late response but I just got a new JVC aftermarket radio and installed it. I don't have my door speakers or tweeters hooked up to an external amplifier, just the deck. I got it all wired and when I fired the car up, as soon as the radio starts, a loud static/screeching sound plays through my mids and tweets. The tweeters get no music just static, the mids get music and static. I am curious if I should cut the car harness's factory ground wire that is running to the headunit and run a NEW & seperate wire from the headunit to the amplifer's ground? Or should I keep the cars factory harness's ground wire and run a secondary ground wire from the chassis of the headunit to the amplifer? Another question is should i use the radios harness black wire (the ground) to run a new wire to a new ground location or should I just connect it to the radio's chassis and run it to a new ground location? Hard to explain but sounds like I'm riding inside a UFO.
Mark, your final advice on the ground loop isolator was my problem...you helped me in out where my local car audio shop owner told me it was beyond his knowledge...you are the man thank you for being so smart at car audio
@@emilz85 The one's I tried cut a huge portion of the lows out. Basically a highpass on the source signal. I wrote the manufacturer and they said that's how all the passive ground loop isolators work. I was shocked that so many people thought it was an acceptable solution.
I've been struggling with a whining noise (turbo whine?) after upgrading my car audio system this June. I've narrowed it down to being a bad negative from the battery to the chassis. Thanks, Mark! Your video came just when I needed it 😊
how much more power did you add when the whining noise started? struggling with the same thing but idk what to think. and when I turn off my amp the noise stops.
I’m going to be doing “The Big 3” upgrade this weekend and I’m hoping it solves my whine issue. There is slight static in my system when I just have the radio going and when I start the car the whining starts. Hope it works! I’ve tried about everything else…
I've done the Big 3 and whining is still there but when i connect my Rca straight to the amp there's less noise. I suspected I'm getting noise from My crossover and the Equalizer
One other important item I learned when tracking down noise in my speakers: Your RCA cable type DOES matter. There's two types: shielded/coaxial and twisted pair. If your amp has Single Ended (SE) inputs, then you should use shielded/coaxial RCAs. If your amp uses Differential Inputs (DI), then you should use twisted pair. My amp used SE inputs, but I was using a twisted pair RCA. Swapping over to a shielded RCA fixed my noise issue. Symptom I has was a constant, high pitched whine, regardless if car was on or if music was playing. I performed all the tests in this video and everything checked out, so it really came down to either my headunit or my RCAs. It was the RCAs.
Thanks for sharing. Luckly I have two different RCA cable types running to my amp. Standard for Sub and Twisted for speakers. I'm going to switch them up and see if this fixes it. Gonna come back with the results
Quick question for you since I'm experiencing something similar. I installed a new head unit and a new amp along with two new speakers paired with two existing speakers. The stereo runs fine the amp turns on a few seconds after the stereo there are no issues. Everything plays fine. But when I replaced my headlight from a stock model to an aftermarket LED model, I get a whirring noise. I believe it's a noise of some sort. As I turn the lights from high and low the wiring noise can change and as I turn the headlights off and leave the DRLs on the noise goes almost away completely. If I disconnect the lights the whirring is gone. I'm not blaming the LEDs yet but I feel like either the wires or putting off some noise next to my RCA cables going into the amplifier or to the wires going to the speakers. Should I try disconnecting one set of wires at a time? Like remove one's RCA at a time and then remove one set of speaker wires at a time to see if one of those is catching the interference? It's very tight in the fairing of these motorcycles. I know what can be done correctly where things are kept separated I'm just not there yet with my installation. Thanks for any help you can offer
I've used many different types of GLI's and coming from an electrical background I can say that there is only one true fix for the major of times this issue exists. Having a nice and healthy ground to return your power flow, (though not all the time), is usually the fix for these. A quick and reliable fix is the chassis ground that is manufactured on the aftermarket unit itself. This grounding point is underrated and underused, but is a little bit a gold nugget! Keep up the great work Mark!
The most difficult noise issue I've ever dealt with was a popping sound when turning off my stereo. I don't use the speaker outputs from my head unit so I knew it was coming from the amps. I initially believed it was ground related and tried multiple attempts at improving ground connections to no avail. I even swapped out my RCA cables which fixed nothing. In the end the cause was my headrest monitors which were powered on by the remote turn on from my head unit. Electrical issues can be such a pain to deal with. If you're persistent you can get through it.
Use a relay to power headrest monitors never use remote turn for anything more than turning on 2-3 amps , if you have this problem other wise properly use a relay or capacitor inline with the remote wire .
I know this is a five year old video at the time of my comment but this guy nailed my issue to the T. I ran down my issue by least invasive to the most complex. First step check gains and what do you know, that was the issue. No noise and speaker talking loud and bass booming. Thanks bro!
ANC Mics will also cause whining or a "robotic buzz" when listening. Ambient Noise-canceling microphones(ANC Mics) are designed to get rid of any noises that the factory head unit and ANC unit deem not part of the stereo output in order to make the ride seem a lot quieter than it really is. It sends the "opposite" sound out in order to cancel out any unaccounted noises. So if you install subs or a multichannel amp to add extra sound, your ANC system is going to try an cancel it out unless disconnected. Most of the time you can find the ANC module and just unplug it or else you have to cut the mic wires(and I don't recommend it if you don't have to, those things are expensive to replace). A lot of newer(let's say after 2013) might have this, new hondas, certain GMs, etc.
Dude! You’re speaking to me. That whiny noise when I accelerate… I had my subwoofer/amp and aftermarket radio installed by a so called professional audio store. It’s very frustrating having those weird noises because they didn’t tune my system correctly like you said. I didn’t get a box and had my subwoofer mounted in the factory ‘hole’ behind my back seat since my car was a base model with no subwoofer but has a built in hole with a plastic cover. I also think the amp is mounted on the frame with metal cover it came with. Everything you’ve talked about in the video is exactly what’s happening.
Something that may be helpful to others to note. If you are using a cheap passive (non powered) line out converter off of your factory radio and you install it directly behind the factory radio you may be getting a lot of noise there as well. There are a lot of electrical components going on back there and you can test this just by moving the loc around with the vehicle on and powered up. If your stubborn on using one of these cheaper loc's, you may benefit by extending the speaker wire your tapping into and getting the loc gar away from the back of the factory radio to underneath the glove box compartment for example but not as far as the kick panel because you will generally have huge looms of factory wiring there that can interfere with your signal as well
late response but I just got a new JVC aftermarket radio and installed it. I don't have my door speakers or tweeters hooked up to an external amplifier, just the deck. I got it all wired and when I fired the car up, as soon as the radio starts, a loud static/screeching sound plays through my mids and tweets. The tweeters get no music just static, the mids get music and static. I am curious if I should cut the car harness's factory ground wire that is running to the headunit and run a NEW & seperate wire from the headunit to the amplifer's ground? Or should I keep the cars factory harness's ground wire and run a secondary ground wire from the chassis of the headunit to the amplifer? Another question is should i use the radios harness black wire (the ground) to run a new wire to a new ground location or should I just connect it to the radio's chassis and run it to a new ground location? Hard to explain but sounds like I'm riding inside a UFO.
I don’t think you mentioned this, I was dealing with alternator/buzz/whine noises for awhile, but my noises were intermittent, sometimes they would disappear over bumps. Looked into everything. What it ended up being was the ends of the RCA cables that plug into the headunit, were touching the body of the car, introducing noise. Probably my fault for not organizing the wires nicely behind the headunit. Just wrapped the ends with tesa and 0 noise, that was driving me nuts lol
Holy crap I was dealing with the whine issue for months and must’ve done everything I could’ve imagined to fix it. Read this comment, realize I didn’t try this, facepalmed, and tried it. Worked like a charm. I can’t thank you enough for this! This has changed my life
@@evanmcardle3618 Happy to help! It’s something I stumbled upon accidentally actually, I’ve done a lot of research and nobody seemed to have mentioned it.
Very faint buzz… put new JL tweeters in my Colorado. Had very slight buzz . when asking friends if they heard it some couldn’t. The passenger side was quiet. After trouble shooting I discovered that if I took the crossover out of behind the dashboard. It solved the problem! Thanks for the video.
