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I'm researching MECP certification/mobile electronic schools, and so far mobildynamics is at the top of my list. Has anyone attended this school, or knows someone who has? I'm currently a sophomore pursing a degree in business, and would like to go into the mobile electronics industry with the intent of opening my own shop in the future. My plan would be to attend the school, get my certs, then gain experience working part time while I finish my degree. Anyone have any experiences / oppinions about these type of schools? Are they worth it? Some of the other schools im looking at are

Ritop
Installer Institute
Syntec
The Snake Pit

Mobile Dynamics would be at the top of my list, with the others in order of preferance. I would appreciate anyone's experiences or oppinions of any of these schools. Thanks in advance.

 
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i dont know, i think in the car audio field, experience is all that matters.
the owner of my local shop didnt go to college. he didnt do any MECP certifications, and all he has done before he started his own shop was work as an installer for 12+ years at another shop. he was listed on the 100 top installers in mobile electronics magazine and its quite freaky how he knows so much about cars.
they had a guy come to the shop once that did a month at one of those install schools (acoustic edge is what i think it was). cost was $3500 for the month "training", he couldnt even install an amp. that school didnt do anything for him, he would have been better off working for FREE at a shop and gaining useful experience.
i've been hanging out at my local shop for over 2 years. i have gained a lot of trust from the guys there. i can look through dealer price sheets, help sell or install, and i even have access to the cash drawer. i can get a job with them in a heart beat, if i wanted, but i dont. point is, experience is all that matters, gain that however you can.

 
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Any of those schools and MECP do not mean a hell of a lot to any shop, especially a good one. Maybe you can get a job at circuit city or best buy installing mediocre equipment in less than mediocre vehicles. What a manager at a shop will look at is experience. The fact that you can memorize some stuff and then later reproduce that stuff on a piece of paper to get another piece of paper (MECP cert) has little importance in the audio world. Experience gained at an install school generally is not considered *real* experience. Others may disagree but I say the only way to do it is to start small and work your way up. If you want to get a basic job at a shop then take pictures of your installs that show your experience to the manager, that will speak volumes more for you than the fact that you attended some cheesedick little school.

 
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thats what i was planning, im allready comfortable installing stuff on my own. I would be going more for the car alarm and advanced fabrication stuff. I think going to the school would also help start building my portfolio of installs I do, then i could get a job at BB or CC for a little bit to get some "real experience" while i finish school. Then i would move on to a better job.

 
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I attended Mobile Dynamics in 1993 and I had a great time. It gave me the confidence that I needed to pursue a career in the 12 volt field which I now have been involved in for over eleven years.
When installers come to me and apply for a job experience is the first thing I look at, but if someone has somekind of formal training it's always a bonus anyway you look at it.

 
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thanks for your response. I'm trying to decide between mobile dynamics and ritop. Have you heard anything in regards to ritop, or worked with anyone whose graduated from there?

 
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Whoa, I was just reading through all the posts and I saw this one.. I went to that school!!!!!!!! Crazy.. are you looking at the one in toronto or the one in phoenix?

 
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Wow, I have to disagree with many of you. I am a RITOP graduate and was subsequently employed right out of school by Rich's CarTunes of Watertown (RITOP's parent co.) after having the highest grades in the classes history. We are one of the premier facilties on the East Coast, let alone the US. After joining Rich's, it took me seriously 1.5 years to get a solid grasp on the industry as it stands today. I get frustrated reading posts in this forum written by people with 2 1000w amps, 2 15's and a dead battery. Installation is EVERYTHING. Do it once and do it right. I don't even want to get started now on how I feel when I read many of the posts here. I have around 10 years exp in autosound, etc yet I learn something new everyday. I can recite the non-DSP lineouts on an e-46 BMW in my sleep, the proper amp integration on a 94-96 Jeep Grand Cherokee like it is going out of style, how to interface an Xm sat radio into a new MOST protocol factory Mercedes Benz radio, or even a door chime bypass on a class 2 databus GM vehicle like whoa! If you don't know what I'm talking about, none of those schools will help you. RITOP focuses on the basics, and will give you a solid foundation of the makings of proper installation techniques etc. MD is also hands on, but ignores the basics and focuses on the flash factor. The **** may look good, but open it up, and it is just that, ****! The Snake Pit is a great idea, but WAY overpriced. There is no way you can learn the intricacies of alarm install in 2 weeks. That takes years! We are talking about cars with 5 wire door locks, vacuum locks, factory alarm arm/disable. Nothing valuable there unless you see it in the field and learn at your own pace. Feel free to check out my shops website www.cartunes.com and click ABOUT US and OUR STAFF to see a stylin pic of myself (Andrew) aka Drew. If need be, anyone shoot me back and I can get you on the phone with Joe Boston, RITOP's director anytime. Whew! End rant

 
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IF YOU NEED RITOP INFO, send it to Lee@Cartunes.com , mention that Drew sent you. I work in the same facility as RITOP 6 days a week!!!!!!

