Performance Blog

In today’s economy everyone is looking for the best value they can find when it comes to looking for a new car radio. They look for the most features they can get for their money. We recently received the new flagship Clarion double-din head unit and all I can say it is the best value on the market. This beautiful 7” WVGA touch screen radio can do everything you want with a price everyone would want to pay.

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We are in the year 2012 and the standard FM/AM radio is filled up with commercials and advertisements. You are lucky to get more than 30 minutes of music in one hour of time listening to your favorite radio station. It is getting more and more difficult to find a station that actually plays content that you enjoy listening to. What other options are there for us who want a wider variety of content to choose from?

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We are in the year 2012 and most of the clients I have that come in use an iPod or other MP3 player as their main source of audio through their vehicles system. I am here to present to you the Kenwood KIV-BT901 Mechless deck. What do I mean by mechless? A mechless deck is a head unit that lacks the ability to play CD’s. This particular head unit loses the ability to play CDs but gains the beautiful 3” TFT Monitor on the front of the radio. After having time to play with the radio and see what it is capable of, I wanted to share with you my thoughts about it.

Now that my Tahoe has been done for a while, I decided it was time to make my boat’s audio match it. Of course, JL Audio was the only company that came to mind with their amazing marine audio line. Over the past few years, JL Audio has become THE marine audio company. The line has continued expanding every year and they now have something for everyone. Being the audio nut that I am (see my Tahoe build) I decided I wanted to go all out. Read more

Have you visited our location in West Palm Beach? No???? Stop what you’re doing and head over here immediately! Our store gives car lovers a very unique experience in the automotive aftermarket industry. At Serious Autosport, there is no “high pressure sales atmosphere”, just knowledgeable staff willing to work with you to help guide you in the right direction. Whatever your project may be, we can help!

We have a lot of customers who come in asking about “Unlocking” their factory DVD/Navigation system. They may have read something online or possibly have had the luxury of seeing the capabilities of one of these interfaces in action. What does it mean to “Unlock” the factory DVD/Navigation system in a vehicle? Depending on the interface, when you unlock the factory system you can: view video while in motion, add a rear camera, view the rear camera while in motion, add a front camera, control Bluetooth, and control the navigation while in motion. The number of vehicles with factory DVD/Navigation screens is growing every year as is the selection of aftermarket interfaces to unlock those systems. Here are a few options:

What is Spring Break Nationals? Spring Break Nationals is one of the United States largest Car Audio Shows/Competitions. This event was held on March 24-25th at Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida. I had the pleasure of being able to attend the show for my first time ever. If I could give you one tip of advice if you ever plan on going it would be bring ear plugs! It is an underestimate to say that it was LOUD. We were invited by JL Audio to display two of ours vehicles in their booth. We brought along our Tahoe which you can find photos of on our Facebook page. Also, our 2012 Mercedes C350 which has a very impressive JL Audio sound system in it as well.

Tom Mangs once again has been named "Top 100 Installers in the United States" by Mobile Electronics Magazine for 2011-2012. He already won this award back in 2007-08 and that plaque sits next to the many others he has received throughout the years. Tom has been with us for 30 years now (yes THIRTY) and during his time has built some amazing audio systems. He specializes in one off custom installations that includes fiberglass, plexi, motorization, and LED lighting, but has also built plenty of competition cars in his day as well.

So I was playing around on the internet today and came accross an article stating that in the next 10 years, aftermarket car radio could possibly be "dead". The part of the article that talks about this is copied below for you to read.

I understand where they are coming from...I just don't know if I see this actually happening. How about you? Do you believe that aftermarket car radio's will come to an end in 10 years? Read the article below and give us your feedback on our Facebook or Twitter page. We're interested to know what you think about this!

Here at Serious Autosport we are always thinking about automotive performance. One of the vehicles that we specialize in and have a great deal of experience with is the american icon, the Corvette!

We can make you Corvette look, run and sound a lot better. A set of American Racing headers and Corsa exhaust will get the process started. A cold air intake will also help the vehicle breathe and sound better. You will be amazed at the sound and performance we will achieve with these additions.

