Alternator whine and Clipping

[Notoriousj76]

Please take the time to read it all before posting something stupid or irrelevant. I would like the issue fixed, thank you.

Previous setup with none of these problems ----->(alternator whine, sub clipping at low freq bass @ 14+ volts)

Alpine CED 100

Pyramid Powered EQ

American Bass line driver (rca outs are so low)

Sundown saz3000d

Stock alt and front battery

Kinetic 2400 red

Like I said, No problems

Recently I took it all out and added a new dash panel so I replaced/added some things

added --->Alpine MRP 450.4

replaced pyramid with --->Kicker Kq9 passive equalizer

Now, everything is hooked up properly that I know of, although can you run a sub amp off a single rca? Because my sub clips HARD on lower frequencies and it did not used to. I have NO voltage drop so could it be a low voltage problem with the RCAs, even with boosted signal from the line driver?

Secondly, I now have that horrible alternator whine that didn't used to be there. I have already tried grounding my Headunit's RCAs which did nothing. I also tried sticking a ground wire on the EQ's RCAs with my hand (didnt want to take the whole dash apart to get to it) but also did absolutely nothing. I'm beginning to think that the EQ is bad since everything comes out of the back of it. But why would my Sub amp have issues and not the Apline amp if they come from the same place? Once again, could just be running only 1 RCA to the amp? But this paragraph is about the alternator whine primarily.

Suggestions? thanks for your time.

[OrionStang]

I'll bump this since I just started getting alt noise out of the blue. Swapped amps it went away, so I thought it was the amp. Went to the store right now, the noise is back.

I'm gonna start by replacing the rca's and remote wires. After that, I don't know.

[dwright27]

How do you knowitsclipping?

[Notoriousj76]

How do you knowitsclipping?

I know what clipping sounds like.... it goes from bass to just straight noise. Cone movement is about 2 cm

[MrSkippyJ]

How do you knowitsclipping?

I know what clipping sounds like.... it goes from bass to just straight noise. Cone movement is about 2 cm

That doesn't sound like clipping. your voltage stays at 14+ with 3k and stock electrical?

[Stee-Z]

How do you knowitsclipping?

I know what clipping sounds like.... it goes from bass to just straight noise. Cone movement is about 2 cm

i can have my system up and it clips and doesn't make noise..... you usually can't hear clipping

[Sheena]

Notoriousj76 - i wanna try a few things with your setup.. and please be willing to try these things.

this is kind of difficult considering your HU does NOT support subwoofer out and only has one pair of pre outs. your pre outs are 2 volts, which is plenty to play with on an amp considering it goes all the way to .2 volts.

1. remove the line level driver and run the rca straight from the HU to the EQ. if this fails see number 2.

2. temporarily replace all rca cables. if this fails see number 3.

3. temporarily replace your HU with another head unit that supports subwoofer out, take the rca for the subwoofer out and go straight to the amp. if the problem persists get another amp to temporarily test.

4. if it is your head unit that causes the issue, you will need to buy. another head unit, and another EQ if you want to keep with the whole 9 band eq deal you got going on.

Orionstang - i know you know your shit, so if i say something retarded, just slap me.

i previously had terrible alt whine with my stock HU installed (so terrible the amp would pick it up as a signal and actually play the tone at full volume)

the way i fixed this issue was in three ways. i replaced the HU with an aftermarket head unit, and i added a PAC SNI-1 for the popping noise i was receiving from my KDC-X395, and replaced my RCA

what i would like for you to try (if possible) is:

1. temporarily test a new head unit.

2. ground your current head unit RCAS (if you havent already)

3. borrow or buy a SNI-1 ((mine cost like 14 bucks) unless they are frowned upon here)

4. temporarily replace all rcas that are having the alt whine sent through them (location of them in reference to the power/ground wires are irrelevant so during testing just throw them in the seat)

5. find a new ground for the amp that is getting the alt whine, be sure to sand the paint and primer off.

just basic stuff that im sure you know all about, but i spent a few weeks trying to get rid of my alt whine and nothing worked. the SNI-1 didnt work because i didnt have a aftermarket HU, but as soon as i got the new HU the alt whine went away. did a direct swap.

every other option is highly frowned upon here to try such as running the rca on a diff side of the power/ground wire (which im sure you already have done anyways)

[snafu]

What you report is indicative of a damaged preamp section of an upstream component - the source, EQ, etc. IE - when you did the swap, you did not ground your new amp correctly. You likely turned the system ON with the ignition OFF to test it and all worked. If the amplifier ground was inadequate or high in resistance (poor connection to the body / frame, bad crimp / both, etc.) it will seek ground via the shield of the RCA cable. As you increase volume, this exceeds the capability of the ground plane and blows the traces in half.

Typically, the music then stops and the ground problem is found and resolved. But, the damage has been done . . . does any of this sound familiar? As the Alpine amplifier and Kicker amplifier likely have different input designs, this can be an issue for one but not the other.

[OrionStang]

OP, can you make a short video of what the sub is doing

[Notoriousj76]

@Sheena - Tried #1, I'll swap around RCA's tomorrow and see if it's a bad cable/bypass the EQ to see if I damaged the amp in some way.

@Snafu - I'm not sure what your talking about O.o but my amp is a sundown saz3000 not a kicker. the kicker EQ and Alpine HU are directly hooked up to my battery for simplicity's sake(fused of course). Both are turned on by my factory ignition wire. The sundown amp is hooked up to a rear battery with proper power and ground cables ran soldered etc. Never had problems with bad grounds in the past and that aspect of my system hasn't changed at all.

@OrionStang - I will shoot a vid and post tomorrow. I live in an addition and my neighbors wouldnt appreciate any noise atm. Plus its cold and dark, makes for a bad vid.

Soooo, basically I'm going to troubleshoot my RCA's first tomorrow. If that doesn't work I'll reground my front and rear batteries. But like I said to Snafu, power/ground to my dash stuff is ran straight from the battery. So it's grounded to my engine block or frame.. cant remember which. Just changed my oil this weekend and it looked kinda dirty. So I'll probably remove the bolt and clean up the connection. The rear battery is grounded to the body of my van, didn't have any issues with that spot though so I haven't messed with it.

Thanks for suggestions I'll get back to you tomorrow with results.