XCS3 Maintain Quality Car Audio Systems

The stability of the electric current on modern cars is becoming very important. Electricity is not functioning optimally but can affect other components, wasteful fuel consumption, traction becomes severe, can also degrade sound quality car audio.
To work around this, car owners can add a device that extends the life of electronic components such as batteries, coils, CDI, and alternator. Many manufacturers of aftermarket accessories that offer such tools or electrical current stabilizer. Only one was Hurricane XCS3 Electronic Voltage Stabilizer.
But in its development XCS3 not only able to keep the ignition and save fuel, but serves to optimize the supply of electricity to keep the car's audio system remain vibrant. Moreover, to get the best audio quality stable electricity required.
"The problem with the traffic conditions in major cities of Indonesia solid build an electricity supply from the alternator to the battery unstable and weak. This need for additional tools that can stabilize the electric current. Aki has a huge burden to meet the needs of the machine, just as the coil, ECU, air conditioning, lampum starter and sensors on the car, "said Wahyu Tanuwidjaja, Product Designer PT Audioworkshop.
Not to mention the need for electricity for the car audio such as tape, power, car TV, processor, and a subwoofer.
"Can you imagine a car battery mensupalai the need for heavy machinery alone. How is the battery at the same time should supply power to your car's sound system needs ?, "explained Rev. again.
According to Revelation, XCS3 could be an option to keep the factory default standard audio quality or modified. XCS3 with constant charging to the battery, making the battery can meet all the needs of the engine and audio at the same time. This tool has other advantages, can replace the capacitor bank for car audio.
"As we know, kualias capacitor bank is currently at a low price does not benefit at all on your audio," explained Rev. Monday night (22/9) in the event IIMS 2014.
Based on research conducted by PT Audioworkshop, audio power amplification time of shortage of electricity supply, the quality of vowel sounds will be sinking, or the term mendem. But by wearing XCS3 vocal quality that comes out sounding more clearly than audio.
Because aid is also an audio XCS3 on microdynamic, then its application does not change the frequency. The response was still gives tranquility. "So the (audio) more improve its dynamic. Bass more pointed sound," he explained.
"Not only the quality of crystal clear vocals, bass and treble also be heard better. So in every car audio power amps will get a lot of quality sound is perfect, "said Jimmy Bachtiar, President Director of PT Auto Perporma as the official distributor Hurricane XCS3.
If used on a standard audio does this work? "Can! If the default standard for car audio I recommend installation in the head unit, but instead use a silencer as well, "said Wahyu.
During IIMS lasted XCS3 sold at a fixed price of Rp 1,750 million. During the event IIMS every purchase of one unit would be a bonus XCS3 Energy Release, liquid antifriksi that while protecting the engine.

Being Aware of Driver Distraction

Another potential hazard of enjoying a car audio system is driver distraction. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), between 20 to 30 percent of all motor vehicle accidents occur because of driver distraction. Some insurance industry sources place it as high as 80 percent. 

Although car audio and video get a bad rap, studies have shown that the most common causes of driver distraction include

• Grooming 
• Eating or drinking 
• Reading 
• Smoking
• Reaching for something 
• Talking with passengers
• Interacting with children
• Outside distractions 
• Using a mobile phone 
• Objects shifting in a vehicle

Although head unit manufacturers design their products with an eye towards making them easy to operate while driving, it’s up to each individual to ensure that they are not endangering the lives of their passengers, others on the road, and themselves by fiddling with a car audio system. Now that portable media players such as iPods have become popular, they pose an even greater risk of distracting a driver.

The issue has become even more urgent with the advent of in-car video. That’s one reason the Mobile Electronics division of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), the trade group that represents the consumer electronics industry, launched its Watch the Road campaign, which offers advice and information on driver distraction on the Web at www.digitaldriver.org.

The Web site provides a state-by-state listing of laws governing the use of mobile electronics and portable electronics in a vehicle, a “Road Test IQ” to test your knowledge on driver distraction issues, and tips for driving smart with consumer electronics.

