The OEM Audio Upgrade Path

Years ago, when someone wanted to make their car stereo system sound better, they bought a new radio. With the complexity of modern infotainment systems, upgrading your radio isn’t always possible. So, what’s a music enthusiast to do? As it turns out, the radio is the least of your worries – unless, of course, it happens to be broken. Read on to find out more about our tried-and-true OEM audio upgrade path.

The Weakest Link

What is it about factory stereos that enthusiasts don’t like? Ask most of them, and they’ll tell you that the system doesn’t play loudly enough and that it doesn’t produce enough bass. Rather than muck around with expensive source units and complicated integration modules, why not simply address the weak points?

Step 1: Add a Subwoofer

OEM Audio Upgrade — Vehicle specific enclosures like this Stealthbox from JL Audio take up minimal space and sound much better than a factory subwoofer.

Subwoofers get a bad rap. The stereotype is that they are very large and are only good for making mirrors shake and the trunk lid vibrate. The reality is that a subwoofer is a fundamental component of a truly great-sounding audio system upgrade. Even in a Mustang or Corvette with 8- or 10-inch door speakers, adding a properly designed subwoofer system will result in a massive improvement.

Before you get hung up on losing your storage space to a subwoofer system, there are many options for extremely compact solutions that take up little to no room at all. Several companies offer compact powered woofers that will fit under a seat. These solutions can warm up your sound system nicely.

The next step up in performance would be an enclosure that places a sub in an existing storage area. Many companies offer vehicle-specific solutions that use fiberglass or roto-molded plastic enclosures. Some of these solutions include an amplifier and vehicle-specific wiring that makes the installation quick and easy. These systems typically feature an eight- or 10-inch subwoofer. The result is solid low-frequency extension and great output up to moderately loud listening levels.

If you are searching for the epitome of subwoofer performance, your local mobile enhancement retailer can create an enclosure that is specific to your vehicle and your requirements. From an audiophile-grade single sub in a compact sealed enclosure to something with two or more high-excursion drivers in a large vented cabinet – your choice depends on your expectations. Listen to a few systems and decide what’s right for you.

Step 2: Add an Amplifier

We’ve addressed the bottom few octaves of our system with the subwoofer. The next step is to add an amplifier to the midrange and high-frequency speakers. If your factory stereo doesn’t have an amplifier, then you are likely only getting 18 to 20 watts of real power to each speaker. Even a modestly powered amplifier will provide about three times as much power. With more power, your stereo will sound better at higher volumes. The garbled distortion that plagues most factory stereo systems when you turn up the volume will be gone.

Because most amplifiers include an electronic crossover, your installer can filter out the bass from your smaller speakers. This filtering allows your small speakers to do a much better job of reproducing midrange and high frequencies – both clearer and louder.

I’d Like to Order the Combo, Please

If you know your ultimate goal for your sound system will include a subwoofer and an amplifier for the speakers, you may want to consider buying a five-channel amplifier. These amplifiers include four discrete channels for your front and rear speakers and a high-power channel dedicated to powering a subwoofer. By combining your amplification requirements into a single chassis, your installer will be able to install it faster, and you won’t need any power distribution components.

Step 3: Upgrade Your Speakers

Once you have an amplifier, it’s time to upgrade your speakers. Though there are arguments for a speaker upgrade as an early part of the process, speakers need amplifier power to shine. Connecting a set of components to the little amplifier built into a radio simply doesn’t do them justice.

Premium aftermarket speakers not only provide smoother frequency response and less distortion than OEM speakers, but their increased excursion capabilities will allow them to play louder – but only when they have adequate power.

Choosing a set of speakers can be very difficult. There are thousands of options available from hundreds of manufacturers. Most retailers carry one or two high-end brands, each with a variety of options in each speaker size. While it is often easier to buy well-known brands, many companies put more effort into marketing than they do into developing speakers that sound amazing. We suggest auditioning as many speakers as possible, using the same selection of music each time. After a while, it’ll be easy to hear the difference between a great speaker and one that is marketed well.

Installation Matters

Unlike a new Bluetooth speaker from the local big box store, the performance of your mobile sound system depends significantly on its installation and configuration. Amplifiers require properly sized high-quality wiring. Electrical connections need to be mechanically secure and properly protected. Speaker installation has a dramatic effect on their performance. Solid mounting adapters that are water-resistant are an absolute must. The option to add sound damping material to the doors or foam coupling rings to the front of the speakers is also a sign that the shop you are dealing with cares about the performance of your system.