Yes, once. No matter what I did I could not remove it until I got a RCA ground loop isolator. This was back in 1989 in a 76 Vega. I think I bought the thing at Radio Shack.
I bought Radio Shack RCA’s back in the early 90’s. Heavy duty, gold plated with noise suppression. I’m glad I hung on to them and eventually found them. My alternator whine is gone and signal to my sub amp is fully restored without a ground loop isolator. I used Kicker RCA’s for my Alpine 6 1/2’s on an MTX Thunder 2 channel, and Radio Shack RCA’s with a small terminating RCA by Monster cable on my Skar 2000.1d feeding 3 DB drive 10’s. Just remember to do what this guy says and keep your RCA and power cables on opposite sides of the vehicle. And use really good RCA cables. This is where a lot of people mess up when doing their own installs.
I actually went a different way with this. I had very bad noise when I installed a bluetooth audio receiver, but instead of using the filter I build an induction power module out of a phone induction charger building kit and a stepdown voltage regulator and i put everything in a 3d printer case. It severed the ground in the power input instead of the audio line so no ground loop, no noise and no reduction in sound quality whatsoever.
Dealing with hiss right now. Going to install wire ferrules tomorrow on everything. I know I know, should have done that in the first place. 💀 Your videos are the best man. Every video with knowledge is appreciated greatly.
Its not just the quality of RCA but type and matching them with the type of signal input you amps and output from your componnents are built upon. If your head unit uses unbalanced (many do) and your amp has balanced inputs. (About 85% of amps use unbalanced generally higher end amps use balanced) look into audio control as i think eveything they make has the ability to change from balanced to unbalanced output with internal jumper. 1. Balanced input is where the shield of the input is isolated from the negative power input or the metal chassis of the amp. These setups youll want to use twisted pair RCA 2. Unbalanced input is where the shield of the RCA is NOT isolated and shows continituity with the negative power input and metal chassis of the amp. These setups use a coaxial style RCA.
@@chipirriti maybe you should. Balanced is short for balanced-differential. Unbalanced is just a name for single-ended or ground-referenced inputs. I didn’t make up the terminology I just know the facts. Do your research
I literally just finished installing new door speakers running on an amp. My left front speaker would hiss drastically after the head unit booted up. I swapped RCAs front to rear, and the hiss was still there indicating it's in the speaker wire post amp. I then took my panels off again and got the speaker wire a good 8 inches from the 12v for the amps. This fixed it for me in my vehicle.... I knew I was going to have issues with running power down the sides instead of under the middle.
I just wanted to thank you very much for your informative videos. I decided that my 11 Caddy speakers were dying and needed to be replaced. I didn't realize that meant an avalanche of problems doing so. First the new tweeter blew, then the Metra conversion box blew 3 TIMES and then the amp went to hell. After I figured everything out, I had a terrrible hissing sound. I watched your videos on solving it and not only did the hissing go away but the sound improved. Thanks a lot for doing them.
Ahh, the infamous ground issue in aftermarket stereos. Great points sir. Need to check mine, using fm Bluetooth to stock radio for my phone. Powered by the cig lighter- getting feedback from my cars stock electrical system. Will be checking ground on radio, and moving ground on cig lighter for better isolation.
20 years ago, I installed my first system and had no idea what I was doing. loomed the power, ground and cheap signal RCA leads from the head unit to the amp... needless to say I had all kinds of funky noise going on :)
Awesome! I’ve recently installed an aftermarket head unit and all was well before the install, but now I definitely have a very noticeable whine and hiss. I’ll try doing a proper ground instead of using the existing harness ground and see how that goes.
Did you fix it with a new ground connection? I'm currently trying to figure it out with my new headunit as well and really don't want to have to ship it back to China.
I love comments saying "I'm gonna try this and that" and then they proceed to do it and completely forget to post the solution, cuz now their issues are gone 😢
I had noise and absolutely everything checked out perfectly. Turns out it was the head unit itself that was causing it. New unit no noise. It's worth keeping a known good hu on hand for testing.
I always run a ground wire with the rca's and turn on wire to ground the radio at the same place as the amplifiers. Avoids a potential ground loop there too.
@@todderickson9436 thx man. I completed that this afternoon. Unfortunately, I’m using two stereo Kicker LOCs off an Android head unit (TS10) and still have alt whine though better than before. I’ve 100% isolated the issue to the LOCs. I’ve grounded everything to the same location. Really don’t want to patch the issue but I’m considering ordering the RCA inline isolators because I’m out of ideas.
i remember having a whining noise in the back passenger side of an 1999 audi a4, idk why it started, but it would get louder with acceleration, and wasn't present if the key was only in auxiliary, i have no experience troubleshooting so i just unplugged that speaker and started reading and watching.. this video had some good info
I’ve had my speakers in for 6 months they were fine when I first installed them but now they buzz at low volume when the bass hits, once I turn it up fairly loud it goes away. It’s really frustrating
If it’s just when the bass hits your may want to check that they’re still fastened well to their baffles, and if they are perhaps put some weather strip under the contact points between the metal skin of your door and the interior plastic. Good luck with the issue!
I've only had an issue with noise in ONE vehicle over the years, and after checking every possible thing I could, the noise was still there! It was in a 2001 Honda Civic LX. I had installed a nice Kenwood head unit powering 4 of Clarion's best full range speakers. No noise. Later, I installed a Boston 4-channel amp under the front passenger seat. No noise. About 6 months later, I started hearing a distinct whine. I didn't increase with engine speed, so that was a good thing. I checked every ground, every cable, every speaker wire, everything! I could NOT find the cause of the noise, so I just lived with it. If I turned up the volume I couldn't hear it anyway. LOL! Well, one day I decided to update my head unit to a nice Apline. Not because the Kenwood wasn't doing what I wanted it to (this was probably my 5th or 6th Kenwood), but some of the buttons were too hard to read in the dark. Anyway, the exact moment I hit the power button on the new Alpine, I noticed something: the whine was GONE! Yep, apparently it was the head unit! Not sure why, no idea what, but the whine was caused by the deck. New head unit, no more noise! This was the hardest noise I've ever had to deal with and it taught me one thing; all that noise you hear is not always related to grounds or cable quality or other stuff, it CAN be a defective head unit apparently. BTW, that was my LAST Kenwood head unit. LOL!
Thanks for explaining i recently bought one of those screens that connects to the current radio stereo and the whining and static noise drove me crazy while its connected via aux, i switched and connected them via FM and both issued went away, at least now i know why i can hear it more when am accelerating!
Experiencing the same thing, planning to disassemble my head unit in order to check if the bluetooth adaptor is integrated or ir can be replaced. If possible I m planning to add a ground loop on the adapter.
I've just looked online for a usb ground loop isolator and found a couple because for me the whine noise only happens when I've got my Bluetooth on and my usb plugged in to charge my phone
Thank you!!! You explained it exactly how I would .. and another thing that people don’t offer as a solution is adding a ground to the Aftermarket HU. That is something I do during my installations, extra security.. I love it..
You saved me nerves man! Had a shhhh noise from LF speaker/twitter after new setup tunupat the Sound shop. I have done shilding of my speaker wires with foil on the left side of the car. And wires under the hood too. All car insulated with foam/foil sheets. No wires tuched a metal. No luck. Than I replaced my Negative to chassis terminal wire as you said in the video ... and WOOALA. No noise. ***.
I have static (RMI) after going aftermarket- Hifonics, Soundstream, Audio Control/ Epicenter w a stock head unit in my Tacoma. A lot of "Dos & Don'ts" during installation that I've forgotten. Nowadays, I have old man symptoms. I got my MECP Installer certification in 1990 when I was 20. Thanks for the refresher video!!!
