Installing an audio system in a car - a concert hall or a temple of techno? How to turn your car into a musical paradise!
Content
A good car needs an adequate audio system. For most drivers, listening to music while driving is a staple. What started out as a simple radio with a single roaring speaker has long since become high-tech. Several well-placed speakers, high quality playback equipment and highly functional components are an integral part of a complete entertainment package.
Requirements for a modern audio system
Radio as a defining audio component in a car is a thing of the past . Nowadays, the complete entertainment package is about more than radio reception and playback of interchangeable audio media. Connectivity is especially important these days. smartphones, tablets, navigation equipment and t . e. Two-button radio turned into multimedia block with many options.
Standard or refinement?
The versatility of a modern powerful multimedia system in a car makes it much more difficult to expand and adaptation .
Modern manufacturers offer extensive equipment as standard. However, these systems reflect technological level at the time of installation . Development car entertainment systems goes very fast. Therefore, this standard, no matter how complex it may be, for true enthusiasts quickly becomes obsolete.
Not necessarily a cost increase
Installing a high quality audio system does not necessarily increase the value of the car. The larger system requires significant modifications to the vehicle. Proposed new owners do not automatically approve these changes. Usually, " original 'sells better than ' modified ". Therefore, making changes that can be undone is the best option. Cut panels and window shelves, filled spare wheel spaces, perforated upholstery and awkward wiring harness design greatly reduce the cost of the car. Therefore, expertise is needed and, if necessary, find help!
Traditional audio upgrade
To improve the sound of your existing system three measures are recommended:
| - installation of better speakers – amplifier integration - subwoofer installation |
 Standard installed speakers are enough for compact and medium cars, but no more . Especially as cars get older, loudspeakers start to wheeze. Luckily, replacing them is very easy. . The cover is removed, four screws of the old speaker are unscrewed and the plug is pulled out of the speakers . These cables are very important! |
| By working carefully, you will save yourself from many problems. If you're lucky, speakers from well-known manufacturers have the same plug. Otherwise, soldering a new plug shouldn't be too much of a problem.If necessary, existing recess can be equipped with a spacer ring if there is a difference in level between the installed speaker and the original one. These rings can be bought at an accessory store or made with a jigsaw, MDF board, and a drill. .As a rule , no upgrade should be carried out without proper insulation! Only a well-insulated door directs sound in the right direction. .Non-insulated doors with high-quality speakers lead to the opposite result: vibration, rocking and rattling of the car door, which greatly reduces the enjoyment of music . |
Amplifier amplifies audio signals , additionally improving timbre and improving the overall sound quality. Modern audio amplifiers are no longer large and heavy devices that fit only in the trunk. Compact devices are now available for installation behind the radio. |
To install a subwoofer an additional amplifier may be required, which can be installed discreetly behind the driver's seat.Subwoofer reproduces low sound frequencies , creating the feeling of a bass solo. In addition, it reproduces the entire audio spectrum of an audio file.Modernization Solutions have undergone significant improvements. Huge, bulky pipes that take up too much space are a thing of the past . Modern subwoofers are quite compact and dynamic so that they can be discreetly installed in the trunk. Advantage of low frequency bass waves in that their source is relatively random. Bass is penetration, and the trunk remains the best place for a subwoofer. |
Three versions are available:
| – Subwoofer in a separate housing for installation in the front of the trunk wall - Subwoofer integrated in the spare wheel well - Subwoofer in a homemade fiberglass reinforced housing for installation in existing hollow spaces (for example, on the side walls of the trunk)). |
Building a fiberglass reinforced hull is a lot of work and quite expensive when outsourced.
Adding speakers
Popular option sound enhancement is installation of additional tweeters . Unlike the sound of a subwoofer, their high frequency signals must be routed to the driver. Otherwise, they lose their effect. Swivel cushions, individually adjustable for each driver, are ideal here. . Please note that additional holes need to be drilled in the side panels.
Let the flow flow
Rule of thumb when installing a quality sound system: each amplifier has its own protected power supply!
Serial switches should be avoided at all costs. Use only high-quality copper cables with individual protection!
Radio selection
Even faster than the development of amplifiers and loudspeakers, car radio is developing , which is constantly becoming more convenient, perfect and cheaper.Radio manufacturers are under considerable pressure: Since the advent of the smartphone, several manufacturers of single-function devices have quit . Almost nothing remains of modernized navigation devices, digital cameras, MP3 players, and more. Smartphone and tablet are serious competitors of the car radio. However, manufacturers can still put their experience to good use. Replacing standard radios with high quality retrofit solutions is no longer an easy task . Standard radios are no longer built into the radio, but built into the dashboard or center console. Removing and replacing an installed system is a rather complicated undertaking. The necessary covers for the new radio can be ordered from the vehicle manufacturer. Once upon a time fashionable CD and DVD players in a car audio system are now obsolete. USB connection и Bluetooth make using random storage media very easy. |
MP3 technically no longer needed. MP3 limited audio format is replaced USB - drives with a capacity terabyte . The old, reliable WAV format is now enjoying a renaissance. Files in a complete audio system now reach their full potential. |
| Note: The USB connection does not automatically recognize every external drive, and some audio data may not play. Sometimes manufacturers act in mysterious ways . To connect modern storage media to the car radio requires deep experience. |
| Bluetooth, convenient USB connection and hands-free calling is the minimum that can be offered upgraded audio system. Good advice on all other modern possibilities can always be obtained from a specialist shop. |
