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did i kill the noise?

Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Car Audio
Forum Discription: Car Stereos, Amplifiers, Crossovers, Processors, Speakers, Subwoofers, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=109356
Printed Date: May 03, 2024 at 11:30 AM


Topic: did i kill the noise?

Posted By: Fosgate3
Subject: did i kill the noise?
Date Posted: November 30, 2008 at 4:28 PM

I had a whine/noise in my system but when I disconnect the alternator and run everything off the battery power, the noise is gone. Provided that everything else is installed correctly, would it be safe to assume that the alternator is the culprit for the noise?



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i think a wire's loose somewhere...



Replies:

Posted By: i am an idiot
Date Posted: November 30, 2008 at 6:21 PM
A year ago when we were trying to fix this problem, did we ever connect a large stiffening capacitor from the alternator to ground?  If not, do you have a 1 microfarad capacitor laying around?




Posted By: Fosgate3
Date Posted: November 30, 2008 at 7:08 PM

I had a .5 farad cap at one point running in the middle of the power cable going from the alt to the battery in the trunk (factory located there). I dont recall it making any difference. Should I place it right by the alt?

I stripped the car down on Wed and redid everything... grounds are all tight and upgraded with no resistance noted on my DMM. All cables are properly routed and there are no extra equipment in the mix... nothing but a head unit and amp. after a couple of nights on it, I did a test run and still had noise, as if I hadnt done anything. I went and reread all 9 pages of the [now locked] post and noted that I commented on not having any noise with the alt disconnected. I tried that again today and sure enough, there's no noise at all with it disconnected from the power supply.



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i think a wire's loose somewhere...




Posted By: Fosgate3
Date Posted: November 30, 2008 at 7:12 PM
I noticed you wrote "microfarad"... I'm looking through my parts drawers and i happen to have a 1microfarad, 50v capacitor. Did you mean microfarad or farad? This thing is tiny and im not sure how exactly to wire it in.

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i think a wire's loose somewhere...




Posted By: i am an idiot
Date Posted: November 30, 2008 at 7:28 PM
I meant 1 farad.   I am such an idiot sometime.    The .5 farad will be sufficient, try connecting it at the alternator and see what happens.




Posted By: Fosgate3
Date Posted: November 30, 2008 at 7:33 PM

grounding the neg side to the alt chassis, and running the positive feed to the pos side the of the alt and then to the alt, right? can't be that many ways of connecting a cap... just want to be sure.

check your PM.



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i think a wire's loose somewhere...




Posted By: i am an idiot
Date Posted: November 30, 2008 at 7:43 PM

Yes on the connection procedure.  i have no new messages.  I got the message this morning.  

I answered you this morning, but it looks as though I forgot to submit the reply.  Going answer it now.





Posted By: Fosgate3
Date Posted: November 30, 2008 at 8:40 PM

I just got done testing it with the cap. No noise at all. My test speaker is bridged to the mids/highs amp.. no bad noise.

So... should I keep the cap added or get the alt rebuilt? I know my cheapest way out is to keep the cap but there's still an issue with the alt, right?



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i think a wire's loose somewhere...




Posted By: i am an idiot
Date Posted: November 30, 2008 at 9:01 PM
I doubt that there is anything wrong with the alternator.   There is always some ripple coming out of it.  The battery is usually enough to soak it up.  Didn't you just take it out to have it tested?  What was the outcome of that?




Posted By: Fosgate3
Date Posted: November 30, 2008 at 9:08 PM

LOL They couldn't get it onto the machine because of the way the chassis is constructed... it's odd shaped. I knew it was charging and the guy said that their machine would only show if its charging or not, not anything about the diodes or anything else.

I will properly install this cap now. thanks a million!!



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i think a wire's loose somewhere...





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