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CAUTION on Car Stereo Installation
Pros
Stereo is excellent
Cons
BE CAREFUL WITH "PROFESSIONAL" INSTALLATIONS
Recommended it?
Yes
I love my Pioneer in dash CD player. I have never really had any problems with it, that is, any problems that were related to junk components or manufacturer type problems. My problems are with the installation guys at the place I bought it.
I bought the unit at a local car audio store because it was slightly cheaper than the chain store's price and the installation was free. (Now I know why installation was free.) I didn't have any problems for about 6 months. I was cranking up my stereo to all of my favorite tunes, from Prodigy to Dave to Dr. Dre to Garth Brooks. Everything sounded fine and clear. Lots of power, no problems.
After 6 months, the problems began. At first, every week or so, the stereo would cut out and shut down when I hit a bump. I was a little worried, but it wasn't cutting out enough for me to worry. After 7 months, the stereo began cutting out every day and this made me angry, especially when I was sitting at a stoplight in my own private music filled world dancing and mouthing the words when suddenly the music would stop and I would realize all the people in the cars around me were staring. I took the stereo back to the place that I bought it. They removed the stereo and sent it back to Pioneer. Pioneer sent it back and said there were no defects in the stereo. I was a little disgruntled, but not to the point of going postal, yet anyway. The guys at the car audio store reinstalled my stereo and the problems ceased for about another month then started up again in much the same way.
I took the car back and they took the stereo out and looked at it again and again determined that there was nothing wrong with it. REREINSTALLED was my stereo. The damn thing worked normally again for a while, then the same problems began. I should have realized then that the problem wasn't with me or the stereo, but with the installation. At the time, I was thinking, "These guys install stereos all day long, surely they know how to put them in. They're experts," I reasoned.
Think again. I had a friend from school look at my stereo. We pulled the entire unit out and I was amazed at the mess behind my dashboard. Wires were everywhere, kinked and bare. I am surprised that my car didn't catch on fire. My friend rerereinstalled the stereo and I haven't had a problem with it since.
SO THIS IS YOUR WORD OF CAUTION: TALK TO SOME FORMER CUSTOMERS IF YOU ARE GETTING YOUR CAR STEREO "PROFESSIONALLY" INSTALLED.
--woodfish36
I bought the unit at a local car audio store because it was slightly cheaper than the chain store's price and the installation was free. (Now I know why installation was free.) I didn't have any problems for about 6 months. I was cranking up my stereo to all of my favorite tunes, from Prodigy to Dave to Dr. Dre to Garth Brooks. Everything sounded fine and clear. Lots of power, no problems.
After 6 months, the problems began. At first, every week or so, the stereo would cut out and shut down when I hit a bump. I was a little worried, but it wasn't cutting out enough for me to worry. After 7 months, the stereo began cutting out every day and this made me angry, especially when I was sitting at a stoplight in my own private music filled world dancing and mouthing the words when suddenly the music would stop and I would realize all the people in the cars around me were staring. I took the stereo back to the place that I bought it. They removed the stereo and sent it back to Pioneer. Pioneer sent it back and said there were no defects in the stereo. I was a little disgruntled, but not to the point of going postal, yet anyway. The guys at the car audio store reinstalled my stereo and the problems ceased for about another month then started up again in much the same way.
I took the car back and they took the stereo out and looked at it again and again determined that there was nothing wrong with it. REREINSTALLED was my stereo. The damn thing worked normally again for a while, then the same problems began. I should have realized then that the problem wasn't with me or the stereo, but with the installation. At the time, I was thinking, "These guys install stereos all day long, surely they know how to put them in. They're experts," I reasoned.
Think again. I had a friend from school look at my stereo. We pulled the entire unit out and I was amazed at the mess behind my dashboard. Wires were everywhere, kinked and bare. I am surprised that my car didn't catch on fire. My friend rerereinstalled the stereo and I haven't had a problem with it since.
SO THIS IS YOUR WORD OF CAUTION: TALK TO SOME FORMER CUSTOMERS IF YOU ARE GETTING YOUR CAR STEREO "PROFESSIONALLY" INSTALLED.
--woodfish36