I have a static noise coming through my speakers and my stereo is stock so i used an rca converter and ive tried disconnecting the rca cables but the static is still thrre im not sure how to resolve this
Back in the day. Rca side by side with the power. Alternator whine. Dirty ground. Learned I need to clean it to bare metal. The common let's hook up a amp in here. We're going to make this home speakers really thump lol. That poor Majestic amp really took a beating. 😂
I have an issue I'm currently working on. Upgraded the head unit, added 3 amps and a DSP. Once all put together I got this weird buzzing noise that went up and down with the ending revs. So I used a Ground loop isolator on my Ipod and it fixed the alternator wine but I now have this weird rhythmic ticking noice. I put a power filter on the DSP but it was still there. I test ran an RCA cable from the head unit directly to the DSP (avoiding any other electrics) and its still there. I'm going to add another noise Isolator to the Head unit and see if that makes any difference. Will keep you posted
I've been having a static issue for almost a year. Can I hire you to help get to the bottom of it? I feel like I've tried everything but haven't figured it out yet
I had a pretty bad noise in my avalanche and I stripped down a remote wire, wrapped it around all of the rca ports on the radio and secured the ends under a screw on the radio. "grounding the RCA's" so to speak. Now I do it as a precaution on every system I install and don't have problems.
@@kivitropikal6755 ahh I don't remember i think that might work but certainly depends on what powerbank you use I daily a 20000 milliamp powerbank which lasts me for 2 or more days with my use So I charge it wen I'm going to bead
Always had alternator whine and dtatic hiss in the tweeters during acceleration. I later traced it all back to being inadequate grounding. Ill say that 95% of problems in a system come from either your grounding locations/installation or even less consodered being your remote turn on wire! My remote wire destroyed 3 amps but always showed 12V to the amp and i never even suspected the gmremote wire as i was hunting and redoing ground after ground to fix the issue. CHECK SIGNAL WIRE FROM THE HEAD UNIT ON STOCK SYSTEMS! They will go bad and arc or send a ridiculous surge during installation if your grounds are not on point! I wish i had known sooner!
Im using an aftermarket headunit in my 2000 silverado. Its been perfectly fine for 15 years. I recently added a 3.5mm headphone jack to the AUX input, and connected a small $10 Bluetooth adapter from Amazon... It was cheap, but has 4.5-5 star reviews from everyone, and they all said the sound quality was great... I'm getting a whine that gets louder as the engine revs.. Im sure its RF interference from the ignition coils, but i'm not sure how to isolate it... And just to add, my 3.5mm to AV cable is only 1ft long.. it was just long enough to make the connection, and allow me to mount it right under the air vent, in a factory "blank" spot... Something i guess is used for a feature i don't have. lol Thanks
nice video, I have a Nissan Sentra 2015. A coin was stuck in the DVD player and after that my back camera goes off and having a lot of noises in the speaker. If i tap on the side of the Stereo the noises disappear and the camera start to working again. Please advise to get is resolved. Thanks
I disconnected my deck from my equaliser and the sound went away. Then I just grounded the body of my equaliser and plugged the deck back in and surpression noise went away. I struggled for a long time to figure this out.
I'm not promoting any certain brand, but I've noticed Alpine systems in particular have very clean sound. I'm unsure if they have superior circuitry. But I've eliminated noise problems with an amplifier just by changing brands
Love your videos they are so so informative. But man I have a problem that is beyond me. I have a dsr-1 integrated into my factory 2014 taurus limited headunit with the correct harness to match. At no volume nothing at 1 volume I have a static that just crackles and will make a literal beep sound "not any louder" but when at high volumes you can pretty much hide it completely. My power and ground are opposite from each other everything is top grade equipment and wiring. Could I email a video? I feel its something so simple that's causing a electronic disturbance sound or something.
hi there, thanks for all the wise car audio info! i am looking to install a 12v studio monitor system in my studio in my ambulance conversion. i need a very characterless amp that will give me a very precise and clear sound through the monitors which will have a flat frequency response. have you ever seen a system like this before? would you advise to go for this approach rather than mini active monitors like most mobile studios have? i wanted to avoid this to avoid the inverter for efficiency reasons. any advice/ reccommendations would be epic thank you!! cheers!
A couple times in my competition systems. I solved one issue by switching from rca to optical and on another system reversed the direction of my stinger 8000 rca cables
76 GMC Sierra. Cheap little amps. I've had the engine noise with this truck since I bought it. Common on these old pick-ups. I am doing what I can to fix it. Update when I get it corrected. BTW...love the videos! I'll be installing a 2-amp setup in my 70 Pontiac soon and hopefully it goes well.
I really think this is most common when upgrading stereo system with amp(s) in older vehicles. I ordered a 4-channel RCA noise filter suppressor (running 2 amps) and after moving ground around from the head unit a bunch if times and the ground from the distribution block a fee times, this instantly corrected my issue. Thanks for this video, sir!!!
Hi! Love your videos! I have a factory Head unit into a Bit DMI into a Bit One DSP which feeds a JL amp for the 4 door speakers & a Sony amp for 2 custom speaker pods. One of the speaker pods is making a whining noise. Shop says it’s because the magnet is too close to some of the car’s other electronics. Is there anything you can think of that I can place between to shield the speaker? The noise drives me so crazy I’m ready to put a slab of lead back there. Help!
I have had noise in the past, one was from the vehicle's electrical system specifically the alternator for whatever reason the alternator was putting out a noise because it was starting to fail so replacing that solved the problem and I also had another issue with the ground wires like you were describing, I had to find the ground wire that was the issue and repair it's connection because it wasn't getting good contact with the metal on the car
I just installed a full system to my stock head unit in my 2016 Canyon. Now my blinkers are LOUD!! and there is a constant buzz tnat does not change with RPMs... just constant. The power line is run away from speaker wire. The ground is in the body under the rear carpet near the amp. Any ideas what else I should check besides what you talk about above? And thanks for ALL the videos...I have learned a lot! ;)
I’m experiencing severe static throughout all of the my speakers in my vehicle. Got worse once I installed an aftermarket amp. I’m down to the final troubleshooting culprit now. The stock antenna! 😮 I hope this solves the issue
Like many others I also have a 'alternator whine' noise after installing my Pioneer head unit. Not too good with all this wiring stuff, but based on your video it seems like I have a bad ground... Does this, or will this affect the life of my alternator if unchanged? Will it damage my head unit or car's stereo system? Wondering if it's just a 'harmless' noise or if a bad ground is something that can cause further damages.
I have had noise before due to poor grounding and after re-grounding I resolved the issue. However currently after this current install of a pioneer mvhs622 digital media device, and the MB Court PS1 316 components and 1-10 inch JL audio sub, I have a whining problem when the engine runs. I have a short ground to the amp. re-grounded the head unit. I even ran brand new high-quality RCA cables to the amp. I guess I’ll have to check the main vehicle ground from the battery next as you suggested.
Well done mate. A lot of people will get a lot of help from this. I myself just bought a new, second hand, car that had aftermarket setup installed. I replaced their head with my Alpine head and replaced the amp with a new pioneer for the sub and I get no noise. Alas the "professionals" who they paid to do the wiring cut the adaptor in the dash and taped the wires back together. It's sad that people pay money for something and can't wait up to a week for the correct adaptor. I enjoy your videos and put them to people who want more than information. Keep up the good work and respect. Peace!
I get distortion in the highs on my Bluetooth adapter when the BT volume is all the way up on my phone. I find that turning the volume down to 75ish% on my phone usually solves the problem. Another thing I've seen in some Fords is popping when changing the source when an aftermarket head unit is installed. Some fords need a couple resistors connected to the factory amp turn on and grounds in a particular way because the factory amp doesn't like a full 12v signal.
@CarAudioFabrication, thank you for all the useful videos. I am about to run electric lines in my van conversion and need to run some power cables near my speaker wire (not signal wire). Does that create noise as well? I assume yes. If so, could I add a shielding wire loom on my speaker wire to help? Thanks!
Hey, thanks for the info! Yes. I have noise in my system and after watching this, I think I know what's wrong! The mounting screws for my amp are not only into to the board on the back of my rear seat, but I actually made sure they went all the way through the board and into the metal in the seat-back. I'll bet that is grounding the amplifier's metal casing. I'll find out soon enough! Thanks again!
