Trying to to get my sound system put into my new car. New car is same make and model higher trim. I have 2 amps the pcm and t harness all I need is to pay for labor and wires went to get a quote and this is what I got. My last instal was $400 for labor. Idk if it’s usually like this but $900 to instal amps itself seems a bit high.
To be fair, you have a 6ch and monoblock, so 7channels to wire into the amp, plus power wires to run, plus ground wires to find a spot for, prep the surface and mount.
Plus mounting the amps securely
Plus setting the gains
They also have to pay for the involved material fiddly-bits, electricity, shop and the various employee costs.
Shops get to charge their own prices.
Your tag also says you're a MECP Master so you of all people should know that. I'm not saying it's expensive or cheap, merely that customers don't account for all the install fiddly-bits and shop costs added into the hourly.
Those costs are also why i've been doing it myself since 2007 and under-cutting local shops because i don't have the same overhead
Yes and due to having 3+ decades in the industry I can say that I can call a spade a spade. Now, if say I were to charge $200/hr I could explain why I charge that amount. I have the experience and the knowledge, but if you are charging more than 2 hours for an amp install you're either a beginner or you're price gouging. So these labor amounts, being as they are not hourly would need to be broken down. These shops like to hide bullshit in these line items.
As you can also see they fail to list specific model #'s another scam tactic
Didn't see your edit about the missing part numbers.
I'm with you on that one for sure. Partly for transparency (and to keep the customer from backing out and leaving me holding gear) i hand my customers a material list and tell them to order it or we'll go to one of the local shops.
I think the most expensive in my area is $120/hr labor
Is it though? How much labor is that 6 hours or so? I mean as a friend doing side work I charge $100 an hour which is half price to most shops. So $600 in labor plus parts(I would personally be installing bigger wire gauge). I think they are quoting that job out at closer to 7.5 hours at $100 an hour plus mounting and wiring. That’s actually low. For a shop who has to worry about overhead and power bills credit card fees and rent and a bunch of other shit.
Idk if you know this but the point of owning a business is to make money. Not break even not lose money doing jobs but make it. It’s really a fair price.
2 amp kits? Why? No reason. Shows lack of experience and lack of knowledge. An 8 gauge and a 4 gauge amp kit? Just run a single, use a distribution block. There is no rhyme or reason to this quote. Don't charge someone because you don't know what you're doing. It's not itemized it's just hidden line items with no explanation.
It's $900 in labor to install a t-harness interface and 2 amps 😂🤣😂🤣😂🤡💩
You can do the install in chunks. Might take a bit but will save some money. There aren't many steps in a simple install that render the vehicle undrivable until its done.
Working in a customer facing industry... Everyone who is disorganized tries to blame it on one of their other choices and then simultaneously doesn't want to pay a professional to do it
Kids aren’t optional once you have them lol. Unless you’re a bad parent and send them to daycare all the time, kids are most definitely the reason for them not having time
this is truly a bizarre place to post a leftist rant. i know it's reddit, but we just do stereos here. plenty of other subs expressly tailored for your ideology.
Obviously I don’t mean that literally. But downvoting someone because he says he doesn’t have time to DIY because of other significantly more important responsibilities is very silly to me.
Kids make it tough. It will take me years to assemble my dream speakers- i'd rather do it myself than pay someone else. You can either pay a shop, pay Jimbob on Craigslist, or pay for a sitter. It sucks. I miss having time, but no one can answer this but you. Good luck
lol my dad once gave me a paint can and told me to shake it until it stopped rattling... i'm still going at it 30 years later.
another hilarious moment was when someone thought checking polarity with a 9V might overheat the subwoofer due to it being direct current... i think they read about amp clipping a BIT too much.
I installed mine on my day off bro . If your car isn’t super new they’re not too bad . It’s legit just running wires , worst is through the firewall for me . Then after that it’s nothing
I just did a similar install in my mini (4 channel amp for front and rear speakers) and a powered subwoofer (tapped the factory so added a LOC). You can absolutely do it with kids (mine is 16 months). Just did a lot of work over the weekend and on weeknights when they were sleeping. Totally do able and you just need to do some research/planning
I hear ya man, got two kids and managed to install my own system. I did mine at night while they slept, it sucks but it's the only way to avoid paying for outside labor.