Amplifiers need proper configuration. Each source has different voltage capabilities. These voltage capabilities determine how the sensitivity controls on your installer will configure your amplifier, and ultimately, how loud the system will play without significant distortion. Crossovers need to be set properly to protect small speakers from damage while still ensuring your system sounds great. Many technicians make the process look easy, but it takes years to learn the art of proficient system configuration.

The Next Steps

Though we’ll save it for a future article, the next step in upgrading your OEM stereo system would be to add a digital signal processor. A properly tuned processor will allow your installer to compensate for speaker placement and reflections and resonances within the vehicle. The result is smooth and natural frequency response and a dramatically improved soundstage with impressive imaging.

Upgrade Your OEM Stereo System Today

If you are tired of distorted sound and wimpy bass, drop by your local mobile enhancement retailer and ask about upgrading your sound system. With a carefully planned upgrade path, you can work towards whatever goal suits your requirements in stages. Each stage will provide an audible and impressive upgrade. With each step, your music will sound more lifelike and realistic. It will truly be a case of having heard your favorite songs for the first time, all over again.
This article is written and produced by the team at www.BestCarAudio.com. Reproduction or use of any kind is prohibited without the express written permission of 1sixty8 media.

But the Box Power Ratings Say This Subwoofer Will Handle 1,000 Watts!

There is no car audio topic more confusing and inconsistent than speaker power ratings. The fact is, the methods developed to test speakers are quite simple and reliable. If the speaker passes the test, print the number.

A long time ago, some unknown manufacturer felt it was important to tell consumers that their speaker would handle more power than a competitor’s product. We are talking about the Lear Jet, Jensen and Muntz days, not five or 10 years ago. Whoever that company was, printed a bigger number on their packaging and told their customers that their speaker was better because of it. Of course, competitors followed suit and countered this slightly bogus claim with an even more ridiculous rating. On and on this goes. We currently have 6×9 speakers that claim to handle 600 watts but have a tiny little 1-inch voice coil. The math simply doesn’t add up.

In this article, we are going to talk about speaker power ratings. We’ll explain what the ratings mean and how they are tested. When you are done reading this article, you’ll never look at a bogus MAXIMUM POWER specification the same way.

What is Power?

Power is a unit of energy that describes how much work is done over a specific period. We car guys know about horsepower and torque, and since you are reading this, you clearly have an interest in audio systems and have heard of the electrical unit of power known as the watt. By definition, 1 watt of power is equivalent to 1 joule of energy delivered over a period of one second. In terms you may be more familiar with, that’s equivalent to the work done in a circuit powered by 1 volt where 1 amp of current is flowing through the load. Exciting, isn’t it?

In our speakers, the power from our amplifier flows through the voice coil. The flow of electrons through the coil creates a magnetic field around the coil. Depending on the polarity (direction) of the current flow, the magnetic field may cause the coil and the attached cone to move forward or backward in the basket. As the signal coming out of our amplifier is alternating current, the speaker responds by moving back and forth with the changes in polarity.

What Happens When We Have Too Much Power?

The electrical power from our amplifier is no different from the electricity that flows through an electric heating element on a stovetop. The heating element has a resistance, usually between 27 and 40 ohms. As we apply the 120v electrical signal from the wall to this coil of wire, work is done. For a 27 ohm coil, fed with 120 volts of electricity, 533 watts of work is produced. This “work” is the generation of heat.

When we send 100 watts of power to a speaker, almost all of that energy is converted to heat. Maybe 2 or 3 percent of that energy from the amp is converted to sound energy. Hopefully, you can see where this is going. When current flows through the voice coil, it gets hot. More current produces more heat. Eventually, the glue that holds the voice coil winding to the former starts to overheat and fail. At this point, the voice coil winding will likely unravel and usually gets jammed in the magnet gap, causing the speaker to stop playing.

As an aside, we could get into an entire discussion about power handling problems caused by excessive cone travel. For the purposes of this article, let’s assume we are operating the speaker within a frequency range where cone excursion is not an issue. We’ll talk about speaker excursion another time.

The Reference for Power Ratings

The current reference for testing automotive loudspeakers is the CEA-2031 standard. This set of test criteria include how and where the speaker under test is mounted and the content of the signal used to test the speaker. It is this audio signal, and how it is used, that is of interest to this article.