I have a question about ground loop isolators. I ran a high level 9-wire cable from my aftermarket head unit to the high level inputs on my 4ch amp. I now have noise. But all of the isolators I've seen have RCA connections - how do I isolate a high level input?? I've already beefed up my ground cable as suggested, and the one on the battery is hefty. Looking for guidance on my next steps. Thanks!
I’m going through this right now. So very frustration. I first added filters on the rca cables. Them I checked the amplifier ground. Then I changed and rerouted the rca cables. Then I added the filters back and grounded them too. You mention the aftermarket HU may need a better ground. That’s the next thing I will try. I had two amps ran through a DSP from the factory HU and all was good, kind of. I then decided to get rid of the factory HU and DPS and go with an Aftermarket HU. Alpine ILX507 to Alpine type R 4x100 amp. So frustrating. I will run a new ground for the HU next and if that doesn’t work I’ll drive it into a lake.
I had some noise yes, what did I do to fix it? Well basically I went back to this video and tried all things you said and now I have no noise:). thank you.
Yeah when I was a kid just learning I’m talking n the 80s I had ground noise but not since until today I’m installing big screen and four Chanel amp and at first it worked fine till next day when back to work on it and now I have little wine engine noise about to go and try ur recommendations I’ll let u no what happens thank y’all
So i ran a ground wire from my battery to my amp, but once it came into my car i ran it in a different route to the amp. Would this cause whine? Also should i run all 3 sets of RCAs along with the ground? Currently they are on the same path as my power wire.
Yep, glad I found this video it's like it was meant for me to find it because I've just got two new amplifiers and mounted them under my driver's seat. I previously had an alpine amplifier under my seat with no issues and the bass amp was in back with the subs. I went with the db drive motorcycle amplifiers which have more power and take up much less space than the other ones but now I've got alternator whining I did re locate the ground connections a few times and it did quiet down a little but the noise is still there. I've grounded both amps to the left rear bolt that holds the seat down it may be a bad spot there but I'll try every thing else mentioned in this video, I have not upgraded my battery ground or engine ground I could always try that as well. The noise isolator device will be my last resort option. If any of you have helpful tips for me please let me know I'm all ears since i'm still somewhat new to this hobby.
yes I had this noise and it was wrong wiring ... the audio wires was passing together with the power cables .... and I solved it by change the audio wires to the other side ... thank you dear
have aftermarket radio about 10 years old caused the factory speaker on one side to go out. started driving truck again and replaced both speakers, during the winter sometimes the left side speaker would have a muffled sound and if above a certain volume would cause speaker to fail. both sides working intermittently after that. each time vehicle was turned back on it was same scenario
I currently have a very loud hiss accompanied by a whine that matches rpm. I have a 2ga big 3, 4 ga power wire, 4 ga ground ran through the body and bolted directly to the frame. I cleaned off all the paint, used a self tapper through the solid copper wire lug, then painted over it afterwards. Im using high quality RCAs, and an RCA noise filter. Still having issuee
I get bad static or whine when I use my dash cam. When I unplug the cigarette lighter power cord it stops. I'm lost. Do I use a ferrite filter or would the isolator you showed work? If I need the isolator, how would I install it? Thanks for your help.
I wish this video was around 10 years ago! I had engine whine coming out of the speakers. It turned out to be the alpine head unit needed a better ground. As well as giving my second battery a better ground through the engine block instead of body ground.
I've found that using the factory ground with an aftermarket radio always ends up producing noise--run a dedicated ground for the head unit and you're good!
Hi, I installed an amp in my car with high level inputs cables directly to the amp (keeping the factory stereo) and I get a lot of static using the radio, CD or aux. I have a ground cable bigger than the power cable. What should I check? The ground cable is bolted really tight.
Another issue could be a popping sound when changing sources on a aftermarket head unit. I have that issue and a very slight whining with the radio at 0 volume. I'm not too worried about the whining because its so faint and cant be heard with music playing
perfect timing as i am having some interference with my new setup. i also have a bump/buzz noise which happens on start up and shut down. i spoke to a Audison rep which had said new fords (and other brands) do a system check which sends power to speaks and make this noise (may i add that the system check can also happen in the middle of the night while your not in the car and in some cases has resolved in the sub/speakers blowing) the solution for this is audison uss4 universal speaker simulator. mines arriving next week and will reply if all go's well.
Before you turn off your Ride.Try Lowering the GAIN on Amp. I have that PROBLEM ASWELL. IT IS ANNOYING AND I HAD IT PROFESSIONALLY INSTALLED & when I put GAIN ☝ UP IT SOUND'S 👍 GOOD. BUT ONCE I PARK & SHUT OFF ENGINE. THAT CRAP CAN SCARE THE HELL OUT OF YOU....
I have a small hiss (I guess that is the best way to describe it) coming from my speakers after installing an amp in two cars (both cars do it). But it happens when the radio is turned off. It’s almost silent but it definitely is there. Is this normal or is something wrong? The amp gain level is, at max, 50 percent. Again- only hear it when the head unit is turned off
my common mistake is running the RCA along with the amp remote wire to turn it on together and it doesn't matter how many noise filters I put on the power for the head unit and the amplifier it's still buzzing, you just save my butt from more embarrassment 😁
installed a kicker key 4 channel amp. I have a low volume hissing noise. The noise has stable volume no matter the radio volume. The noise is still there even with the inputs disconnected and the engine off. My grounds are confirmed good. And my gain is all the way down. Also my amp chassis doesn't touch metal where it is mounted. Is there anything else i can try to remove this sound? It is not very loud but it is there and before the amp install there was no noise.Thanks.
I had a whine every time I turned up my stereo, so I pulled over and told the wife to get out. Problem Solved
😂
😂😂
🤣
Gold!!
😁 Hahah oh no... still married?
I swear this guy explains things in a very simple way step by step
You swear? 😏
He does! 🤘😎🤘
late response but I just got a new JVC aftermarket radio and installed it. I don't have my door speakers or tweeters hooked up to an external amplifier, just the deck. I got it all wired and when I fired the car up, as soon as the radio starts, a loud static/screeching sound plays through my mids and tweets. The tweeters get no music just static, the mids get music and static. I am curious if I should cut the car harness's factory ground wire that is running to the headunit and run a NEW & seperate wire from the headunit to the amplifer's ground? Or should I keep the cars factory harness's ground wire and run a secondary ground wire from the chassis of the headunit to the amplifer? Another question is should i use the radios harness black wire (the ground) to run a new wire to a new ground location or should I just connect it to the radio's chassis and run it to a new ground location? Hard to explain but sounds like I'm riding inside a UFO.
Mark, your final advice on the ground loop isolator was my problem...you helped me in out where my local car audio shop owner told me it was beyond his knowledge...you are the man thank you for being so smart at car audio
Dont they degrade audio quality?
@@emilz85 The one's I tried cut a huge portion of the lows out. Basically a highpass on the source signal. I wrote the manufacturer and they said that's how all the passive ground loop isolators work. I was shocked that so many people thought it was an acceptable solution.
I've been struggling with a whining noise (turbo whine?) after upgrading my car audio system this June. I've narrowed it down to being a bad negative from the battery to the chassis. Thanks, Mark! Your video came just when I needed it 😊
how much more power did you add when the whining noise started? struggling with the same thing but idk what to think. and when I turn off my amp the noise stops.
In my car it was probably from like 1500rpms and up. At higher rpms I couldn't hear the whining over the engine noise
I’m going to be doing “The Big 3” upgrade this weekend and I’m hoping it solves my whine issue. There is slight static in my system when I just have the radio going and when I start the car the whining starts. Hope it works! I’ve tried about everything else…
I've done the Big 3 and whining is still there but when i connect my Rca straight to the amp there's less noise. I suspected I'm getting noise from My crossover and the Equalizer
@@axelkarv4814 you ever got the issue fix? I'm having this issue now
One other important item I learned when tracking down noise in my speakers: Your RCA cable type DOES matter. There's two types: shielded/coaxial and twisted pair. If your amp has Single Ended (SE) inputs, then you should use shielded/coaxial RCAs. If your amp uses Differential Inputs (DI), then you should use twisted pair. My amp used SE inputs, but I was using a twisted pair RCA. Swapping over to a shielded RCA fixed my noise issue.
