[Jack21]

Some tips on sterios in Cobras.

Don't get the factory sterio. You can do better, cheaper.

It is a nice option to have when you want music when cruising, or stuck in traffic. However, a Cobra is arguably the worst listening environment for a sterio. You can't hear it at all over about 45 MPH because of the exhaust, and wind noise.

Don't spend a lot for the sterio. About $150 or so is enough to get the necessary features. Stick with name brands. It needs
pre-amp output jacks. It doesn't need high power. A tape deck won't skip like a CD does when the car bounces around.

You need a good, but basic 2 channel sterio amplifier to mount in the trunk. The amp should be around 100 watts per channel RMS, not peak. Some turn on with a hot wire from the sterio, and some when they receive a sound signal. Spend around $100 - $150. Name brands are not necessary.

Speakers. You only have room for two, and there is no good place to put them. The CR has a little shelf behind the seats, others have nothing. You may have to compromise on size, but you can't compromise on power handling capacity. Just to hear them, you'll be cranking up the volume much louder than you would in any other car. Back to name brands again. The Infinity Kappa is the best I've found to handle the power without distortion. And you need to put them in some sort of small enclosure. You can buy them for 6 x 9's if you have room.

And you don't have to spend a fortune on this stuff. Don't go to Best Buy, Circuit City, or Crutchfields. This market is so competitive it pays to shop on-line. Peruse amazon.com, cnet.com (just to name two I know) for electronics. Think I paid $70 or $90 for the pair of Infinity Kappas.

It's tough to secure things in a Cobra so don't make your sterio look expensive. If your speakers have Radio Shack grilles on them, would be thieves will pass them up. Same with the sterio, no Alpines.