How to get the job i want?

[loud4life69]

Hey everyone im new to this forum. My question is how did some of you
get the job of installing car audio. I have been very interested in car
audio sense my freshman year in high school and i want my job to
involve around car audio after i finish high school. There are some
schools that teach car audio but i know only the basics. So i want to
know what some of you guys did to get the job in car audio.


--
loud4life69
------------------------------------------------------------------------
loud4life69's Profile: http://www.caraudioforum.com/vbb3/member.php?userid=36966
View this thread: http://www.caraudioforum.com/vbb3/showthread.php?t=226481
CarAudioForum.com - Usenet Gateway w/over one million posts online!

[MZ]

> Hey everyone im new to this forum. My question is how did some of you
> get the job of installing car audio. I have been very interested in car
> audio sense my freshman year in high school and i want my job to
> involve around car audio after i finish high school. There are some
> schools that teach car audio but i know only the basics. So i want to
> know what some of you guys did to get the job in car audio.

If you go to a vocational/technical high school already, take some classes
in electronics and, if available, automotive. Otherwise, it might be useful
to take a course or two in electronics or even introductory physics at your
local community college. In the meantime, make sure your math skills are
adequate (don't fall asleep in algebra, geometry, trig, etc) and take an
introductory physics class if available. You'll learn more in those classes
about some aspects of audio than in any auto tech school. If you don't know
what ohm's law is, for example, then you better learn it AND understand it
before touching anyone's system.

Then start out by getting familiar doing some basic car repair and wiring.
Learn how to *properly* crimp wires, learn how to use a multimeter, and
eventually start by doing your own audio system. Remember, no one expects
you to be able to afford the best equipment on a high school kid's part time
salary, so don't feel ashamed if all you can afford right now is Jensen or
Pyle. You can upgrade what you don't like later on and keep what you do
like. But that doesn't mean you can't spend a lot of time learning how to
do simple woodworking to build an amp rack, sub box, carpeting, vinyl,
whatever. Help your friends do theirs so you become familiar with cars
other than just yours.

A great deal of car audio is creativity, so plan, diagram, and MEASURE
before you actually do the building and cutting.

If you need a part time job, you might want to start at a place like Best
Buy, Circuit City, etc.

Even if you ignore all of the above, here's a website that you should
bookmark and refer to as the most definitive internet resource about all
things car audio:

www.bcae1.com

[Tony F]

Hey Mark - Would it help if after or during his studies he went through the
trouble of becoming MECP certified? Is this something install shops desire?

Tony


--
2001 Nissan Maxima SE Anniversary Edition
Clarion DRZ9255 Head Unit, Phoenix Gold ZX475ti, ZX450 and Xenon X1200.1
Amplifiers, Dynaudio System 360 Tri-Amped In Front and Focal 130HCs For Rear
Fill, Image Dynamics IDMAX10 D4 v.3 Sub

2001 Chevy S10 ZR2
Pioneer DEH-P9600MP Head Unit, Phoenix Gold Ti500.4 Amp, Focal 165HC
Speakers & Image Dynamics ID8 D4 v.3 Sub

[MZ]

> Hey Mark - Would it help if after or during his studies he went through
the
> trouble of becoming MECP certified? Is this something install shops
desire?

I've never worked for a shop as a regular employee, actually. Well, I
installed for a chain for a short time, but that doesn't count. Then I
redirected some of the business that the chain turned away to myself and
then did that stuff to get through college. So I probably didn't do things
the right way. At the time, and things may have changed today, I was
getting too much money freelancing (for lack of a better term) relative to
what most of the shops were paying to bother seeking "real" employment. I
never had MECP certification and probably wouldn't be able to pass the exam
today with all the car-specific stuff they put on it and my poor memory. :)

But if I recall, Eddie Runner weighed in (pardon the pun) on this issue
before and looked favorably on the certification when looking for employees,
but I think he looked even more favorably on a solid foundation in
electronics. Now that doesn't mean straight A's in analog electronics 101.
It means being able to come in and diagnose a problem with the equipment
available to him, and knowing how to USE that equipment without having to
consult a manual. It means actually knowing how to solder CORRECTLY. It
means knowing enough about basic electronics to realize that magic wire is
bull**** and, perhaps even more importantly, why it's bull****. Things like
that.

Anyway, an electronics background is valuable to have in this field,
especially with today's complex electrical systems and elaborate alarms and
remote starts. And in fact some people (including myself) began pursuing
electronics due in part to an interest in audio and went on to bigger (and
better?) things from there. So I'm inherently biased and will always
suggest a more traditional approach rather than one of these car audio 101
outfits.