Symptom I has was a constant, high pitched whine, regardless if car was on or if music was playing. I performed all the tests in this video and everything checked out, so it really came down to either my headunit or my RCAs. It was the RCAs.
Very good to know this. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for sharing. Luckly I have two different RCA cable types running to my amp. Standard for Sub and Twisted for speakers. I'm going to switch them up and see if this fixes it. Gonna come back with the results
Quick question for you since I'm experiencing something similar. I installed a new head unit and a new amp along with two new speakers paired with two existing speakers. The stereo runs fine the amp turns on a few seconds after the stereo there are no issues. Everything plays fine. But when I replaced my headlight from a stock model to an aftermarket LED model, I get a whirring noise.
I believe it's a noise of some sort. As I turn the lights from high and low the wiring noise can change and as I turn the headlights off and leave the DRLs on the noise goes almost away completely. If I disconnect the lights the whirring is gone. I'm not blaming the LEDs yet but I feel like either the wires or putting off some noise next to my RCA cables going into the amplifier or to the wires going to the speakers. Should I try disconnecting one set of wires at a time? Like remove one's RCA at a time and then remove one set of speaker wires at a time to see if one of those is catching the interference? It's very tight in the fairing of these motorcycles. I know what can be done correctly where things are kept separated I'm just not there yet with my installation. Thanks for any help you can offer
I've used many different types of GLI's and coming from an electrical background I can say that there is only one true fix for the major of times this issue exists. Having a nice and healthy ground to return your power flow, (though not all the time), is usually the fix for these. A quick and reliable fix is the chassis ground that is manufactured on the aftermarket unit itself. This grounding point is underrated and underused, but is a little bit a gold nugget!
Keep up the great work Mark!
Appreciate the video man, less than 10 minutes and had my speakers sounding brand new. Keep the videos coming
Drove 600 KMs home from my son's place. Couldn't get my stereo to go properly. Now I know why. Thanks heaps. Subscribed.
The most difficult noise issue I've ever dealt with was a popping sound when turning off my stereo. I don't use the speaker outputs from my head unit so I knew it was coming from the amps. I initially believed it was ground related and tried multiple attempts at improving ground connections to no avail. I even swapped out my RCA cables which fixed nothing. In the end the cause was my headrest monitors which were powered on by the remote turn on from my head unit. Electrical issues can be such a pain to deal with. If you're persistent you can get through it.
Use a relay to power headrest monitors never use remote turn for anything more than turning on 2-3 amps , if you have this problem other wise properly use a relay or capacitor inline with the remote wire .
I know this is a five year old video at the time of my comment but this guy nailed my issue to the T. I ran down my issue by least invasive to the most complex. First step check gains and what do you know, that was the issue. No noise and speaker talking loud and bass booming. Thanks bro!
ANC Mics will also cause whining or a "robotic buzz" when listening. Ambient Noise-canceling microphones(ANC Mics) are designed to get rid of any noises that the factory head unit and ANC unit deem not part of the stereo output in order to make the ride seem a lot quieter than it really is. It sends the "opposite" sound out in order to cancel out any unaccounted noises. So if you install subs or a multichannel amp to add extra sound, your ANC system is going to try an cancel it out unless disconnected. Most of the time you can find the ANC module and just unplug it or else you have to cut the mic wires(and I don't recommend it if you don't have to, those things are expensive to replace). A lot of newer(let's say after 2013) might have this, new hondas, certain GMs, etc.
Dude! You’re speaking to me. That whiny noise when I accelerate… I had my subwoofer/amp and aftermarket radio installed by a so called professional audio store. It’s very frustrating having those weird noises because they didn’t tune my system correctly like you said.
I didn’t get a box and had my subwoofer mounted in the factory ‘hole’ behind my back seat since my car was a base model with no subwoofer but has a built in hole with a plastic cover. I also think the amp is mounted on the frame with metal cover it came with. Everything you’ve talked about in the video is exactly what’s happening.
You've taught me so much! Installed my first amp with ease from watching your vids! Thanks
Something that may be helpful to others to note. If you are using a cheap passive (non powered) line out converter off of your factory radio and you install it directly behind the factory radio you may be getting a lot of noise there as well. There are a lot of electrical components going on back there and you can test this just by moving the loc around with the vehicle on and powered up. If your stubborn on using one of these cheaper loc's, you may benefit by extending the speaker wire your tapping into and getting the loc gar away from the back of the factory radio to underneath the glove box compartment for example but not as far as the kick panel because you will generally have huge looms of factory wiring there that can interfere with your signal as well
My converter is in the trunk of my car I'm hearing the power steering and the engine
late response but I just got a new JVC aftermarket radio and installed it. I don't have my door speakers or tweeters hooked up to an external amplifier, just the deck. I got it all wired and when I fired the car up, as soon as the radio starts, a loud static/screeching sound plays through my mids and tweets. The tweeters get no music just static, the mids get music and static. I am curious if I should cut the car harness's factory ground wire that is running to the headunit and run a NEW & seperate wire from the headunit to the amplifer's ground? Or should I keep the cars factory harness's ground wire and run a secondary ground wire from the chassis of the headunit to the amplifer? Another question is should i use the radios harness black wire (the ground) to run a new wire to a new ground location or should I just connect it to the radio's chassis and run it to a new ground location? Hard to explain but sounds like I'm riding inside a UFO.
I don't have a car stereo, in fact I don't have a car. I don't know how I ended up watching this video..
Lmaooo this made me laugh
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
😆
Lucky you!!! You are not spending money!!!
i pray for you
I don’t think you mentioned this, I was dealing with alternator/buzz/whine noises for awhile, but my noises were intermittent, sometimes they would disappear over bumps. Looked into everything. What it ended up being was the ends of the RCA cables that plug into the headunit, were touching the body of the car, introducing noise. Probably my fault for not organizing the wires nicely behind the headunit. Just wrapped the ends with tesa and 0 noise, that was driving me nuts lol
What do you mean where touching the body of the car ? Can you explain a little so I can know what to look for in case this is my issue
@@valentinaandrea5732 just put tape around the metal barrel of rcas then you don't have to worry,
Holy crap I was dealing with the whine issue for months and must’ve done everything I could’ve imagined to fix it. Read this comment, realize I didn’t try this, facepalmed, and tried it. Worked like a charm. I can’t thank you enough for this! This has changed my life
@@evanmcardle3618 Happy to help! It’s something I stumbled upon accidentally actually, I’ve done a lot of research and nobody seemed to have mentioned it.
I'll have to check this out
Very faint buzz… put new JL tweeters in my Colorado. Had very slight buzz . when asking friends if they heard it some couldn’t. The passenger side was quiet. After trouble shooting I discovered that if I took the crossover out of behind the dashboard. It solved the problem! Thanks for the video.
THIS VIDEO WAS NEEDED!
Yes, once. No matter what I did I could not remove it until I got a RCA ground loop isolator. This was back in 1989 in a 76 Vega. I think I bought the thing at Radio Shack.
I bought Radio Shack RCA’s back in the early 90’s. Heavy duty, gold plated with noise suppression. I’m glad I hung on to them and eventually found them. My alternator whine is gone and signal to my sub amp is fully restored without a ground loop isolator. I used Kicker RCA’s for my Alpine 6 1/2’s on an MTX Thunder 2 channel, and Radio Shack RCA’s with a small terminating RCA by Monster cable on my Skar 2000.1d feeding 3 DB drive 10’s. Just remember to do what this guy says and keep your RCA and power cables on opposite sides of the vehicle. And use really good RCA cables. This is where a lot of people mess up when doing their own installs.
I actually went a different way with this. I had very bad noise when I installed a bluetooth audio receiver, but instead of using the filter I build an induction power module out of a phone induction charger building kit and a stepdown voltage regulator and i put everything in a 3d printer case. It severed the ground in the power input instead of the audio line so no ground loop, no noise and no reduction in sound quality whatsoever.
Dealing with hiss right now.
Going to install wire ferrules tomorrow on everything.
I know I know, should have done that in the first place. 💀
Your videos are the best man.
