No sound from speakers

[GriffinW]

Ok I just installed my new HU and when I play cd's or the radio, sound doesnt come from the speakers. I can however pick up interference in the speakers so I know they work. I know it is wired correctly but I think a fuse may be blown in the car somewhere. Is there a fuse that would cause my speakers to not play music? I have installed many a HU before and never had this strange problem.

[slammed95240sx]

bad speaker harness? is it a new headunit?

[RedS13pig]

headunit could be bad, if it's not a setting or wiring issue. everything worked before you installed the new hu or you put in all new stuff?

[GriffinW]

I fixed that problem, but now I have a new one. Im getting tons of interference from my lights. When I turn them on I cant even hear what song is playing over the annoying buzzing sound. Its probably the cheap ass HU i bought but I would like to know if there is a quick fix.

[Wes]

You sure none of the wiring could have frayed somewhere when your other HU was stolen?

[GriffinW]

No I re-wired every speaker. This is beginning to be a huge pain.

[Wes]

Hell man, it really could just be the headunit.
If you wanna drop by one night, we can pull the headunit outta my hatch and see if thats the problem, cause all my shit works.

[djQ]

im guessing it is a wiring problem that a wire is exposed somewhere

[GriffinW]

Is wrapping the end of the exposed wire with electrical tape considered a fix?

[Wes]

Lol, I think so, sir.

[GriffinW]

Well I sure as hell hope so. It sucks not being able to listen to music at night time.

I wish I had my maxima back right now!

OK I taped up every damn wire that runs into the head unit. I know that the speakers arent messed up because nothing has changed since they were working fine with the old unit. Is it the HU or what????

[djQ]

i doubt the head unit is bad especially if you get some kind of sound from it.....

does it make any difference if you press the gas as apposed to not pressing it??

[Cameron.]

the faster you go, the better it gets.

[djQ]

my only other guess is a bad ground but the unit itself should be grounded by the screws holding it in but check and try a different ground with the ground wire

[GriffinW]

Ill try a new ground, right now its grounded to one of the pieces of metal behind the dash, directly behind the HU.

If that doesnt work Im going to try putting one of the noise filters I have on the speaker wire running to the speaker. If that doesnt work Im blowing up the car.

[TaiKneePony]

tell me when you wanna blow it up ill help!!! im a pyro!!! ;p lol

yea dude idk, ive never heard of anything like it...

[GriffinW]

Ok DjQ ive got another variable to throw in. It works fine if I flip my brights on, while the main headlight switch is off, but as soon as the switch on the steering column is turned, they mess up.

[spahzz]

Uninstall one speaker... or find another one you might have laying around

Pull out the head unit, and run the speak directly to the head unit from the wire harness... this may require you to splice into the line briefly.

if the problem is fixed to that one speaker then you know it has something to do with the wiring between the HU and the Speakers.

if the probem persists, then it is likely grounding issue.

ground noise cancelers are not terribly expensive and can even be bought at wal-mart and are a 5minute install... you can buy one and see if that one speaker works using it, then buy the other 3 or return the 1 etc etc

i assume you do not have amps/subs etc... b.c that would be a whole different set of issues.

if you have a crossed line somewhere in the car god help you find it lawl

[flip]

my only other guess is a bad ground but the unit itself should be grounded by the screws holding it in but check and try a different ground with the ground wire

^This would be my guess as well.

Also for your previous problem, if one of the speaker wires is grounded, it can cut off all of the speakers...

Also also, if the amp's go bad you will get little or no sound... Just bypass them if you have an aftermarket head unit.

[GriffinW]

I rewired the speakers myself so I know for a fact that it is direct and uncut. Ill try the ground noise cancelers tomorrow.

[flip]

I rewired the speakers myself so I know for a fact that it is direct and uncut. Ill try the ground noise cancelers tomorrow.

Just check your current grounds first. You shouldn't need those. If your head lights aren't grounded correctly it could be causing the ground to run somewhere else and cause interference. Since your headlights affect the sound that would make me think it's a problem with that.

[GriffinW]

Its really strange because the sound is fine, as long as my headlight switch isn't turned on.

If I flip the brights on without initally turning on my headlights the radio works fine. Which is why I dont think the problem is in the headlights themselves, but in the wires within the switch. I think I need to trace those wires and see if something is up. Anybody know where those wires come out underneath the dash?

[djQ]

honestly a noise canceler isnt going to do anything....those are for a whole nother realm of problems

im bout 95% sure it is a wiring problem

what happened to your old head unit?

[GriffinW]

Shit got stolen out of the Mall of Georgia parking lot while I was at work.

And my insurance deductable is equivelant to the price of what was stolen.

