stereo and amp connection question

[sarah.shepherd]

OK so there was a notable difference on the sound this weekend ... much more even sound and less noise

But there was still a noise ...

The noise is only when the engine is on and the noise changes with the RPMs of the engine which I think means it is a ground issue (right?)

The noise is only in 1 of the speakers and we already tested to see if it was a problem with the speaker and from what we were able to determine it is not a speaker issue - the noise is only in one channel of the Alpine PDX5 amp (sound was in Rear R and when we swapped the Rear R and Rear L on the amp the sound stayed in the Rear R channel)

Are we correct in our assumption that the sound is ground related? Is it odd for the noise to only be in one channel of one amp? Obviously we'll check all of the grounds while we're at it but is their one in particular that is more likely to be the problem?

[chpthril]

OK so there was a notable difference on the sound this weekend ... much more even sound and less noise

But there was still a noise ...

The noise is only when the engine is on and the noise changes with the RPMs of the engine which I think means it is a ground issue (right?)

The noise is only in 1 of the speakers and we already tested to see if it was a problem with the speaker and from what we were able to determine it is not a speaker issue - the noise is only in one channel of the Alpine PDX5 amp (sound was in Rear R and when we swapped the Rear R and Rear L on the amp the sound stayed in the Rear R channel)

Are we correct in our assumption that the sound is ground related? Is it odd for the noise to only be in one channel of one amp? Obviously we'll check all of the grounds while we're at it but is their one in particular that is more likely to be the problem?

From My original post

The two leading causes of noise are due to the amp gain settings being too high or the head-unit not sharing the same battery source as the amps. Let us know if you have further questions.

Gain setting is very important for both sound quality and preventing unwanted noise. The head-unit MUST share the same battery source as the amps is the boat has dual batteries. This means both B+ and GND.

[sarah.shepherd]

The head-unit MUST share the same battery source as the amps is the boat has dual batteries. This means both B+ and GND.

OK just to make sure I understand correctly the power and ground should come from their source and then into a distribution block that splits it into 3 power and ground and go to the head unit and the two amps.

Thank you again for your help and patients with me

[chpthril]

OK just to make sure I understand correctly the power and ground should come from their source and then into a distribution block that splits it into 3 power and ground and go to the head unit and the two amps.

Thank you again for your help and patients with me

There are a few ways to skin that cat correctly, but end result is that the best defence against unwanted noise is to have the head-unit share the same B+ and GND as the amp(s). IMO, the easiest way to do this, on most installs, is to just run the black GND and yellow B+ from the head-unit right to one of the amp's B+ and GND terminals, as in most installs, the amps are real close to the head-unit.

[sarah.shepherd]

There are a few ways to skin that cat correctly, but end result is that the best defence against unwanted noise is to have the head-unit share the same B+ and GND as the amp(s). IMO, the easiest way to do this, on most installs, is to just run the black GND and yellow B+ from the head-unit right to one of the amp's B+ and GND terminals, as in most installs, the amps are real close to the head-unit.

OK so power and ground from HU to amp 1 and then from amp 1 to amp 2?

[chpthril]

OK so power and ground from HU to amp 1 and then from amp 1 to amp 2?

No....leave the power and ground for the amps alone, we just want to piggyback the power and ground for the head-unit off one of the amps. This is on the speculation that the power and grounds for the amps are of the correct size.

[sarah.shepherd]

I don't know the exact gauge but I do know the power and ground for the amps is larger than the head unit

[sarah.shepherd]

So we are about 90% sure that the ground issue is actually inside the amp. Of course the amp is out of warranty so now the decision to attempt to repair the amp or just buy a new one ...

We are leaning towards replacing the PDX5 amp that has the internal issue with the Kicker KXM700.5 and adding the KXM-RLC dual zone control ... any thoughts or feedback on the Kicker amp and dual zone control?

[sarah.shepherd]

Kicker 700.5 and KXM-RLC ordered along with a bass control. Hope to get them by Wed or Thurs so we can have them installed for this weekend