The power handling test track is a modified pink noise signal that is bandwidth limited between 40Hz and 10 kHz. The high-frequency content of the signal simulates the spectral content of a distorted bass or midrange signal. That’s right: If you distort a low-frequency signal, it creates harmonics. As such, you will send lots of extra midrange and high-frequency information to your speaker if the amp is clipping.

The CEA-2031 signal is recorded with very specific amplitude specifications. The test track is prefaced by a reference-level sound recording. In order to quantify the power level of the test, the reference signal is played and the amplitude is measured. On the engineering side, power tests are taken at RMS voltage levels. That voltage is converted to watts, based on the minimum impedance of the driver under test. For example, efficiency measurements are taken using voltages of 2 or 2.83 volts, which translate to 1 or 2 watts respectively on a 4-ohm speaker.

How They Test Power Handling

Once the reference level is set, the test tone is played without making adjustments to the playback amplitude. The test track is designed to provide two simultaneous tests. The RMS voltage level of the track tests the speaker’s continuous power handling capabilities. The peak amplitude of the signal simultaneously tests the peak power handling of the speaker with an additional 3dB of input power.

The device under test (speaker) is placed in a jig in a room with controlled environmental conditions. “The loudspeaker is rated for the power that it can withstand for 2 hours without a permanent change in acoustical, mechanical or electrical characteristics greater than 10%,” according to the specification. To achieve a higher rating, the test is to be repeated at a higher power level for the same time after a two-hour cool-down period.

Many companies test their products for longer. A lot of Japanese companies test their speakers for eight to 10 hours. Some premium speaker companies test their speakers for an awe-inspiring 100 hours. That’s right – more than four days playing this modified pink noise track.

There are variations of this test. For subwoofers, mounting the drivers in a sealed enclosure will increase the difficulty of the test dramatically. The air inside the enclosure will get hot and reduce the ability for the subwoofer to cool itself.

Where Do the Big Numbers Come From?

So, how can the marketing guys sleep at night with their insane power rating claims? We mentioned that physical power handling could be a concern. Of course, playing bass into a tweeter is going to result in disaster, quickly. Would playing a single tone for a period of time determine a power handling rating? What if a speaker can handle a 500 Hz tone for a few hours? Is that a power rating? Most certainly. Does it accurately describe the capabilities of the speaker? Not really.

Choosing Speakers for Your Vehicle

So, now that you know how speaker power ratings are created, you can basically ignore them. The process of choosing a speaker should be based on performance, not specifications. Frequency response, efficiency and distortion performance separate good from run-of-the-mill. A speaker rated for 150 watts is not necessarily better than a speaker rated at 125 watts.

If you are buying subwoofers, power handling specs become a little more important. You won’t want to pair up a subwoofer rated for 200 watts to a 1,000-watt amplifier. If you want to keep things safe, match the subwoofer power rating to the amp rating. If you want to guarantee you’ll never blow the sub, buy a speaker that is rated for twice as much power as your amp.

Your local mobile enhancement retailer can help you design an audio system upgrade that sounds amazing, will play at the volumes you want and will last for years.

This article is written and produced by the team at www.BestCarAudio.com. Reproduction or use of any kind is prohibited without the express written permission of 1sixty8 media.

Everything You Need To Know About SiriusXM Satellite Radio

It seems you can’t go anywhere these days without hearing or seeing evidence of SiriusXM Satellite Radio. Satellite radio is touted as a commercial-free entertainment solution that can be accessed almost anywhere in North America. With more than 175 channels of music, comedy, sports and talk radio available 24 hours a day, there is always something to listen to. Let’s look at the how satellite radio began, how it works and why it has been so popular.

The Early Days of Satellite Radio

XM Satellite Radio evolved from the American Mobile Satellite Corp. AMSC was a consortium of companies that wanted to use satellite technology to broadcast telephone, data and fax information around the country. In 1992, AMSC formed the American Mobile Radio Corp. to develop a satellite-based digital radio service. AMRC was spun off from AMSC in 1998 as XM Satellite Radio. XM Radio was first to broadcast, launching on Sept. 25, 2001.

In 1990, Sirius Satellite Radio set out to attract customers and vehicle manufacturing partners to its proposed music service. After years of planning, development and licensing, Sirius launched three satellites in July 2000 and started broadcasting in January 2002.

