*If the mods could sticky this for 60 days or so I would appreciate it.*
Some others and myself are trying to figure out some new classes for the beginner/ average consumer to help bring car audio competition back to it's former glory. We are trying to figure out why people aren't competing like they used to and why we aren't getting a bigger number of new competitors. I know many still do compete so this isn't directed at those that do, but the less experienced guys. Feel free to post comments aside from voting. Let us know what would get you into competing or what is keeping you from competing.
Thanks in advance for your replies and comments. Hopefully we can work something out to make competing accessable to everyone who is interested.
Why don't you compete in sound off events? No shows in my area Too expensive to get started I'm not loud enough to beat the current scores I'm just not interested in it, I have a stereo for myself and daily driving I don't own a crx or s-10 so why bother Other (please explain)
I didn't see an option for polls on this site, so if you would just reply and let us know your reason it would be greatly appreciated and helpful to our cause.
I was going to compete at my school(Houghton MI), but the first year I was up here I didn't have my car and this year the competition was canceled .
Downstate(Macomb MI) I have never heard anything about a competition.
I would go if I knew of one that was somewhat in my area.
Another reason many people may not go is that they dont know anyone else at the comps. Most of my friends are not really all that interested in Car audio(except my E buds).
My reasons are: Too expensive to get started. I'm not loud enough to beat the current scores.....didn't exactly go for SPL with this system I don't own a crx or s-10 so why bother....if I owned one of these cars or were able to dedicate a car strictly to audio then I would love to. Just don't have the funds to do so.
I like going to shows though even though I don't compete. Fun just to go and watch and hear some stuff I wouldn't usually get the chance to see.
i only started competing from march 30th this yr & have entered 5 spl shows & have won 2 1st place & 3 2nd place nice looking trophies & my name even went into iasca's top 10 world wide listing on my very 1st spl event
- u feel like a million bux when u win & its a nice hobby too ...
you dont need a crx or s10 to get loud. it does take a lil bit of money to get started but well worth it after you do. i dont think people realize that its more work then it seems. tons of hours and many boxes later you may finaly find the best box. all you can do is keep trying.
I compete pretty regularly, but one thing REALLY needs to change w/ ALL orgs.
-There is no such thing as a TRUE "beginner" or "average joe" class.
Just look at it:
Street A???...156-157s? Stock 0-600???...160? SB1?....158?
yea, right, those guys are 'beginners'. Not wanting to be an azz or anything, its hard to police.
I for one am going to start offering a simple 40hz class at the local shows I host. For real daily systems.
I have never really sat down and thought about how to really police novice vs pro classes. You can't offer 60 different classes, it will kill your pocket trying to. Using a DMM???wtf? based on MSRP...yea sure, what will work
About the only thing I can think of is basing it on real rated power. If there is an amp out there that breaks the rule, it will get found out QUICK by real competitors. Also, for a beginner class, 1 yr only...or just offer it as a 'local class' (no points, true rms).
I can promise you that someone somewhere will always do all they can to slip through the cracks.
My first time I was hitting a 139db in street B when 1st place was in the 155db range and I had to go head to hear due to the brackets, How is that fair?
I do compete but not as crazy as some other people as I have no shop or tools to do any mods/tweaks so everything is pretty basic with me and trying to change a box or play with my tuning is pretty damn hard to do.
I work at night and school/friends during the days. Comps are on the weekends and are 45 mins away. There is one guy on another forum (not ca.com) that has a comp or two ever year about 20 mins away but he has them at the worst times possible for me. Id love to go just to see my score and see other peoples set ups but I just cant between money and time...
Sometimes I wished I lived in northern cali just so that I can compete more. But since I live in socal, there aren't as many competitions. I think it would be pretty neat if dbdrag/termpro had a feature that would email you if there was a competition near you. Most of the times I miss competitions because its already to late to change plans to attend.
Paul our area PA/NJ/delaware is actually pretty good as far as comps go.... I haven'r been to one in a while but every season theres quite a few DB drags
not many comps up here in MA and like someone else said im a bartender so when there actually is one im working since sat is my money day. Also im just not loud enough I could beat the scores out there I would just go for fun but its not worth it if your losing every week.
that is what i want to.i have spent close to $2000 in my new setup: 200 amp alternator, optima red cap batt, 2600rms sub amp , 2 breathtaking sub{literally }custom speaker box tuned at 32hz 1\0 wires big 3 the works...i think when i go to comp i will do very well
"I didn't see an option for polls on this site, so if you would just reply and let us know your reason it would be greatly appreciated and helpful to our cause."
btw what organization are you associated with? cause you said "let us know" as if you can do something about it.
imo the companies needs to come out to more meets. companies like kicker, re, us amp, etc. they need to make an effort and show up to even the 1x event. when sponsors come out to shows, it attracts more people. remember if the 1x show are successfully ran, that means more people will be at the bigger events. but it appears the companies figured they made enough money so they don't care about the little events.
Jason- No one CARES if you spent 2k on your setup- No one cares. There are people one here that have spent more on their charging system than you have in your whole setup, so stfu and don't just dump in the thread.
I used to go to comps a lot, but it was anywhere from 3-6 hours round trip. When you figure $50-70 in gas + $60 to compete in bassrace and a burp class- it got expensive and time consuming. Often I'd leave home at 10am and not get home till 11. Then I'd get there and because I was just over the window line I was competing in the wall class against guys burping 69-70hz while I was burping 32hz.
I'd go all the time if comps were common in Myrtle Beach. The next one isn't until April- when my wife is due to give birth lol. I will be driving to one an hour or so away soon though because I do enjoy them.
