Question about amp

by **kgzero1** » Mon Nov 14, 2005 12:45 pm

Ok, so I searched and did not really find an answer for this. Note, that I know very little about car audio.

I got an amp installed in my car on Friday, and I just noticed yesterday that I get engine noise when my stereo is on. I am able to drown out the noise by turning up the volume, but what I would like to know is if this is normal. If not, how do I get rid of it.
The noise seems to be coming from the driver side tweeter, and I get some very low soudning static in the rear speakers.

I have stock tweeters and front speakers. I have Inifinity Kappa 693.7i's in the rear, in case you were wondering.

by **theprodigy79** » Mon Nov 14, 2005 1:19 pm

Sounds like a grounding issue... Make sure that you are using quality power and ground wires, and that your ground makes a clean connection to bare metal on the chassis (scrape off all paint and sand it a little to scuff the metal around the grounding site). I am also going to jump to the assumption that you are using your factory headunit... which, in turn, would lead me to believe that you are using a line-level converter... This is a very nasty / inefficient way of doing things (they sometimes add their own bit of noise), and I've also seen many of these converters go bad... if you are still having problems after you check your grounding, try another LLC...

Good luck,

-James

by **kgzero1** » Mon Nov 14, 2005 2:00 pm

Thanks for the help. Do you mean the ground for the amp?
Actually, I don't have a stock HU. I have the Pioneer DEH-P7700MP.

by **theprodigy79** » Mon Nov 14, 2005 2:38 pm

That's definitely good to hear (always better to go aftermarket, and it helps to narrow your problem as well). Yes, check out the ground for your amp... Make sure it has a clean contact with bare metal directly on your chassis. If this doesn't fix your problem, let me know and we'll examine it further (I'm 90% sure that's what it is though).

-James

by **kgzero1** » Mon Nov 14, 2005 6:24 pm

Cool, thanks. I really appreciate it. I will let you know after I check it. I probably won't check it until this weekend. I have a very busy week ahead of me.

by **joebxr** » Mon Nov 14, 2005 6:56 pm

James is right on with his diagnosis. I've installed a bunch of car audio, and the ground is just as important as the hot wire. Another thing I've found is that is usually is best to run a discreet ground for the amp and not tie it into any other ground wire or source. Good luck.

by **kgzero1** » Tue Nov 15, 2005 8:40 am

Interseting, so how would I get a dedicated ground only for the amp?

Thanks to the both of you.

by **joebxr** » Tue Nov 15, 2005 9:19 am

kgzero1 wrote:Interseting, so how would I get a dedicated ground only for the amp?

Thanks to the both of you.

By dedicated, I mean not to tie it into another ground wire (like the HU ground wire). Many times this is ok, but some amps seem to be more prone to hummm using common ground point. So run the amp ground wire to a separate place on the chassis. Be sure that wherever you attach it to, that there is no paint at the points where the screw clamps the ring terminal and touches the frame (scrape it with wire brush, emory cloth, etc.). It also doesn't hurt to add a external tooth lockwasher between the ring terminal and the chassis.

Please let us know if this fixes your problem.

by **kgzero1** » Tue Nov 15, 2005 12:18 pm

Cool, I'll try that. I have wiring diagrams showing differenct ground points on the car.

by **kgzero1** » Fri Nov 18, 2005 6:34 pm

Well, I tried what you guys suggested, and it didn't work. So I started messing with the amp and lowered the gain, and guess what, the noise decreased as I decreased the gain. I left it at a point where the noise is barely audible, but my bass isn't as heavy. Oh well, I rather have no noise. Thanks guys.

by **kgzero1** » Fri Nov 18, 2005 6:34 pm

Well, I tried what you guys suggested, and it didn't work. So I started messing with the amp and lowered the gain, and guess what, the noise decreased as I decreased the gain. I left it at a point where the noise is barely audible, but my bass isn't as heavy. Oh well, I rather have no noise. Thanks guys.

by **kgzero1** » Fri Nov 18, 2005 6:37 pm

Well, I tried what you guys suggested, and it didn't work. So I started messing with the amp and lowered the gain, and guess what, the noise decreased as I decreased the gain. I left it at a point where the noise is barely audible, but my bass isn't as heavy. Oh well, I rather have no noise. Thanks guys.

by **theprodigy79** » Sat Nov 19, 2005 12:46 am

That's weird bro... could be several other factors (RCAs, radio output, radio ground, wire quality, etc...) At least you got rid of the noise though... If it comes back make sure to post again and we'll figure something out...

by **joebxr** » Sat Nov 19, 2005 3:46 am

Did you check the HU ground? Also, is the amp hot lead connected to your fuse box or did you run it to the battery?

by **kgzero1** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 1:10 am

Well, I am guessing it is running off the battery, since there is this big wire connected to one of the terminals. Is this the correct way to have it?
Also, my friend mentioned somthing about a engine noise filter, what the hell is that and would it work?

Sorry about posting my last post three times, I kept getting some errros screen everytime I tried to post, something about debugging errors.

Question about amp

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