enthusiast the ultimate accessory for their car is a good car stereo system. It completes the car. The car with the loud sound systems are affectionately known as “Doof, doofs” and you can hear these cars from a mile away. Not to say that you need a sound system that loud, but it is nice to hear the good quality of a sound system, playing sweet rock music or a good bass dance mix. Even now a good rock tune sounds better when it is thumping and played from a good quality system. My favourite would have to be Black Betty redone by Spiderbait. This one definitely get’s turned up.

Here are some tips when looking for your car stereo:

Always buy products that you like and that you have heard good things about, as some of these setups can be very expensive. I would also recommend getting your car stereo system from an authorised dealer, as you want to get the legitimate product and not a counterfeit. Do an internet search on the brands you like, you will always come up with some feedback on them and ask your mates what brands they like and why. Some of the top brands include Alpine, Kenwood, Infinity, Pioneer, Sony and the list goes on.

When buying your car stereo you will need to get a head unit and speakers. If you want to beef up the sound a bit you would add an amplifier and subwoofer and depending on the subwoofer, you may need to add another amplifier just for the subwoofer. Most head units will include a small amplifier and this will provide enough basic stereo sound, so if you are on a budget then you should be right.

Make sure that the power on the speakers you are buying is measured in RMS which is the process used to determine the average power output of the speakers over a long period of time. Ensure that your speakers can handle the sort of power that you are going to require of them. Look out for models where the manufacturers exaggerate the power. The terms “music power” or “peak power” mean nothing when it comes to measuring the power output.

Subwoofers need more amplifier power than everything else in the system as this is because human ears are less sensitive at lower frequencies, so a higher bass level is needed for everything to sound even. Subwoofers should always be put into an enclosure as they produce a back wave behind them. If they are mounted with nothing around them, then the sound they produce at the front will be cancelled out by the backwave and the outcome of this means that the subwoofer will produce no bass.

A bigger subwoofer will give you more bass, but needs a bigger box and will take up a lot of room in your boot. The most common woofers are the 10 and 12-inch. A bigger subwoofer doesn’t mean that it will be better than a smaller one. A good quality 8-inch sub will surpass a cheap 12-incher. The bigger subs (12″, 15″) have slower responses which means that they have a boomier bass, whereas the smaller subs (8″, 10″) have a tighter, more controlled sound.

A couple of ideas for enclosures for the subwoofer is to put it into a ported box. The woofer is mounted in the box with a hole in it and a port tube is then attached to the hole. The other way is to mount subwoofer to one chamber inside the box and then it fires into another chamber that is ported to the outside. Do a bit of research before deciding which way to go with the enclosure and then you will be able to make a better decision as to what is best for your situation.

To complement the rest of your awesome sound system, you do not want to skimp on your speaker quality. So when you are buying your car stereo system, make sure that the speakers are of full range so that you are able to enjoy the sweet sound coming out of them. Having a full range speaker in your car or rather speakers would improve the quality of your music many times over. Have fun buying your new Car Stereo system.

I have put links to websites with more information about stereo systems and how to install Fit Audio, Car Stereo Help,  CNET – How to Install a Car Stereo, Install Doctor, Crutchfield, Car Audio Stereos Help, Tech-Faq, How to do things and Wonder How To. All photo’s were courteous of the following sites Car Tuning Central, Sound Advice Stereo, European Music Navigator, Intense Experiences and Kereta.