Some parents still balk at the idea of taking a DVD player along on a car trip. Their reasons are varied but usually include feeling their children already spend too many hours glued to a screen — whether on a computer, a video game or a television set — while other parents want their children to appreciate the scenery and engage with other members in the car on a trip. All are admirable reasons, but in truth, a long, tedious car trip, especially a cross-country journey will have enough time for it all — family talk time, scenery watching but then also a movie here and there for the boring spots.

Believe it or not, a DVD player can also actually enhance a vacation learning experience. Before a long trip, a parent should take the time to find a video or two about the location they are planning to head to or an area along the way that they will be traveling through. A DVD doesn’t have to be a documentary to add interesting notes to a trip. Many entertainment DVDs can really spark a child’s interest in a location you are planning to visit. For instance, if you are going to New York, take the DVD “A Night in the Museum” along with you. Your child will probably want to visit the “star” of the movie, the American Museum of Natural History, and after visiting it, will probably want to see the DVD again to see if he can spot places in the museum he remembers. For a tween going to New York, a movie like Enchanted or Maid in Manhattan will have a lot of scenes of Central Park and the streets of the Big Apple.

On that note, if a parent has children with a large age difference between them, he may want to bring two DVD players, if that is an affordable option, since it is often hard to find a DVD that will interest a toddler and a tween. If that is not an option, parents will have to talk to the children beforehand about taking turns watching DVDs that interest them.

Another great use for a DVD is to learn more about sites you have just visited. Many gift shops at natural parks and historical sites now carry DVDs about their locations. If your child was full of questions about the Civil War after visiting, say, Gettsyburg, make sure and pick up a DVD or two about it, so they can learn more on your drive.

Never forget, though, that a car trip should also be about the journey. If you are driving through the Grand Canyon, the DVD should be off. And it’s also important to take time between DVDs to engage the children in talk and games with each other and you. If your child can read and not get car sick, encourage a little book time, as well.

Overall, however, a DVD player can be a useful tool for a parent to help make the tedious parts of the journey more tolerable. Even the most die-hard anti-DVD playing parent has to admit that when they were a child on a long car ride they didn’t stare at those miles and miles of cornstalks when they were younger. They probably fell asleep or kicked the back of the driver’s chair over and over again.

To cut or not to cut? That is the question – Any car audio installation that requires serious cutting and/or physical modification, even the temporary removal of carpet for re-wiring, may cause a loss in value. On the other hand, some vehicles can be worth far more after the installation of an amazing car audio system. There is a balance to consider here, but the general rule of thumb is that newer vehicles tend to suffer far worse degradation in value when they are customized than older vehicles. This is true regardless of how amazing the audio system is.

A question of power – Huge woofers backed by enormous amps come with a few problems. The first of which is the need to cut and modify, the second of which is a question of power. Simply put, a vehicle is designed to handle specific tasks that the manufacturer specified when they designed it. Adding a f0ew thousand watts of ear-pounding speakers and the amplifiers to drive them was probably not in the blueprint. As a result, high-output batteries may need to be installed and an alternator will probably have to work significantly harder than it was initial intended to. This will often result in the need to upgrade to a heavy-duty alternator, or multiple alternators and/or multiple batteries in some situations.
High power means high risk – The third and final problem associated with high output audio equipment is that all of that equipment generates heat. Too much heat and wires can fuse and even catch fire. A vehicle traveling down the interstate with a half-full fuel tank and an undetected electrical fire is a disaster just waiting to happen.

Extreme music needs vs. public safety – Be sure to check the local statutes that govern what type of audio equipment can be placed in any given automobile. These laws may be on the books to protect other motorists from a driver who is listening to music so loud that they are unaware of honking, or to prevent the aforementioned possibility of a modified vehicle becoming rolling fireball.

Leases and insurance policies – Leases rarely give the lease permission to make significant modifications to a vehicle, and insurance policies may be null and void if a modification to a vehicle is unreported. Both of these remain true even if the monthly premiums are paid in a timely manner, so be aware that there could be some very serious consequences to making changes to a vehicle without letting an insurer know. In the case of a lease, some contracts take a ‘you break it, you bought it’ approach, so be sure to read the fine print.

