how do you properly ground an amp?

[bcst86 5]

i am wondering the proper way to ground an amp. ive tried 3 different spots on the body sanded the paint off and i dont think im getting a good ground. when my rca cables are pluged in i get a nasty sound and when i unplug them it goes away. i just tried a brand new set of rcas today and it did nothing to help. do i need to run a ground all the way back to the battery?

Edited December 5, 2010 by bcst86

[Tirefryr 1,742]

No. Have you ever thought that your RCA outputs are messed up?

[shizzzon 461]

sounds like a pioneer headunit

very few kenwoods do that.. but pioneer's are destined too..

[///M5 2,833]

sounds like a pioneer headunit

very few kenwoods do that.. but pioneer's are destined too..

Could be, but that story is overblown. I've had 7 and none of them have been that way.

[cheese20323 13]

sounds like a pioneer headunit

very few kenwoods do that.. but pioneer's are destined too..

Could be, but that story is overblown. I've had 7 and none of them have been that way.

The higher end ones don't do it..But mine certainly did that I had to ground my RCA's.

[shizzzon 461]

i'd really like to know what causes it though.

I used to own a pioneer bout 10 yrs ago and it never did.. but i've worked with other people's cars that have pioneer headunits and they have done it and of course the many others who have reported it too.

The best way to find out the cause.. if they will tell you, is the manufacturer.

Now, as easy as it sounds, how many users online have actually consulted the manufacturer about faults like this? lol

[markak134 1]

ur amp might be grounded fine but ur front battery might not

[cheese20323 13]

i'd really like to know what causes it though.

I used to own a pioneer bout 10 yrs ago and it never did.. but i've worked with other people's cars that have pioneer headunits and they have done it and of course the many others who have reported it too.

The best way to find out the cause.. if they will tell you, is the manufacturer.

Now, as easy as it sounds, how many users online have actually consulted the manufacturer about faults like this? lol

I havent.....

[Tirefryr 1,742]

The Pioneer issue is a small pico fuse and over voltage issue.

[shizzzon 461]

then why would other brands not receive damage when running too much voltage out of the preouts?

Are they using filters for such things?

[bcst86 5]

its an alpine deck, no pioneer never was a fan, and if the rca output was bad would that be why my xcon seems like its getting barely any power. i cant get it loud no matter what, i can barely hear it and can only tell its getting something by feeling it

[Julian 641]

is your HEADUNIT grounded well?

that's probably your problem.

[bcst86 5]

i guess it is. i grounded it to metal inside of the dash, a lot better than when it was just grounded to the factory wire harness, but still has noise. just got home from work and i drive for my job and its driving me crazy. especially with my headlights one

[///M5 2,833]

aftermarket headlights?

Noise still there with the RCA's disconnected from the amp or hu?

Positive the h/u ground is good?

[jmanjr 0]

try this and tell us what happens. Take a piece of wire wrap it around the tips of the rcas and push them into the pre outs, with the other end of the wire ground it to the spot you have the hu grounded.

Edited December 5, 2010 by jmanjr

[bcst86 5]

factory headlights. when i unplug my sub amp rcas it goes away but when they are plugged in its a bad whine, really loud too. i also have no idea why i cant get my xcon to get loud. with the gain all the way up you can barely hear it.

i will try to ground the rca's. sorry if im not making sense i am exhausted.

[jmanjr 0]

when you say you cant get your sub loud that could possible be your preouts are dicked on the HU, I had a similiar problem with my kenwood DDX7017 turns out the preouts cable had a slice in it exposing the inner wire making that set of preouts BAD, had to send it in for repair. I had the problem also with a kenwood 794 I believe is the model, I had to ground out the rca preouts like I suggested to you. Are you only running a sub amp or you have a 2/4channel as well?

[bcst86 5]

my truck has a factory amp that im using also until i get a new amp/comp set. when i had my icon with everything wired the same way it got loud but now with the xcon it wont do anything really.

[jmanjr 0]

your sub preouts might be bad, if you plan on trying to ground out the preouts while you have the HU out take a look at the sub preouts if they are cables? If they are just sockets on the back of the HU not really much you can do.

[bcst86 5]

your sub preouts might be bad, if you plan on trying to ground out the preouts while you have the HU out take a look at the sub preouts if they are cables? If they are just sockets on the back of the HU not really much you can do.

yea all 3 preouts are sockets.

[jmanjr 0]

ok then that isnt the issue. You still could have bad rcas, have you tried checking the output Vlts from the sub preouts? Try that along with grounding them out.

[bcst86 5]

ok then that isnt the issue. You still could have bad rcas, have you tried checking the output Vlts from the sub preouts? Try that along with grounding them out.

havnt checked the vlts. im not sure how to do that. i just got a dmm and not to sure how to use it

[jmanjr 0]

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/diyma-sq-forum-technical-advanced/33504-rca-output-voltage-test-alpine-9887-a.html

[helotaxi 46]

Double check the wiring to your sub itself. Entirely possible that you got a connection crossed when you changed subs and have the coils out of phase. Also, have you tried a different amp to make sure that it isn't the problem?

[BanginGMC 23]

try this and tell us what happens. Take a piece of wire wrap it around the tips of the rcas and push them into the pre outs, with the other end of the wire ground it to the spot you have the hu grounded.