 
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Let me try that again www.cartunes.com check out the installations page and the Audis and BMW in particular, also the Caddy Escalade I sold that billed at 24K. the Z8 is also super clean!

 
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BTW, I also know everything that fits/ works in a 7th gen manual, I just get annoyed with the "I have $130 to spend, what are the best speakers I can buy?"

Answer: Nothing save and spend $400

 
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^ I hear ya.. it's really annoying, which is why I ususally don't even bother replying to those posts.

 
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Exactly, I am more than willing to share my knowledge,but I feel as much of it is wasted by people looking for a quick fix at the cheapest price. The $ we charge for work would blow your mind. But, the quality of the install, the stuff you never see, is what makes my job gratifying, also, making 50K a year doesnt hurt

 
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first of all are cars are only worth 12-17g's. so you need to chill out on the getting expensive part. We are not rolling on s500 bens that we can just throw money. I know i am not paying $65 an hour to get my amp install. Plus that same speaker you sell at audio shop for $400, you can get the same from ebay for $130.

 
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time to get back on topic. darklegacy, did you enjoy mobiledynamics? Im thinking of going to the toronto one, since its about a quarter of the distance, and i think it would be pretty cool. Did you go to the phoneix campus? Did you like it?

Massmayhem, it sounds like ritop is more of the school for me, im not really concerned about the flash factor, I know that will come with getting more experience and working along side with an experienced installer. I was pleased with the website, and it did seem like the school focused more on method and quality than finishing up the install and tidying it up. Were most of your classmates placed with good jobs? Did you feel that the school taught the basics of everything you do in your current job? Was the hands on time enough to solidify what you learned during the lecture portion of the school?

sorry for all of the questions, but i really appreciate everyone's replies. thanks.

 
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Yeah, the hands on time can vary by class size, but it is certainly enough to get a good grasp on the basics. As for the classroom part, Pete is a great instructor. You're not only taught how things work, but why they work. For the most part all of my classmates at least had interviews lined up, with a few guys going into higher end shops as apprentices. You really need to be willing to learn and have patience in an industry like this.

 
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thanks for your reply, were you able to get your hands in enough projects to start building a portfolio?

 
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sorry it took so long to reply, I've been really busy with work and getting things set up for valentine's day.. that's another story. Anyways, looking back on it now, I did have a good time at Mobile Dynamics. I attended the Phoenix campus.. however, I more or less just attended the school for MECP. They pretty much cover every question on the test in an four hour discussion/lecture. You take a pre MECP test the second day of school, then you take the Basic Installers 4 weeks into classes. I scored a 75% on the pre-test, then after the classes and such, I scored a 99% on the real Basic Installer's test. We then took the pre First Class Installer's test.. I only scored a 68% on that.. Then 4 more weeks of advanced classes, then I scored a 96% on the real First Class test. So, they definitely teach you a lot of things and it makes it really easy to pass MECP. One of the owners of Mobile Dynamics wrote part of the MECP study guides so the instructors there definitely know a thing or two. Hell, now I'm making $65,000 a year doing installs and such. It just depends on how well you understand everything. If you're like some of the people on this site like who we were talking about earlier in this thread, don't bother because you have a lot more to learn before you even think about attneding Mobile Dynamics. There were a couple slower people in my class and I'm not even 100% sure if they passed the MECP because they were the people who just cared about "oh i want to know about systems.." You must have a love for the industry and have the willingness to always learn more. With new cars on the way, the elctronics are changing drastically and rapidly so be prepared to learn something new every day. I'm done ranting now but just want you to know what to expect if you do decide to attend MD. Best of luck on your decision. If you have any more questions, feel free to PM me

 
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Well said!

I went to an installer school out in California, not a big known school, but I learned the basics that I need to get me on my way! I agree the expirience is everything, but MECP teaches you the foundation, and from there your on your own! I installed for 7 years before I got hired at Alpine as Tech Support specialists and from there I am where I am now, sitting on my *** making more than I ever did installing and doing what I love best "Car Audio".....So I guess I say go for it, start off good, learn the basics, then you gotta be dedicated if not you'll go nowhere!

