A little history... In 1929, American Paul Galvin, the head of Galvin Manufacturing Corporation, invented the first car radio. The first car radios were not available from carmakers. Consumers had to purchase the radios separately. Galvin coined the name "Motorola" for the company's new products combining the idea of motion and radio.

Car audio has been through quite an evolution. In the sixties, it began as a hobbyist thing- people climbing in and out of cars, running wires, posting antennas: funky little speakers in dilapidated old boxes.

The seventies saw the rise-and demise- of the dreaded eight-track player. Most of these were mounted below-dash, in all their chromey, plastic-fantastic glory.

The eighties saw the advent of the cassette, a time of burgeoning technology in the autosound aftermarket. Suddenly car-fi systems sounded and looked good. Before most automakers had figured out that motorist wetness good sound in their cars, a flood of aftermarket vendors came in to fill the void.

The nineties brought the CD into the car, producing unheard-of dynamics and sound-pressure levels. The CD, as a source, changed the face of car audio forever. Finally, consumers could have living room-quality sound in their cars.

Automakers were finally realising that consumers wanted quality sound as well as a quality automobile. They began including better sound systems in their vehicles and started integrating the systems into the cars with such features as steering wheel-based controls and rounded dashboards. This made it more difficult for the aftermarket vendors to wean away their customers.

Which brings us to the present.

Desirable features

There are a number of features that set a good sound system apart from a bad one. Obviously, more expensive systems will usually offer more of these goodies than cheap ones.

Large, well-spaced buttons: The whole idea in operation a unit is to make it as seamless as possible, to cause a minimum amount of distraction so the driver can keep his eyes- and attention - on the road. Large buttons are easier to find and use. Try to find a unit with generous spacing between the buttons. This makes the unit easier and safer to use.

Large, informative display: A display with large numbers and a clear readout makes for an enjoyable listening experience. Try to find a head unit that shows all the pertinent data in one glance. Many units do this well, but some are designed to display only one piece of data at a time.

A generous power amp: Look for a system with a good power amp. Amps usually blow speakers, not the other way around. You can tell a good power amp by turning the system above half volume and still hearing clear amplification. If it distorts and begins to get "fuzzy" that means it's running out of steam.

Front loading CD changer: This is a cool feature that has begun to appear on more and more units. Apart from a single-play CD changer in-dash, many systems now offer a six-disc changer built into the center stack.

Separate Tweeters: Although not a guarantee of quality sound, systems with separate tweeters generally sound better than those without. And while you're at it, look for tweeters that are well positioned.

Separate subwoofer: This feature gives you great thump for your buck. Also helps fill in the lower end on classical and more "refined" styles of music.

Car audio maintenance

As your car needs constant maintenance, likewise maintenance of your car audio system is vital for ensuring longer life of components.

• If you have a cassette receiver in the head (main) unit, then make sure you carry a head-cleaning cassette to clean the pick-up head thus avoiding the excess oxide formation on the pick-up head or other parts.

• Do play the head-cleaning cassette after every 15 hours of playback.

• If you also have a CD player component, then do keep a pick-up lens cleaning CD in the dash and play the disc periodically every week.

Alternative to attaching a CD player

Do not have a CD player/ changer component in your car yet? Do not despair! Many brands manufacturing portable CD/VCD players have their top of the line models equipped with a car-stereo adaptor. (This can also be otherwise procured readily form other market sources). It looks exactly similar to the compact audio- cassette and can be inserted into the cassette receiver slot. You can thus carry along your portable CD/VCD player and sue the car amplifier unit and speakers to listen to your favourite CDs too!

Installation tips

It is better to get the installation done by a professional. Many manufacturers offer warranty periods - but these are valid only if the equipment is installed by an authorized professional.

1. Outside noise
While it is not possible to eliminate all the noise that a car can generate, there are ways to ease the problem. The first thing to do is to figure out from where the particular noise originates. The license plate frame is one of the first things to check out if there is a rattling noise. The resonance of the metal in the trunk can be reduced by using specially designed materials such as Dynamat lining on the inside of the trunk. Fused fibreglass is a cheaper alternative to Dynamat.

2. Placement of the amplifier
The amp should be placed in a proper ventilated place., preferably on the side panel of the trunk without jamming access to the brake light assembly.

3. Keep the fuses safe/ keep live wires taped
During installation, one of the problems encountered is blowing the car radio fuse. This may happen while disconnecting the head unit. Remove the fuse from the fuse box. In most cases it is located under the dash or on the side panel. Look out for the fuse marked 'radio'. Pull out the corresponding fuse in the fuse box. The head unit is now ready to be removed.

4. Speaker positioning
Speaker positioning is very critical for performance. It may seem to the lay person that the best position for the speakers are in the stock housings that came in the car. For e.g. On the door panel near the feet. There can be various positions tried out. The first thing to consider is the distance. If the right speaker happens to be closer, it'll sound louder. The best solution lies in figuring out a location where the sound will arrive at the same time, thus having no variance in the path length. This is one of the reasons why kick panels are mostly preferred.

For multiple speaker-placement, it is essential to try out various locations to obtain the best possible sound. This means aiming the mids and most importantly the tweeters towards the ears. To start off its advisable to try and aim the speakers towards the centre of the car. Subwoofers should be preferably mounted up front for the best sound.

5. Speaker mounting
Subwoofers need a properly designed and neat enclosure for optimal performance. If you are using speakers that fit into the stock location., make sure that there are no holes or spaces. Sometimes, it may need the cutting down of metal for placing speakers in an unconventional place. Plasma cutters and pneumatic tools work great; most of the task gets done using a pair of metal snipes.