by Angel Sosa

Created on: January 04, 2009

Asking a question like, "Should car electronics be installed only by professionals?" is about the equivalent of asking, "Should only mechanics be able to work on automobiles?" The simple answer to this question should be "no". Assuming the answer to this question would be "yes" then, here would be the end result: One should ALWAYS pay the extra money required to install a sound system professionally - that would be rediculous.

I've personally put in several stereo systems for people throughout the past year or two, and everyone of them has given me only positive feedback such as, "Thank you, it sounds awesome!" or "Wow, that was incredibly fast!" However the case, I am no professional. The long list of items including, but not limited to: stereos, amplifiers, speakers, and more are moderately easy to self-install if one does not have someone to help them install the items. If these electronics should only be installed by professionals, then wouldn't the case be that one would have to go to a professional to buy the parts to install the system himself or herself? This isn't the case however. Multiple stores throughout the United States have sections dedicated to the sole purpose of installations of full car systems in range from GPS navigation to speaker installation. A few stores which could ring a bell would be: Wal-Mart, Autozone, Best Buy and, Circuit City.

If one is on a low budget, installing a car stereo system would be a LARGE sum of money on top of the cost to buy the electronics. Typical installation for an in-dash stereo system, quoted from BestBuy.com is an extra $49.99. The cost to install an amplifier is $99.99. Speaker installation costs $39.99. Assuming one bought the parts already, add another $189.97 on top of the equiment bought solely to install those devices, not including taxes.

Assume one bought a moderate load of stereo equipment from Wal-Mart, a VR3 dash stereo, an 800 watt amplifier and a 12" subwoofer, the box, plus the dash installation kit including all wires needed. Eh, this would be a rough total would be around, $300.00. Now, add another roughly $200.00 atop of that. All together that's a rough estimate of nearly $500.00 [half-a-thousand dollars!]... Now, let's exclude the expensive charge of installation. Let's say a friend helped this person install his/her stereo and didn't cost them anything. -$200.00 from the after charge, and the system gets installed bought and installed for a low-budget cost of $300.00. A small stereo setup normally doesn't range in price this high, this is solely the typical statistics I've seen put in on cars and trucks on the streets.

Excluding the installation of car electronics to only being done by professionals is only putting up a boundary stating, "One is obligated to pay the extra cost of the professional installing those devices." This is wrong and unethical. Sure, if someone is insecure about someone installing a car stereo system for him/her, then he/she has the right to turn down the service offered, and take the parts to a professional, and have the job done there; however, he/she is not limited to just this option.

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