Satellite radio was the hot ticket in the early the early 2000s, and partnerships with automakers were crucially important to each company. Sirius gained the support of Ford, BMW and Chrysler, while XM had General Motors, Honda and Toyota on board.

Satellite Radio Company Merger

In January 2005, the New York Post announced that Sirius and XM would merge into a single company on Feb. 19, 2007. The combined companies had about 14 million subscribers, but neither company had posted a profit. The result of the merger was SiriusXM – the brand we have now.

SiriusXM is now integrated into 75 percent of the new car market, with roughly 40 percent of those vehicle owners becoming subscribers. As of late 2017, there are about 32 million subscribers.

How Satellite Radio Works

Satellite radio is actually a very simple broadcasting system. The company has its main studios in Rockefeller Center in New York City and in Washington, D.C. Secondary facilities are in Los Angeles, Nashville and Memphis. The company plays music from its extensive catalog and has live performance spaces to host musicians and performers from all genres.

The information is broadcast to a set of satellites above the Earth that rebroadcast that information back to Earth. The broadcast covers most of North America. The satellite radio receiver in your vehicle (car, truck, boat or aircraft) uses a compact antenna to pick up the signal and extract the channel of audio you want to enjoy.

They Really Have Satellites?

Whether it’s a live performance, your favorite music or a great discussion about religion or politics, all of the information is combined into a complex digital signal that is transmitted to a set of five active satellites that cover North America. XM-2 and XM-5 are in a geostationary position above the Earth. That is to say, they stay in the same relative position all the time. Positioned about 22,370 miles above the Earth, the satellites relay broadcast information from the studio transmitters to all of North America, excluding the left half of Alaska. XM-2 covers the west side of the country while XM-3 covers the east.

The Sirius satellites also operate in geostationary orbits. Sirius FM-6 covers the West Coast while Sirius FM-5 is located south of New Orleans to cover the East. Early Sirius satellites (Sirius 1, Sirius 2 and Sirius 3) crossed the planet in a figure 8 pattern that had two of the three over North America at any time.

As you can see, there have been many satellites over the almost 20 years of satellite radio. In total, nine have been launched, with the most recent being Sirius FM-6 on Oct. 25, 2013. Sirius FM-6 was the first to broadcast both Sirius and XM transmission frequencies.

The Benefit of Satellite Radio

So, what’s the big deal? Why do people gravitate toward satellite radio? The answer comes from its coverage. You can make a road trip from Miami, up to Montreal, across to Vancouver then down to San Diego without having to change the station. If you want to listen to Howard Stern for the entire 90 hours of driving, you most certainly can.

Conventional terrestrial broadcasts (AM and FM radio) are limited in their coverage areas. In fact, the FCC regulates the strength of the signal (to 70 dBu, or decibels relative to one microvolt per meter of signal strength). That way, a station frequency can be re-used again in a relatively nearby location. The actual distance varies because of atmospheric conditions but usually covers 75 to 100 miles from the transmitter. Because each station is responsible for its own content, if spaced perfectly, you’d need to change stations between 60 and 80 times. In reality, you’d need likely a few thousand attempts to find a station that was playing the type of music you wanted.

More Than Just Cars and Trucks

SiriusXM satellite radio services have been synonymous with marine entertainment systems since they launched. Many people have cottages or camps in very remote areas that have few if any radio stations at all, so being able to enjoy their favorite genre of entertainment is fantastic. Likewise, receivers such as the SiriusXM Sound Station let you enjoy music in your home.

Things You Didn’t Know SiriusXM Could Do

Most of us are used to having satellite radio entertainment in the car, but there are several other applications for the system as well. Many aircraft, both small and large, can get weather and location information using a SiriusXM Aviation receiver. In fact, many Garmin aviation-specific products have the SXM receiver built in.

SiriusXM Marine provides weather information including lighting strike locations and radar, fishing information and more. Many Garmin, Raymarine, Simrad, Lowrance, B&G and Furuno devices are compatible with SiriusXM Marine.

SiriusXM Music for Business offers entertainment solutions that are tailored to different business types. Serve Happy covers restaurants and bars, and Shop Happy is designed for retail stores. There are channels for waiting rooms, spa and fitness businesses, banks and even music dedicated to use when clients must be put on hold on the phone.

