my subwoofer is picking up noise?

hi. my name is ben. i have: 1997 ford escort sport Kenwood KDC-MP5032 infinity reference 6 1/2 alpine type-r 5x7 kicker zr600 amp 2 4 ohm JL 12w3v3 in a sealed box each sub gets around 1.5 cubic feet and they are wire to a 2 ohm load bridged on my amp i have a major problem. when i turn on my radio my subs do not hit but they do make a very soft low pitched sound that seems to mimic the engine but will not change with the rpms, and if i turn the gain up past the lowest it will go, it makes low short very loud bursts of sound or a very loud constant tone. i noticed if i move or touch the amp short loud bursts of noise occur as well. i tried mounting my amp to the box so it is not touching any metal or near any metal from the car. if i unplug the rca cables the noise will not occur at all. my amp is grounded to one of the large backseat bolts. my power cable is run on the opposite side of the car from my rca cables. if there is something i am missing or something i can do to eliminate this problem i am very open to suggestions. oh, and one last not i have not gotten this amp to work with these subs yet. my subs have worked fine with other less powerful amplifier. my other amplifier was a metrik max802 thank you for reading. -ben-

Your amp is starved for power. You need to make a better ground. Sand away any paint and bolt the ground to the body with a dedicated bolt (not seat bolt). Check your power wire and fuse holder for questionable connections or corrosion. This is a common problem. I have no doubt in my mind that if you remedy your power (ground and power) wiring problems that you will no longer have noise in your subs. Be aware that running your amp as is will damage it.

thank you for your input. that was what i was suspecting the entire time. and i may be a novice at the moment, but i have an ear for music so if it doesnt sound good i wont listen to it. ill try putting in another bolt strictly to the chassis like you said and ill have more info by tomorrow.

cool. let us know what happens.

There is no such thing as an "amp starved for power."  While I agree with the suggestion that a bad ground or other poor quality connection can exacerbate a noise issue, you cannot "starve" an amplifier for power.  The amplifier will draw whatever current it requires from the system.  If the voltage drops low it will simply draw more current until some limit is reached.  If there are bad connections these will heat up and draw more current.  But the amp will draw what it draws,  The ability of the vehicle electrical system to efficiently and effectively supply what it needs without adding noise, and without something breaking, burning up or blowing a fuse is the issue.  Support the12volt.com

well i drilled a hole into on of the main chassis and sanded the paint off completely then i bolted the ground to that spot. it did not change a thing. i think i am going to try putting in a new set of rca cables to check if they were bad. if anyone has any other suggestions im still open because i cant think of what could possibly be wrong.

Yes, make sure your RCA cables are good, and make sure you've set your gain properly.  Measure your ground return resistance, and you may also want to ground the head unit to the chassis directly, not using the OEM ground connection in the dash (if you did that.)Support the12volt.com

How exactly you quantify the term “starved” is the question. It’s true that with a regulated power supply the out put will remain fairly stable as voltage drops, but this has its limitations. They have broader operating voltage ranges but none the less limited ranges. In the event that you drop below this voltage range the amplifier will stop producing its rated output. If you are dealing with a non regulated power supply then any fluctuation in voltage will affect the output. It is absolutely correct that a drop in voltage will render an increase in current draw coupled with a decrease in performance and efficiency. I wonder? At what point do you start to consider the amp starved for power. Maybe when the noise stops because the amp has gone up in smoke. Or maybe when the decreased performance and noise problem lead you to ask others for advice. You tell me. You must think past Ohm’s law and realize Kirchhoff’s law.

thanks. i am going to buy some rca cables tomorrow, and im going to pull out the head unit and ground it to the chassis like you suggested. i have a multimeter, but i need to buy/find some cables for it. if all goes well ill post the ground return resistance and update how things are working out. (crosses fingers)