There is a common mistake we tend to make as either consumers or salespeople when it comes to designing and purchasing a car audio system. Addressing the proper way to upgrade!

I’ve run into situations working with clients where there is much more involved than just changing out the radio or speakers. In some cases, the system actually sounded “worse” than before the upgrade! “Why does it sound worse than before?” I would get asked.

When it came time to put an audio system in my Chevy Tahoe, I looked carefully at all the brands we carried and after months of going back and forth with different system designs, I decided JL Audio was the way to go. I didn’t want to just replace the factory speakers with JL’s and I didn’t want to just put a subwoofer enclosure in the trunk. I wanted to build a vehicle where our master installer Tom Mangs could really stretch his legs. He was given the equipment I picked out and when he asked how I wanted it installed, I simply said “Make it different than anything else out there”. With no real budget or time restriction, I knew we would be in for a treat.

Did you know that Serious Autosport now uses our computer and plotter to pre-cut window tint? Well, we do!

So what does this mean for you, the customer?

Quicker wait times for one! When you schedule your appointment and select your film, we then precut the film before you even arrive for installation! This will save you 30 minutes or more of waiting.

The folks over at Kenwood continued their tradition of upgrading their line of head units this year. The new 2012 line-up of Kenwood Excelon receivers is finally here and better than ever. The DNX6990HD is one of the two flagship models from Kenwood. I have had some great hands on experience with it that I would love to share.

This year they packed more features than ever into a head unit which is also a few hundred dollars cheaper than its predecessor. The DNX6990HD continues to use the Bluetooth Powered by Parrot which is arguably the best quality Bluetooth interface available to date. The recent update to the Bluetooth added Bluetooth audio streaming capability from any iPhone, Android, or Blackberry device. This means that any music on your phone or audio playing from your phone can wirelessly stream through your car radio. In addition to being extremely convenient, it sounds great!

A day at the Palm Beach International Raceway drag strip. Our Serious Autosport Nissan Skyline GTR R900 dropped jaws with its amazing speed and power! Come by our retail store and ask Evan for a ride! You'll be amazed.

So, you’ve got a car or truck and want to “live in the now”, huh? Seems like with more folks hanging on to their vehicles these days, there’s been a greater interest in such options as Satellite radio, Bluetooth wireless or even getting that iPod to play your music. I wrote a blog some time ago on some of the options that were available and will revisit some of that stuff alongside what’s new and readily available now.

It's a question many of us think about- we might dream about it- and we always try to get as close to it as our abilities (and budget) will allow.

What's the best I can get?

Well, it's time we spent a few paragraphs going over what some of the industry standards are and what we can offer at Ask The Advisors and Serious Autosport when it comes to car audio. To begin, let’s define what “the best” actually is…

In the years since its inception, the pathway to integrating the factory radio with aftermarket components has been riddled with cheap methods, noisy adaptors and countless failures. The usual method if you wanted to add an amp to your car’s factory system involved the use of a high to low level adaptor, which worked “enough” at the time, although there was inherent noise and a huge lack of performance from this band-aid.

Why are we not open on Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday or Saturday like everybody else in retail? Folks, this is a simple answer. Unlike so many other retailers out there we understand what the term “Holiday” means, both to you and just as importantly, to our employees.

When we announced the return of the legendary Rockford Fosgate lineup to Ask the Advisors and Serious Autosport, we also brought in the newly designed Power Series of speaker systems. After hearing these additions, I can honestly say Fosgate has extended their reputation for quality and durability beyond just subwoofers.

One of the most important (and usually overlooked) areas where you can actually achieve a great improvement in sound quality with any car audio system is in sound deadening. It is here that you can actually greatly reduce if not eliminate all the areas of your vehicle that hinder sound system performance- right down to improving mid-bass response!

Did you know that the single most impactful modification you can make to your car or truck is a set of custom wheels. The OEM wheels that come already installed on new vehicles are, quite frankly, boring with little or no imagination put into the design.

The holiday season is coming up and I am positive that plenty of you are planning on travelling to go spend time with friends and family. If you plan on driving to visit everyone, how do you plan on entertaining your family in the vehicle? An option that everyone is bound to love is a new overhead DVD player in your vehicle. I can vouch from experience that there is nothing better on a long road trip then being able to watch a few movies to pass the time by.