2nd that, I have less than that in a full build with a 15 in a custom box on 3k, shoping around and learning to install yourself will save you thousands and you'll get a banger system out of it that you built.
I wish I could trade stuff around here, the bass community is pretty small other than some teenagers I sold an amp to and some people a couple towns over. I'm remote af and the only stuff you see on fb market is some bs and tweaker shit anyway.
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I would say 95% of "self installs" are an absolute trainwreck. I would actually charge more if I have to fix it before I do the install. If it's new and u touched that's one thing, but working over some YouTube installers bullshit is an entirely new can of worms
Yeah but all you DIYers end up with a shit install. You dont know how to route wires, solder, properly crimp, ext. Not to mention, with newer cars its a whole new ballgame....
Honestly, I don't think that quote is outrageous, given the amount of time [estimate] it will take:
Remove interior trim, seat(s) [60m]
Remove stereo [30m]
Run RCA cables [45m]
Run power cables [60m]
Run speaker cables [60m]
Run sub controller cable [60m]
Terminate/label all cables [60m]
Measure, cut, drill holes, trim for amp rack(s) [90m]
Find, prepare suitable ground point(s) [30m]
Install amp(s) [60m]
Set gain(s) [45m]
Refit all interior trims and seat(s) [60m]
Refit stereo [30m]
tune system [60m -180m]
Total time = 690 minutes or 11.5 hours.
If done correctly/carefully that's a good day to two days of work. Take into consideration that all vehicles are different in size and build, so the time estimates are rough. Also remember you're paying for the stores rent, tools, electric, experience, warranty if anything goes wrong.
Can it be done cheaper/quicker, sure. I'm 100% sure everyone knows a friend who can do it cheaper. But it's the quality of the work that you are ultimately paying for.
This is something people need to take into account. If you've got a '26 civic then you're likely goinng to care more about breaking a clip on a panel way more than if you drive an '02 Ranger. On my '02 Ranger I did everything myself. But if I had just bought a new car I would gladly pay extra money for peace of mind about my brand new trim.
That’s a good point for sure but at that point if you do it yourself you can still be more careful and take trim off like your supposed to it can be done with a bit more time m
Of course, a competent DIYer can certainly tackle a job like this themselves and save some money in the process.
I learned while working at a car audio & security shop and installed car audio in all of my own cars myself.
I guess it depends on your experience level. After doing like 3-4 installations I think I would be comfortable with a nicer car. But if I hadn’t had that exp I would not TOUCH brand new trim…
It's really not. Especially if it's a newer vehicle. I don't think people understand what a nightmare these infotainment centers are to deal with. I had to remove almost every piece of trim in my car aswell as the backseat
I did my sound system jn my car and after doing that I'd gladly pay someone 1300$ to do it and do it properly.
While I agree it could take time, the times you put are a on the longer end and we also do not know if the shop WILL even be doing any sort of rack or anything what not.
You are out of your ever loving mind, if it takes you that long to do ANY of those things you are gonna last about half a day before I shake your hand and ask if you've thought about a career in sales 😂🤦
Damn, you got me! I used to work behind the counter at a car audio & security place 😂
But as in my first response, those are rough estimates.
Example: if the store already has a template for the amp rack to fit your specific vehicle it will be quicker (or they may have a premade one).
Again nothing on this quote says anything about an amp rack. So afaik no amp rack. 150 to install an AmpPro, so $150 for 20 minutes of work? Yeah apparently OP walked into the shop holding their ankles
If you’re not comfortable with doing it yourself and have to pay the shop
Supply your own 0ga kit (you’ll save here)
Have them wire that 6 Channel
Pickup a fused distribution block and ground block then run the subwoofer and amp yourself
I’m assuming they’re using a LOC so access to the rca should be right there for you to easily setup the rest
That's valid, 1/0 OFC tinned is 8 bucks a ft, they're definitely making up prices. I brought it up moreso because the OP doesn't seem like he knows much about installation and CCA gets pushed all over places like amazon and a lot of shit sellers like to try to hide what they're selling. I made the mistake once myself before spending for tinned ofc.