Currently only available on OEM source units, SiriusXM Traffic and Travel Link provide traffic flow information as well as local weather, fuel prices, sports scores and even movie listings. Traffic information mimics that of terrestrial RDS-TMC services in major urban areas.

The Cost of SiriusXM Satellite Radio

With the need to replace satellites roughly every 15 years, license music, pay hosts and celebrities, SiriusXM requires a subscription to access its services. In the U.S., prices start at $10.99 a month for 80 basic channels. If you want some of the artist-specific channels and MLB, NBA and NHL coverage, that rises to $15.99. To add Howard Stern, NFL and NASCAR coverage, the price is $19.99. Adding the ability to stream Sirius XM to your computer increases any of the above by $4 a month.

Enjoy the Entertainment You Want, Almost Anywhere

Whether you are in downtown New York or venturing to Supai, Arizona (the most remote community in the contiguous U.S.), enjoying your music is easy with SiriusXM satellite radio. If your vehicle doesn’t already have a satellite radio receiver, drop by your local mobile enhancement retailer and ask about your options to add SiriusXM.

This article is written and produced by the team at www.BestCarAudio.com. Reproduction or use of any kind is prohibited without the express written permission of 1sixty8 media.

7 things to Consider When Improving Your Classic Car Audio

You have worked long and hard to get your pride and joy rebuilt. The paint is buttery smooth, the engine purrs like a kitten, and the interior smells of fresh carpet and leather. You stand back, enjoying her beauty. It’s time to go for a cruise. Roll down the windows, pull out on the freeway and enjoy! A few miles down the road, you think, “Hey, a little music would make this even better. Some of the classics! That’s what I need.” You turn on the radio, only to hear static engulfing your favorite radio station and tinny sound from an old paper speaker of your classic car audio system, mounted in the center of the dash. And you were so close to perfection!

Don’t fret – there are hundreds of expert mobile enhancement retailers around the country who can add a little music to your ride without messing with the look of the interior or affecting the value of the car. From a numbers-matching restoration to a junktastic rat rod or the car you had back in high school – adding modern features and great sound isn’t as hard as you think.

1) Define Your Classic Car Audio Objective

Before you go shopping, do some research. Google what other people have done with similar vehicles. Go to a cruise night or car show and ask questions. What car guy doesn’t want to talk about the mods he’s made to his car? Decide whether you need everything to be invisible, or if a little custom work would result in better sound from your system.

While these are harder to quantify, determine your goals and expectations for the system. If you want to sit in the driver’s seat and be able to hear Bruce Springsteen’s voice coming from the middle of the windshield, with his band spread evenly to the left and right, like you were sitting center-stage at a concert, then let your installer know. If you just need some music for a short cruise, that’s entirely achievable. If rocking out to Def Leppard and concert-like volumes are your speed, let ’em know.

How an audio system is designed is based on the goals for the system. A single set of speakers on the rear deck is only going to work for one of these examples. If that is your choice for the other two, you will be disappointed.

2) You’re Going to Need a Source Unit

When it comes to source units, there are countless options. If keeping the vehicle looking absolutely 100% original is the name of the game, then there’s no way you are going to put a modern double-DIN multimedia receiver in the dash or a custom center console. That doesn’t mean you can’t still have great sound. One option is to mount a radio under the seat or in the glove box. Most radios can be controlled by a remote control, and some have smartphone control options. Launch an app on your phone, and that becomes the face of your radio. Pick a station, adjust the volume or select your favorite tunes from a USB memory stick.

If you don’t want anything visible anywhere, that’s not a problem. Your installer can mount a Bluetooth receiver in the dash with a tiny amplifier. The Bluetooth receiver becomes your source unit. You play music from your phone. The phone volume becomes the system volume. It’s pretty easy to use and completely invisible.

If you have headed down the path of a custom project, then working with your fabricator to integrate a modern head unit in the dash or center console is a great idea. You can go with something simple like a CD receiver, or step up to a multimedia receiver with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. If you are going to be hitting the road, these smartphone integration solutions let you listen to incoming text messages and dictate responses, make phone calls, choose the music you want to listen to and provide turn-by-turn navigation, all by simply talking to the radio.

For a slightly less-conspicuous look, many people choose a marine radio and marine remote control as their source unit. You can hide the radio in the trunk or under a seat, and then control the unit from a wired remote control. These remotes often have LCD displays to let you know what’s playing, and include controls for volume, source selection and track adjustments. Most are sized similarly to standard 3-inch gauges like a tachometer or speedo.