Knotting When the Music Is Too Loud

Another rule of thumb is that if you have to shout to make yourself heard, the source of the noise you’re shouting over may be loud enough to damage your hearing. You’ll also know that a sound is too loud if your ears hurt, and you’ll know afterwards if your ears ring or you have a hard time hearing for several hours after exposure to the noise.

Exposure to high SPL damages hair cells, sensory receptors in the ear, as well as the auditory or hearing nerve. Impulse sounds, or quick bursts of noise such as an explosion, can result in immediate hearing loss that can be permanent and may be accompanied by tinnitus, a ringing or buzzing noise in the ears that can decrease over time. Hearing loss and tinnitus can be experienced in one or both ears due to impulse sounds, and tinnitus can continue constantly or periodically over a lifetime.

Prolonged exposure to high SPL, such as listening to music that’s too loud for too long, may also damage hair cells and result in hearing loss and tinnitus. But because the process occurs more gradually than with impulse noise, the symptoms of hearing loss will also increase gradually. Over time, sounds may become distorted or muffled, and it may be difficult to understand when someone’s talking to you.

Car audio systems are not the only culprits, of course. Activities such as target shooting or hunting with firearms, motorcycle riding, woodworking, and other hobbies can cause hearing loss, as can playing in a band and attending loud concerts. Even noise from lawnmowers and leaf blowers can be harmful.

The good news is that noise-induced hearing loss is preventable. To protect your hearing:

• Be aware of noise that can harm your ears, such as those at or above 85 decibels, and take steps to reduce your exposure.
• Wear earplugs or earmuffs when involved in activities that can cause hearing damage, such as attending rock concerts or using power tools.

If you think you have hearing loss, get an ear exam.

Insuring Your System : Protecting Your System and Yourself

You can do everything possible to protect your system — install a security system, install components so that they’re hard to remove, keep a low profile — but sometimes the worst happens: Someone breaks in and steals your car audio thunder. After the shock and disappointment of losing your car audio system, you may be in for another shock by finding out that your car insurance won’t cover your loss.

The basics parts of an insurance policy include

Premium: This is the amount you pay the insurance company for coverage.

Deductible: This is the amount you pay out of pocket when you have a I claim or loss. A typical deductible is $500, which means if you have a $5,000 claim, you pay $500 and the insurance company pays $4,500. You can sometimes opt for a lower deductible by paying a higher premium.

Collision coverage: This covers the damage that occurs to your vehicle 1 from a collision. 

Liability: This covers damage to other vehicles, property, and people in the event of a crash. Almost every state requires liability insurance as a condition of licensing a driver, and some require that you carry proof of liability insurance while driving.

Comprehensive: This covers damage not related to a crash but incidents such as vandalism and theft (but not always for an aftermarket audio system) or damages caused by a natural disaster.

Riders: This is add-on coverage and is usually taken out by people who have items added to their cars that are not included under normal coverage, such as high-end car audio systems and custom wheels and paint jobs. Of course, you pay extra for a rider on top of the regular premium.

How much you pay in premiums depends on the type and amount of coverage you carry. Some people only carry liability as a bare-bones coverage, and they have to pay out-of-pocket to repair their own vehicle if it’s involved in an accident or gets damaged.

The cost of insurance is based on many factors: your age, where you live, your driving record, and what kind of car you drive. Liability coverage is charged on a sliding scale. For example, if you want to increase coverage from, say, $100,000 in property damage to $200,000, you’re going to pay a higher premium.

Most comprehensive insurance policies cover car audio equipment, but usually only if it’s installed in factory locations. So a head unit and speakers would be covered, but not amplifiers and subwoofers. There also may be limits on how much you’ll be compensated for the equipment. Each policy is different and each claim is handled differently, so it’s important to know before a theft how your insurance company handles things.

