Installation Charges

gunbir · 3rd December 2005, 00:18

Hey fellow TBHP'ians and ICE'rs

I was wondering about this. And since most of you are consumers and not ICE professionals, your opinions will be interesting...

Will you or wont you pay extra (above the cost of your equipment) for a professional install in your car. When I say pro, I mean no severed cables, no damaged panels, actual knowledge and design put in to make your ICE equiment sing the way it should.

Options:

A : Will pay upto 10% - for a pro install
B : Will pay upto 20% - for a pro install with fiberglassing, lots of mods
C : Will DIY - you prefer to Do-It-Yourself, save the money
D : Wont pay extra - wont pay a paisa over the cost of the equipment

Your inputs are appreciated. Thanks.

Max · 3rd December 2005, 02:59

ICE !!! what you mean by ICE ? also, do-it-yourself !!! i don't think i can install any audio/mp3 player myself in my car ! am i making sense

Steeroid · 3rd December 2005, 03:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by gunbir

Options:

A : Will pay upto 10% - for a pro install
B : Will pay upto 20% - for a pro install with fiberglassing, lots of mods

Dear Gunbir

What is the premium of 10 or 20% based on? Is it 10/20% over normal installation costs or 10-20% of the cost of your ICE equipment?

mclaren1885 · 3rd December 2005, 04:13

i think he means 10-20% of the complete install price..well as a matter of fact i would spend that extra buck to see that its installed professionaly as for i know that a good install can make a considerable improvement in soundstage etc etc from personal experience...now coming to think of it i think i have developed enough techy info and other stuff from this forum that i can do a DIY too which can be classified as a bit professional too if not totally..its not the cost saving factor here but the confidence that i can do an install that will be better than out local installers is what i meant..given the choice that u know ur stuff well a DIY would give u a lot of satisfaction too if not sticking to a professional installer would be the best..

viper · 3rd December 2005, 08:35

Hi,

I voted for the 20% since if I had my way thats the way I would go. Unfortunately for me now my wife also has a say hence it would be 10% as no fancy displays and mountings allowed. She likes the car to be as original as possible

Viper

jkdas · 3rd December 2005, 09:29

20% for me

Santro comes with 4inch pods at front and hence my compos had to be fixed at the back. If I had a prof installer who could fix the compos at frnt I would have been damn happy.

Newbies who are gonna vote, please see the Getz install in this forum to see a sample of prof install.

navin · 3rd December 2005, 09:51

Viper you can have mods that dont show. I have seen some installs that look OEM.

My present installer will charge me Rs. 1K for a standard 4 speaker no amp install if i give her the components (yes my installer is a she).

If I buy the HU from her she will install it free, same with speakers or amp. I assume she get her bit from the commision earned from the sale.

Sam says she treats me special (cranky old man discount?) so this might not be a norm.

However if I wanted something that required work beyond the OEM limits I would pay for it. Remember I am a cranky old man so I can get nitpicky.

Vivekphadnis · 3rd December 2005, 13:15

You guys know what I voted for.

GTO · 3rd December 2005, 17:02

I am a perfectionist, and know that you get what you pay for - in the service industry.

Would certainly pay the 20% additional charge for a premium job.

GTO

rsjaurr · 3rd December 2005, 19:57

Well.....after spending on Jl audio amp,4 infinty kappa speakers,1 infinty subw,alpine9853 HU,dynamat & wiring,one can expect how much money will be left

but i wont mind paying up to 1500 for my system as i dont like too much modification.And in my case 10% will make it around 5000 which is on higher side.I wonder how many of us [read customers not pro] pay attention to this.For me installing car audio system is not just installing all components in different locations but its more of a fine tuning and installing in right locations as JB & Gunbir do.

navin · 5th December 2005, 11:31

Doc, installing Dynamat etc.. is a lot mor effort than a simple HU+4 speaker install. If I expected my installer to do that I would pay more than 1500. then again maybe it is just that mumbai is more expensive.

for my RS, the hardware cost about 80K and the install charges were about 5K. but my wife's car was simpler and hence less.

what i am getting at is the install charges are not depedant on the cost of the hardware but on the labour involved.

for example it takes the same effort to install a 6K HU and a 26K HU. but if you add amps, damping materials, component speakers (crossovers), subwoofers etc.. this adds to the labour and one should budget for that.