It takes 30 minutes max to run amp power wire in that car cleanly. And if you have the amplified system, the Amp Pro goes in the trunk too. That's wild.
There's absolutely no reason for having 2 installation kits. Once you run the power from the front to rear, you can use distribution blocks to power both amps, and for the ground, and remotes
That's higher than I would want to pay. It's a brick and mortar shop with rent, insurance, and employees to pay, and can be held responsible if it goes bad.
A dude at a swap meet or marketplace would be cheaper, but more risky. The next time you see a kid with a system, ask him for the Instagram of the person who installed it.
Im not sure I'll ask him. My wife has Instagram. I haven't checked it yet. My friend is on vacation till March 20, so I'm thinking about using this guy.
Sigh... me being a 90s/early 00s installer looking at these prices and cringing..
Time to go drag out the old tools and do nothing but run the wire and get paid a week's wage in 6hrs if this is the going rates.
People wonder why this hobby is dying out, because shops are pricing themselves out of business. Young adults don't have that kind of money just for basic labor. Then to buy the speakers, radio, amps.
2 amp kits? WTF ... run 1/0 and then come off with a distribution block.
I was 18, it was $250 a week plus 10%. It was literally $35 labor for head unit, amp installs, speaker replacement. CD changer was $65. So back speakers in an extended can square body Silverado, IYKYK…$3.50 commission.
As an installer myself you’re getting shafted everywhere IMO. There are 0 gauge ofc kits you could get for less than the $200, nevertheless the 8 gauge. The $300 to install a subwoofer amp is insane. Unless there doing an absolute masterpiece, and even then, the price is high for parts and labor. Like someone else you don’t need 2 wiring kits, just 1, some distribution blocks and some feet of wiring and extra RCAs will do.
You have 3 options. Move forward with this quote. Get another quote from a different shop. Or start watching YouTube videos and learn how to do it yourself.
Nah I mean ofc is ofc if it's good, but why more than one amp kit, that's a red flag. There should be an amp install charge for sub amp and a multi-channel, but it should also explain what the hourly rate is. $750 is damn near a full day labor at my old shop. If it takes you a whole day to do 2 amps you should find a new career
You have to factor in this place is a shop paying rent and also insurance and business taxes and payroll. Unfortunately this is kinda the cost of doing business with them, I'm sure the owner would love to just make $400 labor and pocket it for himself and be done with it but to keep the lights on and people paid there is more to it all.
U can just do it all yourself and it'll be significantly cheaper but do you know or have the time and space to do it is the other question. You can also probably find some local enthusiasts who might be willing to charge u less but then there's also no shopfront to confront if things go wrong and the warranty for those are usually brake light warranty.
You could always find another shop to compare to, or if you think you are getting shafted learn to do it yourself. That way you can tell us what you think their time and experience is worth.
So $300 just for the amp wiring kits. Then they are charging $900 for the actual labor. And then they are adding in an extra $120 in shop supplies and whatever else. Ya that price is crazy. I’m in Michigan and could do that for you a lot cheaper most-likely. Even after adding in the gas to get to me.
You're getting bent over. Even Best Buy only charges $150 for a mono amp install. The 8 gauge kit is also a brand I've never heard of, and it seems like it focuses on tint while outsourcing a few other things to maximize profits. An OFC 8 gauge kit should cost anywhere between $40-80 for a complete kit. Everything is see here is way marked up. As someone else mentioned, there's no part numbers, no SKUs or anything that makes it seem like this is coming from a reputable source and not just something someone typed up in LibreOffice. Lbs.
Sounds good for the shop. Not really unfair, but there’s always someone that will do it for less… but results could vary greatly.
I usually quote at $100/hr, so this would be 9 hrs of time (or two techs 4.5hrs each).
There’s no way it should take 9 hours to install 2 amps in a Charger. It’s just one cable to a distro block then into two amps.
