Help! Car Radio makes Whining sound

[KrisKros]

I've posted this in other boards n nobody can figure it out. here's what i've posted on a Nissan audio forum.

Here's the problem, my stereo makes an annoying whining/buzzing sound everytime i step on the accelerator. I try turning the music up to drown it out..but the whining also increases. Btw, I have a 92 Sentra. My set up is all stock...I have a tape player..haha (ok lang..basta pogi ako haha).. N i have a Mini Disc player (MD Player) attached to my tape player using the tape adapter. This problem has been going on for about... 4 months now. I've just never came around to fixing it.

Ne ways...here's what i've figured out so far
After figuring out where my center console piece was hiding its screws, i got to take out the radio. i found out..that if i took out the screws that held down the radio.. the power to the radio went out. Instead of 4 screws holding it down... i got 2 screws holding it down..the other 2 are missing. anyways..one screw had the black wire pinned down under the screw. I tried diff. options. I took out the screws n tried holding the wire down to the metal piece while turning the radio on..nothing happned. then i left the wire unattatched...n screwed in 1 screw..tiny sparks started flying! normal ba yan?? Parang hindi..Natakot ako! but after the screw was screwed in, the radio worked. so screws out.. no power. screws in..there's power. wala akong alam dito electronics..sa so i just placed everything back the way I found it. n left it alone.

Does anyone have any ideas? n any ideas on how to fix this problem? is it possible to DIY?

[pparado]

add a relay?

[KrisKros]

add a relay?

ano yun? pasensya pare...like i said, i dont know much about car stereo electronics. heheh sorry

[GlennSter]

GROUNDING.

malamang naka ground lang yan kung saan saan.baka dun sa screws lang na sinasabi mo,

ayusin mo yung ground ng radio mo.tanggalin mo sa grounding point (yung nakaground sa body ng car) make sure na malinis ito (walang dumi at minimal ang paint) gamit ka ng liha to clean it.tapos i ground mo ulit.better yet, ilipat mo ng ground dapat sa body talaga ng kotse.

[BlueBimmer]

try buying those 12V power filters used on car sound systems..looks like a very small inverter

[BlueBimmer]

also one possibility is the audio cables are too close to the power cables.

[GlennSter]

before BUYING anything.check all the possibilities first.grounding and power wires shouldnt be touching or near to each other at all.

[KrisKros]

baka yun ang problema. Kc.. sa likod ng console..maraming maraming wires. Just this yr. we got our a/c working..n they added a switch to turn on the a/c. I'm the 2nd owner of this car..n we bought it earlier this yr..so i have no knowledge of this car's history. The wiring in this car is a mess..so yes, maybe the wires are too close together. I'll try moving them around n spreading them around away from eachother to see if that helps.

Also, im not sure if this would help in deciding what might be wrong. At night, when driving, I usually keep my driving lights on dim if there's cars in front of me n if we're in slow moving traffic..but ive noticed that when i have my lights fully on, the whining sound is louder..not much louder..but slightly louder than it was in the dim mode.

[GlennSter]

ground nga.

[KrisKros]

so how would i fix that? just make sure the wires arent touching? or is it more than that if its the grounding?

[kinyo]

KrisKros,

your problem is a classic case of poor grounding ... the radio is apparently connected to ground by the screw(s) which is not the proper way to ground (that screw is actually carrying the current required by the radio when it should be black wire doing it)

what you hear is alternator whine normally caused by improper grounding of audio system ... this is easily fixed by competent installer (assuming the radio's noise filter circuit is still intact) ... it would be best to bring your car to any good car audio shop since you admit lacking electronics know-how ... other than grounding, there maybe something wrong with your radio too because the black wire isn't doing its job

you may not realize it, but you are so darn lucky to have that spark not kill your radio or bust a fuse ... having sparks (when tinkering) and not bust a fuse is a possible indication of miswiring the power supply for your radio

so go and have it fixed by your suking car audio shop ... tell them to fix the grounding and make sure that the power supply for the radio is going through an appropriate fuse

[StraightSix]

From what you've described, your stereo is suffering from alternator whine. The cause of most alernator whines is poor grounding, like what GlennSter said.

The frame or cage where your stereo is mounted probably has a poor/loose connection to the car's body. I suggest you run a length of wire, as short as possible, from your stereo's metal casing to the car's firewall/flooring and make sure that the connection is clean and tight as in kita mo bakal at makintab siya.

The black wire you described is the stereo's ground wire. The sparks were caused by insufficient conduction, as it was OK after the screw was set, just like what you said. Your stereo probably has a clock or memory function but as long as the sparks are not big enough to cause a fire (an exaggeration), that's normal.

If you're confident that you already have a good ground connection and you still have the whine, it's time to consider putting a filter in the line.

[KrisKros]

Wow, salamat sa information, that really helped alot. I'll probably take it in next month to get checked out, and step into the 21st century (finally) by buying a cd player HU. But, i'll make sure to get that problem fixed before having it installed for sure. Thanks

[caloyski5]

i would also say poor grounding like what papa glenn said