Can you remember a time when sitting patiently at a stoplight and a little Honda Civic hatchback would pull up next to you and out of nowhere it felt like the earth below was about to swallow up your car? Not to fear though. It was just their mega bass exploding subwoofer from the car’s backseat but plenty enough to rattle your windows and explode your eardrums. Those were the wild days of the after-market car stereo and all the quirks surrounding them.
Just last weekend some friends and I sat around and found ourselves excitedly reminiscing about the days of after-market car stereos in the 90s and into the 2000s. You know, the ones with multiple disc changers and detachable face plates. There were big names too. Alpine, Pioneer, Kenwood, Sony, and even Mitsubishi.
Our conversation was so full of enthusiasm and laughter, I thought to myself, “it would be silly not to do a throwback to after-market car stereo and CD players this week!”
These were times when car stereo theft was so prevalent that the stereos actually came with detachable faceplates. And a carrying case so you could just throw it in your purse or your backpack to deter thieves looking for car stereos. For the most part, my friends and I would just throw them into the glove box or center console. But shhh, don’t tell anybody.
Some of my favorite memories were of my bestie and me driving around in her 1997 Plymouth Breeze, listening to all the Backstreet Boys CDs. Beyond those, there was one song that we had on repeat and we still laugh about today. “Child of the Wild West” by Cypress Hill and Roni Size.
Now, if you are unfamiliar with this tune, that’s ok. It wasn’t mainstream but it was featured on the Blade II soundtrack. I still haven’t seen any of the Blade movies to this day, but the soundtracks were off the hook. Especially the bass in this song. So, driving around aimlessly with the bass cranked up is what we did. The car was nice so it could contain the earth-cracking booms, unlike that Honda Civic with the ridiculously big after-market subwoofer in the back.
My very first after-market car stereo was a Kenwood KDC-128. Installed in my brand new 2004 Dodge Neon. This stereo played a lot of Three Days Grace.
Nowadays, cars don’t even come with auxiliary ports for your MP3 player. It’s all about Bluetooth and satellite radio. But for those of you who still have a CD player in your car, kudos to you. And hopefully you’re still sporting a giant binder of CDs. The anxiety of car stereo theft is thankfully a memory of the past. One thing is for sure, I’m excited to see what car stereo technology the future has in store!