Self instalation vs. Shop

I've been thinking about this lately. Which, in your opinion, is better to do to install subwoofers. Now I don't mean all fancy shit. I mean, just throw two 12s in your trunk in a box with an amp. Do you think it should be self installed or a shop, such as Best Buy or any other such shop that will do it?

I'm thinking about getting some subs, but I don't want my parents to know, lol, so I thought about this question.

Self

"professionals" are normally short-cutting douchebags who know nothing about audio, electronics, or how to hook it up properly. You can do a better job yourself pretty easily.

Of course there are exceptions, especially when it comes to custom fiberglass work, etc, but for the most part the installers at best buy, circuit city, etc are worthless to boot.

my friend worked as a circuit city audio installer... the idiot probably couldn't tell you the difference between AC and DC.

the hardest part of doing that your self is maybe if you don't feel comfotable (sp) either drilling a hole in your firewall or making it fit in an exsiting one. but if you go to cc or bestbuy then they will usally make it look more clean. where most people will just slap some wire together and make it work and thats about it.

you are doing what i am doing about getting subs with out your parents knowing about it. just get a couple of your freinds to help you and you should be fine.

I've been thinking about this lately. Which, in your opinion, is better to do to install subwoofers. Now I don't mean all fancy shit. I mean, just throw two 12s in your trunk in a box with an amp. Do you think it should be self installed or a shop, such as Best Buy or any other such shop that will do it?

I'm thinking about getting some subs, but I don't want my parents to know, lol, so I thought about this question.

Follow directions, read carefully. MAKE SURE ALL POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE POLES MATCH. Shops are full of shit. This chinese dude told me he would install a memory wire in my car for $40. I made a thread and all I had to do was run it into the fuse box. :|

I've been thinking about this lately. Which, in your opinion, is better to do to install subwoofers. Now I don't mean all fancy shit. I mean, just throw two 12s in your trunk in a box with an amp. Do you think it should be self installed or a shop, such as Best Buy or any other such shop that will do it?I would say do it yourself, the first system I ever had I had installed by a shop but ever since I've been installing all systems myself.


I'm thinking about getting some subs, but I don't want my parents to know, lol, so I thought about this question.:rofl: :rofl: Now thats funny...you want subs but dont want your parents to know lol Its going to be hard to hide it from them when they hear your trunk rattling and the bass from blocks away. good luck with that one just make sure you turn it down when you get close to home and dont turn it up until you get far enough away.

I didnt tell my parents back when I got my first system (not like they would car anyway) but instead I pulled into the driveway, rolled the windows down and turned it up allllll they way lol lets just say my 2 15's rattled everything inside my house and my mom came running out not knowing what was going on.

if you go to cc or bestbuy then they will usally make it look more clean. where most people will just slap some wire together and make it work and thats about it.

I've seen the exact opposite - the Circuit City installers do a cheap Mickey Mouse job...they don't give a shit how it looks as long as it works. They didn't replace a lot of screws in the dash and the interior molding they removed to run wires. Exposed wires, shitty sheet metal work, lousy mounting job (the speakers were mounted unevenly)...

Remember, the guys at CC and Best Buy aren't stereo/electronic specialists, they're mostly high-school kids trying to earn money to go see movies and shit on the weekends. They've received only a few days of training (if that) and get barely above minimum wage...

Just buy the right parts and use the correct tools; wirestrippers, crimpers, connectors, grommets, zipties - you can do a cleaner job than some Circuit City part-timer.

the best part about DIY is that if anything goes wrong you know right where to go look if something isn't working right. As for shops, I have had my share of horror stories, there are VERY few people I would let do anything to my car. I compete in competitions and I don't want the stuff looking all crappy. It may take me 2 weeks in the evenings to do what should only take a day or two, but I have learned a LOT by doing it myself. It also helps me answer questions on here, I know what most people have done wrong right away because I have made the same mistake before.

Just read as much as you can, DIY is definetly the way to go. I saved tons of money and my setup looks just as good as a shop would do. I made the mistake of letting the local stereo shop install my first system. They charged me over $500.

Oh ,btw. CC or BestBuy are the absolute worst places to get any audio stuff done.

instalation is easy, i installed my system in a few hours knoing
nothing, and having to tear out half of my interior to do so, my car sucks, i would say
do it yourself, things nowdays are colorcoded for the most part, its
easy

instalation is easy, i installed my system in a few hours knoing
nothing, and having to tear out half of my interior to do so, my car sucks, i would say
do it yourself, things nowdays are colorcoded for the most part, its
easy

yes, its easy, but wasn't smart at all wiring your car without knowing bull. you'd be surprised how easy faulty wiring can turn your car into a 60 mph fireball.

yeah, true about the 60mph fireball, iabout had that with my neon that i fried, for the install i just followed the instructions and did fine, asked for a little bit of help, otherwise it was easy

yes, its easy, but wasn't smart at all wiring your car without knowing bull. you'd be surprised how easy faulty wiring can turn your car into a 60 mph fireball.

