Depot Auto Sound & Security INC — Local services in City of White Plains

I came here mostly at random after going to several other places first. I had my head unit, a JL Audio amp, and some cheap Pioneer speakers installed in Port Chester --- they did a great job, but after listening to it I decided I had gone too low-end with the Pioneer speakers, they sounded pretty good but a bit harsh. I had installed them after listening to them driven only by a head unit, so it was really hard to tell how they would sound driven by a real amp.

So I went on a search the next day for a dealer that had speakers and amps set up so you could listen to them before you buy --- surprisingly hard to find in the New York area. These guys had a complete setup with Hertz speakers, JL Audio, and a variety of other setups. They didn't have Infinity, Polk, Morel, etc., however. But --- I listened to the Hertz High Energy compnents they had set up, and I had to admit, they sounded quite impressive.

Harry quoted me $600 including install. He claimed they would install the speakers plus a sound damping mat. I did some quick internet searching and found the speakers online for around $400-$450, which means they're charging an additional $150 - $200 for installation. Rather high --- but I went ahead with it for a few reasons: 1) these guys are the only dealers around who even mentioned installing sound dampening, 2) they are also the only dealers I had gone to that had speakers and amps set up and functional to listen to (none of the "high end" dealers in Manhattan have any way of listening to their speakers at all... what's up with that?), 3) the installation crew were really professional and seemed to genuinely enjoy their jobs, and they knew about all sorts of things, ranging from sound processors to special subwoofers that hide in door panels, etc.

The end result: the sound is dramatically better than what I had before with the Pioneer speakers. Very clean, enjoyable sound quality even when cranked. The sound dampening clearly helps, but it doesn't prevent the doors from echoing a bit, creating a bit of a "boxy" sound which I don't like, but it's still a considerable improvement over what I had before. I suspect more sound deadening material would help this --- I had hoped the sound mat would have done this, but it could be pushed more. Still, excellent sound, it's so good that I have been reluctant to leave my car when I stop driving.

Overall: high price, but they know their stuff. Yes, you're paying much more for installation than at Best Buy. But, they've got some really great speakers and you can actually listen to them before you buy. Don't come here for the cheapest price --- that's just not what they do here. You do get quality work for the money you pay.

I rate them only "1" for "Appeal" because of the high price, but otherwise, I feel satisfied. (Also: what is up with these confusing categories --- quality, appeal, service? what does "appeal" mean? There's no category for value or price? And what do the composite scores mean --- what is '21'? Why can't Google use a normal scale like 1-10 or 4 out of 5 stars...

A couple weeks ago my under seat sub woofers went out in my BMW 435. Then last Tuesday I was driving by Depo Auto Sound on Central Avenue and figured I would stop in to see if they can fix or replace them. Spoke with Harry (the owner) and told him about my situation. He said they would take a look and see what was wrong. The diagnosis was, there was nothing wrong with my Under Seat speakers, it was an issue with my Fix 82 DSP (it was installed incorrectly and it blew. Thought the last audio guy I used was high end, guess not. In addition to my under seat speakers not working, I thought the sound of my system just didn't have any punch. Harry recommended I put a 8" JL audio self powered sub in my trunk.

I left the car with him the next day and he replaced my shot DSP and added the sub and tuned the system. The improvement was great. Overall the system sounded really nice. I asked Harry what I could do to make it perfect, he said you can change your front speakers but didn't think it was worth the cost. He had the perfect opportunity to up sell me and he did the opposite. So I went home and started researching different speakers as I got it in my head that I wanted the system to be perfect. After 3 days of serious research, I determined that I wanted to replace my front HK speakers with a set of Audio Frog GB 40's which are 4" speakers. The reviews I read from audiophiles alike loved these speakers. And the feedback was their was really nothing better in the market.

Sure enough, I stop by to see Harry again this past Monday. He said ok, they are great speakers but they are expensive. I appreciated his candor and effort to save me money. I told him, I wanted to do it. For those of you that are familiar with BMW's, they don't give you any space to make changes. And their installed systems are garbage. Harry looked at the specs of the speakers I wanted, had Kevin who did an amazing job take a look at the space and determined they could make them work. Left the car with him yesterday morning, got it back today and the job they did was incredible. In fact, I was just on my way home, I was listening to Pandora's Acoustic Channel and a song I love came on. The separation and clarity of the speakers and the tune job Harry and Kevin did is just unbelievable. You literally get lost in the music.

One other comment I want to make is, I have read some of the negative reviews on Yelp and here on Google. Most if not all speak to Harry's disposition. Yes he is curt, that's his personality. But if you give him a chance, you will realize he is simply a straight shooter, he tells it like it is. If you do that, what you will come to realize is, he is really a great guy who cares about his customers and takes pride in his product. Trust me, I am not easy to please.

Thank you Harry, Kevin and team for the great...

This place is definitely not what i thought is was.. .Very overpriced.!!Thought they knew there sound audio but i was sadly mistaken. I have a 2500 watt subwoofer sound system. With an extra kinetic battery in the trunk.Idk why i didnt think to check the work that was done right away.I just figured for the crazy amount of money i paid it was going to be top notch job.Well about 4 days after the job was done.My yellow top optima battery in trunk was not holding its charge.So i took it to my guy and it was in fact the battery.So i got the best of the best and went with a kinetic 2400 agm battery.It was amazing for first few days.Then my subwoofer wasnt hitting as hard as normaly does. .So i checked the battery and it was at 0 percent capacity. So i looked over the wiring and dont know how i missed tjis but i realized he had used my 0 gauge wiring which i supplied for power wire ect And i look over to my ground wiring from the second battery in trunk and he had used 8 gauge wire.smh.Anyone who knows sound audio knows that if you have a high output system like i do. knows that you need to have zero gauge wiring on both positive wiring all around.Otherwise youll have what is happening to me. My high output mike singer alternator is one of the best.But sadly because of the 8 gauge wire on ground it is not able to rush the power through that thin wire quick enough. If zero gauge was installed like it should have been on the ground there would be no problems at all.so i called Harry last week.And he tells me to come in on tuesday.So i call him tuesday and he tells me oh sorry im packed today i cant do it cause i have a 135 thousand dollar car im working on.He just had to throw in the price of the car hes working on as if i care.The job that he messed up would take him no longer then 15 minutes to fix.But i dont think he wants to acknowledge that he messed up.I knew right away when i saw the 8 gauge that you always use zero gauge for high output systems. And you never use 2 different gauges of wire on a install like mine.I called 3 other reputable sound audio stores who told me yes iam correct 100 percent.So now Harry tells me to call the next day and he'll see if hes not too busy.lmao.Dont worry bud i wont be coming back to your place of business. Smh.....march 5th 2020.So now ive also come to find out that its not the 0 gauge but its the way it was wired.i now have to bring it somewhere else for them to fix the problem.Cause the battery for my system is not being recharged by my new 180 amp mike singer alternator. DEF NOT the alternator. Not my brand new xs 3400d agm battery .So im told its ded there wiring somewhere along the line theres a mistake that has to be fixed.Just a shame a payed close to 800 dollars and this guy wouldnt even slide me in to look at...