Alternator Whine,
Thread Starter
TECH Enthusiast
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 620
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From: Brownsville, texas
Alternator Whine, Well ive had this problem for a very very long time.
Maybe some of you guys remember my old post of my set up
https://ls1tech.com/forums/stereo-el...tall-pics.html
Well i have a bad case of alternator whine
one thing that is odd is when i turn off the head unit while the car is still running the whine will go away.
would it be the head unit?
im running the power for the amps on the left side of the car
where the fuse box is (the big positive bolt)
would that cause the whine since im not running it straight from the battery?
also the ground im using for the amp is coming from one of the bolts that is really close to the right side taillight.( some black bolt with a washer on it)
would that be a bad grounding?
also another thing is.... ive herd that wal-mart bran speaker wire sucks and picks up alot of whine and well thats the speaker wire im using
.... can that be the problem?
i was also using the wal-mart RCA cables but i replaced them with rockford fosgate RCA cables that where especially designed to eliminate alternator whine.(but still have whine.....)
Can some one give me some advice, because im tired of just guessing what the problem is....
Another thing is i was thinking of mounting a battery in the rear of the car
so the system can feed of that , i know the company painless offer a kit where it lets you wire up dual battery's to the cars electrical system so they both can be used and charged and etc.
would that be a good idea? maybe that can fix the alternator whine
since the battery would be really close?
Maybe some of you guys remember my old post of my set up
https://ls1tech.com/forums/stereo-el...tall-pics.html
Well i have a bad case of alternator whine
one thing that is odd is when i turn off the head unit while the car is still running the whine will go away.
would it be the head unit?
im running the power for the amps on the left side of the car
where the fuse box is (the big positive bolt)
would that cause the whine since im not running it straight from the battery?
also the ground im using for the amp is coming from one of the bolts that is really close to the right side taillight.( some black bolt with a washer on it)
would that be a bad grounding?
also another thing is.... ive herd that wal-mart bran speaker wire sucks and picks up alot of whine and well thats the speaker wire im using
.... can that be the problem?i was also using the wal-mart RCA cables but i replaced them with rockford fosgate RCA cables that where especially designed to eliminate alternator whine.(but still have whine.....)
Can some one give me some advice, because im tired of just guessing what the problem is....
Another thing is i was thinking of mounting a battery in the rear of the car
so the system can feed of that , i know the company painless offer a kit where it lets you wire up dual battery's to the cars electrical system so they both can be used and charged and etc.
would that be a good idea? maybe that can fix the alternator whine
since the battery would be really close?
Thread Starter
TECH Enthusiast
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 620
Likes: 0
From: Brownsville, texas
Thread Starter
TECH Enthusiast
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 620
Likes: 0
From: Brownsville, texas
Only thing I can think of at the moment is check and make sure no wires are giving noise. For some reason I'll get a random whine but if i mess with the radio harness wires a bit and move them around it goes away, so I think it's picking up an unwanted signal.
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if the RCA patch cables run on the same side of the car as your power wire, that'd be a good reason to get whine. also the second place to look is the ground for your head unit. usually it's one of the two.
i used the wal-mart speaker wire, patch cables, power wire, and ground wire for 7 years on 1,500 watts coming from JBL amps and an alpine deck, and never had any whine. people will say wal-mart wiring is bad but honestly wire is wire in most cases. patch cables are the only exception, though the wal-mart cables worked just fine for me. :shrug:
i looked at your pics and don't really understand why all of your stuff was removed prior to installation. just pull the long plastic trim piece that runs along the length of the door near the carpet on both sides of your car. run the patch cables on the driver's side, the power on the passenger side. when you get past the front seat, use a metal hanger and feed it down from the hatch through the sail panel. tape the patch cable to it and pull it through to the back. you do the same with the power wire. that's the furthest you can get the patch cables from the power cable.
i used the wal-mart speaker wire, patch cables, power wire, and ground wire for 7 years on 1,500 watts coming from JBL amps and an alpine deck, and never had any whine. people will say wal-mart wiring is bad but honestly wire is wire in most cases. patch cables are the only exception, though the wal-mart cables worked just fine for me. :shrug:
i looked at your pics and don't really understand why all of your stuff was removed prior to installation. just pull the long plastic trim piece that runs along the length of the door near the carpet on both sides of your car. run the patch cables on the driver's side, the power on the passenger side. when you get past the front seat, use a metal hanger and feed it down from the hatch through the sail panel. tape the patch cable to it and pull it through to the back. you do the same with the power wire. that's the furthest you can get the patch cables from the power cable.
Last edited by tuffluck; Aug 7, 2010 at 07:23 PM.
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Verdad Gallardo Thread Starter
TECH Enthusiast
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 620
Likes: 0
From: Brownsville, texas
if the RCA patch cables run on the same side of the car as your power wire, that'd be a good reason to get whine. also the second place to look is the ground for your head unit. usually it's one of the two.
i used the wal-mart speaker wire, patch cables, power wire, and ground wire for 7 years on 1,500 watts coming from JBL amps and an alpine deck, and never had any whine. people will say wal-mart wiring is bad but honestly wire is wire in most cases. patch cables are the only exception, though the wal-mart cables worked just fine for me. :shrug:
i looked at your pics and don't really understand why all of your stuff was removed prior to installation. just pull the long plastic trim piece that runs along the length of the door near the carpet on both sides of your car. run the patch cables on the driver's side, the power on the passenger side. when you get past the front seat, use a metal hanger and feed it down from the hatch through the sail panel. tape the patch cable to it and pull it through to the back. you do the same with the power wire. that's the furthest you can get the patch cables from the power cable.
i used the wal-mart speaker wire, patch cables, power wire, and ground wire for 7 years on 1,500 watts coming from JBL amps and an alpine deck, and never had any whine. people will say wal-mart wiring is bad but honestly wire is wire in most cases. patch cables are the only exception, though the wal-mart cables worked just fine for me. :shrug:
i looked at your pics and don't really understand why all of your stuff was removed prior to installation. just pull the long plastic trim piece that runs along the length of the door near the carpet on both sides of your car. run the patch cables on the driver's side, the power on the passenger side. when you get past the front seat, use a metal hanger and feed it down from the hatch through the sail panel. tape the patch cable to it and pull it through to the back. you do the same with the power wire. that's the furthest you can get the patch cables from the power cable.
the ground of the head unit is the stock black wire.... would that be the problem?
and i removed everything to make it seem really clean which it is,
Thread Starter
TECH Enthusiast
Joined: Nov 2009
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From: Brownsville, texas
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Joined: May 2004
Posts: 318
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From: Chicago, IL
I'm about to install a new system (amp, 4 speakers, sub, and HU). I get the idea of putting power cables on one side of the car and audio cables on the other. I have an E-Cutout wire going behind my glove compartment and along the passenger side of the car. Does that count as an "Electrical Wire" or can I still put speaker wire there?
Is there a typical side that speaker wire goes to versus electrical?
Is there a typical side that speaker wire goes to versus electrical?
Thread Starter
TECH Enthusiast
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 620
Likes: 0
From: Brownsville, texas
I'm about to install a new system (amp, 4 speakers, sub, and HU). I get the idea of putting power cables on one side of the car and audio cables on the other. I have an E-Cutout wire going behind my glove compartment and along the passenger side of the car. Does that count as an "Electrical Wire" or can I still put speaker wire there?
Is there a typical side that speaker wire goes to versus electrical?
Is there a typical side that speaker wire goes to versus electrical?
you MAYBE will get some whine then your closing and opening the cut out.
But thats nothing to really worry about. i think
