What brands are not Made In China these days?

[RAM_Designs 5,000+ posts]

One day you might not have that shop on the corner who has someone who actually KNOWS what they are doing, and you might have to settle with best buy if you don't support us.

Good post, but I think this statement is sorta falling upon dead ears. The majority of the people here don't need the local shop or Best Buy. We're perfectly content with buying from internet based companies for cheap, installing it ourselves, building our own boxes, and everything else.

 

[slim2fattycake 10+ year member]

Dude, I wouldn't trust a shop other than buying accessories from them when I really need it. Sorry, but I can do a lot better than a shop. Plus, just because you own a shop, doesn't mean you know what you're doing.

 

[3kgtAudio 10+ year member]

Well i cant speak for others, but 16 years experience and building sq and spl vehicles i can promise you that i can blow 90% of shops out of the water, however these days doesn't seem like there is a lot of appreciation for some true fabricating skills, mostly because your average person cant afford or doesn't want to pay for a 'true' custom install. That being said, I see a lot of complete train wreck of self installs all the time, some people just are not mechanically or electrically inclined and they NEED someone to do it for them, for lack of ability or tools. Whats happening, the older guys in the industry who actually know what they are doing, are either moving on to own their shop, or moving into a completely different career where they can MAKE money. And thats why there is the corporate chain shops out there that have barely out of high school rookies doing their installs, for example the home of the $1 dash fire?

And don't even get me started on the internet 'dirty' marketing. The average joe shouldn't be able to buy a product at dealer cost, im sorry if you dont want to hear that, but thats the reason you get set up as a dealer for a product, so you as a BUSINESS can buy a product at cost, and then in turn make a profit. The internet is basically cuttout out the middleman, because these drop shippers make their money on quanity. I can tell you i can find stuff on ebay for even below my cost, or maybe a few bucks over, becasue these warehouses will sell a product for $1 over cost and hope they sell hundreds. Its really kind of insane the way its happened. Manufacturers have tried to do something about it and enforced the MAP pricing, but its almost impossible to stop.

Look at it this way, if every industry was like this, and sadly, more and more are going that way, how can anyone ever hope to start or and run a business? Unless you are making the actual product, you are kinda screwed. This is a perfect example of a huge problem with todays econonmy, local business suffers, which in turn means less jobs, less money to go around, less money spent.

 

[ozzy87 10+ year member]

what brands do you sell at your shop?

 

[JohannJohann]

I want to install a system but with a brand Made In America...do these exist?

I know this is an old thread, but is a very good question, and one evry American should consider. Nice to know your purchase helped a fellow American keep his job, and the $$ in the U.S. And the response "about who cares where it is made as long as there is quality control", well that's the whole problem with "made in China" products isn't it in the first place! There is No Incentive for Chinese workers to work harder or better in their economic climate (no overtime pay for instance, and no home ownership. The governemnt owns everything in china including your home and business you work. Thats how Communism works, no freedom, screw the individual he/she doesn't matter. You live to serve the governemnt as the government sees fit).

DD Audio is an American car audio company that makes their equipment in the USA. They are noted for their amplifiers and subwoofers. They even manufacture a 21" subwoofer. The top series of subwoofers are called “The Beast” and the drivers themselves (no enclosures) weigh in at 90 POUNDS! Their amplifiers are very high quality and designed to power the crazy subwoofers they make, because it’s doubtful any other company make amplifiers that need to be as powerful. The Beast can handle 10,000 watts. However The Beast due to it’s size and being made in the USA start at $1,000. But I do believe the correct term for DD Audio is: Handmade in America. So you will find no finer product anywhere in the car audio world.

When it comes to the "average" every day many, and I mean many car audio companies out there, after doing Extensive research one Audio company stands out above ALL OTHERS. There is Rockford Fosgate car audio, and there is Rockford Fosgate car audio. They are completely unique from all other companies in how they design their equipment and build their equipment. They also manufacture about 50% of all the components used in their stereo equipment. They are the ONLY Bespoke car audio company out there that is not some "one of a kind Boutique" manufacturer. When you open up their amps, you will notice initials throughout the amp. Each initial represents an engineer that had a hand designing the amp. I don't know of any other car audio company that does that. That shows their pride in what they manufacture, and they work hard designing car audio equipment that is unique and tends to out perform the competition. You will be hard pressed to find a clearer distortion free amplifier on the market. I do believe Rockford has car audio manufactured in both China and South Korea, again for their higher end models.

An honorable mention goes to JBL. They are an exceptional American audio company. And their car audio is split between China manufactured for entry level series, and South Korea for their higher end series. Buying South Korean made audio is not a bad thing. (Other S Korean made audo : Soundqubed, DC Audio, and Crescendo audio, plus JL Audio). The one thing you'll find with JBL is a more concerned effort wherever the components are made to have a very strong quality control over their products not seen in most manufacturers. JBL audio always seems to perform beyond their price point.

After that, I would suggest you check out SAVARD CAR AUDIO. Small Louisiana based family owned car audio company been around since the early 70's. I cannot say where the speakers are manufactured I think South Korea as well, but they do have very good quality control and components. Savard designs their speakers to perform. And that they do. By far the best VALUE in car audio speakers available for the price, subs included. All speakers and subs $200 or less. Peace.

 

[Popwarhomie 5,000+ posts]

 

[hispls 5,000+ posts]

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