I’ve seen a lot of people asking what kind of car stereo would best fit their ride and I have seen a lot of people get frustrated of their car stereo just because of following someone’s advice. Don’t let this happen to you. You can avoid the common mistakes done by a lot of people in choosing their car stereo by following the guidelines that I’m about to give you. You might say, “Okay Richard, is this a sales pitch?” not even close. The truth is that a lot of people are seeking advice from others not realizing that those people are not the best ones to ask about the matter and in turn could have a negative effect after having bought the car stereo. Commonly, they get frustrated. Let’s face it, some people love to give advice even if they don’t know anything or just a little about the matter.

So what should you do now?

Follow these guidelines and tips before purchasing a car stereo.

1. Decide on what type of car stereo you want, will it be a plain tuner, cassette player, CD player, DVD player, HDD stereo, car stereo with video, 1 ½ din player (GM/Chrysler Fit) or any combination of the above.

2. When you see someone with a nice car stereo or know someone who has a nice car stereo, try to ask them the brand and model of that car stereo unit, ask them about the good and bad things it has and ask them if they would recommend that kind of stereo but don’t buy just yet or you might end up like the one I was talking about above “Frustrated”.

3. After having a list of car stereo, go to a store and ask the salesperson for a demo. Pay close attention to what the salesperson is talking about so you could compare what he is saying with what the person you asked about the car stereo will tell you.

4. Listen carefully to the sound that the car stereo is producing. Take note if the sound has a loud bass, clear or if the feature can produce both sound. Some people like the sound of loud bass while some go for clarity. It’s just a matter of preference but personally, I’ll go with the one that could produce both a loud bass and a clear sound.

5. Inspect the feature of the car stereo if the quality of sound can be easily manipulated like the bass, mid and high frequency and check if the car stereo control is user friendly and driver friendly.

6. Inspect the specification if it will be compatible with the current speakers you have (if you have speakers already) or not. This is a better way than having to buy a new set of speakers if your speaker’s circuitry is damaged by the power of the stereo because some stereo are so powerful that it could easily damage speakers.

7. The technology of car stereos are evolving the way computers evolve so consider new features like iPOD, Bluetooth, GPS and such if you plan to attatch this devices into your car stereo. Not every car stereo out in the market is iPOD, Bluetooth and GPS ready. So choose wisely.

8. Take into consideration future enhancement and sound expansion. I mean like having expanded bass and separates for better sounds. Inspect whether the car stereo unit has expansion inputs and outputs. You might decide in the future to join a car sound set-up competition. ?…

9. Warranty. Check the warranty, the longer warranty period, the better.

10. Select a price range and eliminate those that does not fit in your list of car stereos. (consider all the guidelines above before eliminating some stereo from your list).

Having followed these guidelines, you should have a list car stereo that will match your expectation. Again, it’s just a matter of choice depending on your preferences and other factors to consider like the price.

Now for the sales pitch ? (kidding).

There are a lot of good car stereo brand out there too many to mention here some of the many brands are Alpine, Kenwood, Bose, Sony, Eclipse and Pioneer car stereo which has 2 kinds, the Pioneer Car Stereo and the Pioneer Premier Car Stereo.

Whichever you choose depends on you.

The bottomline is choose wisely so you can avoid getting frustrated and not end up spending more money.

That’s it for now.