In the twenty-plus years I’ve been involved in the retail-audio/video industry, I’ve come across customers who have been lied to, taken advantage of, over-sold and under-sold when it came to their home and car audio purchases. And in every case, it always was a result of the salesperson they dealt with either not listening, caring only about his wallet or not caring at all. Given today’s changing retail environment, the downsizing of the “big box” guys, the growing internet sales arena- it makes total sense not only to know what you’re talking about, but also to listen to what your customer actually wants and provide that to the best of your ability.

When you offer the premiere car audio sales and installation team in South Florida, there’s only one way to showcase that team…With some awesome demo vehicles, of course! And we’re sparing no expense when it comes to showing you what Ask The Advisors and Serious Autosport can do when it comes to creating a killer car audio system!

So, I’ve been planning to put a car audio system in my little 96 Toyota Tacoma truck for a little while now, and frankly it’s driving me crazy that I haven’t put it in yet. I want the single DIN, Kenwood Excelon KDC-X995. With the KDC-X995 I can connect my phone, and listen to Pandora, where it can store new stations, and it also has the thumbs up/down feature. The X995 has Parrot Bluetooth, so that I can keep more of my attention on the road. Not to mention HD radio, for that near CD quality sound, and which is free. All of these features are built in. Talk about a feature filled list! We haven’t even begun to look at the IPod connectivity. Which uses direct, alphabet, skip, and more can be used to search for songs. Direct search is particularly easy because all one needs to do is enter the first three letters of the playlist song, artist, podcast, or genre, to navigate to your desired area. All in all a fantastic quality deck with a two year warrantee.

Let’s face it. We drive vehicles that have mediocre audio systems, so we shell out some bucks to upgrade our systems so we have the latest features and superior sound quality. Yet in some cases, we still fall short of our system’s capabilities and our personal expectations and it’s sometimes not the fault of the equipment we’ve installed. This can actually be blamed on the actual power supply from our vehicles, which like the power we have in our homes- is actually not very clean or stable.

Each summer a number of us decide to go on road trips. Long drives in the Florida sun can actually make what should've been a great family road trip, into a horrible hot mess! This is why Serious Autosport carries the best quality window tint around, 3M. We've carefully selected to carry three of the seven different types of window tint 3M has to offer. Below, I've listed our three selections so that you can be sure you choose the one best for you!

The folks at Pioneer continued the tradition of the heralded AVIC car audio lineup with the AVIC-Z130BT, and this unit packs some real cool features, not to mention good solid performance!

The AVIC-Z130BT comes with standard features, including a 7 inch WVGA Touchscreen display, full on-board NAV, DVD player, iPod control and Bluetooth Wireless. In addition, new features include Pandora Internet Radio capability and HD Radio. On the Navigation side, the AVIC-Z130BT features lane guidance that can direct you to the right lane particularly when you will be heading towards busy intersections. It also has intelligent re-routing options which come in handy if you get lost during your travels. Navigation can be utilized in either 2-D or 3-D mode and displays major landmarks, making navigating smooth and easy.

So you live in South Florida and you are still driving around with no window tint on your vehicle…WHY?! Florida isn't called "The Sunshine State" for no reason! Window tint doesn’t just look cool, it helps keep you and your passengers cool as well. A good window tint film can have up to 60% heat reduction. The key word in that last statement is good. That "$99-sure to turn purple and bubble-tint is not even in the same ballpark as a quality tint like the 3M we use here at Serious. 3M is a well known name in a lot of industry’s out there and window tint is no different. 3M is the number one window tint company in the country and their product is top notch. With seven different tint lines under their name there is a film out there for everyone. We chose the three we felt fit best in our area including Crystaline, Colorstable, and FX Premium. All of these films we carry are non-metalized so they will not interfere with any electronics in the newer vehicles.

Go ahead. Crank up that volume until your ears bleed…Until every cop knows you. Just make sure you do it properly- AND- have the proper equipment to provide “staying power”. (Some of you can relate to this and some of you might not)

Sure, car audio gear can get plenty loud- and given the fact that much of today’s music is either saturated or compressed to death- it makes avoiding the dreaded “D” and “C” words. I’m talking about distortion and clipping- and they usually signal the death of speakers and electronics, whether by user error (misuse) or inadequate equipment. (Did She say that to one of you?)

