oh my GOD!

[ilikesound]

ok here's a crazy install issue for everyone..

last week i took my car to the dealer for a recall repair, which they couldn't do. they did however look at the problem (faulty srs lights) and ordered the part. so i pull into the dealer, and turn my stereo off. when i come back to it, they pull it around, and my stereo had been fucked with. it was now on, and it was REAL bass heavy. also, it wouldn't get NEARLY as loud as it would before. but that's not the worst part. i could deal with that...

i decided to re-wire the mid drivers, with some better cables and i did this with one of my drivers, the right side, and had to go to class. i turn on the system to hear the awesomosity, and i get THE MOST excruciating noise i have ever experienced. it sounds like a high-pitched squeel, not even ground loop, its another monster altogether...please help me, i don't wanna troubleshoot for fear i will blow a speaker, it's literally THAT loud! i have never in my life heard anything like this sound and im TERRIFIED!

here's the setup.

alpine cda-9857, cadence peq-860

4awg from battery into dist block, into polk c400.4 and alpine mrp-m450

c400.4 into crossover's, into focal k2p set, both channels
Alpine into mm series dvc sub.

i assume it's a bad ground, something not grounded at all, but everything turns on fine, and seems like its working, though as soon as that head unit fires up, it sounds like T2 Judgement Day.

[exalted512]

Sounds like an RCA issue. Either RCA, low level outputs of the radio or the inputs of the amplifier.
-Cody

[ilikesound]

you think? i AM running some pretty shit rca's...but it worked just fine before. do they degrade or anything? how bout the h/u? could the outputs be fried?

[avguytx]

You shoulda taken the faceplate off or pulled the fuse from under the hood. I NEVER have taken my vehicles to get worked on and left them access to the stereo.

[exalted512]

The first thing I'd do is take the RCAs out of the amp and turn it on. It shouldnt make a noise. If it does, more than likely an amp problem.

Then go to your local shop, buy the cheapest RCAs you can, take the radio out and plug in the new RCAs and run it over the seats to the amp. If that fixes it, you have an RCA problem. If it doesnt, you have an amp or radio problem.
-Cody

[ilikesound]

i know, my bad about leaving the stereo in there. i could shoot myself in the face for doing it. when i unplug the rca's from the head, i get a ground loop. always been there too, just band-aided it with ground loop iso's. BUT the system don't make that crazy ass noise.

the head is wired to go into the EQ piece, then out to the amps if that helps any..

[avguytx]

Bypass the EQ and see if it makes any difference.

[Greg Peters]

...or the more likely scenario- as many a good dealer is apt to do, they diconnected the vehicle's battery, and for sufficient time so that you dropped your presets and the gain/crossover settings were lost on your amplifier and/or head unit.

Worth checking into.

[ilikesound]

i have bypassed the eq, running straight from the head to the amp, and same issue, i will test the amp today. see where the problem lies..
i mean i've got pretty ok gear, i don't see that either could be faulty, perhaps it is a smashed rca or something stupid like that. at least, that's what i'm hoping for...

[ilikesound]

ok, so im glad to inform that it's not the amps...

[ilikesound]

so, i figured it out! it was a faulty ground loop isolator that was giving me shit. go figure! i never in a million years thought that those things die, or would even give one issues...hm..learn something every day. as far as when i go back to the dealer, rest assured the faceplate will be tagging along in my backpack. thanks for the ideas guys it helped out!

thank god i don't have to go and get a new piece of gear!

[ilikesound]

ok well, now i have an even more serious issue than when i started out. my eq AND amps wont turn on. checked power, ground, rem wires all fine. WHAAAT?! could my alt/ battery be dying and cant supply the required power? oh man...tis becoming a nightmare..

[killerb]

see if you have 12v on the remote lead.

[MacLeod]

If just the amp and EQ wont fire up but the head unit does then its not a battery problem and since its 2 seperate components not firing up chances are something is disonnected somewhere. You likely yanked it out while troubleshooting your screeching sound.

[ilikesound]

mac, as always, you are a god. the remote wire came loose. BUT! and there's always a but with me..

i can't get my crossovers to give me both component drivers. tweeters operate to specs, but only one driver will play at a time, usually the right side. SO im going to rewire the left driver, and gonna say fuck the crossover, and biwire the bitches in there. im so sick of this problematic bullfu#%.

and my eq still is in sleep mode, for no apparent reason.

[MacLeod]

I dont understand dude. Do you have a seperate active crossover and its firing up but only firing the tweeters and not the mids?

I dont know what kind of crossover you have but I know in mine, there are adjustments in the menu that turns certain speakers on and off. You should dig around in the menus for a while and see if you can find something like this. Maybe it tripped something by having the power unplugged.

[eloplayspolo]

Alpine 9857 should have an option to reset all EQ to default