I rarely go because there aren't any near me.
Someone was on to something though- a 40hz or 30hz and below class would be NICE. It would be more fun for the average joe wanting to see what he can do with his daily setup.
"I didn't see an option for polls on this site, so if you would just reply and let us know your reason it would be greatly appreciated and helpful to our cause."
btw what organization are you associated with? cause you said "let us know" as if you can do something about it.:-)
I am one of the region 5 Usaci competitor committee reps and also a judge for the past three years. Myself and a couple of the other reps are looking for ideas and info on the status of typical consumers to possibly design a set of classes geared towards the more inexperienced people out there who would like to compete but don't have the funds or time to get started big enough to be competitive in the standard classes offered.
For those that have replied that there aren't any shows close to you...how close is the nearest car audio shop to you? Part of the problem with not enough comps is shops aren't hosting them anymore. We have an idea why, but that is a different can of worms. If we can get an idea of whether or not there aren't shops near you or just shops that aren't hosting shows it would also be helpful.
"i dont think there are many competitions in michigan - atleast that i can find because i would probably go"
x2^
There are plenty of shops, but they dont seem to host shows. I went to a local shop and noticed that they had quite a few trophies sitting around. I asked them if they hosted a competition and they said that they used to, but there just wasn't enough interest. They just ended up competing against the same people over and over and it got old.
you brought up a good point about shops not wanting to host. it is very true.
i souther cali there are 2 guys that are certifed by db drag that are judges. i know one pretty well but he just doesn't do a very good job imo. the other is more well known and does alot of comps up north but occasionally he'll come down here. now he is expensive. he charges the shop from $750 to $1500 to host a show. no shop wants to pay that kinda money when it don't really benefit them that much.
so what i am trying to say is that if the judges charge a high fee then its a no no around here which in result equals to no audio shows.
i went to my first comp in nov 06. after the first comp, i was hooked. i was looking forward to comps on weekends. i would build new boxes and try different things. and right when i was at the peak of my system (cough 2btl15s with 2 memphis 4kw bassracing at 150db), the comps became scarce. so i ended up just going with a sensible and clean sounding system.
One of the problems with these comps is it comes down to who has more cash and sometimes sponsors said or left unsaid. I think one way to make it fair would be to look at the total cost of subs and amps as well as the actual power for subs in a given vehicle. Then break down the classes that way this would at least create a fair beginner class or classes. The other thing you would want to do is keep it fun with things like bass race to keep the interest because going for just spl using burp boxes will eventually get old and people will loose interest.
sorry to dump all my stuff i am so into car audio so much {There are people one here that have spent more on their charging system than you have in your whole setup, so stfu and don't just dump in the tread}wow that much huh somebody has money tree
I know when I helped my local shop set up a show very few people turned out, and if we had paid a judge instead of just running a t/l we would have lost a lot of money. Then the local-yokels were all butt-hurt when the weren't doing the 160s they thought they were lol.
A lot of shops are doing bad right now- all the shops within 45 minutes of me are now out of business. Extra costs with little to no return can be a big risk.
The closest shop to me now is now about 35-45 miles away (ccity and bbuy not included). I know it's 45 minutes to a hour drive going 65mph. And they suck, they carry two brands I'm not interested in and only keep 8 guage in stock.
Like someone else said though- with current classes it comes down to how deep your pockets are. Last year the local college hosted a show and put my truck with several 18s and thousands of watts against my buddy who at the time had 1 12 and 1 sundown 1500. That was how they did their classes and it wasn't fair, or even fun. Finding a way to make things competetive would be fun- I think bassrace is on the right track with that, but there are two main problems with burp classes with as small as the shows are around me:
Either the rules are too loose and you've got people with obvious advantages that make it not worth entering for many people.
Or there are so many classes there are only 2 or 3 vehicles per class. I've done several shows where I was the only one in my class and it was really lame to go up and get a trophy for that
A few good batteries and a h/o alt cost 2 grand anymore - another reason a lot of people aren't competing.
"A few good batteries and a h/o alt cost 2 grand anymore :-( - another reason a lot of people aren't competing."
Word. I thought about getting into SPL last year but after looking for alts for my car and finding the cheapest 250A to cost in excess of $500.....its just not worth it imo. Unless people can get sponsored and get equipment cheaper then I don't see the competition scene getting much bigger, which is a shame because they are cool to go to. In these economic times, there aren't too many people who have $5000+ of expendable income to dedicate to car audio.
Not only just the initial cash needed for the system, but with high powered, high cost, complex audio systems you are pretty much screwed if something blows or breaks. Its a ton of money to fix.
what about a beginner class that you have to keep you're stock charging system to compete. im new and havn't competed yet but have been to 1 car show that had a sound off.i paid $5 and ran my car at the time just to see what it would do it was a 90 fleetwood that i had some kicker amps(kx1200.1&kx600.4)with a pair of cvr15s i hit a 136.4
ive been wanting to compete but i cant find anywere to do so. i now own a 98 jeep grand cherokee and so far i have 7 alpine type r 12s and some better kicker amps(1zr1000 3zr600 1xs50 and some smaller amps for my mids and highs not all of my amps and subs are going into the jeep.i still have to build my box and figure out what will fit
The problem with saying stock electrical system you have to designate what is stock. How can you tell just from looking if an alt is factory 90 or 200? How many runs of wire? What's the biggest battery? Some vehicles can only fit a tiny one where others can fit monsters in their factory location. If you say a factory replacement what about those with yellow or red top optimas?
Where I live there are a bunch of audio shops. But they don't have comp. The last one I attended was like a year ago and I drove 40 min and that shop closed down.
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