Griot’s Garage began making their car care products back in 1988 after the owner decided nothing on the market was good enough. Since then, Griot’s has grown to be one of the top car care companies in the market. Many of us here at Serious Autosport have been using their products for years ordering from the catalog with amazing results, so when it came time to pick a car care line to carry here in store we decided there was no option other than Griot’s. Their products work amazingly, are environmentally friendly, are 100% USA made, smell amazing (they really do), are priced extremely reasonable, and come with a 100% satisfaction guarantee! What more could you ask for from your car care products? Keep reading, I have one more incentive for you at the end!

A few months back, I wrote about the DSM200 SmartStart Interface from Directed and found this to be a real nice addition to anyone wanting to add an extra level of security and control to their high-end car security system. Well, the folks at Directed have come up with something even more cool!

Directed now offers the DSM250 SmartStart GPS, which provides all the conveniences associated with the DSM200 but adds the added functionality of GPS tracking and control. This interface now includes GPS features such as GPS Fencing, SmartPark and even Speed Monitoring- making this interface a great addition. Let’s go over these great new features.

If you are thinking about adding a new car radio to your vehicle, look no further than the Clarion NX501. This beautifully designed double-din radio will not only blow you out of the water in looks but also in the easy to use, user interface and incredible sound quality. The Clarion NX501 offers a wide variety of outstanding features.

I don't think anyone has not driven past one of those cars with a big goofy wing on the back, and thought, "That looks stupid". Now, have you ever really stopped and thought about what that wing does, how it affects the cars performance, handling or safety? Are you thinking, "Hey, I have one of those wings!"? If so, this is for you.

So, you have no wing or maybe just a stock wing on the back of your car. You think to yourself,"Hey, I would like a bigger wing because it looks cool." Okay, I understand the thought of generally making your car look a little more aggressive, but what if I told you that most aftermarket wings will actually make your car slower, and use more gasoline. Kind of goes against what you were hoping for I’d bet.

I average about 15 calls per week from clients who have a factory radio that they say has broken and needs to be repaired. The problems range from bad tuners, failure to play CD’s and even no power at all. Generally, they've already contacted the car dealer and were told either nothing or that they could simply replace their radio at a substantial cost. It's at this junction that I always recommend replacing that tired factory radio with something current that- in most cases- offers much more in the way of integration and features, not to mention better performance.

Purchasing any car security system brings peace-of-mind when it comes to protecting your vehicle and its contents, provided you are satisfied with the protection that comes with your new security system. While the included protection (Ignition kill/ impact sensor/entry sensing) does a pretty good job, areas remain that you can protect with a minimal additional investment at the time of installation or at a later date.

Ask yourself some specific questions relating to exactly what you want to protect. Chances are, there’s an optional sensor you can purchase that will extend the level of protection. Maybe you just bought a nice new set of rims and tires or you want to give that convertible or Jeep some added protection. Whatever the case, you’ll find one or more of the sensors I mention here will do the trick.

This is a question I hear just about every day when discussing wheel options with customers. These wheels are called, “three piece” wheels, because they are just that, three separate pieces combined into one.

A three piece wheel starts life as a forged aluminum center, a spun aluminum outer barrel (the lip) and spun aluminum inner barrel. These three pieces are then bolted and sealed together at the end of the production process. There are many advantages to custom three piece wheels including fitment, finish, and strength.

It’s a common question. And it involves making an additional investment in your car stereo purchase which can make a huge difference. So why should you add an external power amplifier to your car?

Let’s take a look at what a power amplifier actually does. Put simply, an amplifier takes the low level output from a source device (CD player, tuner or MP3 player) and brings its output level to a range that can drive speakers. This range, or power output, can vary depending on the size of the amplifier. Many car audio systems- both OEM and aftermarket- contain power amplifiers even though you might not know it. They can range from built-in amp stages that are actually inside the chassis of the radio to separate external amplifiers that can be located under a seat or in a rear side panel of the vehicle.

