TEMPE, ARIZ., March 11, 2008 – It was a packed house February 24 and 25, 2008 at the Mobile Solutions OEM Integration training session. The two day class covered strategies to be successful in the category, important vehicle and audio system electrical measurements, the variety of test equipment used to do the job, and the cosmetic aspect of making installations look as integrated as they sound and operate.

Industry training veterans Bryan Schmitt and Todd Ramsey led the class of 21 industry professionals through some of the latest techniques to successfully conquer vehicles that, until now, seemed to present insurmountable obstacles. Ramsey was quick to point out the invaluable assistance of Scosche Industries and Rockford Corporation for the 2008 classes.

“The guys at Scosche supplied us with the necessary wire, distribution, and connections to create some satellite workstations for more hands-on practice of testing and integration techniques,” Ramsey explained. “Added to that, our friends over at Rockford’s OEM division set us up with three of their 8-channel DSP-based OEM amplifiers that are found in select Nissan and Mitsubishi vehicles. We are able to accurately demonstrate bandwidth limited channels, summing, input and output level matching, evaluation of factory implemented EQ curves, and so much more.”

Special guest speaker Andy Wehmeyer of Harman Consumer Group provided some additional insight into several important areas including the critical misunderstanding about compressed audio formats versus compression of dynamic range in commercially recorded music.

Said Wehemeyer, “You can have a great sound system with an iPod or MP3 player as a source unit, but you should just really understand the difference between a compressed media file that was originally well recorded and a bad recording with limited dynamic range, regardless of whether it lives on an iPod or a CD.”

What the participants came away with is that today’s consumer still appreciates great sound, they just need to show consumers what great sound – in a car – really is.

“It’s not enough to talk about it,” added Wehmeyer. “You have to show people how great a car can sound without filling the trunk full of fiberglass and subwoofers”.

In the cosmetic and fabrication portion of the training, Schmitt showed some important and somewhat exclusive cosmetic integration techniques on factory looking speaker grilles, plastics modifications and refinishing, as well as his one-of-a-kind 3D router technique for complex panel replication.

Schmitt commented, “The techniques we show in this class are techniques we actually use when we do OEM integrated vehicles and that’s a big difference from just stuffing a trunk full of fiberglass and shooting it with car paint. Each style has its place, but the real future of our industry is down this path in integration and replicating factory-like appearances and finishes.”

The next 2008 session for OEM Integration training will take place May 4-5 at the Mobile Solutions training center in Tempe, Ariz. Visit www.mobilesolutions-usa.com or call (888) 480-5959 for more information and schedule details.

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