Crutchfield.com is tough to beat.
Written: Nov 03 '04
| Ease of Ordering: |
 |
|
| Selection: |
|
|
| On-Time Delivery: |
|
|
|
| Full Review |
Two years ago, I bought a 2003 Toyota Tacoma. The dealer had just gotten in the new 2003’s on the lot and I was lucky enough to find exactly what features I was looking for in a truck. The only thing I did not like about my Tacoma was the factory stereo system. The sound was muffled and it was almost like the center channel didn’t exist, so nothing sounded right. Being the music lover that I am, this was unacceptable. I shopped around locally for some upgrades, but most places either had older overpriced inventory or they wanted me to order from a catalogue. I said, “Screw that. I’ll do it myself.” Then I consulted Crutchfield.com.
Crutchfield doesn’t just deal in car audio equipment. They sell home theater equipment, televisions, digital cameras, and more. They are an online electronics superstore, only they carry newer equipment as well as older stuff. You can find a lot more in their inventory than you ever could at a Circuit City or Best Buy, and their prices are very reasonable. Crutchfield catalogues are like the Victoria’s Secret catalogue for electronics junkies.
When it comes to ordering stereo parts for your car or truck, you can’t do better than Crutchfield. Period. Since my only experience with this company is with car audio equipment, I will focus this review only on that aspect of their service. Crutchfield used to deal primarily in car audio but over the past several years they have been branching out with their product offering. They must be doing good business to afford it.
On Crutchfield.com, when you visit their car audio section, the first thing it asks you for is the make and model of your vehicle. Once you tell them exactly what you drive, the site will tell you which of their products will fit your vehicle and how well. If you need some kind of adapter harness to make some things fit, in most cases they will give it to you. For example, my factory Toyota stereo was double size and the CD/MP3 player I wanted was only half height, so they gave me a plastic tray to put under the new stereo so that I won’t have a gaping hole in my dashboard. They also gave me an adapter for the wiring in the back of the new unit so that I didn’t have to do a bunch of cutting to get my stereo to work. That alone saved me $35 if I had bought all this stuff locally.
In addition to telling you exactly what will fit in your vehicle, Crutchfield will also send you a free step-by-step illustrated guide on how to disassemble your car’s interior in order to install the stereo, amp, or speakers. I used their instructions to do the entire installation by myself and had absolutely no problems. I do have some experience with stereo installation and some mechanical and electrical engineering ability, but I still found the instructions very useful. If you don’t know anything about stereos or speakers and how they all work together, you might be better off looking for help. If you don’t install everything correctly, your system will sound like crap.
Crutchfield’s selection is phenomenal. I wanted to buy a pair of 6.5” component speakers, a pair of 5x7” speakers, and a CD/MP3 player to replace all of my factory stuff. Crutchfield had so much to choose from that it took me a couple of days to make a decision. For every item on their site, they offer highly detailed specifications that enabled me to pick the best products for the best price. The site also has recommended accessories for individual items, such as speaker cases, extra wiring, noise dampening material, and so on. Crutchfield’s website is definitely self-contained.
After my equipment came in the mail, the real test was to see if Crutchfield was correct in determining what fit my truck. I was very pleased to see that the instructions were on the dot and everything fit right into place. I would definitely order from them again.
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Car audio equipment
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
phungus
|
 in Games |
 in Movies |
 - Top 200 |
|
Member: William Fulks
Location: Biloxi, MS
Reviews written: 2124
Trusted by: 387 members
About Me:
...the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 