3) Speakers Matter

If you are a regular reader of BestCarAudio.com, then you will know that speakers are crucial to the overall performance and quality of any sound system. You can invest thousands of dollars in a head unit, amplifiers and signal processors, but if you don’t have great speakers, you won’t have great sound. Speakers are the only link between your equipment and your ears.

Just as with source units, the size of speakers you have installed and their location is going to depend on the style of your classic car. If you have a 32 Ford Model A Roadster, there aren’t going to be speaker locations in the dash to work with. Here are a few options to ensure your system sounds great.

If you do have factory speaker locations, use them. Buy the best speakers you can and have them installed in those locations. If you are worried about the look, have your installer add a piece of grille cloth under the factory grille to conceal any overly shiny attributes of the speaker. This is great for systems that are designed to “add a little music.”

Another option is to replace a factory panel with a custom piece. Let’s say you have a ’79 Corvette. Replace those factory kick panels with a set of custom panels and install a set of coaxial speakers in there. Your installer can finish the panels in a vinyl or leather that matches the factory pattern and ensure that the color looks just right with the rest of your interior. You can keep the factory panels in safekeeping in the event you need to return the car to stock condition.

4) You Can Never Have Too Much Power

No, a blown 500 cubic inch engine is not part of the stereo upgrade recipe (but please don’t let us stop you if that’s part of the plan). We are talking stereo system power. To reproduce music, you need to deliver power to your speakers. If you want to listen at higher volume levels, you need more power. Most radios on the market offer between 18 and 20 watts of real, usable power. If you have a big motor or loud exhaust, or happen to be in a convertible, the radio alone won’t be enough to make your music audible when you’re cruising the Interstate.

Adding a quality amplifier to your system doesn’t just let you turn the volume up; it makes your music sound better at low to moderate volumes. That little bit of extra control is like having the torque of a big block behind your speakers. Your music will have more impact and sound more dynamic.

High-quality amplifiers start in sizes around that of a small brick. That’s right: Something as small as 9 by 3 by 2 inches can provide 50 watts per channel to four speakers without even breaking a sweat. These modern amps will fit up in your dash, under a seat, in a center console or under the rear deck without altering the functionality of your vehicle by taking up all sorts of space.

5) Electrical Systems Requirements

Your audio system works the same way as your engine does: If you want to make more power, you need to deliver more fuel. This might mean larger fuel lines and an upgraded pump if you are the kind of person who likes to have “a little more than stock.” If you install an amplifier in your car, then you have to be sure it is wired correctly. High-quality copper power wire is a must. Forget that cheap aluminum stuff – you don’t want any hassles. All connections have be electrically and mechanically secure to ensure proper power delivery. If you decide to go with a large amp, or have added a subwoofer (we’ll get to that next), then proper power delivery is crucial to ensuring your amplifiers will perform.

Your battery and alternator have to be up to the task as well. If you have a ’74 Beetle with a 50 amp alternator, you won’t be installing a 1,000 watt stereo and listening to it at full volume. Likewise, make sure that battery is in tip-top shape. If you don’t drive the car during the week, invest in a high-quality battery maintenance solution. Keeping that battery topped up will make it last a lot longer and ensure your car is ready to go when you are.

6) If the Shoe Fits, Add a Subwoofer

We are back to the discussion of what works for your vehicle. If you are headed to Pebble Beach, you may be reading the wrong article. If you are headed to a cruise night, then warming up the sound of your stereo system with a subwoofer is a very good idea. Forget the stereotype of kids driving down the street with their rap music blaring and body panels vibrating. Adding a subwoofer accomplishes two important tasks in terms of improving the performance of your sound system.

Subwoofers are specifically designed to reproduce the bottom two octaves of the music we listen to – that’s 20 to 40 Hz and 40 to 80 Hz. To reproduce these frequencies accurately, a speaker has to move a lot of air. A small 6.5-inch coaxial mounted in your doors isn’t going to produce a 35 Hz sound with any authority or detail. Adding a sub will add these frequencies to your sound system. Drums, bass guitar, a stand-up bass or a kettle drum with have warmth and impact. A subwoofer doesn’t have to rattle your teeth.

