Been looking around town for someone to install my stuff and I ran across 2 shops that said they were in the top 50 for shops in the U.S and each claimed to have an installer in the top 100.

Do you guys know of these rankings or know where I can take a gander at them? I'm wildly curious to know if these guys are throwing old rankings at me.

Thanks

 

Would one of em happen to be Jeff Smith of Audio Designs of Atlanta ? He has been in the top installers list as well as an IASCA and USAC SQ champ.

Its published in Car Audio and Electronics magazine yearly. Ill see if I can find the issue..

 

how does one actually based rankings like this. everything is so variable when it comes to audio installs. And to say one person is better then the next, interested in seeing this.

 

thats why I would never take it seriously.

 

i would guess its usually based on experience, previous installs and how versatile the installer is...

my question is how someone gets picked for this.. strictly word of mouth or is there an actual competition?

 

Word of mouth and evaluations by the writers...

 

Nope, haven't run across Audio Designs in my search yet, but I will definitely add them to the list now. Thanks.

One guy was from Sound Sensations (Keith Gant) and the other from Traffic Jams (Dave Drinker)

 

Ill see if I can find in the issue..

 

I vote Parag to be in that list

 

Buahahahahaha he said TOP, not bottom.

 

Damn I don't even have to post to be involved w00t.

Don't think 99% of us would fall into the top 5% of installers out there.

 

Thank you sir, that'd be great.

 

Sound Sensations does some really good work, I just think they are overpriced.

 

Yeah, when asking about prices, they were far and above the most expensive. Traffic Jams is the front runner to do my install right now, but I still have to call this Jeff Smith fellow from Audio Designs to see how he compares.

 

I think youll find Jeffs prices to be fair and well worth the money.

 

Sorry I forgot all about this..

 

Top 50 Retailers / Top 100 Installers Announced

Thursday, September 14, 2006 -- The reps have responded, the votes have been counted, and the nominations have been made! Here are Mobile Electronics magazine’s Top 50 Retailers and Top 100 Installers for 2006 / 07!

The names on this page were selected by the mobile electronics industry’s manufacturer representatives and direct salespeople. Voting for the Top 12 Installers and Top 12 Retailers begins in November.

PLEASE NOTE: To report a misspelled name, please send an email to Awards@me-mag.com

Top 50 Retailers (in alphabetical order)

ACC Inc., Muscatine, IA
ABT Electronics, Glenview, IL

Action Electronics, Newington, CT

Audio Specialists, Madisonville, KY

Auto Image & Security, Raritan, NJ

Auto Marketing Services - AMS, Madison, WI

Auto Sound & Security, Willoughby, OH

Automotive Entertainment SM, Santa Monica, CA

Autosound of Lexington, Lexington, KY

AutoStyle Inc., Peoria, IL

Beach Auto Sound, Huntington Beach, CA

Benchmark Motoring, Bellevue, WA

Bunkley's Sound Systems, Abilene, TX

Car Concepts, Salt Lake City, UT

Car Stereo One, Toledo, OH

Cartunes, Allen Park, MI

Chronic Car Audio, Mesa, AZ

CKR, Prattville, AL

Creative Car Audio, Joplin, MO

Custom Audio & Alarms, Inc., Mount Prospect, IL

Discount Auto Sound, Chesapeake, VA

Imagine Audio, Cherry Hill, NJ

JML Audio, Chesterfield, MO

Ken's Cartunes, Mobile, AL

Kustom Kar Audio, Santa Rosa. CA

Mobile Car Audio, Aiea, HI

New Age Audio, Fullerton, CA

Pantell's Music Box, Antioch, CA

Precision Mobile Audio, Half Moon, NY

Professional Auto Stereo, Waipahu, HI

Radio Activity, Carterville, IL

Ray's Electronics, Addison, IL

Robert's Auto Stereo, Louisville, KY

Sound FX, Lewes, DE

Sound of Tri-State, Claymont, DE

Sound Sensations, Marietta, GA

Sound Solutions, Kingston, PA

Sound Waves, Parsippany, NJ

SoundCraft, Waterford, CT

Sounds Unlimited, Glendale, CA

Stereo King, Portland, OR

Stereo West, Omaha, NE

Suncoast Sound, Monroe, LA

Super Autobacs, Stanton, CA

Traffic Jams, Buford, GA

Tsunami Electronics, Wailuku, HI

Ultimate Audio, Orlando, FL

Vision Audio, Lubbock, TX

Warehouse Car Stereo, Stockton, CA

Xtreme Auto Sound, Louisville, KY

 