The moment you go to a 2 + amp install the installer has to be much more careful, knoledgeable and that costs too.

rsjaurr · 5th December 2005, 16:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by navin

Doc, installing Dynamat etc.. is a lot mor effort than a simple HU+4 speaker install. If I expected my installer to do that I would pay more than 1500. then again maybe it is just that mumbai is more expensive.

for my RS, the hardware cost about 80K and the install charges were about 5K. but my wife's car was simpler and hence less.

what i am getting at is the install charges are not depedant on the cost of the hardware but on the labour involved.

for example it takes the same effort to install a 6K HU and a 26K HU. but if you add amps, damping materials, component speakers (crossovers), subwoofers etc.. this adds to the labour and one should budget for that.

The moment you go to a 2 + amp install the installer has to be much more careful, knoledgeable and that costs too.

yeah i agree with navin that install money should depend on quantity of stuff,labour involved & ofcourse the installer and not just the quality of what installer is installing.I
was just joking that i dont have any money left now to pay to installer.thats why i am bit worried that we dont have even a installer who is 10% of gunbir/JB.

And thats why i am writing so many queries to u guys.Lets see how it goes...

tifosikrishna · 5th December 2005, 18:19

i voted for a 10% premium and i know its difficult to quantify it.

however, i feel people will be inclined to pay a premium, if they are made to feel the difference in output of their systems done by real pros and those of similar/same systems done by people masquerading as professionals.

rsjaurr · 5th December 2005, 18:48

i also voted for <10%.

EVO6 · 6th December 2005, 03:05

Hi gunbir,

I have voted for 10% but then again I will disagree with the percentage.
If one installs a system worth 1.5 lakhs then the 10% is 15000..
But if really high end components are used and the install goes to about 4-5 lakhs then 10% means 50000...
But the effort and the material like MDF, carpet, etc.. for installation in both jobs is the same so i guess the percentage is not justified..
I rather the charges be realistic and not based on a percentage ...
Cheers

View Poll Results: Will you pay extra for a professional ICE install?
Will pay upto 10% - for a pro install	71	66.98%
Will pay upto 20% - for a pro install with fiberglassing, lots of mods	31	29.25%
Will DIY - you prefer to Do-It-Yourself, save the money	7	6.60%
Wont pay extra - wont pay a paisa over the cost of the equipment	5	4.72%
Multiple Choice Poll. Voters: 106. You may not vote on this poll

3rd December 2005, 00:18	#1
gunbir Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: New Delhi Posts: 2,465 Thanked: 33 Times	Installation Charges Hey fellow TBHP'ians and ICE'rs I was wondering about this. And since most of you are consumers and not ICE professionals, your opinions will be interesting... Will you or wont you pay extra (above the cost of your equipment) for a professional install in your car. When I say pro, I mean no severed cables, no damaged panels, actual knowledge and design put in to make your ICE equiment sing the way it should. Options: A : Will pay upto 10% - for a pro install B : Will pay upto 20% - for a pro install with fiberglassing, lots of mods C : Will DIY - you prefer to Do-It-Yourself, save the money D : Wont pay extra - wont pay a paisa over the cost of the equipment Your inputs are appreciated. Thanks.
	() Thanks

3rd December 2005, 02:59	#2
Max BHPian Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Thane Posts: 538 Thanked: 98 Times View My Garage	ICE !!! what you mean by ICE ? also, do-it-yourself !!! i don't think i can install any audio/mp3 player myself in my car ! am i making sense
	() Thanks

3rd December 2005, 04:13	#4
mclaren1885 BANNED Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Bangalore (the city of modded cars) !! Posts: 4,820 Thanked: 46 Times View My Garage Infractions: 0/1 (10)	i think he means 10-20% of the complete install price..well as a matter of fact i would spend that extra buck to see that its installed professionaly as for i know that a good install can make a considerable improvement in soundstage etc etc from personal experience...now coming to think of it i think i have developed enough techy info and other stuff from this forum that i can do a DIY too which can be classified as a bit professional too if not totally..its not the cost saving factor here but the confidence that i can do an install that will be better than out local installers is what i meant..given the choice that u know ur stuff well a DIY would give u a lot of satisfaction too if not sticking to a professional installer would be the best.. Last edited by mclaren1885 : 3rd December 2005 at 04:16.
	() Thanks

