When installing music in your car, there are a couple of things that you should know or consider before actually going through with the whole deal.

1) Too Much Outside Noise.
Often we realize how noisy it is outside our car after putting in a sound system in the car. And also we realize how noisy our own cars can get with the additional four 10" subs in the trunk. It is almost impossible to get rid of all the noise that your car can generate, however, there are some solutions that can help ease the problem. The first thing to do is to try and figure out where exactly the noise is coming from. The license plate frame is usually one of the first things to check when a rattling noise is heard. If you can press this down and the rattling is reduced then you have solved one problem. Another place if not the most disturbing place that noise can emanate from is the trunk.
One of the more common methods to reduce noise coming from you trunk is to reduce the resonance of the metal in your trunk. This can be accomplished by using specially designed materials such as Dynamat lined on the inside of your trunk. This only need be done on the top underside part of the trunk itself. Make sure to get in-between the metal braces on the top of the trunk when applying the dynamat. It is best to fill these spaces first and then apply the Dynamat over the remaining parts.
To ensure that the Dynamat stays in position after applying, use a heat gun and let it stay on each piece for about 1 minute. Make sure too much heat is not applied since this can affect the paint job on the exterior part of the trunk. However, all the Dynamat in the world can't help your noise problems if the Dynamat is placed in the wrong places. There are cheaper alternatives to Dynamat.
What you need to consider when trying to reduce trunk noise is to make sure you target the main areas. Fill in all the spaces between the metal braces on the top underside of the trunk. Fused fiberglass on the underside of the trunk is also an alternative however, the finish is not as pretty as one would like it to be. Another common problem is that air tends to leak out of the trunk through the trunk seal. If you lay towels along the trunk seal and close it and the noise stops then you need to get a new trunk seal.

2) Be Aware Of Where You Put Your Amplifier.
As you would have probably read on the Do's and Dont's table, one of the more important things to consider when finding a place to install your amp is proper ventilation. One other thing to consider that does not necessarily affect the amp's performance but instead may become a nuisance later on. Many experts in the car audio installation business suggest that a good place to put you amp is on the side panel in your trunk. Even though this is a good place,it may come to your surprise sometime later on when you have to change your brake light that your amp rack went all the way to the end of the side panel and is now jamming on the back piece of your brake light. This makes it very tedious to unscrew your amp rack every time you have to change that light. So be aware of how close to the brake light panel you install your amp rack.

3) Don't Blow Out All Your Fuses / Keep Live Wires Taped.
One of the many problems that people encounter when doing their own installs is blowing the car radio fuse. This may happen especially when disconnecting your head set. Loose (open end) live wires dangling around is not the idea situation you want to be in. You may realize the live wire in some factory instals by the color - it is RED. However,if all the wires connected to your deck are the same color then you can look for the polarity markings on the wire itself. The live wire is the one marked positive (+). When you get hold of this wire, disconnect it first and tape the open end with electrical tape until you are ready to connect back up the head unit. If this still fails and you are not sure about the wire's polarity then the safest thing to ensure that you do not blow a fuse or damage the head unit or any other devices in your car is to break the circuit running from you battery. This is done by removing the fuse from the fuse box. In most cars, this is located on the drivers side under the dash and on the side panel.It is mapped with the name of the device relating to the fuse position in the box. Look for the name marked 'radio'. Pull out the corresponding fuse in the fuse box. You are now ready to remove the head unit.It should always be taken as a precautionary measure to tape the open ends of all wires when installing electrical devices in your car. 4)

4) Be Practical.
Most of us have daily driven rides. We want to have the baddest, loudest music system in our cars but, there are prices to pay (and I am not talking actual dollars). Lets talk about trunk space. According to the type of speakers you use, the box to place them in increases proportionately with the speaker size. This could tend to take up more trunk space than wanted (if not the whole trunk). If you are a regular at Maracas, then you can obviously see some inconvenience in trying to find cooler space when the time arrives. This is always an issue to consider. Decide on which alternative you are going to take before making that final purchase.

Information sourced and compiled by Daren Dhoray.