This annoying whine

[Dbld54]

Hi, I needed Assistance troubleshooting an annoying whine coming out of my speakers.
I think it started when my ground point in the trunk, became loose and I had to try different areas but not too sure.

I have two amps, I've disconnected the subwoofer amp to try and keep it simple.
This leaves the 4 channel amp.
Clues:
The sound does not get louder when I increase the volume.
It is present even with volume at level 0 on the HU.
If i disconnect the 4 rcas the whine is gone. If I connect any rca cable to any of the Jacks the whine returns. Even if it's just 1 rca, that one speaker will whine.
I've tried several ground points, the latest is using an existing ground from the stock Ford wiring.
The ground points are sanded and tightly connected.
Amp fuses are fine.

Please let me know if you have any ideas.
Thanks

Click to read more...

 

[HardofWhoring]

They deleted all his posts. So now when someone goes through this thread, we just look like a couple of jackass nutjobs.

Sig added:

 

[HardofWhoring]

Almost at a perfect finish line. I bought a new HU and amp which solved almost all problems.
When the car is running, and the radio/bluetooth playing, there is a slight whine.
It can be reproduced when using the power windows and when accelerating which is where it's most present.

Could it be because i don't have a negative 4awg wire from the battery to frame? I added a HU ground to frame..no help. I also included pics of my current ground point in the trunk for the two amps, one 4awg and one 8awg piggybacking an existing ground location.
I understand a ground loop isolator might help but keeping as last resort, I'd prefer to solve the issue since it wasn't present before.
RCA filter i dont like due to SQ degradation.

What do you think?

You need to improve your grounds. The one you showed is pretty bad. Doesn't look like it's down to metal, and least not completely. You would also want to put your biggest ground, (largest amperage ground), on the bottom or on the metal, and then stack em going smaller draw.

 

[Jimi77 5,000+ posts]

Almost at a perfect finish line. I bought a new HU and amp which solved almost all problems.
When the car is running, and the radio/bluetooth playing, there is a slight whine.
It can be reproduced when using the power windows and when accelerating which is where it's most present.

Could it be because i don't have a negative 4awg wire from the battery to frame? I added a HU ground to frame..no help. I also included pics of my current ground point in the trunk for the two amps, one 4awg and one 8awg piggybacking an existing ground location.
I understand a ground loop isolator might help but keeping as last resort, I'd prefer to solve the issue since it wasn't present before.
RCA filter i dont like due to SQ degradation.

What do you think?

Doesn't look like a great ground to me. That part of the car appears to be attached with adhesive (vs welded), so the ground path is limited to the metal brackets connecting it to the rest of the car. I generally like to use the floor pan or the rear firewall for the ground. Or run a ground to the engine bay. The battery, block, frame grounds should all be upgraded.

 

[Dbld54]

Doesn't look like a great ground to me. That part of the car appears to be attached with adhesive (vs welded), so the ground path is limited to the metal brackets connecting it to the rest of the car. I generally like to use the floor pan or the rear firewall for the ground. Or run a ground to the engine bay. The battery, block, frame grounds should all be upgraded.

Thank you for the reply. Do you see a better ground point in the below pics?
Pic 1: Full pic of the inside trunk
Pic 2: Too tight.
Pic 3: The 2 bolts dont look like they make metal to metal contact after removing the screw.
Pic 4: I fed the cables through a grommet in the trunk bed allowing me access to a few more options in the outside wheel well. Theres also a small bolt about 8" to the left of this.
Pic 5: I removed the rear seats to show a few more options. i was reading that seat bolts are grounded nicely.
Pic 6: Rear Drivers side center, seat belt bolt
Pic 7: Rear Drivers side, seat bolt and seat belt bolt, nearest the window.

What do you think? Seat belt bolts look like the cleanest option, provided I can make o ring fit.

