Big Stereos

Okay, I am going to show my age but here goes...

For those that remember 20 years ago when the big stereo crazy hit cars, do you think the current trend of big, loud stereos will burn it self out in boats?

I am all for people doing their thing, but at times - like sitting a stop light - anchored in a cove, swimming and someone pulls in with their stereo playing really loud can get annoying.

Thoughts?

T

Yes you are showing your age.

Keep em loud as long as the musick is sic

We rode this morning and didn't play the music loud until our last sets. It was early and we were trying to be nice to the fishermen.

Ive got tennitis big time. Ive lost my hearing in my upper ranges due to loud music, and construction. Some people speak in a range I cant hear, like my wife (sometimes a good thing) or, worse you say one thing and I hear a completely different thing. Trev I relate to you 100%. loud stereos will catch up to you, followed by age

I think your evaluation of the downfall of the 80's boom is flawed. It's not so much that people got tired of loud systems that led to the decline in aftermarket sales as it was the improvement in OEM systems. Car companies got wise and began offering stereo options exceeding 1k. They also designed their stereos as difficult to replace. OEM integration is a nightmare today at it is no accident. Car companies don't want you to buy your car with the cheapest system and then easily gut it to put your own personal preferences in.

So to answer your question, I think people generally demand high quality audio systems, and they will continue to do so in their boats. If they can't get it from the manufacturer, they will do it themselves aftermarket.

As I work on my boat stereo, I intend on focusing more on good quality sound with adequate volume than mind blowing volume. More of a well rounded system. It seems as though there has been a shift towards clarity and full range sound as opposed to just volume. All of these things are hard to achieve in an open environment.

I think people with loud car stereos are idiots but people with loud boat stereos are, well also idiots. The difference is i want an obnoxious boat stereo and have Zero desire for a loud car stereo. (of course I had a car stereo when i was younger) I'm 30 and single, I think some day when i get a family the boat stereo may go out of style for me also.

My stereo is just loud enough to drown out most other systems I come across. I don't run around with it blasting very often. I typically turn the tower speakers off if I don't have a rider to target the music towards. Every now and then I find myself listening to somebody's distorted car speakers on a tower blasting my direction. At those moments it's nice to have enough power to play mine loud enough to drown their noise out with my clean music, if I want.

Big stereos are like fast cars, just because you have one doesn't mean you are a wreckless idiot.

It's also important to choose your music wisely. I did some tuning of my system yesterday. My 50 year old neighbor came by and told me she enjoyed my music. I started apologizing and she said she was not being sarcastic, that she actually enjoyed the music.

I love our tower speakers just so I can have something to listen too while I ride... our headunit blew a fuse, we didn't have an extra out with us...so it was a half day w/o music and it sucked....

I agree though when people just sit and blast a certain area its un-needed.... whenever we swim/cruise/park we turn it way down...

it has to be loud given the listening surroundings in boats (unreinforced). not to mention the listener has is exposed to other things (also motor noise) and a very large listening area. with that being said, boats require about 2 times the power of a typical auto system.

my system is designed around reliability and clarity. it can go loud - very, very loud but it isnt listened to nowhere its limit.. i also value my hearing

i really hate getting into a pissing match with another stereo (who ever is there first has the right of way imo - ).. btw, i will drown out country music if i have too

(Message edited by clubmyke on April 28, 2008)

Loud stereos are just another reason for others to hate wakeboarders. Common sense should apply. If you pull in next to me and I'm with my family, please hold off on the loud music and f-bombs. This applies to those of you who think you need to entertain everyone at the gas pump. You may think you cool but most people will be laughing at you.

i'm with tim on the gas pump thing, no need to have it up and blaring then. does make you look really dumb and immature.

This was a good discussion, there is definetely a time and a place for everything. I've got a pretty decent system in my boat but usually don't find myself using it much. It's just nice to have when you want it, beach party, etc.. I to hate idiots with blasting their distorted speakers and subs listening to the latest wu-tang-clan or whatever the hell has the most foul language they can find.

IMO you don't need a BIG system to bother people. You can annoy people pretty good with a stock system. Most of the people I hear blasting their system I would say are just a average system with tower speakers and don't have a clue about what sounds like crap and when its ok to pump it up. F'ud up distorted sound and country music is what bothers me. . If you got some good soundin beats by all means lets do this. I do understand my taste in music and yours might not match so thats why I try to keep it low, I guess Im a geek but I like it when someone has some bounce in their boat and they know how to rock it.
(right time right place right music) The term Wallys just doesn't extend to people that drive boat's.