Top 100 Installers (in alphabetical order by first name)

Aaron Markwell, Ovation Audio Video, Indianapolis, IN
Adam Stein, JML Audio, Chesterfield, MO

Anthony Bonanno, Independence Audio/Video, Independence, MO

Arden Toguchi, A&J Mobile Audio, Hilo, HI

Barry Colley, Bluegrass Car, Bowling Green, KY

Bob Brien, Cartunes, Hudson, NH

Bobby Butler, Ray's Electronics, Addison, IL

Brett Shank, Sound Solutions, Gulfport, MS

Brian Kosakowski, Attention to Detail, Middletown, CT

Brian Mobley, Sound Decision, Montgomery, IL

Brian Morris, Auto Sound & Security, Willoughby, OH

Cabe Sipes, C&C Customs, Lafayette, IN

Carlos Hickman, Los Labs, Fort Wayne, IN

Chad Gaynor, Sound Waves, Parsippany, NJ

Chad Paredes, Extreme Audio Systems Hawaii, Honolulu, HI

Chris Crompton, Traffic Jamz, Hooksett, NH

Chris Lavey, CKR Mobile Electronics, Prattville, AL

Chris Lynam, Perzan Auto Radio, Upper Darby, PA

Chris Merrill, Kustom Kar Audio, Santa Rosa, CA

Chris Phelps, Sound on Wheel, Rock Hill, SC

Chris Shakepeare, Traffic Jams, Burford, GA

Chris Yato, Competition Soundworks, Artesia, CA

Cliff Leeper, Syndicate Automotive Concepts, San Diego, CA

Dale Puskarz, Cartunes, Allen Park, MI

Dan Allard, Pirate Radio, Vernon, CT

Dan Bowen, Becker Audio, Hatboro, PA

Danny Alvarez, All Star Sound, Long Beach, CA

Dave Varga, Car Concepts, Salt Lake City, UT

David Hary, DesignTech LLC., Union, NJ

Dean Ricker, South County Mobile Electronics, San Clemente, CA

Derek Kenney, Sound in Motion, Allston, MA

Derek Pace, Certified Sounds, Wailuku, HI

Devin Oliver, Audio Advice, La Crescenta, CA

Douglas Gibson, Ultimate Audio, Orlando, FL

Earl Shimabukuro, Island Sound, Honolulu, HI

Efran Daguio, Special T Tint, Honolulu, HI

Eric Reyna, Audio Images, Burlingame, CA

Ernesto Onate, Sound Innovations, Hayward, CA

Frank Rodriquez, Exotic Audio Boutique, Brooklyn, NY

Garrett Beach, JML Audio, Chesterfield, MO

Greg Caulkins, Car Toys, Salem, OR

Guerry Byers, Audio Outlaws, Buda, TX

Ivan Pantoja, Ultimate Audio, Orlando, FL

James Ngim Jr., Sound Innovations, Hayward, CA

Jason Paceco, Drive in Auto Sound, Pueblo, CO

Jason Salas, Auto Marketing Services-AMS, Madison, WI

Jeremy Katz, Advanced Audio Designs, Sharon, MA

Jeremy Langley, Autosound of Lexington, Lexington, KY

Jeremy Taylor, Audiofonix, Laguna Hills, CA

Jerry Batchelor, Ken's Car-Tunes, Mobile, AL

Joe Dodd, 2 Guys Audio Video, Gresham, OR

Joe Provenzano, Audio Innovations, Glendora, CA

Joey Knapp, Audiowaves, Lake City, FL

John Arnold, Discount Audio, Louisville, KY

John Lee, ABC Automotive Electronics, Berwyn, IL

John Samp, ABT Electronics, Glennview, IL

Jon Becker, Becker Audio, Hatboro, PA

Jon Clark, The Soundsource, Butlington, NJ

Josh Brunelle, SoundCraft, Waterford, CT

Joshua Landau, JML Audio, Chesterfield, MO

Keith Braun, Car Audio Depot, Modesto, CA

Keith Gantt, Sound Sensations, Marietta, GA

Kent Izuka, Security & Sound Systems, Honolulu, HI

Lee Teeples, JR Custom, Irving, TX

Luke Gray, Hard Core Car Audio, Tucson, AZ

Mark Pantell, Pantell's Music Box, Antioch, CA

Matt Figlioa, Automotive Intellect, Tuckahoe, NY

Matt Murray, Audio Source, Columbus, IN

Micah Williams, Audio Specialists, Madisonville, KY

Mike Smiley, Motor Trendz, Nashville, TN