 

[Dbld54]

Thank you for the reply. Do you see a better ground point in the below pics?
Pic 1: Full pic of the inside trunk
Pic 2: Too tight.
Pic 3: The 2 bolts dont look like they make metal to metal contact after removing the screw.
Pic 4: I fed the cables through a grommet in the trunk bed allowing me access to a few more options in the outside wheel well. Theres also a small bolt about 8" to the left of this.
Pic 5: I removed the rear seats to show a few more options. i was reading that seat bolts are grounded nicely.
Pic 6: Rear Drivers side center, seat belt bolt
Pic 7: Rear Drivers side, seat bolt and seat belt bolt, nearest the window.

What do you think? Seat belt bolts look like the cleanest option, provided I can make o ring fit.

On the seatbelt plate:
With multimeter + on the amp +, and with multimeter - on the metal plate in the pic, i was able to read the battery.
With the multimeter, i was able to do a resistance test and showed 0.0.
However it did not help the with the whining when the car is on.

Any thoughts?

 

[HardofWhoring]

In that second pic,

That round circle there looks like a drain plug. That is designed to be removable in case it's easier to drain out of that hole. It is might or might not be metal. If it's metal there might be a clip on the other side so it can pop out. It also might be made of rubber and was installed before the trunk was painted or coated. If so, you can take that out.


You then use a grommet like this:
Amazon product ASIN B08NG3PZ2Zwhich will protect the wire you feed through, and can attach the ground directly to the frame, or to the main rails/thickest part of the frame. (missed or don't remember the vehicle, so not sure if you have an actual frame, or a unibody).

 

[Dbld54]

On the seatbelt plate:
With multimeter + on the amp +, and with multimeter - on the metal plate in the pic, i was able to read the battery.
With the multimeter, i was able to do a resistance test and showed 0.0.
However it did not help the with the whining when the car is on.

Any thoughts?

I ran an 8awg wire from the - battery terminal to the amp ground.
With multiple ground points attempted, wouldn't this imply the issue is something/somewhere else?
I also disconnected the RCAs at the HU, and the issue is still present.

 

[HardofWhoring]

I ran an 8awg wire from the - battery terminal to the amp ground.
With multiple ground points attempted, wouldn't this imply the issue is something/somewhere else?
I also disconnected the RCAs at the HU, and the issue is still present.

Why do you have an 8awg wire from the battery terminal to the amp ground? Remove that. Battery negative is not ground.

Why do you have multiple grounds? Just get one ground.

 

[Dbld54]

Why do you have an 8awg wire from the battery terminal to the amp ground? Remove that. Battery negative is not ground.

Why do you have multiple grounds? Just get one ground.

It was a test... and i was using a different ground point. One ground point

 

[Dbld54]

Happy to say, the last issue has been resolved!
Once I added a 4awg wire from the negative battery post, to the frame, the whine finally eliminated.

Thanks everyone

 

[HardofWhoring]

Happy to say, the last issue has been resolved!
Once I added a 4awg wire from the negative battery post, to the frame, the whine finally eliminated.

Thanks everyone

5 pages, and you haven't done the big 3?










Do the big 3.

 

[Dbld54]

5 pages, and you haven't done the big 3?
Do the big 3.

like i said, issue is resolved.

 

[HardofWhoring]

like i said, issue is resolved.

If all you did was add a 4awg wire from batt - to frame, then no it's not. You just fixed a symptom, but you didn't exactly address the problem. It's a well-known issue, and you did it good enough to work for now, but it's incomplete. Not being rude, just telling you what you should know to fix it correctly. Good luck.

 

[Dbld54]

If all you did was add a 4awg wire from batt - to frame, then no it's not. You just fixed a symptom, but you didn't exactly address the problem. It's a well-known issue, and you did it good enough to work for now, but it's incomplete. Not being rude, just telling you what you should know to fix it correctly. Good luck.

Nothing you said was helpful.
Thank you to Jim77.

 

[HardofWhoring]

Nothing you said was helpful.
Thank you to Jim77.

You're right dude. You nailed it.