The Basics: Car Stereos
Car audio fans had cause for celebration the day CD players moved from the home into the dashboard. Until that day, drivers were stuck with a choice between the radio, a cassette player, or (heaven forbid) eight-track cassettes.
Needless to say, the sound quality of those three options was pretty abysmal. CD brought digital quality out onto the open road. The same qualities that you appreciate at home are just as important in the car. However, the enhanced dynamic range is actually a problem. In the quiet of your home, the soft passages are clearly heard without any analog tape noise. In your car, these same soft passages can get lost amongst engine and road noise. Perhaps this is why cassettes are still around. However, look forward to the day that strands of cassette tape won't litter the roadsides.
When CD changers were first introduced, they were almost exclusively magazine cartridge monsters that would only fit into the trunk of your car. Why are these considered so inconvenient? Well, imagine yourself on a long road trip with the trunk of your car packed to the brim, in the dark on the side of the road, oh, let's add some rain too, trying to swap out a CD for the one you are just dying to hear. Not a pretty sight, but this style still remains popular, and the range of options has dramatically increased.
Today, there are a number of choices for CD changers. Trunk mounts are still popular, but they've added convenience features, like remote controls if your head unit doesn't have changer controls. Some even use FM modulators to broadcast the signal to your FM tuner.
Other styles of CD changers can be mounted in a glove compartment or under the front seats. This makes it easy to swap out discs without having to stop the car. However, please let a passenger handle the discs while you keep your mind, eyes, and hands on the driving duties.
Even better, today there are some CD changers that fit right into the dashboard, using an elevator-style method of handling the CDs. You slip disc after disc into the single slot on the front of a standard 1-DIN unit, and the changer stacks them internally. This is by far the most convenient style changer available.
How to Shop
There are plenty of features to differentiate CD players. In fact, your decision should be based on these features--the sound quality a difference between players is hard to hear, especially in a moving vehicle when the player is competing over road and engine noise. With so many other features that can determine how much overall enjoyment the system will offer, look for what is important for you.
Overall cosmetics can be a determining factor. Players come in a variety of colors, with a vast variety of display options, from subdued color schemes, to displays with full pictures, to players that seemingly disappear into the dashboard. Sometimes, this can be a security issue as well--is the faceplate removable, is it one that appears to vanish, or is it one that screams out to potential thieves that it's a high-priced flashy player? Most (but not all) players can play discs that you've recorded at home, although CD-R and CD-RW capabilities vary from player to player. Also, don't assume that a player with CD-R capability can play the MP3 files burned to disc. For this, you'll need a player that is specifically capable of MP3 playback.
The amplifier power can affect your overall enjoyment, and add-on units have more power than most factory-installed systems, but the amount varies. If you're not going to add any additional amplification, make sure you have enough to power your speakers. If you might add an amplifier in the future, look for a CD head unit with preamp outputs. Other features to consider are onboard equalization, which can include presets designed to enhance specific styles of music or basic bass/treble controls, as well as the ability to control other equipment, such as a CD changer or a satellite radio receiver, and tuner functions.