Every video with knowledge is appreciated greatly.
Its not just the quality of RCA but type and matching them with the type of signal input you amps and output from your componnents are built upon. If your head unit uses unbalanced (many do) and your amp has balanced inputs. (About 85% of amps use unbalanced generally higher end amps use balanced) look into audio control as i think eveything they make has the ability to change from balanced to unbalanced output with internal jumper.
1. Balanced input is where the shield of the input is isolated from the negative power input or the metal chassis of the amp. These setups youll want to use twisted pair RCA
2. Unbalanced input is where the shield of the RCA is NOT isolated and shows continituity with the negative power input and metal chassis of the amp. These setups use a coaxial style RCA.
this is nonsense, RCA are always unbalanced. go read what balanced means
@@chipirriti maybe you should. Balanced is short for balanced-differential. Unbalanced is just a name for single-ended or ground-referenced inputs. I didn’t make up the terminology I just know the facts. Do your research
I literally just finished installing new door speakers running on an amp. My left front speaker would hiss drastically after the head unit booted up. I swapped RCAs front to rear, and the hiss was still there indicating it's in the speaker wire post amp. I then took my panels off again and got the speaker wire a good 8 inches from the 12v for the amps. This fixed it for me in my vehicle.... I knew I was going to have issues with running power down the sides instead of under the middle.
I just wanted to thank you very much for your informative videos. I decided that my 11 Caddy speakers were dying and needed to be replaced. I didn't realize that meant an avalanche of problems doing so. First the new tweeter blew, then the Metra conversion box blew 3 TIMES and then the amp went to hell. After I figured everything out, I had a terrrible hissing sound. I watched your videos on solving it and not only did the hissing go away but the sound improved. Thanks a lot for doing them.
hmm, I watched the video just now too, and the hissing didn't go away. wonder why that worked for you.
Ahh, the infamous ground issue in aftermarket stereos. Great points sir. Need to check mine, using fm Bluetooth to stock radio for my phone. Powered by the cig lighter- getting feedback from my cars stock electrical system. Will be checking ground on radio, and moving ground on cig lighter for better isolation.
20 years ago, I installed my first system and had no idea what I was doing. loomed the power, ground and cheap signal RCA leads from the head unit to the amp... needless to say I had all kinds of funky noise going on :)
What did u do to fix it?
Few months ago I did the same thing and full sent it and all kinds of noises going on haha
Awesome! I’ve recently installed an aftermarket head unit and all was well before the install, but now I definitely have a very noticeable whine and hiss. I’ll try doing a proper ground instead of using the existing harness ground and see how that goes.
Did you fix it with a new ground connection? I'm currently trying to figure it out with my new headunit as well and really don't want to have to ship it back to China.
@@sssnake2332 ever figure it out?
I love comments saying "I'm gonna try this and that" and then they proceed to do it and completely forget to post the solution, cuz now their issues are gone 😢
I had noise and absolutely everything checked out perfectly. Turns out it was the head unit itself that was causing it. New unit no noise. It's worth keeping a known good hu on hand for testing.
@@michaelmcginnis3552 what was the vehicle
so did you ground the HU better? did that fix it if you did that? thanks
Great video buddy, easy to understand and you use simple language. Great help! Thanks!
I've tried a ground loop isolator once but removed it later because some of the frequencies were attenuated too much.
i just want to say thank you for fully explained all of the possibility of the noise made from.
I always run a ground wire with the rca's and turn on wire to ground the radio at the same place as the amplifiers. Avoids a potential ground loop there too.
For clarity, this would be cutting the HU harness ground, splice to new wire and run to the aftermarket amplifier ground?
@@Matt-rq6wz yes
@@todderickson9436 thx man. I completed that this afternoon. Unfortunately, I’m using two stereo Kicker LOCs off an Android head unit (TS10) and still have alt whine though better than before. I’ve 100% isolated the issue to the LOCs. I’ve grounded everything to the same location. Really don’t want to patch the issue but I’m considering ordering the RCA inline isolators because I’m out of ideas.
@@Matt-rq6wz unfortunately system noise can be difficult to trouble shoot... usually it's process of elimination to find the problem. Good luck
i remember having a whining noise in the back passenger side of an 1999 audi a4, idk why it started, but it would get louder with acceleration, and wasn't present if the key was only in auxiliary, i have no experience troubleshooting so i just unplugged that speaker and started reading and watching.. this video had some good info
I’ve had my speakers in for 6 months they were fine when I first installed them but now they buzz at low volume when the bass hits, once I turn it up fairly loud it goes away. It’s really frustrating
If it’s just when the bass hits your may want to check that they’re still fastened well to their baffles, and if they are perhaps put some weather strip under the contact points between the metal skin of your door and the interior plastic. Good luck with the issue!
I've only had an issue with noise in ONE vehicle over the years, and after checking every possible thing I could, the noise was still there! It was in a 2001 Honda Civic LX. I had installed a nice Kenwood head unit powering 4 of Clarion's best full range speakers. No noise. Later, I installed a Boston 4-channel amp under the front passenger seat. No noise. About 6 months later, I started hearing a distinct whine. I didn't increase with engine speed, so that was a good thing. I checked every ground, every cable, every speaker wire, everything! I could NOT find the cause of the noise, so I just lived with it. If I turned up the volume I couldn't hear it anyway. LOL! Well, one day I decided to update my head unit to a nice Apline. Not because the Kenwood wasn't doing what I wanted it to (this was probably my 5th or 6th Kenwood), but some of the buttons were too hard to read in the dark. Anyway, the exact moment I hit the power button on the new Alpine, I noticed something: the whine was GONE! Yep, apparently it was the head unit! Not sure why, no idea what, but the whine was caused by the deck. New head unit, no more noise! This was the hardest noise I've ever had to deal with and it taught me one thing; all that noise you hear is not always related to grounds or cable quality or other stuff, it CAN be a defective head unit apparently. BTW, that was my LAST Kenwood head unit. LOL!
Did you have the whine with the car running and not running? My faint whine is only when the truck is running and doesn’t increase with rpm either.
I turned my car off but i left my stereo on and I volume out with out any music and that's a weird noise come out from the speakers
Same
i have the same problem
I dont have the same problem
Anyone find how to fix it lol
Thanks for explaining i recently bought one of those screens that connects to the current radio stereo and the whining and static noise drove me crazy while its connected via aux, i switched and connected them via FM and both issued went away, at least now i know why i can hear it more when am accelerating!
What about when you’re connected via Bluetooth and hear a hiss or whine
Experiencing the same thing, planning to disassemble my head unit in order to check if the bluetooth adaptor is integrated or ir can be replaced. If possible I m planning to add a ground loop on the adapter.
@@moro4617 how did it go?
I've just looked online for a usb ground loop isolator and found a couple because for me the whine noise only happens when I've got my Bluetooth on and my usb plugged in to charge my phone
Thank you!!! You explained it exactly how I would .. and another thing that people don’t offer as a solution is adding a ground to the Aftermarket HU. That is something I do during my installations, extra security.. I love it..
where is the link
Sweet! Awesome knowledge to go with my Coffee. You are always Awesome.
You saved me nerves man! Had a shhhh noise from LF speaker/twitter after new setup tunupat the Sound shop.
I have done shilding of my speaker wires with foil on the left side of the car. And wires under the hood too. All car insulated with foam/foil sheets. No wires tuched a metal. No luck. Than I replaced my Negative to chassis terminal wire as you said in the video ... and WOOALA. No noise. ***.
I have static (RMI) after going aftermarket- Hifonics, Soundstream, Audio Control/ Epicenter w a stock head unit in my Tacoma. A lot of "Dos & Don'ts" during installation that I've forgotten. Nowadays, I have old man symptoms. I got my MECP Installer certification in 1990 when I was 20. Thanks for the refresher video!!!
I have a static noise coming through my speakers and my stereo is stock so i used an rca converter and ive tried disconnecting the rca cables but the static is still thrre im not sure how to resolve this
Back in the day. Rca side by side with the power. Alternator whine.
