Audio Disaster '08 (non-JBL) ... Tips/Your Stories

My day yesterday started at about 10:00 AM with me dropping off my '08 Prius to get my windows tinted, Polk DB5251 speakers, Kenwood KSC-SW1 subwoofer, Blaupunkt KSC-SW1 subwoofer, and alarm installed in my '08 Prius by professionals.

The speaker installation looked fine. The folks at Crutchfield recommended 5 1/4" to minimize the need to cut up the doors. Good advice, they fit nicely. Lots of wires running around, but the installer was careful to make the job look neat, even though hardly anyone would ever see it. I appreciate that level of professionalism.

The folks from Crutchfield said they thought the Kenwood and Blaupunkt would fit under the front seats, but they didn't. Height wasn't really the issue, the issue was with the rails to slide the seat back and forth. So the installer went with the putting the Kenwood and Blaupunkt on the back of the second row seats. This preserved the floor space on the rear deck. We thought about putting it under the rear deck, but the concern was whether we'd get too many vibrations from the tray. I'll need to make some boxes to cover them up - at a minimum for protection if I have to fold down the seats and lay something over them. So much for saving space. This isn't a science, so we need some flexibility.

The installer hooked up the speakers and tried to get some sound. At first everything looked OK, but then the remote cable got hot. And they couldn't get any sound after trying a couple of different things and they shut everything down. They started testing individual jacks for current on the amp and the speakers. When it was all said and done, it turns out they tripped the dome light fuse; damaged a cross over unit and tweeter; but worst of all the radio wasn't putting out any volume. The installer's crew put their heads together and figured that the amplifier back fed. Nobody left until 2:30 AM. The installer definitely hung in there, and wasn't fooling around.

Crutchfield stepped up and offered me a new amp and a credit for the stuff I didn't use. They want to talk to the installer to see who did what. I hate getting into a pi$$ing match. But it really woudn't be hard for me to ramp myself up to fight on this one. I'm hoping that if we can't repair the head unit, they'll repair it. I assume I can't get a new one under warranty due to the installation of the amp (if anyone can tell me I'm wrong...please tell me).

I'm hoping that the stereo can't get repaired/replaced and that either Crutchfield or the installer will step up and do the right thing. So far, both have acted reasonably. We'll see.

I'm not looking for a huge monster stereo. Just a solid upgrade from the absolutely dismal stuff Toyota. The OEM speaker looks like a coffee filter. I wouldn't use the magnet for a compass to find my way in my backyard.

The alarm didn't get installed. No time.

On the other hand, the tinting went well. The windows look good. (kind of like, "aside from that, how'd the play go Mrs. Lincoln."

It's not science, it's something of an art. Got to say flexible and patient.

 

The glass breakage sensor with a remote to tell me what's going on. I agree with the thought that there isn't much point of getting an alarm if the Prius already has one.