Hey guys I just installed my amp and sub by a bestbuy person. When i turn on the engine, I always get a humming noise. What can this possibly be? The guy said that its normal or its my amp. My amp is new. Humming noise is coming from the amp.

 

is it coing from the actual amp or the speakers/sub ?
if its form the sub its almsot certainly ground loop noise and can be fixed by better grounding point or a ground loop isolator.

 

Does the "humming" noise become louder when increasiing engine speed (RPM's)?

--Spike

 

two things to check

A. make sure your rca's are not near your power

B. make sure your amp is grounded really well

also, noise after a install is not normal, sounds like they just don't want to be bothered with correcting their mistake

 

i guess it could be the amp too, if its a POS

what amp are you running?

 

It is coming from the actual amp itself. And my Rcas and Power is definately close to each other. They are ran right next to each other. Will a ground loop isolator fix this?

 

The only time RCA's and power cables are supposed to be near eachother is if they are crossing at a 90* angle. If you run RCA's along side power cables it is very easy for them to pick up alternator whine through inductance.

But if the noise is coming from the amp itself, that is a whole new ballpark. There is nothing inside an amp that should emit a noise unless it has a fan in it.

 

Guys I already got a ground loop isolator and it didnt help at all. What else can be wrong?

 

i dont even know what a ground loop isolator is and ive installed quite a few systems over the years. as i said above, make sure that your power and rca's are not touching/near each other and also make sure you have a really solid ground. also what amp are you running?

 

What do you mean by solid ground? I am using either a 300 or 500 watt amp.

 

^^ I believe he is referring to the fact that your ground connection should be very secure with the proper gauge wire and a totally clean connection point.

 

thats not very helpful

 

thats exactly what i am talking about

 

So you guys think its the wires problem not the amp? But why does it only make the annoying noise when the engine is on?

 

See what the gauge is on your ground...probably need a thicker gauge.

 

what he said is your problem.. any humming (when engine is running) is almost always a ground issue..
I have seen some ppl. have to run a ground wire all the way to the battery to fix this problem..

Ground loop isolators work sometimes but I would suggest running a independent ground wire to your battery.. its really the only true way to ensure you have the best possible ground.. if this does not work (even tho it will) then use a Ground Loop Isolator/Insulator

Sometimes this humming can be so bad that if u turn the volume up and have no music playing and rev the engine. u can actually hear the rev threw ur speakers..