• If you enjoy listening to music whilst you drive, you can create your own car stereo amplifier.a car in a car show image by Gary from Fotolia.com
  
  There are a variety of ways to customize your car, from lowering the suspension to altering the lights. If you enjoy listening to music whilst you drive, you can create your own car stereo amplifier, which raises the volume and bass of your in-car sound system. You can use a variety of amplifying models, which use a range of power watts.
  
  

18 Watt Car Stereo Amplifier

• You can construct a class AB audio power car stereo amplifier as a weekend do-it-yourself project. The circuit set up and parts needed are based around the style of amplifier, car and power source you use. For example, the Hitachi HA13118 IC amplifier model requires a 8 to 18 volt DC, which equates to one to two amps. This is best combined with a regulated or battery operated power supply to reduce the mains hum. Other parts include two ½ watt resistors and 12 capacitors, as well as a printed circuit board and heat sink. In this model, the majority of the circuitry is enclosed within the amplifier model and there is a ground and power supply fault protection circuit, making it reliable and safe to use. This system can be used in any home or portable amplifier system.
  
  

4x22 Watt Car Audio Amplifier

• Using the quad bridge amplifier TDA7384 as a base, you can create a simple amplifier with 4x35W of power and four input and output channels. You can create this model by following the diagrams in the TDA7384 datasheets, which can be found online (see the second link References, below). The model avoids the need for boot strap capacitors by using an AB power amplifier enclosed in flexiwatt25, which allows rail to rail output swing. You can create your own version of this model by adding a radiator to prevent overheating, for example. For best results, put thermal paste between the chip and the radiator to reduce the thermal resistance.
  
  

Bi-Amping

• To give an added twist to your DIY project you can install a bi-amping system to your car radio. In this system, you use the same speaker but different amplifiers for the high and low frequencies. For example, in a three way speaker the woofer is driven by one amp and the tweeter and mid by another, less powerful, amp. This means that you have a higher quality, more powerful amping system and more control over the bass output. Bi-amping also reduces the need for large inductors as well as safety circuits to fix problems of different sensitivities between drivers. If the back of your speaker has four binding posts (two positive terminals and two negative terminals) it is capable of bi-amping.