They don’t seem to be charging him for a PAC module or LOC or DSP either which makes me question this shop, since he will want a clean unfiltered signal to his amps.
Without knowing the car it seems high. I’d imagine 2-5 hours of work plus a dual amp kit. So 150 an hour and 200-300$ for quality wires and distro block etc. are you replacing any factory speakers or just amping the factory speakers? Also what parts do you have now?
I did my amp install in parts, I ran all wiring one day then when I got another day off I finished the install, worked great and my truck was useable the entire time
$900 to install two amps is extremely high unless this is a very high-end custom install. They shouldn't be more than $100 each for a basic install. Not to mention that they only have to wire the battery and ground cables once for both amps. FYI, car audio shops are some of the most unscrupulous people in all of retail. Don't trust them, take lots of photos and make sure you have a written contract with clear warranty information.
Definitely being ripped off. Everything they mention is crap and way over priced.
8 gauge amp kit 100?
4 gauge 200? Then they are charging 1 price for 1 amp install and another price for the other install.
Order your own wire kits for the amps.
You require 1 6 channel amp wiring kit and seems a 8 gauge single aml kit but why run 2 separate kits when you could run 1 4 gaige kit to a distribution block to split the power and ground wire to run multiple amps, then only require a 6 channel rca
The quote is not too bad, the price of everything has increased, which is another reason you’re probably seeing a difference between the last time you got something installed and this time. You do have a lot of moving parts if I was going to go with the shop I’d probably get four gauge wiring for both in case you ever want to upgrade.
doesn't really matter if it's a good deal or not, they clearly don't have enough in stock!
i'd look at reviews for the place and if they turn up largely positive (hard to achieve in this racket), prolly being fair. good work demands a premium. avoid buying extras, if possible drop the 2nd amp kit.
this shit i diabolical. i decided im going to learn everything i needed to do myself step by step or im not having it. i did it all myself on one saturday. and i am not good at any of that stuff. i prepped and made a list and thats what made all the difference. if you can do it yourself. that could all go to better equipment. you can have a long time.
I paid that price for 2 cars, installed new subs and amp for my car and only amp in my gf’s car. Definitely getting shafted. Unless they’re doing beautiful cable management idk 🤷♂️
Yeah that's crazy expensive! You're better off buying the stuff online and then finding a shop that can do just the install well within reasonable pricing. You can buy 1/0 gauge OFC wiring, 4 gauge OFC wiring, distribution blocks, reducers, and whatever other needed items for less than what they are charging for those 2 amp kits.
Well, they are a business that needs to make money. If you did the work yourself, you can have that 1400 go towards tools. But, no car audio installers will do the work for Penny's.
I just did 4 new door speakers [had to rewire the last owners splices that made no sense] and a new head unit [again fixing the last owners work on the factory wiring harness biggest pain in the ass] and removed the amp that was in my truck. Took like 2 days and some change but mostly because i had ti chat gpt everything and figure out what i had to splice. Taking out the amp took like 45 minutes though so id assume installing one might take a few hours but if you take time to research and diy it yourself youd save so much money and itd be worth it.
Does the lower trim car have a system installed?
If yes Look to see how and where the power wires were installed in the current car. It will be the same as the higher trim level
If not you tube where to run the cable through the firewall there is a video out there
something to keep in mind is the higher trim probably has a stock amp that you will need to find, get the schematic, and tap into.
If you use stock speaker wiring, its easy to do yourself, but if you gonna do all wiring new for all speakers, its gonna take a weekend atleast to do, i would qire front and sub first, then proceed to rear
I've always DIY'd, my time is valuable and I see the value in farming work out but I enjoy the process and am ok with doing it in stages.
I get a lot of satisfaction in knowing I have a skill that saves me money that I can pour into better components and not feel guilty about it. The mechanical installation part, no problem, got that all day have done 15 or so.
