Rear speaker static

[Desurfaced]

Just put in new kenwood head unit, and kicker speakers in the rear. When it's parked, it sounds fantastic. Once I'm moving, it starts getting real static-y.

I've tried moving the new speakers to the front, amd put the front ones in the rear, and it's the same situation.
I've checked the connections at the head unit/harness and at the speakers As well.

I'm thinking I'm gonna have to run new speaker wire, just asking to see if anyone else has any recommendations to check out before I go rewiring stuff.

Whats the best way to run the new wires if it turns out I do have to rewire it? TIA!

 

[Rubiconned]

Only happens when the engine is running? You're getting some electrical interference. Some gurus here can recommend fixes.

 

[DuckNut]

Rubiconned is right. Speaker wire is running in close proximity to an electrical wire.

 

[Desurfaced]

Only happens when the engine is running? You're getting some electrical interference. Some gurus here can recommend fixes.

No, it does it fine with engine on while parked. It only starts acting up once I get going down the road, sometimes 2 minutes, sometimes it'll make it 5 minutes.

Its almost like there is a loose connection somewhere in the wires. The only thing is, it is both of the rear speakers do it. So I'm not sure.

 

[Cooper Smith]

No, it does it fine with engine on while parked. It only starts acting up once I get going down the road, sometimes 2 minutes, sometimes it'll make it 5 minutes.

Its almost like there is a loose connection somewhere in the wires. The only thing is, it is both of the rear speakers do it. So I'm not sure.

Yeah. That can happen. Likely interference, a wire running some decent current through it is distorting your speakers. It may only be happening when the alternator is spinning at a higher RPM. This is a BIG issue in cheaper subwoofer installs. The heavy amp + wire effect the RCA and sub box wires that are close to each other create audio interference. If you really can't find it, you could try shielded speaker wire. Then at that point you'd have isolated and known high quality wire.

 

[Desurfaced]

Yeah. That can happen. Likely interference, a wire running some decent current through it is distorting your speakers. It may only be happening when the alternator is spinning at a higher RPM. This is a BIG issue in cheaper subwoofer installs. The heavy amp + wire effect the RCA and sub box wires that are close to each other create audio interference. If you really can't find it, you could try shielded speaker wire. Then at that point you'd have isolated and known high quality wire.

Alright. If it was interference would it continue the static at idle as well, or only when the engine starts getting up there in rpm? How would i go about finding the interference? It appears that the currently ran wires are from factory, and it doesnt look like anything was ran to the back by the previous owner.

Any suggestions on where to run the new wires? Also, what should I look for when buying speaker wire?

 

[Cooper Smith]

Alright. If it was interference would it continue the static at idle as well, or only when the engine starts getting up there in rpm? How would i go about finding the interference? It appears that the currently ran wires are from factory, and it doesnt look like anything was ran to the back by the previous owner.

Any suggestions on where to run the new wires? Also, what should I look for when buying speaker wire?

Finding the interference involves some pretty deep digging. New speaker wire was a last resort suggestion. If you use shielded, only ground the shield on one end. If not you’ll get a ground loop which will also create distortion.

Swap your front and rear outputs from your head unit as well.

 

[Desurfaced]

Finding the interference involves some pretty deep digging. New speaker wire was a last resort suggestion. If you use shielded, only ground the shield on one end. If not you’ll get a ground loop which will also create distortion.

Swap your front and rear outputs from your head unit as well.

Alright, thanks for the advice man. I appreciate it.

 

[Wingback73]

Highly unlikely to be engine induced interference, but easy enough to check: Rev the engine while not moving. If it starts getting static then it is ground loop, but that would be unusual since that typically presents as a whine, not static.

Any static I've ever heard in any vehicle I've ever worked on was a loose connection. There is a harness in the rear pods; I would re seat that connector before going too much farther with anything else

 

[Desurfaced]

Highly unlikely to be engine induced interference, but easy enough to check: Rev the engine while not moving. If it starts getting static then it is ground loop, but that would be unusual since that typically presents as a whine, not static.

Any static I've ever heard in any vehicle I've ever worked on was a loose connection. There is a harness in the rear pods; I would re seat that connector before going too much farther with anything else

I checked the harness that hooks up to the speaker on both, and they were properly seated. I'm also convinced they're not the issue as it's happening on both the left and the right rear speakers.

Alsp, this might be relevant. I just remembered my dome light flickers on both sides. I'm assuming both rear speakers and dome lights are ran together. So I'm thinking the whole harness is possibly damaged?

 

[Wingback73]

Not the individual connections, the harness connection. Regardless, the flickering dome light is an important detail. Your harness is frayed somewhere and likely grounding out which is causing both problems. Down the driver side floor and up the B pillar if I remember correctly

 

[Desurfaced]

Not the individual connections, the harness connection. Regardless, the flickering dome light is an important detail. Your harness is frayed somewhere and likely grounding out which is causing both problems. Down the driver side floor and up the B pillar if I remember correctly

do you think it would be easier to find the frayed part of the harness or just run new wires?

 

[Wingback73]

Not much difference in the two - you'll need to follow the old ones to find the new ones

 

[Desurfaced]

Not much difference in the two - you'll need to follow the old ones to find the new ones

Alright thank you!

 

[ChasUGC]

Yeah that happens with some of the cheaper stereos. What you need is a car audio noise filter. Some can be plugged into your power and some can be plugged into your stereo wires or rca plugs. It can be a little costly finding one that really works. I brought like three different ones at one time, and hooked them up individually until I found one that did the trick. Some references say thatbit comes through your alternator. The filters can cost between $15-30 each. You can also order one from Amazon and if it doesn't work, send it back and order a different one. Here is one for example.
Car Power Filter Noise Ground Loop Isolator Suppressor Car Audio Noise Filter 12V Car Stereo Audio Filter Noise Isolation Reducer for Stereo Audio Radio Amplifier Amp Speaker https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CCX2PVPQ?tag=wranglerorg-20
Try googling "car stereo noise when engine running". It will tell you about it.