YOUR take on SPL/Car Audio scene these days?
12-01-2008, 12:24 PM
#2
im gonna agree that the days of alot of loud cars are dead, there are still some but they are few and far between. The sport/industry is almost dead. Its the die hards that are keeping it going now. Kinda like linux, die hard computer nerds use it and thats about it, no one else really cares or wants it.
12-01-2008, 12:37 PM
#3
i see it going that way, i think there are many problems with spl today. lets start with the brands......i guy goes and buys a kickass stereo with the hottest new mtx 2000watt amp that he paid a G for. he goes to a comp and has it handed to him by a guy with american bass, The guys wondering now, american bass? i never heard of that, i dont know where it comes from, thats not fair......so he quits thinkin he got screwed
12-01-2008, 12:42 PM
#4
the others factors involved are the cost of equipment and the amount you need to succeed, for instance......in my class, to be competitive, i need 8x5k amps, 20-30 batts, plus all the wiring and busbars and a massive box and charging system, Thats a crapload of money. at average $200 per battery, $2000 per amp, over a $G in wireing plus subs and recones!!!!!
I like it though, so i put up with it
I like it though, so i put up with it
Last edited by bart pyle; 12-01-2008 at 12:45 PM. Reason: adding something
12-01-2008, 01:09 PM
#5
i have pretty much no experience in SPL competitions as all my systems and installs have been for daily systems but i will say this: maybe the days of SPL are dead, but loud cars in general are still around. just yesterday i saw someone post a video of a truck in south america with studio speakers playing music and everyone here was saying thats stupid. i'll bet a lot of money the truck is loud by the definition of LOUD, but might not create the sound pressure levels you all are familiar with. there were even people saying "it doesn't even sound good" assuming the quality of the sound should be the same whether its in person or from a mic on a digital camera. thats like saying "i buy all my speakers based entirely on youtube videos". SPL might be dying, but loud cars are alive and well, just maybe not in Canada, and thats probably due to the weather and municipal by-laws
12-01-2008, 02:22 PM
#6
What usually happens is something gets started by a group of enthusiasts, say SPL comps in this case.
Everyone throws together some old crap they have laying around and has a blast.
Then it gets more organized, more specialized, and you get some people with good coin to spend (NP, free country more or less).
Now the organizers see business potential and start to run it as such.
Meanwhile the enthusiast come to the latest show with his patched together gear and gets smoked by the guy who has the money to outspend the others. He doesn't come back.
The organizers (not being stupid) see this and start to create categories and fields for different levels of competitors, I.E., one amp, one sub, etc.
Entrance fees go up, people get hired, outlay goes up.
But soon there are manufactures making 10k amps for just that category, again the little guy has no chance.
So the grassroots guys are gone by now and you have the people with money, OR the people who are sponsored by a manufacturer and have $20,000.00 in equipment that Joe Blow ain't never going to have. No matter how creative or how good you are, you cannot dust a SRT10 (Viper Engine) with a Chevy pickup. Its just not possible.
By this time you need a dedicated car because who can drive around with an extra THOUSAND pounds in equipment on a daily basis? Plus all else being equal, some car types are louder than others.
It becomes painfully obvious that the average guy is going to be lucky to even place in the top 5, let alone win. So who's going to go to all that effort of building, driving, spending time & money, only to HOPE to get 4th place?
All that being said, if there is a competition within a hundred miles of me, I promise I'll go support it (spend money).
John
Everyone throws together some old crap they have laying around and has a blast.
Then it gets more organized, more specialized, and you get some people with good coin to spend (NP, free country more or less).
Now the organizers see business potential and start to run it as such.
Meanwhile the enthusiast come to the latest show with his patched together gear and gets smoked by the guy who has the money to outspend the others. He doesn't come back.
The organizers (not being stupid) see this and start to create categories and fields for different levels of competitors, I.E., one amp, one sub, etc.
Entrance fees go up, people get hired, outlay goes up.
But soon there are manufactures making 10k amps for just that category, again the little guy has no chance.
So the grassroots guys are gone by now and you have the people with money, OR the people who are sponsored by a manufacturer and have $20,000.00 in equipment that Joe Blow ain't never going to have. No matter how creative or how good you are, you cannot dust a SRT10 (Viper Engine) with a Chevy pickup. Its just not possible.
By this time you need a dedicated car because who can drive around with an extra THOUSAND pounds in equipment on a daily basis? Plus all else being equal, some car types are louder than others.
It becomes painfully obvious that the average guy is going to be lucky to even place in the top 5, let alone win. So who's going to go to all that effort of building, driving, spending time & money, only to HOPE to get 4th place?
All that being said, if there is a competition within a hundred miles of me, I promise I'll go support it (spend money).
John
12-01-2008, 03:27 PM
#7
John is kinda right with the exception of this part,
ok so placing 5th is not very desirable. but what about the other 4 guys then? when you go to comps you'd notice that at the maximum 2 cars are substantially apart from the rest in each cars. So it is very possible to place 3rd or 4th.
But everyone wants to place 1st, even just for showing up. I have seen, met people and even have friends who like car audio but wont enter a contest if they are not guaranteed a win........with minimal or no effort at that.
And, as someone pointed out, these typically are the guys who spent a ton of money on popular gear and get spanked by a brand they never heard of.