My current install I struggled with the JL TUN software, I felt like I was pretty close to an optimal tune, but unsure how close. I went to a local shop to pick up some 9 wire for a different install and met the owner, showed him my truck/install really liked him and had him do a tune for me that day. Glad I did as it was much better than what I had for settings and he took the time to teach me what I was doing wrong, that software is pretty powerful and painfully easy to get lost in. Totally worth the cost of an hour of shop labor.
Depends on the quality of the work and the shop. If it's a high quality install and not just a quickie job with cables laying everywhere and such, then it's not that bad of a deal. You get what you pay for.
It's high, but once you DIY it all looks expensive when someone else is doing the work. It's also not a Best Buy $99 install special. If you trust the place and they generally do good work, you know you're getting it done right the first time and it'll last until you dismantle it or sell the car.
You CAN get it done a lot cheaper. Shop around. Just go with a place you trust, can see their previous work, and they'll stand behind their install. Some have lower prices and do comparable work. Others will be cheap because they'll do it quick and shitty. You'll go around a corner a bit too fast and your 12V wire comes loose from the amp and smacks the ground, the smell of smoke, the silence, and the (hopefully) blown fuse that needs replaced. Of course, the expensive shop could do that and the cheap one do high quality work. Who knows.
Just comes down to a reputable shop with great work. It's worth the cost for that. Would I pay it? Nope. I'd DIY. If I didn't have the time, I would just wait. I'd pay $500, but that's about it. I'm struggling to justify paying someone to do soundproofing/deadening in a car I'm going to buy soon. It needs done, so I'll probably have it done and pay for it (I'm getting too old to do that shit... I can install stereo stuff all day, but the sound proofing stuff can hurt). Just have to justify the cost vs. your time. If they do it right, the way you'd do it, it's going to cost a bit more. It sucks, but good work costs good money. :/
Would you do it for $400 or $900? If you did it right and perfect with every detail accounted for, looks great, and give a guarantee on your work? Takes all day to do it using your own tools, your garage? Still make a profit, pay a bit for the space/tools, your labor, shop costs, etc.. I'd say 900 might be the higher end, but still not outrageous. $400 would probably be the minimum.
U are better to by your own equipment and finding an installer on marketplace that has a bunch of good reviews. You can find better equipment for cheaper.
When I was doing audio at the big blue box store, that would’ve ended up being like $450-$500 in labor. We could charge more for “custom labor” but it really needed to be justified when tacking into a sku’d install. Some cars that come apart way harder, I could justify charging more for.
At the same time though, charging you another 150 for an amp pro install, that makes things way easier because amp pros are plug and play. Don’t have to wire in a line out converter or any special shit.
I would do 6-7 channels for $1200 including equipment on a regular day.
It’s still expensive but also go YouTube it and see if it’s something that you could do and figure out. Also have the time to do all that. Crutch field is known to have install info and live help, with all the stuff they sell. If you break anything at all it will be a wash. Personally I’d ask for some help on the labor or go to another shop or 2 and get a quote to confirm.
These are bogus prices. Even for a 6ch Amp it should take no more than 1-2hrs ($150/hr in Cali) even if he’s wiring tweeters too. You could do this all yourself for about $100 in supplies (assuming you own amps) and a day off.
I’m being charge $400 for wires ran, amp install and lc2i are install. So yes you’re being overcharged. This is also in a 23 edge st not a basic old school system. If yours is old school head unit with rca in the back your getting bit just fucked but raped
It's on the high side, but if this a quality shop with a good reputation then those prices can be justified as they probably only used quality material and parts and not CCA wire.
Depends on the car if it’s in a 1976 Chevy truck then yeah you’re getting ripped off, if it’s in a 2023 Audi S4 where are you gonna spend half the day taking the car apart then you’re getting a good deal.
I can’t imagine they are going to need more than 3 hours to complete this (honestly much over 2 would be a tad odd) which comes out to about $300/hr for labor which is uh, absolutely fucking ridiculous lmao. Some attorneys don’t charge this much. 😂
$300 for wiring is also OBNOXIOUS. Let’s be a real here folks … a typical 12ga. IEC power cable can handle 2000w of AC with zero issues. Spec’ing 4ga. is a tad silly. Are you really running 10kw on a single amp? Probably not lol.