3rd December 2005, 08:35	#5
viper BANNED Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Mumbai Posts: 1,773 Thanked: 20 Times	Hi, I voted for the 20% since if I had my way thats the way I would go. Unfortunately for me now my wife also has a say hence it would be 10% as no fancy displays and mountings allowed. She likes the car to be as original as possible Viper
	() Thanks

3rd December 2005, 09:29	#6
jkdas Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Thiruvananthapu Posts: 9,687 Thanked: 1,493 Times View My Garage	20% for me Santro comes with 4inch pods at front and hence my compos had to be fixed at the back. If I had a prof installer who could fix the compos at frnt I would have been damn happy. Newbies who are gonna vote, please see the Getz install in this forum to see a sample of prof install.
	() Thanks

3rd December 2005, 09:51	#7
navin Team-BHP Support Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Mumbai Posts: 25,321 Thanked: 9,501 Times	Viper you can have mods that dont show. I have seen some installs that look OEM. My present installer will charge me Rs. 1K for a standard 4 speaker no amp install if i give her the components (yes my installer is a she). If I buy the HU from her she will install it free, same with speakers or amp. I assume she get her bit from the commision earned from the sale. Sam says she treats me special (cranky old man discount?) so this might not be a norm. However if I wanted something that required work beyond the OEM limits I would pay for it. Remember I am a cranky old man so I can get nitpicky.
	() Thanks

3rd December 2005, 13:15	#8
Vivekphadnis BHPian Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 690 Thanked: 2 Times	You guys know what I voted for.
	() Thanks

3rd December 2005, 17:02	#9
GTO Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Bombay Posts: 71,517 Thanked: 309,557 Times View My Garage	I am a perfectionist, and know that you get what you pay for - in the service industry. Would certainly pay the 20% additional charge for a premium job. GTO
	() Thanks

3rd December 2005, 19:57	#10
rsjaurr BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Batala Posts: 777 Thanked: 28 Times	Well.....after spending on Jl audio amp,4 infinty kappa speakers,1 infinty subw,alpine9853 HU,dynamat & wiring,one can expect how much money will be left but i wont mind paying up to 1500 for my system as i dont like too much modification.And in my case 10% will make it around 5000 which is on higher side.I wonder how many of us [read customers not pro] pay attention to this.For me installing car audio system is not just installing all components in different locations but its more of a fine tuning and installing in right locations as JB & Gunbir do.
	() Thanks

5th December 2005, 11:31	#11
navin Team-BHP Support Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Mumbai Posts: 25,321 Thanked: 9,501 Times	Doc, installing Dynamat etc.. is a lot mor effort than a simple HU+4 speaker install. If I expected my installer to do that I would pay more than 1500. then again maybe it is just that mumbai is more expensive. for my RS, the hardware cost about 80K and the install charges were about 5K. but my wife's car was simpler and hence less. what i am getting at is the install charges are not depedant on the cost of the hardware but on the labour involved. for example it takes the same effort to install a 6K HU and a 26K HU. but if you add amps, damping materials, component speakers (crossovers), subwoofers etc.. this adds to the labour and one should budget for that. The moment you go to a 2 + amp install the installer has to be much more careful, knoledgeable and that costs too.
	() Thanks

5th December 2005, 18:19	#13
tifosikrishna BHPian Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: chennai Posts: 828 Thanked: 383 Times View My Garage	i voted for a 10% premium and i know its difficult to quantify it. however, i feel people will be inclined to pay a premium, if they are made to feel the difference in output of their systems done by real pros and those of similar/same systems done by people masquerading as professionals.
	() Thanks

5th December 2005, 18:48	#14
rsjaurr BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Batala Posts: 777 Thanked: 28 Times	i also voted for <10%.
	() Thanks

6th December 2005, 03:05	#15
EVO6 BHPian Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Pune Posts: 488 Thanked: 13 Times	Hi gunbir, I have voted for 10% but then again I will disagree with the percentage. If one installs a system worth 1.5 lakhs then the 10% is 15000.. But if really high end components are used and the install goes to about 4-5 lakhs then 10% means 50000... But the effort and the material like MDF, carpet, etc.. for installation in both jobs is the same so i guess the percentage is not justified.. I rather the charges be realistic and not based on a percentage ... Cheers
	() Thanks