In my car I have a decent stereo it's not huge but it's still loud and I turn it up while driving down the road but when at a stop light, going through a neighborhood, or anything like that I turn it almost all the way down and when I'm on the boat I do the same thing . . . No Rap on my boat

It's all about time and place. When I drop in I'll and start rollin' away I typically bump it up nice and loud but I won't play inappropriate music so's not to piss of the folk's on the beach. When we ride it's up loud too but when we're just chillin' we keep it down. Lets not kid ourselves here we don't have big loud stereos not to show off every now and again.

Loud car stereos are gay, as a matter of fact my buddy just bought a nice new Unlimited Wrangler and lifted it wheels/tires the works but a crappy ass stereo so we are putting in a sub and changing out some of the midrange speakers and I feel like an idiot doing it.

I better chime in with my 2 cents....The majority or the boaters on my lake are people that are out drinking and having a good time. They could care less about how loud your stereo is and when were in a cove anchored we crank it, drink and have a great time. We have other boats come up and tie with us just because we got loud music and they dont.


To those of you guys saying turn it down around families I completely understand your point but these are also the families that come in your perfect cove of all butter with their 26 foot Cobalt with 2 tubes weaving all around.

^^^ Word ! ! ! Nothing pisses me off more than when a F-ing tuber comes in the cove or a spot where a bunch of us are ridin' and completely destroys the water

(Message edited by lovin_the_wake on April 28, 2008)

I agree to respect other boaters especially near the docks but out here it really pisses me off when I have to deal with some guy that has to keep to engine running so his battery wont die when we tie up.

Lucky for us i think the a holes are far and few (in the boating community I mean- too many idiot kids with car stereos who just don't care) I think most of us would rather not piss one another off and when we do we probably don't know we are doing it. Seriously, a kind tactful word would probably make the difference in most cases. I think a lot of us are just in need of a little education.

I have a huge stereo in my boat for two reasons. The first is so that I can listen to what I want when I want and not worry about other stereos. Second (Grant I agree)is that alot of stereos are just loud and have no clarity, very annoying.

On the same token I have heard about people getting mad about loud stereo when families are around. I have only seen it happen when families are hanging out in areas that are well known to be party spots. If I go out and want to avoid that activity I find other places to go

How about this one, what constitutes a big stereo? To one guy it could be the cabin speakers powered off the deck and an infinity basslink or something. Let's get some reference points here..... Another guy could be talking about 4 15's and 8 HLCD tower speakers.

I consider my system to be on the bigger side it's not insane but it sure as hell hurts your ears inside the boat and can be heard all around it.
2400 watt all JBL
2 JBL gti 10" subs
4 Polk db650's
4 Boston Acoustive Neo type S tweeters
2 Boss B60
2 Boss B70 (Planning an upgrade to either Bullet or Wetsounds)

Obviously it's no eargasm or on par with "G", coops or Bens systems but those are more toward the crazy side.

Were are all the pics? I thought people would post ther set-up. Maybe on another thread somewere already?

one of my favorite things is when i'm pulling a rider or riding. i notice people dancing when i pass buy. thats great. sometimes ill put on some r kelly so that my friend has to ride to a girly man song."MY MIND'S TELLING ME NOOOOO", "BUT MY BODY...MY BODY'S TELLING ME YEAAAHH,,, BABY" but i always respect people and what i play.

5100 watts Zapco amp
2 DD subs
16 Zapco comp speakers (10 on tower in custom 3 piece fiberglass tower boxes)
1 Zapco DSP
Alpine Ipod only deck
7 batteries

I would consider this a big system

That's more like a fricken huge system.

WOW Scott that should blow some ear drums out. You're the man

Honestly I'd rather have a small system in the boat with no tower speakers for the passengers (generally speaking, in our family in the car the driver gets to pick the music, if any at all) because when riding I like the solitude you get to just chillax. But watching [my family, lol] ride is kind of boring sometimes... Especially if you're the driver, staring into space.

EDIT: Is it weird that I think this way when I'm 15?

(Message edited by pwningjr on April 29, 2008)

If every weekend I had girls in my car that started shaking their bun every time I turned up the music, the stereo in my car would be just as good as the stereo in my boat.

right on jason!!!!!!!!

there becomes a point when it becomes just a little bit ridiculous.. you and your passengers can only listen to music so loud ( i really value my hearing as i get older).

boats do require a more overall wattage and more amps due addition of tower speakers.whats really funny, is tower speakers require really big high quality amps that run "hard" for short bursts (basically till the rider falls) i rarely turn up the interior system (i would consider mine a "mid sized" system)

I'm usually annoyed with it as well...