But everyone wants to place 1st, even just for showing up. I have seen, met people and even have friends who like car audio but wont enter a contest if they are not guaranteed a win........with minimal or no effort at that.
And, as someone pointed out, these typically are the guys who spent a ton of money on popular gear and get spanked by a brand they never heard of.
12-01-2008, 08:41 PM
#8
ya know, i agree that without an honest effort to become loud, your gunna suck.
the problem is that the popular spl brands arent well heard of, theyre not marketed well enough to the general public. if these brands were commonly found in retail shops more people would have them. then its classing, the only affordable classes are st.A and st.B, and they can get pricy. SS classes, forget it unless ur diehard
the problem is that the popular spl brands arent well heard of, theyre not marketed well enough to the general public. if these brands were commonly found in retail shops more people would have them. then its classing, the only affordable classes are st.A and st.B, and they can get pricy. SS classes, forget it unless ur diehard
12-01-2008, 08:54 PM
#9
50 Watt CAFz'r
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 197
i woulent say that the days of loud cars is dead Yuli ive been gone for a while but it couldent have gotten that bad ive got a 2002 focus im gonna start building this winter and im gonna need some gear and you know i can make some noise so if theres any good 12's kickin around get back to me
12-02-2008, 12:22 AM
#10
hmmm thought this would have more replies.
anyways, here is my take.
car audio as a scene is dead. SPL as a sport is dead.
car audio is simply a consumer electronic good now, and SPL is just simply a hobby.
the reason is very simple. it is no longer something new and exciting. everyone has a stereo in their car now, nothing special about that. Some a big and some are small, who cares.
SPL had a good run......for a good portion of the 90's and early 2000's. But as everything that's highly repetative and totally lacks any action it got rather boring and ordinary.
Back in the day car audio shows attracted people who wanted to go and see loud cars in action. Now everyone can go on ebay and buy a loud stereo themselves. The manufacturers are laughing, the local dealers are suffering. Why would a manufacturer even bother supporting the scene or the sport? Why would a manufacturer bother sponsoring anyone when realisticaly that yeilds zero benefit.
consumers these days are a paradox themselves. Have access to lots of information, and yet, very uneducated at the same time. Maybe it's the information overflow that creates the maze in which so many consumers get lost. Hard to tell.
But it is easy to tell which manufacturers use this to their advantage and push the consumers' mind further into the fog with gimmicky marketing attempts and products which really only produce the *WOW* factor and are hardly useful in real applications.
I don't think we will ever see any car audio manufacturer support EVER again. And I dont mean by one manufacturer, but rather as a collective group. The reason is simple, there is no more need.
You can say that now all the dollars invested in marketing & advertising (aka support) by all the car audio manufacturers in the last 15 years are finally paying off. Now all they have to do is sit back and reap the benefits.
Without manufacturer support or sponsorship you simply can not afford to build a loud car. And even if you hit the jack pot and do have the money and time you end up being the only one or one of VERY few.......which makes you think wtf is the point if there is no competition.......so you reconsider and say screw it. And this is why the days of loud cars are DEAD.
The next thing to die is the rice/import scene. I'll give it another 5-7 years and then it's as dead as SPL. When everyone and their mother can get a B18 swap with a Turbo for $2000 and go faaaaaaaaaaaast, it all will be over.
anyways, here is my take.
car audio as a scene is dead. SPL as a sport is dead.
car audio is simply a consumer electronic good now, and SPL is just simply a hobby.
the reason is very simple. it is no longer something new and exciting. everyone has a stereo in their car now, nothing special about that. Some a big and some are small, who cares.
SPL had a good run......for a good portion of the 90's and early 2000's. But as everything that's highly repetative and totally lacks any action it got rather boring and ordinary.
Back in the day car audio shows attracted people who wanted to go and see loud cars in action. Now everyone can go on ebay and buy a loud stereo themselves. The manufacturers are laughing, the local dealers are suffering. Why would a manufacturer even bother supporting the scene or the sport? Why would a manufacturer bother sponsoring anyone when realisticaly that yeilds zero benefit.
consumers these days are a paradox themselves. Have access to lots of information, and yet, very uneducated at the same time. Maybe it's the information overflow that creates the maze in which so many consumers get lost. Hard to tell.
But it is easy to tell which manufacturers use this to their advantage and push the consumers' mind further into the fog with gimmicky marketing attempts and products which really only produce the *WOW* factor and are hardly useful in real applications.
I don't think we will ever see any car audio manufacturer support EVER again. And I dont mean by one manufacturer, but rather as a collective group. The reason is simple, there is no more need.
You can say that now all the dollars invested in marketing & advertising (aka support) by all the car audio manufacturers in the last 15 years are finally paying off. Now all they have to do is sit back and reap the benefits.
Without manufacturer support or sponsorship you simply can not afford to build a loud car. And even if you hit the jack pot and do have the money and time you end up being the only one or one of VERY few.......which makes you think wtf is the point if there is no competition.......so you reconsider and say screw it. And this is why the days of loud cars are DEAD.
The next thing to die is the rice/import scene. I'll give it another 5-7 years and then it's as dead as SPL. When everyone and their mother can get a B18 swap with a Turbo for $2000 and go faaaaaaaaaaaast, it all will be over.
Last edited by Father Yuli; 12-02-2008 at 12:29 AM.