Dirty ground. Learned I need to clean it to bare metal. The common let's hook up a amp in here. We're going to make this home speakers really thump lol. That poor Majestic amp really took a beating. 😂
My first amp was a 75Wrms×2 Majestic on two Kicker Comp 12s way back in '87. Underpowered, but still hit pretty hard.
Another great video Mark! Great info on problematic components with fixes! This is always a good thing! Keep it up!👍🏻😊
L I'll be home
Ll
Lmk l l
Thanks man. Been watching you for a while now. This really helps my min be at ease. Time to go down the list. Keep up the great work!
Love all the videos and all the builds
Thanks for watching
Dude ground loop you nailed it. Thank you so much.
Working on fixing this.
Using my aux cable
I’m not 100% sure on this but I feel like I may be getting some sort of ground loop with my pioneer’s car play
Same i can here it
Same. I have a pioneer on my 2002 mustang and I here a loud winning noise that changes when I accelerate and decelerate
dude you the man , i did 4 out of the 5 or so wrong ' but you lined me out in under 5 minutes . thanks and im hooked on ya and subscribed .
I don't have any noise because my mtx subwoofer are blown
I have an issue I'm currently working on. Upgraded the head unit, added 3 amps and a DSP. Once all put together I got this weird buzzing noise that went up and down with the ending revs. So I used a Ground loop isolator on my Ipod and it fixed the alternator wine but I now have this weird rhythmic ticking noice. I put a power filter on the DSP but it was still there. I test ran an RCA cable from the head unit directly to the DSP (avoiding any other electrics) and its still there.
I'm going to add another noise Isolator to the Head unit and see if that makes any difference.
Will keep you posted
I've been having a static issue for almost a year. Can I hire you to help get to the bottom of it? I feel like I've tried everything but haven't figured it out yet
Get the pac noise filter. If you need the link let me know
I had a pretty bad noise in my avalanche and I stripped down a remote wire, wrapped it around all of the rca ports on the radio and secured the ends under a screw on the radio. "grounding the RCA's" so to speak. Now I do it as a precaution on every system I install and don't have problems.
Yeah when I plug in my phone charger and use the auxiliary I get some noise
How I fix this problem is by using a power bank
That's the cheapest way to solve the issue. Have you tried charging powerbank, while also using it
Try a ground loop isloator, they are like 10 bucks and have worked for me in multiple cars and multiple phones
@@kivitropikal6755 ahh I don't remember i think that might work but certainly depends on what powerbank you use
I daily a 20000 milliamp powerbank which lasts me for 2 or more days with my use
So I charge it wen I'm going to bead
@@edison700 yeah or a DC to DC converter works too
Always had alternator whine and dtatic hiss in the tweeters during acceleration. I later traced it all back to being inadequate grounding. Ill say that 95% of problems in a system come from either your grounding locations/installation or even less consodered being your remote turn on wire! My remote wire destroyed 3 amps but always showed 12V to the amp and i never even suspected the gmremote wire as i was hunting and redoing ground after ground to fix the issue. CHECK SIGNAL WIRE FROM THE HEAD UNIT ON STOCK SYSTEMS! They will go bad and arc or send a ridiculous surge during installation if your grounds are not on point! I wish i had known sooner!
When it’s cold my bass starts buzzing. Do I need to get new stereos ?
how cold? does the whine go away after a little while of running the speakers?
Im using an aftermarket headunit in my 2000 silverado. Its been perfectly fine for 15 years. I recently added a 3.5mm headphone jack to the AUX input, and connected a small $10 Bluetooth adapter from Amazon... It was cheap, but has 4.5-5 star reviews from everyone, and they all said the sound quality was great... I'm getting a whine that gets louder as the engine revs.. Im sure its RF interference from the ignition coils, but i'm not sure how to isolate it... And just to add, my 3.5mm to AV cable is only 1ft long.. it was just long enough to make the connection, and allow me to mount it right under the air vent, in a factory "blank" spot... Something i guess is used for a feature i don't have. lol Thanks
Who else is listening to this through their staticy speakers
Thanks for the info, Mark! I will get this fixed now! :)
What if my amp has noise with RCAs unplugged?
good question. something im troubleshooting now
Probably something broken in the amplifier or a bad ground.
nice video, I have a Nissan Sentra 2015. A coin was stuck in the DVD player and after that my back camera goes off and having a lot of noises in the speaker. If i tap on the side of the Stereo the noises disappear and the camera start to working again.
Please advise to get is resolved.
Thanks
I never had whining noise until I installed my equalizer and I still cant find out how to fix it
Shane Severance This just happened to me.If you’ve found a way to fix it let me know brother.
I disconnected my deck from my equaliser and the sound went away. Then I just grounded the body of my equaliser and plugged the deck back in and surpression noise went away. I struggled for a long time to figure this out.
Thanks for the video. I guess a malfinctioning speaker or a missing speaker/subwoofer would also cause similar problems ? tnx
I get a whining noise when my girlfriends in the car.
This is genius well done sir 👍
Get a cooler car🤣🤣🤣
Someone already made that joke and it was way better
Michelle pissing on the bonfire
@@dabreadwinna80 The other one was just better, don't cry about it
I'm not promoting any certain brand, but I've noticed Alpine systems in particular have very clean sound. I'm unsure if they have superior circuitry. But I've eliminated noise problems with an amplifier just by changing brands
Love your videos they are so so informative. But man I have a problem that is beyond me. I have a dsr-1 integrated into my factory 2014 taurus limited headunit with the correct harness to match. At no volume nothing at 1 volume I have a static that just crackles and will make a literal beep sound "not any louder" but when at high volumes you can pretty much hide it completely. My power and ground are opposite from each other everything is top grade equipment and wiring. Could I email a video? I feel its something so simple that's causing a electronic disturbance sound or something.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, it will help a lot most of us diy mods.
hi there, thanks for all the wise car audio info!
i am looking to install a 12v studio monitor system in my studio in my ambulance conversion.
i need a very characterless amp that will give me a very precise and clear sound through the monitors which will have a flat frequency response.
have you ever seen a system like this before? would you advise to go for this approach rather than mini active monitors like most mobile studios have? i wanted to avoid this to avoid the inverter for efficiency reasons.
any advice/ reccommendations would be epic thank you!! cheers!
A couple times in my competition systems. I solved one issue by switching from rca to optical and on another system reversed the direction of my stinger 8000 rca cables
76 GMC Sierra. Cheap little amps. I've had the engine noise with this truck since I bought it. Common on these old pick-ups. I am doing what I can to fix it. Update when I get it corrected. BTW...love the videos! I'll be installing a 2-amp setup in my 70 Pontiac soon and hopefully it goes well.
I really think this is most common when upgrading stereo system with amp(s) in older vehicles. I ordered a 4-channel RCA noise filter suppressor (running 2 amps) and after moving ground around from the head unit a bunch if times and the ground from the distribution block a fee times, this instantly corrected my issue. Thanks for this video, sir!!!
Hi! Love your videos! I have a factory Head unit into a Bit DMI into a Bit One DSP which feeds a JL amp for the 4 door speakers & a Sony amp for 2 custom speaker pods. One of the speaker pods is making a whining noise. Shop says it’s because the magnet is too close to some of the car’s other electronics. Is there anything you can think of that I can place between to shield the speaker? The noise drives me so crazy I’m ready to put a slab of lead back there. Help!
I have had noise in the past, one was from the vehicle's electrical system specifically the alternator for whatever reason the alternator was putting out a noise because it was starting to fail so replacing that solved the problem and I also had another issue with the ground wires like you were describing, I had to find the ground wire that was the issue and repair it's connection because it wasn't getting good contact with the metal on the car
I just installed a full system to my stock head unit in my 2016 Canyon. Now my blinkers are LOUD!! and there is a constant buzz tnat does not change with RPMs... just constant. The power line is run away from speaker wire. The ground is in the body under the rear carpet near the amp. Any ideas what else I should check besides what you talk about above? And thanks for ALL the videos...I have learned a lot! ;)
I’m experiencing severe static throughout all of the my speakers in my vehicle. Got worse once I installed an aftermarket amp.