Be prepared

The best way to be prepared for a theft is to work closely with your insurance agent. Find out if she has worked with people who have had their car audio equipment stolen, and if they have not, ask if someone else in the office has. Also find out how much of your system is covered — and not covered — by your policy, and what you need to do to extend your coverage if it’s inadequate.

Chances are you’ll have to purchase a separate rider to cover your system if it’s extensive and custom-installed. But insurance companies sometimes place limits on riders and how much risk they’ll willing to assume. If you have a modest system, this may not be a problem. But if you’ve sunk tens of thousands of dollars into a system, you may find an insurance company reluctant to offer coverage even under a rider. In this case, you should shop around for another insurance company that may be willing to offer a rider that covers more extensive systems.

You’ll also want to know how much your equipment will be depreciated. An insurance company probably won’t reimburse the full price you paid for the equipment because it will have depreciated, and therefore be worth less. For example, a set of speakers you paid $200 for three year ago may only be worth $75 today. Find out how the insurance company handles depreciation and how it decides the value of the equipment.

Custom installation work is another potential problem area because an insurance company probably won’t be familiar with what it takes to install a custom car audio system and the costs involved. Ask your agent how custom work is covered.

You’ll want to answer as many of these questions as possible before a theft occurs so that there are no unpleasant surprises when the worst happens. Here are some other questions you’ll want to ask your insurance agent:

• What is the procedure for making a claim? 
• How long does it take to process a claim? 
• Are items such as CDs and iPods covered under the policy? 
• Can i choose the car audio shop where the repair work is done?

In addition, having your car towed if it’s not drivable may be covered by your policy, or you may have to pay extra for it. Find out beforehand. The same goes for renting a car until yours is repaired; find out if it’s part of your coverage or an out-of-pocket expense.

Before and after a theft

Although you hope a theft never happens to you, you can take proactive steps before or after to help minimize the hassle of getting your claim processed and getting reimbursed for the loss, as well as avoid other disappointments.

Before a theft

• Keep all your receipts for equipment purchases and installation expenses in one folder. That way, you can document exactly what you spent on the system.
• Take pictures or a video of your system so that you have a record of what it consists of and where everything was installed. Make sure to update the pictures as you make changes to the system.

After a theft

• Contact the police and file a report of the theft. Many times, an insurance company requires a police report before initiating a claim.
• Contact your insurance agent and initiate a claim. Provide the agent with detailed information, including receipts and photographs, if necessary.
• If your vehicle is involved in an accident and it has to be towed, find out where and how the car will be stored. The last thing you want is for a thief to have access to your damaged car in a wrecking yard. Ask that the vehicle be stored inside or in a secured area. Also find out when and if you’ll be allowed to salvage the car audio components from the car. 

 

Keeping Safe and Legal : Protecting Your System and Yourself

In This Chapter

Protecting your hearing 

Knowing when to turn it down Keeping your eyes on the road

There’s nothing quite like cruising down the road listening to your favorite tunes. When you’re driving a cool car with a great car audio system on a fun road, it makes you want to reach over and crank up the volume.

It’s one of the primary reasons someone would want to install a custom car audio system in the first place — and one of my favorite feelings in the world. Although it’s great to crank it up, and great to own a system that lets you do that, it’s equally important to know when to turn it down. In this chapter, I talk about how overdoing it can cause problems ranging from hearing loss to driver distraction.

Exposure to extremely high sound pressure level (SPL) can cause immediate damage to your hearing. But even moderate SPL at or above 85 decibels, which a car audio system is easily capable of, can cause Noise Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL) with repeated exposure. And although being aware of the SPL of a sound source is important in protecting your hearing (see Table 22-1), the distance from the source of the sound and duration of exposure are equally significant. 