USB compatibility – Many music enthusiasts already own portable media players and prefer to take their favorite mixes on the go with them wherever they go. USB compatibility is not necessarily a given, however, even on audio decks with USB ports. While almost all USB-equipped car audio equipment supports the nearly ubiquitous Apple iPod line of media players, other media players may not be so fortunate. This limitation is especially true of MP3 players that allow for exceptionally high bitrate playback, something that true audiophiles demand.

Bluetooth functionality – Bluetooth enabled car audio systems allow for hands free calling, but such calls may or may not be legal in all states, counties, and/or cities. Ignorance of the law is no excuse, so anyone that plans on taking a Bluetooth equipped car audio system on a road trip should plan on spending at least a little time getting to know the local laws before they run the risk of unwittingly committing a potentially serious crime.

The Hidden Stations

Unless you’ve already had the opportunity to play around with an HD Radio, you might be surprised at just how much programming you’re missing out on. Almost two thousand stations are using the technology, and since they’re able to broadcast up to two digital streams in addition to the main analog-simulcast that means you’re missing out on between two and four thousand channels around the country. Every market is going to be different, since the individual stations choose how exactly to use their digital broadcasts, but chances are some of your favorite stations have second or even third audio streams. Some stations use these to broadcast commercial free content such as specialty music or local music that isn’t seen as especially commercially viable. Others choose to use their additional streams to simply provide a larger variety to their listener base. Of course, without HD Radio these sub-stations may as well not exist to you.

Enhanced Audio and Other Features

Beyond the ability to include multiple streams of audio, the HD Radio technology also allows radio stations to embed other information. If they choose to do so, your HD Radio enabled device will be able to display the station’s name or callsign, current song title and band name and whatever else they happen to embed. This sort of feature was previously only available through pay services like satellite radio, though of course HD Radio is totally free to use once you’ve bought a stereo that employs the technology. The HD Radio technology also allows for higher audio fidelity, with AM broadcasts that sound similar to FM analog broadcasts and FM audio that approaches CD quality. It also allows for 5.1 surround sound audio via FM, though limits in bandwidth can necessitate the choice between multiple sub-channels and higher audio quality. Either way, HD Radio offers some compelling benefits over the old analog broadcasts.

Analog Signals Aren’t Going Anywhere, but You Might Want To

While there aren’t any plans for the FCC to mandate a digital switchover, like they did with HDTV, they may allow stations to make this choice on an individual basis in the future. Additionally, the presence of the digital signal can actually degrade the quality of the analog reception in your old stereos. This is most noticeable as loud white noise in AM broadcasts, though high quality FM systems will also pick up annoying white noise from the digital signals. If audio quality is important to you, investing in an HD Radio enabled tuner will solve this problem while also providing you with all the other inherent benefits. Though adoption of the HD Radio format by consumers has been slow, it is the sole digital broadcasting technology used in the United States, and thus the one we’ll all be using in the future. This means that HD Radio enabled tuners are very useful today while also remaining future proof, unlike old analog-only units. Taking all these concerns into consideration, HD Radio definitely seems like the way to go if you’re in the market to upgrade.

• Size and shape – Almost very single automobile sold today already comes with speakers, and those speakers are generally designed to conform to very specific speaker sizes. There are many standard industry sizes and shapes, such as the very common six by nine. The six by nine is an oval shaped arrangement that is six inches on one side by nine inches on another. Most speakers in the same category have nearly identical shapes, but owners of smaller vehicles will need to be aware of the fact that more powerful speakers tend to be deeper, and thus will not necessarily fit in any factory-provided speaker hole.