:werd:

A friend of mine just had his explorer catch on fire about a month ago. Luckily, he was outside the dorm and got a fire extinguisher. Turned out his remote wire was run right behind the brake, got pinched and sparked, and bad news from then on. Got it remedied and its worked like a charm since. Scares me cuz the guy who did it was my roommate... who's going to wire mine once I get the stuff...

sr20de4evr seems to me SOMEONE fell for a slick salesman and is a little bitter because you just dont know any better.Idiot, every installer isnt as uneducated as the best buy elite. best buy will hire near anybody and for someone to even think of getting something installed there better learn the definition of the word research!come on think a little best buy is a box store not experts in car audio,so before you open your mouth next time at least know what you are talking about, please!

sonicvision .... perhaps you need to be reminded of the EULA you signed to get on the forum, attack the MESSAGE not the messenger. This will be your only warning, this is your first post and it was nothing but a personal attack. Another post like this will get you banned.

sr20de4evr seems to me SOMEONE fell for a slick salesman and is a little bitter because you just dont know any better.Idiot, every installer isnt as uneducated as the best buy elite. best buy will hire near anybody and for someone to even think of getting something installed there better learn the definition of the word research!come on think a little best buy is a box store not experts in car audio,so before you open your mouth next time at least know what you are talking about, please!

Way to make a completely baseless assumption about somebody and be completely wrong, good luck next time.

Every piece of equipment I've purchased (audio and performance) has been installed by me, I've never taken my car to a shop for anything other than body work or welding. My statements stem from two experiences which have repeated themselves NUMEROUS times with incredibly few exceptions:
1 - Walking into a local audio shop and speaking to the salesmen, learning first hand how little they know about audio, car audio, or even electronics in general, and being absolutely disgusted that someone like that was given the position they hold.

2 - Watching my friends get their equipment installed at local shops and inspecting it later, only to find out how horrible the install was (sometimes even dangerous) and how crummy the equipment was that they were talked into.

Of course there are exceptions, as I said in my first post, but they're incredibly few and far between. In all of my experience, there has been ONE installer at ONE shop that I would trust, I wouldn't let anyone else near my car for the 2 reasons I explained above.

I take it you're an installer and you took offense to my post. Well, sorry, but my post still stands. Until I meet an installer at some generic local shop that could truthfully explain the difference between 6th order and 8th order bandpass boxes off the top of their head (that should be a very easy request from an installer), I won't retract my statements. I'm sure there are a couple of them in the country, but the odds of your average joe actually finding them and getting a decent install are so low that I feel comfortable saying to never get your equipment installed at local shops unless you don't care how it works, how it looks, or how it sounds.

i wouldnt let another person except for my close friends touch my sound equipment, and thats only because they have either taught me or have done it for years

after reading this thread i am thinking about trying to install my speakers and head unit in my new dodge. i still am worried about the wiring for the head unit tho becuase i really dont know anything at all about it:banghead:

ussualy if you buy brand new eqipment, there will be instalation diagrams in the manuals, they telll you what every wire is for, it mostly color coded too

for most units and newer vehicles, you can get an adapter ... one side plugs into the factory harness and the other side plugs into the headunit. If they wired it right, it's too easy.

yea, i tried to install my first head unit in my satrun:screwy: . and i just couldnt figure out how to get the wires to stay together. when i watched them install it at best buy i saw them use some kind of plastic clips that each end of the wire went into and then kept them together. can i get these somewhere? or it there another easier way to do it?

I used wire nuts, you can buy them almost anywhere that has electrical, audio, etc.

as far as DIY installations, it is a gazillion times better. i had my first set of subs installed at CC. what a mistake. it took them eight hours!! looking back i was young (16) and didn't know anything about subs. the second sub i got, which i currently have installed, i built the box for, bought all the pieces myself. installed it all myself. Some of the guys in my fraternity work at best buy, and have seen the installation jobs they do there. when they saw mine they were in awe, and i'm not even that good.

take some time, figure out how to do it yourself, not only will you learn stuff, but you will get more satisfaction from knowing you did it yourself.

yea, i tried to install my first head unit in my satrun:screwy: . and i just couldnt figure out how to get the wires to stay together. when i watched them install it at best buy i saw them use some kind of plastic clips that each end of the wire went into and then kept them together. can i get these somewhere? or it there another easier way to do it?

they are just little butt clamps or something of the like. you can find them at Auto Zone or some place like that. I like to solder the connections though then wrap them with electrical tape. Get a wire harness adapter. you can pick this up at Auto Zone also. it's like 15 bucks. makes for the install 10 times easier, plus you don't have to cut any wires.

ok awesome. thanks for your help. im gonna try to intall my head unit, ill let ya know how it goes

as far as DIY installations, it is a gazillion times better. i had my first set of subs installed at CC. what a mistake. it took them eight hours!! looking back i was young (16) and didn't know anything about subs. the second sub i got, which i currently have installed, i built the box for, bought all the pieces myself. installed it all myself. Some of the guys in my fraternity work at best buy, and have seen the installation jobs they do there. when they saw mine they were in awe, and i'm not even that good.

take some time, figure out how to do it yourself, not only will you learn stuff, but you will get more satisfaction from knowing you did it yourself.



they are just little butt clamps or something of the like. you can find them at Auto Zone or some place like that. I like to solder the connections though then wrap them with electrical tape. Get a wire harness adapter. you can pick this up at Auto Zone also. it's like 15 bucks. makes for the install 10 times easier, plus you don't have to cut any wires.8 hours? lol, my first install took me 2 hours 2 1/2 tops for the subs and that was tearing appart the interior and sidewall to run wires, deck was a while because i had to take apart the whole dash, diy rules, but i screwed up my box that i am currently building, it sucks but its my first.

wow.. that was actally really easy. and i saved 60 bucks haaving someone else do it.. thanks for your help.:popcorn:

yep, once you learn to do it yourself it's REALLY hard to give up your car to someone else - and you can actually afford some equipment instead of paying an installer that rarely knows much more than you do.