Table 22-1 Noise Level of Various Environments

Activity Noise Level in Decibels (dB)
Rocket launching 180
Jet engine taking off 140
Hydraulic press (10 ft. away) 130
Car horn 120
Typical nightclub 110
Amplified rock music 110-130
Helicopter 105
Loud shout 90
High-performance car audio system 85-90
Electric shaver 85
Busy traffic intersection 80
Noisy restaurant 70
Washing machine/dishwasher 65
Normal conversation 60
Quiet office 50
Refrigerator 45
Public library 40
Leaves rustling 30
Threshold of sound perception 10
Threshold of hearing 0

                   Table courtesy of Audio Control

According to the National Institute for Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, a good rule of thumb is to avoid noises that are too loud and too close and last too long. Unfortunately, this sounds like an apt description of a long drive in a vehicle with a car audio system. But you can enjoy your system and preserve your hearing if you play it smart and know when to turn it down. 

Protecting Your System and Yourself : Securing and Insuring Your System

In This Chapter

► Understanding security systems and sensors

► Considering head unit security features

► Insuring your system

► What to do before and after a theft

One of the downsides of having a great car audio system is that your vehicle can become a target for thieves. Some unscrupulous lowlifes don’t care how hard you worked for your system or how much you paid for it. If you let your guard down, they’ll break in and grab whatever they can. It’s happened to me more than once, and it’s a frustrating and sometimes expensive experience.

But you can take steps to prevent theft of your car audio components by installing an alarm system, employing other measures to secure your car audio components, and just by using plain common sense. Even if your car does get hit, you can protect yourself financially by purchasing insurance that covers a car audio system. Finally, you can save yourself some hassle by preparing for a theft and knowing what to do if or when it happens.

Securing your Ride with an Alarm

It sounds like a no-brainer, but if you made a substantial investment in a car audio system, you need a security system to protect it. Although any security system short of a pit bull ultimately won’t stop a thief — if someone wants to break into your car badly enough they’ll find a way to do it — your strategy to reduce your risk should be two-fold:

To make it more difficult for thieves to snatch your stuff

To make your car less attractive as a target 

Thieves often take the path of least resistance, and your car may be targeted instead of another just because it’s easier to break into. What you want to do is make it difficult for the bad guys to get at the goodies inside your ride.

The best way to both make your car less attractive to thieves and thwart them if they do pick your ride, is to install a security system. A security system’s siren can alert you or anyone close to the car that something is up. The last thing a thief wants is to draw attention to himself.

Of course, car alarms have their limitations. With so many cars today equipped with security systems — and so many false alarms going off all the time — no one pays much attention to a car alarm siren these days unless it’s their own. And you won’t know if your siren is going off unless you can hear it.

The limitations of traditional car alarms are why some car alarm manufacturers have begun offering two-way keychain transmitter remotes. Along with the buttons found on traditional car alarm remotes, these transmitters also feature an LED display that can tell you about the status of a security system (see Figure 21-1). For example, the remote confirms operations such as arm and disarm, even when you’re out of range of the siren. More importantly, the remote notifies you if the alarm has been triggered, and some work as much as mile away from your vehicle.

VIPER 

Never confront someone who is trying to break into your car. You never know whether they’re armed, and protecting your car or your car audio system isn’t worth getting harmed or killed. Instead of confronting a thief, alert the police or some other authority.

The parts of a security system

In addition to remote transmitters that remotely arm a system and an LED indicator that warns thieves of an alarm’s presence, the parts of a security system you don’t see are the central processing unit or brain, which is tied to outputs that control various functions and sensors that feed info to the brain about intrusion attempts.

Two types of outputs

An alarm’s outputs control relays, which are electrical switches that activate a car’s electronic components, and consist of two types:

• A starter-interrupt output that prevents a vehicle’s starter from operating when activated, and keeps the engine from cranking (also called a starter kill).
• Outputs that remotely activate convenience features such as door locks, the dome light or headlights, the hatch latch, power windows or a sun roof, and even remotely start a vehicle so that the interior can be warmed up on cold days or cooled down on hot days.

Sensor and sirens

A starter-interrupt keeps someone from starting your car and driving it away, but sensors are the first line of defense from an intrusion. They signal to the alarm’s brain that someone is trying to break in, and the brain in turn sounds the siren. Various sensors are designed to provide specific types of protection, and you can use one or several depending on the type of vehicle you want to protect and the level or protection you want or can afford.

