Alternator/Speaker Whine

Fabian12

CarAudio.com Recruit
I apologize if there is already an open thread on this topic, but I am having no luck.

System: Js 330a alternator, taramps 8000.1 (being ran at 2ohm so roughly 5k rms), Rockford Fosgate R2-500x4, PRVA 2.4x DSP, 3 Napa Legend AGM 100ah batteries, dual Sundown X12v3s, Kenwood Excelon Double Din, 4 DS18 6.5s.

Vehicle: 2008 Honda Civic 1.8L

Big 3 and all power and grounds are 2/0 welding cable with common ground to chassis

Issue: I recently developed a severe speaker whine when accelerating. The issue is also present at idle, and gets louder with the volume knob. Issue is not present when just ignition is on, only when the engine is running. Ive assumed its a ground loop related to the alternator, but dont have much experience troubleshooting this type of issue.

I've checked all my grounds, and all are tight, on bare metal, and bolted to vehicle chassis, 1 battery is under the hood (Grounded to chassis). and my other 2 are in the rear grounded to a very thick bolt separating my trunk and rear seats. Both of my amps and dsp are grounded to one of the batteries in the rear. I have also tried a new dsp and the issue persisted.

RCAs are ran separately from the main power wire, and I have tried multiple sets of high quality rcas. Does anyone have any testing/troubleshooting insight on how to figure out exactly where this issue lies and how to fix it?

Edit: and I have changed nothing on this build in the last 6 months, and the problem has just randomly started occurring, and has gotten slightly worse over the last week or 2
 
Last edited:
I apologize if there is already an open thread on this topic, but I am having no luck.

System: Js 330a alternator, taramps 8000.1 (being ran at 2ohm so roughly 5k rms), Rockford Fosgate R2-500x4, PRVA 2.4x DSP, 3 Napa Legend AGM 100ah batteries, dual Sundown X12v3s, Kenwood Excelon Double Din, 4 DS18 6.5s.

Vehicle: 2008 Honda Civic 1.8L

Big 3 and all power and grounds are 2/0 welding cable with common ground to chassis

Issue: I recently developed a severe speaker whine when accelerating. The issue is also present at idle, and gets louder with the volume knob. Issue is not present when just ignition is on, only when the engine is running. Ive assumed its a ground loop related to the alternator, but dont have much experience troubleshooting this type of issue.

I've checked all my grounds, and all are tight, on bare metal, and bolted to vehicle chassis, 1 battery is under the hood (Grounded to chassis). and my other 2 are in the rear grounded to a very thick bolt separating my trunk and rear seats. Both of my amps and dsp are grounded to one of the batteries in the rear. I have also tried a new dsp and the issue persisted.

RCAs are ran separately from the main power wire, and I have tried multiple sets of high quality rcas. Does anyone have any testing/troubleshooting insight on how to figure out exactly where this issue lies and how to fix it?

Edit: and I have changed nothing on this build in the last 6 months, and the problem has just randomly started occurring, and has gotten slightly worse over the last week or 2
It sounds like you're experiencing a common issue. Often, speaker whine can be caused by ground loop problems or alternator noise. I recommend checking your ground points for any corrosion, ensuring they have a solid connection. Also, consider using a ground loop isolator or checking the routing of your RCAs and power cables again. If the issue persists, you may want to try a different alternator or check your power management settings.
 
Doing this may help.

644225.jpg
 
If it just started suddenly and you can't locate any grounding issues, you may want to have that alternator checked out. You could have a failing diode or leaking diode.
 
Try substituting an phone for the HU and see if the whine goes away. If that makes the whine go away, try grounding the HU to the same spot as the amps.
Ive already grounded the HU with the amps in the rear with a temp wire. I spoke with the company I got my HO alt from and they believe its a rectifier issue in the alternator. So im likely going to ship that off tmr and see if thats the issue.
 
Activity
No one is currently typing a reply...

About this thread

Fabian12

CarAudio.com Recruit
Thread starter
Fabian12
Joined
Location
Richmond, Virginia
Start date
Participants
Who Replied
Replies
9
Views
988
Last reply date
Last reply from
Jimi77
IMG_20260516_193114554_HDR.jpg

sherbanater

    May 16, 2026
  • 0
  • 0
IMG_20260516_192955471_HDR.jpg

sherbanater

    May 16, 2026
  • 0
  • 0

New threads

Top