The second task a subwoofer accomplishes is to relieve the rest of your speakers from trying to reproduce bass frequencies. If your sub can play up to 80 Hz, then your door or rear deck speakers only has to play down to 80 Hz. Your smaller speakers will sound much better and be able to play those sounds above 80 Hz with more output and detail. Your entire stereo will sound better.

7) Research Your Partner

When you look for someone to work on a classic car (or any car, for that matter), you are trusting them to use their skills and experience to accomplish a task for you. In the same way that it can be hard to find a great mechanic, it takes research to find a great installer. Read reviews, look at examples of their work and talk to other classic car owners. There are some truly amazing installers in the mobile enhancement industry. Once you find one who “gets it,” stick with them. Don’t grind and haggle over a few bucks. Ensure the job is done right, with quality materials, excellent workmanship and extraordinary attention to detail.

Music Makes Every Road Trip Better

Whether you are taking a drive across town to visit a friend or want to join the Hot Rod Power Tour next year, having music along with you can make the trip a lot more enjoyable. Do some research, ask some questions and listen to as many car audio systems as you can. There is a solution for your classic car audio; it’s just a matter of working with the right retailer to find one that fits.

This article is written and produced by the team at www.BestCarAudio.com. Reproduction or use of any kind is prohibited without the express written permission of 1sixty8 media.

To Get Better Sound, Do I Need to Replace My Factory Source Unit?

Not all that long ago, upgrading the performance of your car audio system required that you replace the factory source unit. The industry had dozens of premium CD receivers with state-of-the-art signal processing and high-end digital-to-analog converters. The popularity of these source units and the audio systems that could be built around them was not lost on automakers.

Slowly, technologies like Bluetooth audio streaming and hands-free calling, USB support for digital audio files, and direct smartphone control have become the norm when you purchase a new vehicle. On the audio side of things, automakers have partnered with companies like Panasonic, Bose and Harman to provide expertise in configuration and tuning to elevate the performance of factory-installed systems dramatically.

If you go shopping for a new vehicle, you may notice that the radio is no longer a single component in the vehicle. Some manufacturers spread audio control and information display across three locations in the vehicle. Replacing the radio simply isn’t an option in many applications.

For those of us who want to upgrade our sound systems, the philosophy and process have changed a great deal. If we can’t replace the radio, can we get great sound? Thanks to ongoing research and innovation, the answer to that question is a resounding “yes.” Let’s look at how this is accomplished.

Fix What’s Broken

Factory Source Unit — Factory speakers are a weak link in an automotive audio system.

The source unit in a modern vehicle usually has most of the features and functionality we need. Smartphone integration solutions like Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, well-tuned Bluetooth hands-free, and a backup camera are very common. Where most audio systems suffer is in the amount of power they have available and the speakers.

Not having enough power means that when you turn the volume up past a certain point, the signal begins to distort. Not only does this sound bad, but it delivers additional energy to the speakers and can damage them. It has been said that you can never have too much power. In terms of ensuring the signal going to the speaker is clean and undistorted, this statement is perfectly true.

The second issue is the speakers that automakers use. Even in premium branded systems with names like Lexicon, Bose, Boston Acoustics or JBL, the speakers are, at best, mediocre. Sure, there are some exceptions, but on average, they lack the accuracy, detail, excursion capabilities and power handling of a quality aftermarket speaker.

If you want to improve the performance of your factory sound system, add more power and have better speakers installed. The recipe is really just that simple.

The Steps to Success

The first step your local mobile electronics retailer will take is to determine how best to integrate with the factory radio. In some cases, this is as simple as connecting the speaker wires from the back of the radio to speaker-level inputs on a new amplifier. If the factory stereo system includes an amplifier, then a line level converter may be required to reduce the voltage to something that the new amp can use properly.

If you have a more-advanced factory audio system that includes equalization, crossovers and signal delay, the integration process requires hardware between the factory amp and your new high-power amplifier. Several companies have developed processors that will undo much of the tuning built into these amps and provide a full-bandwidth signal that your installer can use to build the new system.

Another option is to use a factory amplifier replacement module. These devices accept the audio signal from the radio and, in most cases, capture volume control information from the vehicle’s CAN bus. The output of these replacement modules works just like an aftermarket radio – we have a full-bandwidth signal that can be used to drive new amplifiers.