A few months ago I posted a blog on my Project Mustang in which I detailed the JL Audio sound system we installed in the car. Well, we have had a ton of people visit to hear the system, and I am happy to say a fair number bought systems based on this one.

In the past few months we have been busy doing some “other” modifications to the car to enhance areas other than the sound. In no particular order we have added… Read more

We recently were proud to announce that we were offering the full line of car audio from the legendary Rockford Fosgate.

I’m also proud to introduce the new Marine lineup from Rockford Fosgate.

Since we just rolled out the full line of products from Clarion, I thought we ought to get right in and talk about their new high end marine unit, the CMD7.

This is a single DIN chassis with a large display face that can really take whatever the ocean can dish out. The CMD7 incorporates solid rubber gaskets for the best seals possible, stainless steel chassis designs, drip shields and rubberized controls to insure no moisture gets in anywhere. It is this attention to detail and the full IPX5 Salt/Fog testing that gets the CMD7 the highest water intrusion protection rating in it’s class. We’re talking as waterproof as you can get!

The KFCX-1730P Excelon series 6 inch components feature a new advanced speaker cone material and design that delivers the richest high, mid and low frequencies with minimal distortion. Kenwood has utilized a new hybrid fiber diaphragm material that combines glass fiber and a heat resistant material which allows the driver to provide a purer, cleaner sound across mid and low frequencies. A silk dome tweeter delivers a smooth, wide range of high frequencies. The KFCX-1730P also features a newly designed magnetic circuit that uses less steel, resulting in less distortion compared to a conventional circuit. The KFCX-1730P handles a hefty 330 Watts and allows for 3-point attenuation of the tweeter for better tuning.

You might have noticed that automobile manufacturers have been “paying more attention” to the calls for better sounding factory audio systems in their vehicles. Manufacturers are touting systems with components from brands including Alpine, Bose, Infinity, JBL, Pioneer and others- which might lead you to think that there isn’t a reason to look at aftermarket equipment as a logical upgrade.

Whether you’re serious about tracking or just want to check out how your ride performers, you need a Vbox product in your car. Why? Vbox creates the most amazing GPS data logging devices for cars on the market today. They have products ranging from the Performance Box, a portable GPS Based Performance Meter, to their Vbox Pro, combines a powerful GPS data logger with a high quality multi-camera video recorder and real-time graphics engine.

Kenwood recently introduced 2 new control decks for the car that offer great features when having a CD transport is not necessary.

If there’s one thing I can guarantee you regarding car audio, it’s that we’ll always be at the forefront of making the best car audio components available to you! With that being said, I proudly present BRAX Car Audio.

For those of you shopping for a real good set of component speakers for your vehicle, I invite you to take a real close look/ listen to the Tempo 6 Series Components from Morel. These six inch component speakers offer much of the technology and sound quality Morel is famous for - but at a price standpoint, they will surely fit into any budget!

Occasionally, I come across incidents where car audio systems are being damaged without any clue to the owner, whether by over-driving components, maladjustments of the equipment or simply a combination of crappy equipment and stupidity. I’m going to review some common issues and offer some “guidance” if I may in the hopes that I might be able to save some gear- and ears in the process.

With the increased emphasis on better audio quality in the car audio arena, we’re proud to now offer the full line of audio interfaces and processors from the great folks at Audio Control.

Audio Control has been around since 1977 and produces some of the finest audio processors and interfaces around. Some of you may have run across the famed “Epicenter” bass enhancer through the years, which set new standards when it came to enhancing and providing killer bass response.

Having the cool new car stereo in your ride means you can take advantage of all the new add-on features available with today’s technology. Features like Bluetooth wireless technology, iPod integration, and Navigation and Satellite radio can add to your enjoyment. With the increasing emphasis on technology, car audio decks are way more sophisticated and require “firmware updates” to keep up with new software versions that are being churned out on a regular basis.

For those of you in search of a great high-performance car deck, look no further than the KDCX995 from Kenwood’s Excelon division. Following the success of last year’s KDCX994, the KDCX995 brings some great new features to an already popular lineup of functions- alongside the 2 year parts and labor warranty standard with every Kenwood Excelon product.