Any suggestions as to where I should ground the HU if that is indeed the problem?

[djQ]

technically you shouldnt have to ground it to anything (the mounting bracket grounds to the car at least in my s13 it does)

i dont believe its a head unit wire that is exposed...if your headunit was ripped out it could be a number of wires affecting your interference...another wire is grounding out

[GriffinW]

I have a feeling this isnt going to be an easy fix like I had hoped. I have no clue which wire could be grounding out. Every wire behind the HU has been taped up. The only wires that would pick up the signal and cause interference are the ones leading into the HU, correct?

[djQ]

correct

its really hard to get interference on the HU harness side of things if the ground is good which you could send to any metal screw on the car

now you can always hit someone up with a spare headunit and test it out but i think you will have the same problem....headunits dont usually malfunction when the lights turn on

[GriffinW]

Well looks like Im just going to go through every wire tomorrow. I do however have one wire that branches off from a wire I ran to hook up an electric fan. The wiring diagram on the unit said i needed one power wire with only a fuse, no relay. It was a yellow wire, which I always thought was for illumination or memory purposes. Do you think the noise could be coming from that?

[dhumps]

the yellow wire is generally the wire that turns the hu on when the car turns on. you have a red that i believe is a constant a black that is your ground and a yellow that is your ignition, if you wired the yellow to something wrong the hu would either not come on or it would stay on even when the car is off(if u wired the yellow to a constant power source) any ways your ground isnt the problem at least i dont think it is. does your radio cut off when the head lights r on or it just doesnt play sound?

[spahzz]

wait, does he have a system with an amp, or just a HU + 4 midrange speaks?

[djQ]

wait, does he have a system with an amp, or just a HU + 4 midrange speaks?

it wouldnt matter either way

[GriffinW]

does your radio cut off when the head lights r on or it just doesnt play sound?

MY previous HU would cut off when the lights were turned on, but this one does not cut off. However when the lights are on I cant understand the music through all the interference.

I have a HU, two midrange, and two tweeters. Extremely simple.

[quazar]

It sounds like you are either pulling the wrong wire for either Constant / Switched / Ground.
Does your car have a wiring harness in it or is it hardwired?

Three things to check:

1. Check to see if your speakers have a short in the voice coil or + /- may be grounded out to the chassis of the car. This causes the radio amp to turn off because it senses a ground in the speakers (aka short). Also did you tape up your speaker wires that you are NOT using? DO NOT TAPE THEM TOGETHER. TAPE THEM OFF INDIVIDUALLY.

2. Ground your radio itself to the subdash of the car (metal frame). You might not have a good ground and it can cause problems that you are seeing.

3. Check to see if you have your ground hooked up to the factor dimmer wire, this will interfere with the lights and possibly burn out your dimmer.

This is probably less than a 5 minute fix.

Best of luck.

[GriffinW]

It sounds like you are either pulling the wrong wire for either Constant / Switched / Ground.
Does your car have a wiring harness in it or is it hardwired?

Three things to check:

1. Check to see if your speakers have a short in the voice coil or + /- may be grounded out to the chassis of the car. This causes the radio amp to turn off because it senses a ground in the speakers (aka short). Also did you tape up your speaker wires that you are NOT using? DO NOT TAPE THEM TOGETHER. TAPE THEM OFF INDIVIDUALLY.

2. Ground your radio itself to the subdash of the car (metal frame). You might not have a good ground and it can cause problems that you are seeing.

3. Check to see if you have your ground hooked up to the factor dimmer wire, this will interfere with the lights and possibly burn out your dimmer.

This is probably less than a 5 minute fix.

Best of luck.

Ill check the speakers for shorts, every wire not being used is taped up individualy. I had it grounded to the metal frame behind the dash and had the same problem. My ground is hooked up to metal so Its not hooked to the factory dimmer.

I can turn the volume up past half way for more than a minute or else it shuts off, my guess is that its overheating? Im getting a new HU asap... this $75 JVC isnt cutting it.

[quazar]

Overheating is usually caused by two things.. a ground out/shorted/bad speaker or the internal amplifier is bad.

[michaelespiau]

I have done many systems... and not once have I not known what the problem was... my guess is that it is a wiring problem... the only wire you need to hook up to get the power on is red/battery yellow/battery/memory and black ground.... as long as those are correct and power is on the screen then you have power to the speakers if you hooked them up correctly.... if you wanna drive down to henry county I'll tell you whats wrong and fix it for free if it is not a bad head unit.. I'm good at that kind of stuff

[dhumps]

hey dont you live close to buford? if so you can just bring it by and ill take a look at it ive installed over 25 systems and who knows how many headunits, but if u want u can bring it by ill pm u my number.