Mylo Kim, New Age Audio, Fullerton, CA

Nelson Rivera, Ultimate Audio, Orlando, FL

Owen Smith, Audio Jam, Bear, DE

Ralph Ramirez, All Star Sound, Long Beach, CA

Randy Smith, Soundworks Mobile Audio, Virginia Beach, VA

Ray Johnson, Wired Audio, Weston, WI

Rich Meyer, Mother's Window Tint, San Antonio, TX

Richard Warner, Norton's Car Stereo, Charleston, SC

Rob Bess, Audio Specialists, Hopkinsville, KY

Ron Dantin, RD Audio, Marrero, LA

Rusty Durbin, Car Audio Outlaws, Modesto, CA

Ryan Martin, Car Toys, Salem, OR

Scott Babson, Kustom Kar Audio, Santa Rosa, CA

Scott Comiskey, Hi Fi Buys, Nashville, TN

Scott Jack, Radio Activity, Carterville, IL

Scott Rettig, Sound of Tri-State, Claymont, DE

Sean Young, Sound Decision, Montgomery, IL

Stephen Stasiulewicz, Wheel Concepts 3, Elizabeth, NJ

Steve Coogle, Xtreme Autosound, Louisville, KY

Steve Creamer, Becker Audio, Hatboro, PA

Steve Medeiros, Sound FX, West Warwick, RI

Tai Tram, Super Autobacs, Stanton, CA

Tim Willis, Auto Werx, Brookhaven, PA

Todd Fisher, ABT Electronics, Glenview, IL

Tom Hruben, Music in Motion, Crestwood, IL

Tommy Vallier, TNT Car Stereo, Mobile, AL

Tony Lucia, Mobile Concept, Glenview, IL

Tony Taylor, Warehouse Car Stereo, Stockton, CA

Travis Swore, Ideal Audio, Pocatello, ID

Victor Jerome, Sound Solutions, Gulfport, MS

 

WTF?? AUTO IMAGE & SECURITY in raritan, NJ ???
These are the same guys that screwed up my tint job. The missed a spot near the front of the side window and just colored in the remaining triangle with a SHARPIE. LOL

 

But they make the numbers, thats all that matters...

 

true....didn't know they had so much business.

 

That may be one of the funniest things I have heard all week. What did you do about it?

 

pointed it out to them and they fixed it. LOL..so I had to wait another hour for them to take it off and fix it.

 

It just shows this is a joke because some fools had a coloring class on a window and are in the top 100...and no surprise NO installers from SOFL are in there.

 

yeah, he's pretty good. Seen and heard a bunch of his work!


Their remote starters however, complete different story

 

Hell I was surprised to see any shop or installer in San Diego to make the list. There are some pretty decent ones here and some that are pure garbage. Checking out some of the car audio forums and I see a lot of complaints against shops for sloppy work to thousand dollar damage to cars. Sheesh it's better to do it all yourself these days.

 

VTonmymind, What are having installed that your trying to have such a "good" installer do? There alot of custom stuff going on or what?

 

Hey Don, thanks for hooking up the lists. Much obliged. Looks like the Boys at Sound Sensations and Traffic Jams weren't foolin.

Unfortunately, the guy at Traffic Jams (Chris) doesn't do many installs anymore. I guess he takes more care of the front now unless it's a special request or something. Too bad for me cause I actually went up there 2 weeks ago for them to do my door dampening and the job that one of their guys did wouldn't have put them in the top thousand. Well, at least in the door dampening department for I cannot speak of their audio installation skills. Anyway......................