I’m down to the final troubleshooting culprit now. The stock antenna! 😮 I hope this solves the issue
Like many others I also have a 'alternator whine' noise after installing my Pioneer head unit. Not too good with all this wiring stuff, but based on your video it seems like I have a bad ground... Does this, or will this affect the life of my alternator if unchanged? Will it damage my head unit or car's stereo system? Wondering if it's just a 'harmless' noise or if a bad ground is something that can cause further damages.
I have had noise before due to poor grounding and after re-grounding I resolved the issue. However currently after this current install of a pioneer mvhs622 digital media device, and the MB Court PS1 316 components and 1-10 inch JL audio sub, I have a whining problem when the engine runs. I have a short ground to the amp. re-grounded the head unit. I even ran brand new high-quality RCA cables to the amp. I guess I’ll have to check the main vehicle ground from the battery next as you suggested.
Well done mate. A lot of people will get a lot of help from this.
I myself just bought a new, second hand, car that had aftermarket setup installed. I replaced their head with my Alpine head and replaced the amp with a new pioneer for the sub and I get no noise.
Alas the "professionals" who they paid to do the wiring cut the adaptor in the dash and taped the wires back together. It's sad that people pay money for something and can't wait up to a week for the correct adaptor.
I enjoy your videos and put them to people who want more than information. Keep up the good work and respect. Peace!
I get distortion in the highs on my Bluetooth adapter when the BT volume is all the way up on my phone. I find that turning the volume down to 75ish% on my phone usually solves the problem. Another thing I've seen in some Fords is popping when changing the source when an aftermarket head unit is installed. Some fords need a couple resistors connected to the factory amp turn on and grounds in a particular way because the factory amp doesn't like a full 12v signal.
@CarAudioFabrication, thank you for all the useful videos. I am about to run electric lines in my van conversion and need to run some power cables near my speaker wire (not signal wire). Does that create noise as well? I assume yes. If so, could I add a shielding wire loom on my speaker wire to help? Thanks!
Hey, thanks for the info!
Yes. I have noise in my system and after watching this, I think I know what's wrong!
The mounting screws for my amp are not only into to the board on the back of my rear seat, but I actually made sure they went all the way through the board and into the metal in the seat-back. I'll bet that is grounding the amplifier's metal casing. I'll find out soon enough!
Thanks again!
Me too
I have a question about ground loop isolators. I ran a high level 9-wire cable from my aftermarket head unit to the high level inputs on my 4ch amp. I now have noise.
But all of the isolators I've seen have RCA connections - how do I isolate a high level input?? I've already beefed up my ground cable as suggested, and the one on the battery is hefty. Looking for guidance on my next steps. Thanks!
I’m going through this right now. So very frustration.
I first added filters on the rca cables.
Them I checked the amplifier ground.
Then I changed and rerouted the rca cables.
Then I added the filters back and grounded them too.
You mention the aftermarket HU may need a better ground. That’s the next thing I will try.
I had two amps ran through a DSP from the factory HU and all was good, kind of. I then decided to get rid of the factory HU and DPS and go with an Aftermarket HU. Alpine ILX507 to Alpine type R 4x100 amp.
So frustrating.
I will run a new ground for the HU next and if that doesn’t work I’ll drive it into a lake.
I had some noise yes, what did I do to fix it? Well basically I went back to this video and tried all things you said and now I have no noise:). thank you.
Yeah when I was a kid just learning I’m talking n the 80s I had ground noise but not since until today I’m installing big screen and four Chanel amp and at first it worked fine till next day when back to work on it and now I have little wine engine noise about to go and try ur recommendations I’ll let u no what happens thank y’all
So i ran a ground wire from my battery to my amp, but once it came into my car i ran it in a different route to the amp. Would this cause whine? Also should i run all 3 sets of RCAs along with the ground? Currently they are on the same path as my power wire.
Yep, glad I found this video it's like it was meant for me to find it because I've just got two new amplifiers and mounted them under my driver's seat. I previously had an alpine amplifier under my seat with no issues and the bass amp was in back with the subs. I went with the db drive motorcycle amplifiers which have more power and take up much less space than the other ones but now I've got alternator whining I did re locate the ground connections a few times and it did quiet down a little but the noise is still there. I've grounded both amps to the left rear bolt that holds the seat down it may be a bad spot there but I'll try every thing else mentioned in this video, I have not upgraded my battery ground or engine ground I could always try that as well. The noise isolator device will be my last resort option. If any of you have helpful tips for me please let me know I'm all ears since i'm still somewhat new to this hobby.
I had a headache before, your vids. 💯👍
I got one after, the vids
yes I had this noise and it was wrong wiring ... the audio wires was passing together with the power cables .... and I solved it by change the audio wires to the other side ... thank you dear
You're ground video didn't actually show up in the corner can you possibly post a link here? It would be much appreciated!
have aftermarket radio about 10 years old caused the factory speaker on one side to go out. started driving truck again and replaced both speakers, during the winter sometimes the left side speaker would have a muffled sound and if above a certain volume would cause speaker to fail. both sides working intermittently after that. each time vehicle was turned back on it was same scenario
I currently have a very loud hiss accompanied by a whine that matches rpm. I have a 2ga big 3, 4 ga power wire, 4 ga ground ran through the body and bolted directly to the frame. I cleaned off all the paint, used a self tapper through the solid copper wire lug, then painted over it afterwards. Im using high quality RCAs, and an RCA noise filter. Still having issuee
I get bad static or whine when I use my dash cam. When I unplug the cigarette lighter power cord it stops. I'm lost. Do I use a ferrite filter or would the isolator you showed work? If I need the isolator, how would I install it? Thanks for your help.
I wish this video was around 10 years ago! I had engine whine coming out of the speakers. It turned out to be the alpine head unit needed a better ground. As well as giving my second battery a better ground through the engine block instead of body ground.
I've found that using the factory ground with an aftermarket radio always ends up producing noise--run a dedicated ground for the head unit and you're good!
Hi, I installed an amp in my car with high level inputs cables directly to the amp (keeping the factory stereo) and I get a lot of static using the radio, CD or aux. I have a ground cable bigger than the power cable. What should I check? The ground cable is bolted really tight.
Another issue could be a popping sound when changing sources on a aftermarket head unit. I have that issue and a very slight whining with the radio at 0 volume. I'm not too worried about the whining because its so faint and cant be heard with music playing
perfect timing as i am having some interference with my new setup. i also have a bump/buzz noise which happens on start up and shut down. i spoke to a Audison rep which had said new fords (and other brands) do a system check which sends power to speaks and make this noise (may i add that the system check can also happen in the middle of the night while your not in the car and in some cases has resolved in the sub/speakers blowing) the solution for this is audison uss4 universal speaker simulator. mines arriving next week and will reply if all go's well.
Before you turn off your Ride.Try Lowering the GAIN on Amp. I have that PROBLEM ASWELL. IT IS ANNOYING AND I HAD IT PROFESSIONALLY INSTALLED & when I put GAIN ☝ UP IT SOUND'S 👍 GOOD. BUT ONCE I PARK & SHUT OFF ENGINE. THAT CRAP CAN SCARE THE HELL OUT OF YOU....
You didn't reply did it work
I have a small hiss (I guess that is the best way to describe it) coming from my speakers after installing an amp in two cars (both cars do it). But it happens when the radio is turned off. It’s almost silent but it definitely is there. Is this normal or is something wrong? The amp gain level is, at max, 50 percent. Again- only hear it when the head unit is turned off
my common mistake is running the RCA along with the amp remote wire to turn it on together and it doesn't matter how many noise filters I put on the power for the head unit and the amplifier it's still buzzing, you just save my butt from more embarrassment 😁
installed a kicker key 4 channel amp. I have a low volume hissing noise. The noise has stable volume no matter the radio volume. The noise is still there even with the inputs disconnected and the engine off. My grounds are confirmed good. And my gain is all the way down. Also my amp chassis doesn't touch metal where it is mounted. Is there anything else i can try to remove this sound? It is not very loud but it is there and before the amp install there was no noise.Thanks.
@@kapazo13 I have the same amp and same issue.