 
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^^ Again, knowledge is knowledge. Prime example of how learning the basics starts you off.
AlpineCivic, do you have a college degree in anything else? Another year and I'm applying to take the MECP Masters test and I'm not sure if I'm going to want to keep installing for my shop.. I'd rather be working for a manufacturer like you currently are now. Any words of wisdom on getting into that part of the industry?

 
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Just like experience is everything, so is who you know and being at the right place at the right time! The way I got into Alpine was throguh one of their reps. We became cool friends and he let me know when a position opened up! The rest was up to me, he gave a good recomendation and thats all it took, with my knowledge and expireience they didnt think twice about hiring me.

I dont have anyother degree, but I think the best way to get to a manufacture would be get to know them, go to show's talk to reps, get to be friends with them, and eventually their word will bring you in the door!

 
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Hmm, my two bosses (the owners of the shop) is friends with a couple reps.. I went to SEMA last year.. I usually don't get to go to very many shows though because my superiors always go and someone has to stay and run the install bay so during those times, the sales people and me pretty much do nothing since there is no supervisors.. But thanks for the advice though and I'll definitely take it into consideration. But I would love to get a job working for Panasonic, Alpine, MTX, just.. whoever lol Twice the pay and half the physical work.. I can live with that.

 
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I think i finally made up my mind, I'm going to attend the toronto campus because its only a five hour drive verses a 36 hr drive. Did you bring your car to work on during lab sessions?

 
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Nope.. I flew out to AZ from Wisconsin.. If you do bring your car and have it worked on, if you don't have high quality stuff.. be prepared to get picked on haha

 
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haha, thats allright im used to that kinda stuff allready. What kinda stuff were people gettin done to their cars who brought them there?

 
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Hmm full fiberglass installs in the trunk, dynomat, vinyl, false floors, etc.. some kid brought in his 350Z that his mommy and daddy bought him and we dynomatted the entire thing, firewall, floor boards, door panels, headliner, trunk.. I'm not sure if things in the Toronto campus are different but we got about 5 complete days to work on a car (about 5-7 students per car), and we got to do whatever install we wanted.. and then if we didn't finish, there was a week before the end of school that we could finish everything up on..

 
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Nice, my car is actually going in as a RITOP project car on Saturday. They have the car for every other Sat for 2 months (4 days total) but a lot of the fab will be done during the week. I only agreed to this (I would never trust newbs working on the Vic) if I got a great discount on equipment and Tricky ( the instructor ) worked only with the part-time class. They tend to be older, more exp'd, more patient, etc. As the system stands now I'm looking at Alpine SPX-177R in front doors, run biamped off JL 300/4. Factory rears for rear fill only run off deck power (Alpine CDA-9833). 12w3v2-d4 in fiberglass enclosure left rear quarter panel. What I am still deciding on is amp rack. My choice would be eliminate the trunk torsion bars, mount both amps under rear deck for clean install, easy tuning. OR, go all out and do a custom enclosure in spare tire well for floating amp rack on aluminum stock, neon red accents and a plexi cover with H logo out of MDF. I don't want these guys to be rushed. Any thoughts?

Forgot, also full dynamat extreme on door skins, panels, headliner, firewall, trunk, rear deck you name it, also maybe flush mounting head unit and texture mounting dash kit

 
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I think the floating amp rack would be a kick @$$ enclosure. I made a floating amp rack fiberglass set up for this guy with a cadillac deville and if I can find the memory card with those pictures, I"ll post them. It turned out really well, so I highly recommend that type of set up just because I've seen how they turn out and I was really happy with the results. Did you ever think about a different sub or another sub? I too, have the JL Audio W3-v2s and I still have them in a sealed enclosure and I still hit 144. But I have two of them so that could make the difference between yours and mine. Although with your one, you should still be hitting close to 137ish depending on your enclosure and such. What amp are you running for your W3?
As for the elimination of the torsion bars. Yes, it gives a clean install.. but it's guaranteed not to win your trophies if you compete. I say, go for the floating amp rack. Another install I did was I made an amp rack out of 'glass and then lined the edges with aluminum rods.. Before I installed the rods, I used a router, and put a little tiny indent in the rod maybe 1/8th deep if that.. Then I installed the Street Wires Hot Wires in the indent. It accented the install nicely. The possibilities are endless.. haha got any other cool ideas?

 
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did they give you the basic materials needed to do the install?

 
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He had to buy the dynamat but he got it at a good price through the school.. But we got to use all the tools in the shop for free.. Some of the fiberglass projects that were done, we got the resin and the 'glass itself and the bondo for free.. we got to use the sandpaper for free.. so the basic materials yes, but for the bigger things, no.