Types of sensors include

Entry sensors: To protect a vehicle’s entry points — the doors, trunk, hood, or hatch — a security system ties into the pin switches already in place. Pin switches are the small cylindrical switches that are used to I turn on the dome light, for example, when a door is opened. Because a vehicle usually already has pin switches in the door jambs as well as the hood and trunk, it’s simply a matter of tying these switches into the security system. If the hood and trunk don’t have pin switches, they can easily be added. Another way a security system senses entry is through voltage-drop. When a security system is tied into the vehicle’s electrical system and a dome light, trunk light, or engine-compartment lights turn on, the system senses a voltage drop and sounds the siren.

Shock sensor. A shock sensor detects a blow to a vehicle, such as when someone tries to smash a window or uses force to break into a car. Many shock sensors are dual-stage, meaning that if a small disturbance is detected, such as when someone dings your car door in a parking lot, the sensor causes the system to emit a few chirps from the siren. In the case of a greater impact, the full siren cycle sounds. The sensitivity of a shock sensor can usually be set to determine the threshold for triggering the siren. A too-sensitive shock sensor setting is usually why you hear a system sounding a false alarm.

Glass-break sensor: These sensors listen for the specific sound that occurs when a car window shatters, which is the fastest way for a thief to break in. Some even activate before a thief breaks the window and are triggered by the sound of metal scraping on glass, such as when a thief uses a slim jim tool that slides between the glass and the door to unlock the door without a key.

Pressure sensor: When a door is opened, it causes a change in pressure inside the vehicle. A pressure sensor detects this and sends a signal to the brain to sound the siren.

Radar or motion sensor: Also called a perimeter sensor, this type of sensor sends out radio waves that can detect motion within a given space. These sensors are great for protecting convertibles or any open area of a vehicle, such as a pickup’s bed.

Tilt sensor. Car thieves can simply use a tow truck to haul a vehicle away, so a tilt sensor is used to detect when a car’s front or rear end is lifted. It’s also used to keep thieves from jacking up a vehicle to steal the wheels and tires.

Other features that modern car security systems offer include

Anti-carjacking: This feature is designed to prevent a carjacker from getting away with a vehicle. If a door is opened after the engine has been I started, the driver must hit a switch or button to deactivate the carjack § mode. If the switch isn’t activated, the car’s lights flash and the security system siren sounds after a period of time (usually about five minutes or so), drawing attention to the vehicle. If the thief stops the car, the starter-interrupt won’t allow it to start again.

Valet mode: This allows the car owners to turn off the alarm system if, for example, they are handing the vehicle over to a parking valet or mechanic. 

Code hopping: After thieves discovered they could use frequency scanners to capture a car alarm’s arming/disarming code when sent from the alarm remote to the brain, alarm manufacturers started using code hopping or rolling code transmission so that a different code is sent from the remote every time the system is armed and disarmed.

Active and passive arming: Most systems give the owner the choice between active or passive arming. Active arming requires an action on the part of the owner, such as pressing a button on the alarm remote, whereas passive arming requires no action on the part of the driver and is great for someone who frequently forgets to set the alarm. With passive arming, the alarm automatically sets within a given time period after the engine is shut off and the driver exits the vehicle. To disarm the vehicle upon returning, the driver has to perform some sort of action in order to disarm the system, such as pushing a button or flipping a switch, within a given time frame.

Backup battery or backup battery siren: Some car thieves defeat an alarm simply by cutting power to the battery, and hence the security system. To prevent this, a backup battery kicks in when power is cut, or a backup battery siren sounds.

Most insurance companies offer a discount if a vehicle is equipped with a security system.

A security system is a must have for anyone who has invested a significant amount of money in a car or car audio system. A thief will most likely pass up a car with a security system and target one without one instead. But in addition to a security system, there are other things you can do to protect your system, ranging from security features built into a head unit, to installing components in a certain way, to just using common sense. I cover these other security options in the next few sections.

