What is the best car audio stereo shop in Bakersfield?

There are many factors that go into a good stereo shop.  Here at Bakersfield Car Audio and Stereo, we evaluate ourselves monthly to see where we rank among the shops in Bakersfield.

We’ve come up with our own top 10 criteria that makes the best stereo shop in Bakersfield.

1. Satisfaction of Customers – If the customers are happy, then we have done a good job.  The best gauge of how satisfied the customers are is when someone comes in and says “so-and-so recommended you guys”.  And then of course there are google and yelp reviews.  In today’s internet age, it is pretty easy to see what shops are in it for the money and what shops are in it for the love of car audio by the reviews they get. Here’s ours:  https://search.google.com/local/writereview?placeid=ChIJtb_JxXJC6oARcISd_viLeyg

2. Installers – This is the bloodline to a shop.  When you bring your vehicle in, do you get to meet the installer?  If you ask to talk to the installer because you want something just so, does the shop let you?  Some shops won’t let you meet the installer because they think the customer and installer will cut the shop out of the sale or there is something wrong with the installer (drugs, paperwork issues, etc).  At BCA, if you don’t meet your installer beforehand, you will meet them after when they go over the features of what you purchased.  This helps connect the installers with the customers too.  When they see the happy customer, they will keep going that extra mile to keep pleasing the customers.

3. Sales Staff – The sales staff should have a passion for car audio.  This is the face of a shop.  Whether you are there for a $5 fuse holder or a $5500 system, a good salesman should treat you like you are the King of Bakersfield.  They should listen to you and ask you questions about your music preferences and vehicle so they can match you to the right equipment.  One model of speaker might be awesome in a Honda but be awful in a Jeep.  At BCA, our salespeople have also spent years installing so they know what works for what type of vehicle and if something isn’t going to work, they are going to tell you rather than make a sale and have you be unhappy.

4. Product Offerings – How many items does the shop carry?  This is indicative of whether you are in a reputable shop or not.  Some shops will go down to a distributor and buy an assortment of products they think will sell.  Other shops are official dealers of the brands they carry.  You can usually tell by the number of items a shop has of the brand. Major brands like Rockford Fosgate isn’t going to let Joe Schmoe who opened up a shop, represent their product until he has proven himself.  Usually, by being the dealer, the shop gets an extended warranty (that a good shop will pass onto the customer).  Also, by carrying the same models instead of just whatever the distributor has in stock, bad product lines can be weeded out.  Even good brands will put out a stinker line that under-performs or has huge defects – when we find the stinkers we pull the product and send it right back to the manufacturer rather than have to sell it because a distributor doesn’t accept returns.  When you go into a shop, is it just high end items? Or does it have an assortment?  The best car audio places will have an assortment of price points.  A shop just can’t have really expensive items because 90% of people don’t want to spend that kind of money.  But a shop can’t have just the cheapest of cheap because 90% of people don’t want the bargain basement equipment.  A shop that has only one price point won’t be in business long.  Here at Bakersfield Car Audio, we make sure we have something for the 16 year old buying his first system, the oil tycoon who wants to shake the neighborhood and something for everyone in between.

5. Affordability – Once a week, we will get a phone call or email or facebook message from another shop or friend of the owner of another shop that we are wrecking the stereo shop business by selling so cheap.   And we tell them, we aren’t ruining the stereo shop business, the internet did that.  If we sell a stereo for double what a customer can find online, then once a customer goes outside and pulls up the product on his phone, he feels ripped off and will never shop at a stereo shop again.  At Bakersfield Car Audio, we price our items according to what you can find online.  It cracks us up sometimes when a customer brings in items he bought off the internet for us to install only to find out he would have gotten it cheaper buying from us. For so long, the shops in town have overpriced everything that customers aren’t used to going into a specialty shop and finding affordable prices.

6. Warranty – Ever hear of the two bell warranty? You hear the bell when you walk into the shop, and the bell when you walk out.  That’s your warranty on the product.  At Bakersfield Car Audio, almost everything has a 1 year warranty and some items have longer warranties. The warranty will be stated on your receipt and if the item has a shorter warranty (some closeouts do), then you will be explicitly told.  Some shops will claim they have a one year warranty but good luck having them honor it.  We have gotten more than a few customers who came in right after finding out a certain shop in town doesn’t honor their warranties. Remember a warranty is only as good as the paper it is written on so use your best judgement.

7. Community Involvement – 30 years ago, shops were involved in their communities.  They would sponsor car shows, sporting events, clubs, etc.  In the last 15 years, stereo shops stopped doing this.  For those who don’t know, we started as an internet company and are really successful at it.  Part of the reason we opened to the public and started installing was we wanted to give back to the Bakersfield Community.  We have sponsored bands, football teams, car clubs, and even a rock club.  Community is huge for us. We want to be that shop you see outside of our business.

8. Cleanliness – Ever go to a shop that is so crammed full of stuff that it feels claustrophobic.  Who knows how long the speakers have been sitting on the shelf.  Cleanliness is a sign of Godliness.  Hahah.  Ok, its a shop.  Its hard to keep it clean 24/7 especially in Bakersfield.  Sometimes our floors will need a good vacuum.  But a box of speakers should never have a coat of dust on them.

9. Timeliness of Installs – If you are quoted two hours for an install, it should take two hours, right?.  Why do shops always take longer than stated?  For us, its not because our installers go off to lunch or just chilling back there.  If you have ever met Rob, he does not chill.  We try our best to give accurate time quotes but sometimes when we open your vehicle, we see a mess from a previous installer or the electronic component that we are installing for you, hasn’t had a firm upgrade done so we have to connect it to upgrade it which makes us go over.  While going over the time estimate may be annoying, doing the job correctly instead of doing a wham bam thank you ma’am job, prolongs the life of your equipment and saves you the trouble of returning so things can be fixed.

10. Support Staff – I just want to give a shout out to the people behind the scenes who never get any kind of recognition – the accountant who makes sure the bills and taxes are paid, the customer service people who respond to emails, phone calls, and all the under-appreciated but vital staff the best stereo shops employ.  They take on the tasks so everything can run efficiently. Underappreciated for sure

So we have told you what we think makes for the best stereo shop in Bakersfield.  We’d love to hear what you think makes the best shop in town.  Leave a comment with your opinions.