salty

I am getting ready to spend some money on gear. I consider it big money, when I think of all the other bills and uses this could be put towards.
I know that a skilled installer can do things faster and with more confidence and knowledge than I am ever likely to have. But If I get a good recipe for my system, can a newby do a quality install, or does each system need to be optimised by a specialist? I do all my own automotive mechanical work and have a lot of tools. Just not sure how much tuning and what specialised equipment might be used to get things as good as they can be. If it makes no sense, I will hand the job over to a pro, but I am on this board to learn about car audio, so you gotta start somewhere.

Cavalier Chunk

The only work i let the local shop do is amp installs, other then that i like to install every thing. im still trying to fig out the speaker mount's for my fusion's(i have to custom make them this is gonna be a doozy for my first)

[ April 15, 2005, 08:47 AM: Message edited by: lumina guy ]

veeman

iTrader: (3)

I think everyone on this board started off in this hobby or profession by doing their first install. You state that you are mechanically inclined so there is no reason you can't start off by doing the install yourself. It may not be as pretty and sound as good as a professional install(I say may, because I've seen some pretty crappy pro installs that sounded as good as they looked)but you will learn so much so quickly and have way more fun doing it yourself.

Fr0z3N

Do it yourself then get it tuned at a shop. If you wanna stop by my house in sauga will all your stuff I can teach/help you install it.

M.C. Ryan

The only thing you might want to look into is the possible plus side of extending your warranty if the authorized dealer installs it. some products extend the warranty if it's installed by the dealer.

effenay

iTrader: (4)

Half the fun in car audio is installing stuff yourself! I say go for it, especially if you have some friends that can guide you if you get stuck on any problems.

timmyturtle

iTrader: (8)

Here's a suggestion:
You might be able to hang around and watch the installer do the install. Yeah, I know all you pros out there are are rolling your eyes, but if you can get someone knowledgeable to let you watch and, gasp, even help, it'd go a long way to getting yourself started. You'd not only be paying for the (pro) install, but you'd be gaining some experience/etc. with your money. Good luck with the install.

salty

Thanks for the encouraging comments and the offer to help with the tuning. That would be great. Still thinking about componentry. The idea this week is to get a set of premium 6.5 inch two way components. Make offset custom kick panels with the tweeters beside the mids, A 4 channel amp of about 75/ch, and a 10 inch sub in a smalll sealed box, and pop the metal out of the back where tthe optional ski pass thru is . Not looking for a pounding system, but want the music to be full range.The car already has a factory amp that I would leave powering the rear speakers. I would like to keep running the relatively rare BMW business cd player that I bought last year. It is supposedly much bettter than the normal Alpine made deck that comes in the E36 (3 series). If I get an aftermarket head unit, it would probably be a Nakamich, as they match the rest of the dash in appearance. I do like the low break in factor of the factory unit...and the ergonomics are great.

Fr0z3N

Or instead of paying and just watching, as I said you could come down to my house and I'd teach you and install it for free.