Head unit security

Back in the day, when car stereo theft started to became a big problem, car audio manufacturers came up with the pull-out radio. In the mid- to late-1980s, it wasn’t unusual to see someone carrying around a bulky car radio attached to a pullout handle. Although this was inconvenient, it worked.

Detachable faceplates

In the early 1990s, the first detachable-faceplate radios were introduced, and it was much easier to just pop the faceplate off a radio than carry around the whole thing. Without the faceplate, the radio would be useless to a thief.

The design quickly became the de facto standard in head unit security, and continues to be today. 

ESN

One manufacturer that didn’t jump on the detachable-faceplate bandwagon was Eclipse. Around the same time that detachable faceplates were introduced, the company came up with its ESN security schemes. With ESN, a head unit could be coded by selecting a key CD. If power to the unit was ever cut — when it was stolen or when the battery was disconnected for service — it wouldn’t work again until the key CD was inserted. Because a thief wouldn’t know which CD is the key, the unit is effectively inoperable.

The owner also has to register the unit with Eclipse. So if someone steals an ESN head unit and sends it in to be unlocked, Eclipse can alert the original owner and notify police to track the person who sent it in. The ESN system has been relatively successful and thieves seem to know that Eclipse head units can’t be operated — and hence fenced or illegally sold — without access to the key CD. On more recent Eclipse models that have a slot for a Memory Stick, the code can also be stored on one of those flash memory devices. Also, Eclipse began offering detachable-faceplate head units, and some have ESN as well as a detachable faceplate.

Using a layered approach

An Eclipse head unit with a detachable faceplate and ESN is an example of what’s known as a layered approach to car audio security. The idea is to put up multiple roadblocks to make it harder for a thief to steal your stuff. For example, a security system may slow down thieves, but it won’t stop them from breaking into your car if they really want to. If they do breach the car’s interior, you want to make it more difficult for them to steal your stuff. You can do this by solidly mounting your components and using non-standard fasteners, such as hex-head screws that require an Allen wrench, to foil smash and grab thieves.

Protecting Your System and Yourself by Using Common Sense

The best deterrent of all is to keep car audio components and other valuables out of sight and give your system and your car a low profile. Although this may run counter to your plans for a flashy car audio system, the more you flaunt what you’ve got, the more your car becomes a target. Here are some tactics for keeping a low-key presence.

Keep it stock: One of the best ways to deter thieves is to have them think there’s nothing in your vehicle worth stealing, such as a stock audio system. If you don’t want an elaborate system but simply want better sound, keep the stock head unit intact and add aftermarket amplifiers and speakers. 

Keep it low-key: If you do install aftermarket speakers, keep them behind the stock speaker grilles, if you use the grilles that came with your after- market speakers and they include prominent logos that tell the world you have expensive speakers in your ride, switch them out for nonde-script grilles or remove or paint over the logos.

Keep it hidden: If you’re installing amplifiers or subwoofers in your vehicle, mount them in a place where they can’t be seen. This may be easier in a vehicle with a trunk, but even with hatchbacks or pickup trucks, you can employ methods to keep your components hidden. For example, many hatchbacks come with a factory cover. Use it. In pickups, cosmetic panels can be built to fit over and hide car audio components.

Keep it quiet: One sure way to let everyone know you have something worth stealing is to blast your system so that everyone, including car thieves, can hear it. While everyone likes to crank it up every now and then, just be aware of where you’re doing it and who is around. Crank it up close to home, and thieves will know where you park your car at night. You also don’t want to plaster your car with stickers from car audio manufacturers, which is like an advertisement for all the stuff you have inside that can be stolen.

Keep it safe: Park in well-lit places where lots of people pass by. For example, at a shopping mall or movie theater, try to park as close to the entrance as possible and under a light. Thieves hate attention and they hate for light to be shed on their dastardly deeds.