• Driving power – Speakers are rated by the amount of Watts that they can handle. Watts is a measurement of the amount of electrical energy that is applied to the magnet or magnets. When the electricity is applied to the magnet, it moves the speaker and that in turn moves the air. The term volume comes abstractly from the volume of air that is moved that in turn is interpreted as sound by the human eardrum. Speakers than handle more Wattage are generally louder than speakers that do not handle as much electricity, but that is not always the truth. There are design factors and materials that can mitigate the possibility of a truly universal apples to apples comparison using Wattage as a guideline, but Wattage remains the dominant standard for speaker power.

• To amp or not to amp – Some speakers are designed for high output work that negates the possibility of driving them directly from the head unit. Most vendors carry multiple speaker lines, some of which are meant to be ‘drop in’ replacements while others will require extensive rewiring and an amplifier.

• Ranges are important too – There is more to music and car audio than just volume, at least for most people. Most consumers that love music enough to look into enhanced car audio speakers will want to ensure that their music sounds balanced. Balance means that different ranges are represented equally, and those ranges are measured in Hertz. Hertz is the term that describes the rate at which sound waves oscillate, and is generally referred to as frequency. Higher frequency sounds are described as high pitched, while low frequency sounds are commonly referred to as bass. If you like listening to pop music, then an emphasis on balance with accurate reproduction at high frequencies is just as important as accurate bass reproduction. Those who just want to shake the block when they drive through need to worry more about their low range output.

• Fidelity is difficult to measure – Fidelity is the friend of any true audiophile, and it is a measurement of how accurate the reproduction of any sound or music is. Fidelity can be measured with special tools, but most car audio speaker vendors make multiple speaker lines that come in Hi-Fi and non-Hi-Fi variant’s. Hi-Fi variants are more likely to have an accurate audio reproduction than their non-Hi-Fi counterparts, but it is almost impossible to make cross-brand comparisons due to the significantly different techniques used by different vendors to measure fidelity.

• Legalities – Many cities, counties, and states have limitations sound output from motor vehicles. Be sure to know these limitations before making any final car audio speaker purchase.

If you have an existing audio system installed, that will have to be removed first. Many have anti-theft devices attached and high-end models are linked to the car alarm. Most require just a simple removal tool, found with your car manual or with the instructions for the old audio player. Auto stores keep replacements if required.

Watch those wires!

Take note of the existing wiring and determine which wires are for speakers and which are for power or accessories. Speaker wires are in pairs of similar colors one with a stripe, the other without. The cable with a stripe is positive (+) polarity, the un-striped wire in the pair is the negative (-). Most cars have 4 speakers, 2-front 2-rear. So there should be 8 wires in matched color pairs for the speakers.

The live wire is usually red (but not always!) a cheap test lamp or multi-meter can soon identify the live wire. This will have +12V (+/= .5V) reading (or light an earthed test bulb). Note the ignition key may well control the power to the audio unit so testing with the key in the ON position may be required. Make a note of the cables identified so far; other wires include a blue (electric antennae) and sometimes a yellow (power supply for a CD-changer).

All the wires must be detached and make the cable ends made suitable for re-use if necessary. Stripping off any balled-up bare cable ends with suitable wire strippers will make the job easier to complete.

Install an in dash audio unit in your car.

To install an in dash audio unit in your car, reading the instruction manual that accompanies the new unit is essential. Details such as the security code, the wire color-coding and basic instructions on fitting/troubleshooting are all written to make sure your installation is done properly.

The new unit needs to be supported whilst the wiring is connected to the car harness. Fortunate installers will find a large connector block is all that’s need to be hooked up before inserting the new unit into the dash. Older vehicles may need a connection made with a simple connector block available at RadioShack or Wal-Mart. The wiring must be kept tidy. Messy wires get tangled everywhere and will often interfere with insertion of a new audio unit into the cavity in the dashboard. Scuffed insulation can cause a car fire!

All that’s need now is to install an in dash audio unit in your car! Gently slide the new unit into the carrier frame in the dashboard. Simultaneously, make sure the wires are fed back. Do not force it in. When fully inserted, the unit should make a discernable ‘click’ and the unit is now locked in place and hopefully ready to use!