Advanced System Integration

At the highest levels of factory audio system integration are systems that include upmixers. An upmixer is a device that takes the stereo audio signal from your radio, iPhone or CD and converts it to multiple channels. In most cases, this includes left, center, right, left rear, right rear and subwoofer signals. Why do automakers implement upmixers? When tuned properly, your music will sound great from every seat in the vehicle. Both the driver and passenger will hear a performer recorded at the center of the stage from the middle of the dash.

To integrate with these systems, it’s often best if we keep the factory signal processing in place, then add a digital signal processor (DSP) between the factory amp and the new high-power amplifiers. The DSP lets us fine-tune the frequency response of the system so the new speakers can produce an amazingly accurate and lifelike listening experience.

Speaker Upgrades

As we mentioned, it is important to upgrade the speakers in your vehicle to achieve an overall improvement in sound quality. Premium speakers provide smoother frequency response, extended bandwidth (they play lower and higher in the frequency spectrum), increased power handling and louder volume. If you are going to add amplifiers, then it only makes sense to ensure your speakers will be able to make use of that newfound power.

Speaker shopping can be somewhat difficult. Listening to speakers on display boards doesn’t always provide a sense of what those speakers will sound like in the vehicle. A close look at the speaker design, research into the brand’s reputation and a thorough understanding of speaker technologies may prove to be a better way to shop.

One problem with this approach is marketing. No matter the quality of a new speaker, every manufacturer wants people to think that their products are the best. Filtering the genuine features from the marketing fluff can be difficult. Work with your retailer to find a solution that sounds great, fits your budget and works with your application.

System Installation

If only installing mobile electronics equipment were as easy as setting up a new microwave. We can’t simply plug it in and turn it on. Wires have to be run, connections have to be made and equipment has to be mounted. Budget for these requirements before you go shopping. The performance of a new speaker in your vehicle depends as much as on how it is installed as on its design.

If you are changing speaker sizes, you will want plastic adapters instead of wood to eliminate the chance of damage due to water infiltration. You will want high-quality interconnects to ensure noise can’t creep into the system. You will need large-gauge power wire to deliver current to your new amplifiers efficiently. Talk to your retailer about the products and processes he uses.

It’s Not Over Yet

The last step of the installation process is to tune the system. Even the addition of a subwoofer requires proper tuning. The installer should confirm that the output of the sub is combining acoustically with the rest of the speakers in the vehicle. The sensitivity of the amplifier should be set so the systems have excellent overall balance and won’t distort when the volume is turned up.

At the top end of the spectrum, systems with new DSP units require that each channel of the sound system be tuned to provide smooth frequency response. Having the right channel a little brighter or more laid back than the left will cause the location of a performer or an instrument to seem to move around the vehicle as its frequency content changes. We want everything to be stable and naturally balanced. Budget for at least an hour or two of tuning to ensure you are getting everything you can from your upgrade.

Enjoy Better Sound

Upgrading your sound system with new amplifiers and speakers is a great way to increase maximum volume, reduce distortion, and improve imaging and staging. The process most certainly doesn’t require a new source unit, but it does take some planning. Work with your local mobile electronics retailer to design an upgrade for your sound system. The experience will truly let you enjoy your music in a way you have never heard before.

This article is written and produced by the team at www.BestCarAudio.com. Reproduction or use of any kind is prohibited without the express written permission of 1sixty8 media.

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Step 1: Add a Subwoofer

Step 2: Add an Amplifier

I’d Like to Order the Combo, Please

Step 3: Upgrade Your Speakers

Installation Matters

The Next Steps

Upgrade Your OEM Stereo System Today

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What Happens When We Have Too Much Power?

The Reference for Power Ratings

How They Test Power Handling

Where Do the Big Numbers Come From?

Choosing Speakers for Your Vehicle

The Early Days of Satellite Radio

Satellite Radio Company Merger

How Satellite Radio Works

They Really Have Satellites?

The Benefit of Satellite Radio

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Enjoy the Entertainment You Want, Almost Anywhere

1) Define Your Classic Car Audio Objective

2) You’re Going to Need a Source Unit

3) Speakers Matter

4) You Can Never Have Too Much Power

5) Electrical Systems Requirements

6) If the Shoe Fits, Add a Subwoofer

7) Research Your Partner

Music Makes Every Road Trip Better

Fix What’s Broken

The Steps to Success

Advanced System Integration

Speaker Upgrades

System Installation

It’s Not Over Yet

Enjoy Better Sound

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