In article <Rigec.89924$Bk31.48484
@twister01.bloor.is.net.cable.rogers.com>, kev{remove}{this}
murray@hotmail.com says...

<snip>

It's been awhile since I competed.  Last time was 1995 IASCA World
Finals in Dallas, TX.  The rules keep changing, I know the competition
classes have changed.  At the time I competed I was Amatuer Class 151-
300 watts SQ, no SPL.  I have a Pioneer ODR system in a 93 Probe and was
in the top 10 in my class that year at world finals.  If my bass had
been adjusted slightly louder and received scores like mids and high end
did I would have been 4th or 5th, it was that close.

Judging was done in several phases, two of them subjective.  

Generally installation was judged first.  (Mostly Subjective)

This was where you gave your 5min max speech about your system.  Not
what brand names you had, but why did you use a particular piece of gear
in that way.  What theme were you trying to present?  All screws had to
be the same and turned the same direction, all wires with lettering had
to have the lettering terminate the same distance from the connector,
panels/mounting had to have the same gap on all sides.  Vinyl had to
match including grain pattern etc.  Were cables protected by a gromet
where they went through metal, was the system fused within a certain
distance from the battery, was everything safe and secure, were aux
batteries vented to the outside?

Sound quality was judged next.  (Mostly Subjective)

Two judges who sat in your car and listened to an IASCA judging disk,
not just the same named disk, the same copy also.  Some people were
alleged to have custom made disks to compensate their systems then try
to use them during competition.  Yes it's subjective.  Your system was
compared to other systems in your class for the competition.  That's why
no one got max points.  If the first car judged was given max points and
the next system was better what score would you give?  Things judged:  
Imaging, staging, left right balance, how well does it reproduce what
would be heard at a live concert?  SQ is not boom boom, is the frequency
response balanced to accurately reproduce the music?  The best way to
tune your ears was to listen to the IASCA Judging Disk on a high-end
home stereo system and tune your car system to match.

The last step RTA. (Objective with a good RTA Operator)

A microphone was placed on a stand in a specific position on the drivers
seat and connected to an RTA (Real Time Analyzer).  Points were deducted
if any frequency differed by more than 3db from the adjacent 1/3 octave
frequency, while playing a Pink Noise track on the CD.  In other words
the response had to be smooth from 20hz to 20khz.

Hope that gives you some idea of what it was like when I competed, I did
not cover everything.  

Why did I stop competing?

I couldn't see spending another $10-20k changing the install by putting
in waterfalls, fish tanks or other non-sound related stuff.  Motorized
amp racks, OK.  I was in it for Sound Quality not show and flash.  

It was amazing to me that competitors would spend mega bucks $50k+ on
flashy installs, rebuild all the panels in their cars to integrate the
system components, then refuse to allow spectators or competitors to
look at any time on competition day.  They thought a competitor in their
class was going to modify their install while in the judging lanes
waiting their turn based on what they saw?  The car in front of me
during finals kept color coordinated vinyl covering their windows so
nobody could look inside, removed the one on the windshield long enough
to move up a spot then replace.

I used a xenarc touchscreen LCD.  It was a bit pricey (I think $350 or
something), but it's a 7" and uses VGA - two features that were important to
me.  The touchscreen part is run by a USB connection.  And compared with
other LCDs, it does surprisingly well in the sunlight.  Also has front panel
brightness controls.  Another good feature is that it starts the computer
when the LCD is turned on, so I didn't have to mount a separate switch and
then integrate it into the computer.  It came with its own drivers.  The
screen is mounted in the double-din space in my dash, replacing my radio.  I
still need to make a shroud for it though.

When driving, it's even easier to just use the credit card size remote for
basic functions.  The receiver just plugs into a serial port, and it comes
with its own software compatible with winamp.

I'll have pictures of everything up by next weekend.