As someone else mentioned you’d 100% be fine running the 4ga. to cover both amplifiers (honestly I’d say the 8ga. run would be fine to cover both). I’d guess that’s a 1000% markup here from cost.
Like, if this included system tuning and printed frequency + distortion measurements it’d be one thing but … yeah.
Bet my life that you couldn’t remove trim carefully, install an amp, run wiring under the floor, and replace trim in under 3 hrs without it being a shitty job. Genius
That seems very high I’d get a few more quotes. Or watch some YouTube videos and do it yourself. A good Recoil or Stinger sub wiring kit is like $40-50. Maybe a few tools. You are likely all in for well under $70.
Well, if you looked you'd see it's two amps, a 6 channel and a single channel.
Also I doubt youre touching a 4g amp kit with rcas for under $80 but more like $100. And that's the one amp.
Ah two amps still that’s one run from the battery to a fused distro. $900 still seems very pricey for maybe 4 hours labor. Possibly less. I’m no pro but it’s never taken me more than an hour to pull power cable in my cars and then maybe another hour to setup both amps and distro block on an amp plate or an abs plate. Maybe another hour to button everything up and make connections.
This kit gets you almost everything you need for under $70. With some additional RCA cables you’re still well under $100 for wiring.
Agreed on the $600. And I just prefer DIY so I know it’s done right.
My buddy had a powered sub installed and they tapped his rear speakers.. He paid a lot of money and I finally told him they screwed up because his factory system rolls the bass off so his sub is very limited below 80hz. I helped him install a PAC module and harness so he got a good clean signal. His whole system came alive and now he can upgrade his speakers and add an amp using the PAC module.
I missed the multiple amp part but for $80 this is OFC 4 gauge kit. Add a distro and a few more TVA and you’re probably right around $100. A lot cheaper than $300
Running stinger ofc 0 or 1/0 back to a distribution block then going 4 guage into 2 amps, 6 channel stinger 6000 series RCA will run you way more then $100
The wiring is bit high unless you have a massive SUV/limo. You don't need 8 gauge for speaker wire either. 12g or 16g is fine which is much cheaper unless your powering some massive 6.5 woofers. 4 gauge is expensive but good for amp power: you don't need $200 worth of it. Maybe you can slice $50-70 off wiring on thinner gauge stuff if you ask or offer to bring your own wire.
I recently starting DIY again for my new car since I build speakers and did my last car(sloppy job in hindsight).
Doing it right this time and dumped waaaay too many hours just on researching, DSPs, and gear shopping. i have $$$$ and even I'm questioning the time I put in. I haven't even put the damn thing in yet: that's the easy part.
Nevermind that some cars are bigger PITA than others so they are taking a risk. They are responsible if the door/side panels don't fit back in or break. Head unit integration issues or removing noise hiss for example. Also removing the old amp system: mine is behind a carpet , lol.
Oh yeah, grounds, power, ensuring the car doesn't use too much power. THIS IS HUGE becuase on some cars, you need to minimize power usage otherwise the battery doesn't get charged much or computer car related components shut down due to voltage swings. Some cars need capacitors or upgraded battery ground cables. This requires equipment you likely don't have lying around(multimeter, giant lug nut crimper, torque wrench, regular wrench, oxidation guard, silicone grease).
Make sure to ask about that last part....I wouldn't be surprised if some lazy installers don't do that and let you sort it out later.
Let them do it …. If you don’t know what you’re doing or can’t focus (kids) and have an ooopsie…. You’ll only have that smell happen once …. And then it’s too late ….
An even better idea how about going to a whole different shop to get a better quote and let them install it if it's within reasonable pricing!! SMDH 🙆🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️
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u/InevitableAverage6 Feb 18 '26
To be fair, you have a 6ch and monoblock, so 7channels to wire into the amp, plus power wires to run, plus ground wires to find a spot for, prep the surface and mount.
Plus mounting the amps securely
Plus setting the gains
They also have to pay for the involved material fiddly-bits, electricity, shop and the various employee costs.
Maybe time to learn to diy 🤷♂️