When you wander into a store for a car audio
upgrade it’s all too easy to get sucked into buying a system that doesn’t fulfil
your expectations. If you don’t have some background knowledge, it’s quite
likely you’ll cough up a substantial amount of money and come away very
disappointed.
Joe Pettitt’s revised and updated How to Design
and Install High-Performance Car Stereo is aimed at educating the entry-level
enthusiast.
Published by CarTech in 2003, this US-based
128-page soft cover book contains a generous number of photos and diagrams, is
logically arranged and easy to follow. All illustrations are black and white
rather than colour.
Each chapter in the book is sequenced to follow
the signal path - that is, starting with the head unit, graphic equaliser (EQ),
amps and, finally, speakers. Joe Pettitt has a strong background in automotive
writing background and many sections use fairly loose language – almost magazine
style. However, where the topics are more in-depth, the writing is succinct and
accurate. There’s a wide range of detail and, in some instances, the author
refers to other books and technical papers as further resources.
The chapter on head units is well detailed,
discussing chassis sizes, theft deterrents, RCA outputs, auxiliary inputs and
important specs (such as signal-to-noise ratio, power output and distortion).
Unfortunately, many of the head units used as examples are US-market only and
there’s no discussion of MP3 or dedicated music hard-drives – this is where the
book shows its age (despite being updated).
Cross-overs and EQs are comprehensively explained
along with differentiation between passive and active cross-overs and parametric
EQs. The book also covers using a Real Time Analyser (RTA) to adjust audio
settings for the optimal frequency spread. Similarly, there’s a detailed
explanation of the operation of amplifiers, discussion on the difference between
Class A to D amps and how to wire amplifiers to achieve different outputs. Like
each other chapter in the book, there’s also a useful glossary covering terms
such as RMS, clipping, regulated and unregulated power supply.
The chapters on speakers, speaker enclosures and
speaker mounting are excellent. You’ll learn everything about choosing the right
speakers (looking at sensitivity and other speaker specs) all the way through to
angling the speaker to achieve the optimal sound stage and imaging. There are a
lot of pages dedicated to selecting and designing sub-woofer enclosures (using
computer programs) and you’ll find a simple one-page guide to building a sub
enclosure. There’s also detailed step-by-step coverage how the professionals
make a fibreglass kick panel speaker pod. Some more of these step-by-step guides
would improve the book immensely.
Wiring, terminals and cables are covered in a
dedicated chapter that provides useful advice and approaches to avoid
interference and noise, matching cable gauge to power demand and suitable wire
connections. The final chapter encapsulates everything learnt in previous
chapters and follows the professional installation of two different types of
sound systems – one ‘high dollar’ and one ‘best bang for your buck’. This is a
photos-and-captions style chapter where the photos tell the story.
How to Design and Install High-Performance Car
Stereo is a well-written and detailed book for anyone new to the audio scene.
Everything in the book is relevant and there are no sections where you’ll feel
the need to skip pages. It shows its age in some areas and it falls short in
giving you an overall direction for your system but, as intended, you will be
suitably educated when you walk into your local car audio store.
How to Design and Install High-Performance Car
Stereo can be purchased for AUD$44.95 (plus delivery) from Beven D. Young
Automotive Books and Software.
Contact:
Beven D. Young Automotive Books and Software +61 8
8298 5548
www.bevenyoung.com.au
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