Long story short, I bought a few shop packs of Cascade VB2 a while back and had intents and purposes of dampening up the car myself, but having never done it before and feeling somewhat intimidated, I figured I'd first call around for a few quotes just to see how much it'd cost. Well, Traffic Jams would do full coverage on all 4 doors for a hundred and twenty clams. Seemed well worth it and they were cheaper than all else out there, so why not let the professionals do it instead of me, a dude that had yet to break his cherry in the art of door dampening.

Well, in this case, this is why:





What in the world? Full coverage my ****** deriere. In his defense, he'd never worked with the VB2 before and it was the last door he did, but come on. Some of the stuff wasn't even stuck on completely. The rhyme & reason to his dampening also made no sense to me. A patch here, a patch there. He even patched up a few of the peg holes so when he put the panel back on, he mushed the shyt out of a couple of em. Good thing I've got spares! I even rolled up a rogue piece of VB2 when I rolled up my driver side window as I was heading home on the interstate. Geez. There goes a hundred and twenty down the toilet.

Well, not really, cause I got the inspiration to do it right myself after looking at this madness and don't have to pay anybody to do it for me ever again. I'm actually happy the guy did a crappy job, for I probably never would have done it myself again if he'd done a good one.

So what do y'all think?



Not bad. It did take me 3 hours to do though, but I was firing beers down my hatch, was a green horn at it and figured I should just take my sweet ole time. I'm actually glad it worked out this way.

Oh and for anybody that wants to know, the VB2 is great stuff. Soft, pliable, doesn't cut your fingers, cuts great with kitchen or utility shears and when heated up with a hair dryer, lays and sticks down real nice. The thing that I liked the most about was that if I messed up on a placement, I could peel it off pretty easily and reapply it without losing much, if any of it's stickiness. It's good stuff and and I highly recommend it.

 

Nothing fancy really, I'm just looking to get components and an amp installed. Have them hook up the comps and a 10" sub to it and to the best of their ability, tune the living daylights out it so it sounds good.

I do want it done right though, and the top dogs know how to do that. They also have pride in doing so. I think the guy that did my doors just petered out and really didn't give a turd after a while. I don't want to take a gamble and get stuck with one of those guys again, for I think that one of the most important parts in building a good sounding system is to start with a good install, so I'm looking for the best I can find.

 

WOW...honestly, I could deaden that well with my eyes closed and still do a better job. I'm glad you fixed that mess and I HOPE you NEVER go back to that place again...DIY it please.

 

holy ****!!!!!!!11 are you serious? that was their deadning job!??


my god, my gf could have done better while wearing oven mits blindfolded

 

Strange. the installers from Car Toys in Tulsa, OK has been on the podium at every IASCA finals event in the last 15 years or so.
Gary Biggs is considered one of the best int he country and has worked for them for yeeeears. (I even saw him on Unique Whips as their audio installer for a few shows, not that that says a ton...)

That shop has ALWAYS done top notch work and is known worldwide, yet I don't see them up there. :shrug:

 

For real. They've been officially crossed off my list for any consideration.

 

That **** is disturbing from anyone with a 5th grade or above comprehension level education. Let alone a 'Professional' !!!!!

 

It looks as if they just threw pieces at the door. Was it a game to them? They even through some on the FOAM ON THE DOOR!!! Fuggin dampened foam?!?!?!

 

Doesnt matter who Gary helps, hes an employee of JBL/Harmon, not classified as an installer. While he is one of the industries leading Icons, hes still whored out to the popularity and dealers that spend the big bucks. Not just an 'installer' by any means.

 

the only times I've ever paid a "Professional" to do anything (twice) I was not satisfied with the results. As I found out later one of the guys who is really good has done several custom fiberglass dash and doors is too lazy most of the time and just tells the other retards working there to do it and "how" to do it. Last time cost me 450 on the side dollars for two sets of components and a "custom" sub box with a raised false floor in my CRX. After realizing what all he did I could have done all that in about 5 hours. This was the friend of a friend discount kinda thing. Your usually better off learning how to do it yourself and doing it. At least then if it's screwed up and you find out, you either learned something or at least you have nobody else to blame.