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SUMMATION:
During the design stage of your vehicles, try to avoid using extra batteries and high output alternators. Extra batteries are nothing but loads as
soon as the engine is started and high output alternators usually make more noise than stock alternators. Also, extra batteries installed in the
trunk of a car will ALWAYS force extra ripple current to flow over the car.
Install Transient Storage as close to the power supply input of your amplifier as possible. The big caps will feed the switching power supplies of
your amps and minimize the inductive losses in your power wiring. Plus, they will help your peak system response.
In problem cases, we highly recommend the use of twisted pair cable rather than coaxial cable for RCA leads. This practice will greatly minimize
cable induced noise - especially in four channel amps!
Don’t forget that your system is only as good as its worst component. Do NOT-use components with inadequate power supply isolation or you
will be asking for problems.
The best electrical ground on a car is the CHASSIS of the car. Do NOT-run ground leads up to the case of the alternator or the negative battery
post. Keep ALL-ground leads as short as possible.
With properly isolated components, it does NOT matter where the component is grounded. With inadequately isolated components, it matters!
With poorly isolated components, different grounds can cause different noises.
The deck is the signal reference ground for the entire sound system. The deck usually has THREE connections to the car’s chassis: The black ground
lead, the base of the antenna, and the metal-to-metal bond between the case of the deck and the chassis of the car. With three grounds, there is
usually NO cause to worry about the ground of a deck.
Amplifiers are usually designed with adequate power supply isolation. This means that it should not matter where a deck is grounded. (Decks are
grounded three times and amps float. This is car audio!)
The more components installed on a signal path, the more chances for noise to enter a system. The more electrical accessories on a car, the more
noise will be produced by the alternator.
This information was compiled from more than 20 years of working in car audio. If you would like more information on this topic, or any other
technical aspect of car audio, please call 209-465-3450 and ask for a subscription to Autosound 2000 Tech Briefs - the monthly magazine for the
technically inclined.