Following on the heels of the highly successful XW series of thin car subwoofers, the folks at Kenwood have introduced 2 new models that provide even greater performance, while still staying with the successful slim basket designs.

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Automobile manufacturers have made some baby steps toward making the factory stereo system look and sound better, but they’re still falling way short of what’s possible when it comes to getting great sounding audio and extra features from your car system. Every year, the auto industry tries to change the designs of head units (radio's) so that it makes it difficult (if not impossible) to change the radio in order to upgrade the system. Thank goodness the aftermarket industry changes with the times! Read more

Yup, you heard right!

You’ve made your decision and want to buy the “Whiz Bang Model 7” car radio. It’s got everything- all the features and looks good, too. The question is- what’s the best price you can get it for?

…Now the fun begins…

Kenwood wasted no time with its success of the DNX6960 by rolling out the DNX6980 for 2011 and this year’s model is a winner, too!

Take one look at the DNX6980 and you can see the sleek design and easy functionality the designers and Kenwood were out to achieve.

Adding bass to your ride can be fairly easy in most cars but can also be cumbersome, especially when space in most vehicles is at a premium. Fortunately, there is a solution for most vehicles on the road today that offers the customer some great options when adding a subwoofer. JL Audio, a leader in car audio for years, offers a variety of custom-tailored subwoofer enclosures called “Stealthboxes” and the name fits!

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1.)   Can I keep my stock head unit and still get great sound?

2.)   I want to keep the interior looking very stock…can you do that?

The answer to both of these questions is a great big yes, and in the design and execution of the system for my new Mustang GT we are going to do both.  I want to keep the Sync system in place both for looks and because I have learned to really like the voice commands.  As for the rest of the car; I just really want to keep a stock look.

Subwoofers…

We can sit here and spend all day talking about subwoofers. We can compare one model to another, brand versus brand, whatever. It seems we all tend to get muddled up talking power handling or frequency response or heck- even magnet size. Geez! What ever happened to sound quality?

Well, I’m proud to introduce you to the “Ultimo SC” Series of car subwoofers from Morel (www.morelhifi.com). If you’ve read my previous blogs on their component speaker systems, you ought to know by now that Morel truly brings some top-notch hardware to the table when it comes to sound quality, design and durability- and this can be no more evident when you take one look at the Ultimo SC Subwoofers. Positioned as a “great consumer value” line, these woofers take much of their technology from the award-winning Ultimo Subwoofers but at a more competitive price point.

This deck, priced at $199.95 provides the same features and benefits found in the company’s KDC-X494 car deck but adds extra durability for the harsh marine world.

The KMR-440U comes with a front 3.5mm audio input and USB port for attaching additional sources and can fully control an iPod with the optional iPod cable sold separately. Other options that can be added include Satellite radio and HD radio with optional tuner modules. Expansion with outboard amplifiers is possible from the unit’s 3 sets of preamp outputs, which also allow for subwoofer level control from the head unit. Read more

I'm pleased to see a good variety of good sounding 5-channel amplifiers available. These small footprint designs offer greater flexibility, more wattage for the buck and save you $$ on installation- not to mention you only need to purchase one amp.

The latest addition comes from JL Audio, one of the leaders in small amplifier design and performance. The company already is enjoying success with it’s high-end HD series 900/5 amplifier, and now introduces the XD700/5 which compliments the HD model within its XD lineup of small efficient car amps.

The biggest feature you can get with certain alarm models allows you to remote start your vehicle, which is nice up North during winter months and down South during the summer. Being in Florida, nothing’s better than having that A/C already cold and comfy when you get inside your ride!

Although this option has been available for years, there’s now a real cool accessory you can purchase that takes your car-start feature to a whole new level.

If you’re thinking about adding Bluetooth wireless technology to your car’s factory stereo system, there is finally a solid solution that works with most vehicle models.

Parrot, which has been involved in Bluetooth kits for aftermarket and OEM applications, offers 2 great models that offer seamless integration with most phones on the market and matches up well with a new lineup of OEM vehicle-specific wiring harnesses that enable full operation through the car’s existing audio system.

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