8 replies to this topic

[Blitz]

hey guys,

very quick question, would it be better to run the front speaker wires coming from the amp in the boot along the side of the car with the power wire or RCA cable ? same with the amp remote wire from the HU ?

any tips ?

thanks

[sbadman]

Keep the RCA's seperated from power cables. I haven't had a problem with running alongside speaker cables however

[Cyberpunky]

Run them where ever is easiest. I have seen hundreds of installs, using good quality components, that had all wires bundeled together, that I tend to think the whole issue is a mute point, unless you is using crap in first place, in which case its not about install but components themselves.

Our head installer, at an Alpine dealer always bunched them together and had no noise problems. Sure all these systems where Alpines and so I cant vouch for cheapa stuff, but the whole run cables here and others there, is a hangover from the bad old days of car audio when even the good stuff couldnt hold a candle to most decent stuff today.

Anyway its only when you have a problem that you should try and fix it, not before hand. Make up your own mind but dont put the horse before the cart, and assume you must do things X way because thats what everyone elses does. Sure if we all run our cables down different places and have no noise its easy to assume its because we did it that way, but unless we know for sure then we are just making our installs fussy due to tradition rather than because we needed to.

peace
Cyberpunky

[lancerman]

Cyberpunky has a good point. In my ever pursuit of SPL my install has gotten messier and dodgier, with RCA's crossing over all sorts of 0g cable, neons and stuff, and I have never come across a noise issue yet...

[-DJ-]

keep EVERYTHING away from power.

all audio-based lines shouldn't be too much of a drama tho...

d

[Blitz]

thanks guys

Cyber, i guess if running RCA's along side of power cables has any chance of causing interferance, even if only in theory, then ill try to avoid that from the start.

[-DJ-]

just from what i've gleaned from the home hi-fi industry, you ALWAYS try to separate your power from your signal. whether its going to be an audible problem or not for your system, its always better to do it right the first time.

d

[Cyberpunky]

Well all noise I have evr had to sort had nothing to do with RCAs or speaker cables and power cable.
Like I said I also used to do seperate runs, but dont these days, Yes in an AC enviroment I would but in a cars DC enviroment its a myth IMO.

Anyway just use UTP, and any half decent components and you wont have a problem, I cant vouch for cheap stuff, but I have found noise with cheaper stuff is induced from other sources or is inhehrent.

peace
Cyberpunky

[Cassetti]

Quote

Originally posted by DjHatton:
just from what i've gleaned from the home hi-fi industry, you ALWAYS try to separate your power from your signal. whether its going to be an audible problem or not for your system, its always better to do it right the first time.

d

I know i know you see i'm a newbie and disregard this - but i had to say - i agree with cyber - It really does not matter - i mean sure - if you measured there may be somethng there - but in all reality - you will pick up more noise from the grounds on the amp than you would from the RCA's - much much more - and thats mainly due to the way the car 'flows' the juice back to the car - if your ground power gets into the wrong 'flow' of juice returning to the battery through the chassis (its hard to think of it like this - but go with me) - it will pick up a lot of noise.

Sand well - and ground good, run the rca's where you can put them - generally its easier to put them near the speaker wires if you are doing an install in an suv - like my blazer - because the 4 guage power wire is so dang big - that there is no way 3 pairs of rca's can fit along side of it especially around the trim where the door's are.