Ipod Install and still have engine whine :(

So I did the Ipod install in my 996 using the Becker AUX in kit and while the sound is great I get a fair about of engine whine in the audio. I even used the suggested Radio Shack in line ground loop isolator which only minimized it yet it is still present. Any suggestions???

First check the source. Does it whine with the power unplugged? If it does, check your cable. A shielded cable might be the answer. If it doesn't, then you might add a capacitor filter to where it connects to the power source.

Power unplugged??? Not sure I follow Lee. The back of the Becker unit has 3 wires that converge into a RCA cable end. I plugged that into the ground loop isolator that looks like a large covered capacitor that has a set of male RCA's on one side and a set of females RCA's on the other. I installed in inbetween the Becker unit and the RCA to stero plug that goes into the Ipod. Not sure if that made much sense. Thoughts?

A few questions: 1. How are you getting audio out of the iPod and into the headunit? Are you coming out of the headphone jack or out of the bottom of the iPod? 2. Is your iPod connected to the vehicle for charging when you hear the noise? 3. Do you have Xenon headlamps? If so, is it worse with the headlamps on? 4. I'm assuming you have correlated the 'noise' to the engine RPM. 5. Is the noise you are hearing volume dependent? If you pause the iPod and adjust the headunit volume, does the noise level change? I'm a bit skeptical regarding the use of a 'ground loop isolator' with an iPod, which is already floating/isolated from the vehicle (as it's battery powered)....but that's a different discussion.

1. Headphone Jack (stero plug to RCA) 2. No charging at all 3. Have Xenon but didn't check with it on. Only have listened in the daytime 4. Yes 5. Yes

I meant this...

I get the same whine through the cassette adapter - I was hoping the AUX kit would cure that, and was planning on going that route...

Did you try turning the iPod up and the radio down? Signal-to-Noise can be an issue. If the noise is low relative to the signal, it gets amplified less.

Tried that but the adjustement result is minor.

Using the belkin unit the only way to reduce the output of the iPod is with the belkin volume ****. Since the belkin unit takes the output from the dock on the iPod (which in theory has the best sound) the volume control on the iPod has no effect on the output. What volume do you have the Belkin set on? Have you experimented with this? My original install had terrible alternator whine (as I called it). The radio shack ground loop isolator did little or nothing for me. I returned it. I went to higher end car audio shop and told them my problem. They recommended I first try a different filter/groundloop isolator from them and if that didn't work they had a different filter that was more expensive they knew would work. Their first filter worked well enough that I never bought the more expensive alternative. There was still some "whine" but it could only be heard under very quiet conditions with the volume turned up rather loudly. So I was satisfied. This was with generation 4 iPod. Since then my gen 4 iPod had a HD failure. I replaced it with the video iPod (a cool black one that matches the interior much better btw). I have noticed that the whine is more noticeable on this model (very strange) not enough to bother me since I can't hear it in most of the music. However, the whine is much more noticable when no music is playing. Strangely the "click" sound of scrolling through the iPod menus when no music is playing can now be heard faintly through the car speakers (never noticed this on the gen 4). I am begining to suspect that apple changed the way dock interfaces in the latest iPods. Dell which iPod do you have?

I have the iPod Photo 40g. I wonder is the line out to RCA (utilizing the dock connector) would work better than stereo to RCA adapter (using the headphone jack)?????????

Whoops. I miss read your post. I thought you were using the Belkin car unit and then using the dock connector. All my prior ramblings were for this set up. In theory the dock connector is suppose to have "cleaner" less compressed sound (according to most at the iPod lounge) than the head phone jack connection. However, since the Belkin unit has a volume control I am not sure I truly have accomplished that. If the ability to charge the iPod in the car is not important to you I would incourage you to get the home audio cable for hooking your iPod to a receiver/pre-amp. It comes straight out of the dock and does not run through any amplification and splits into a L/R RCA plug and relies on the amplification of the receiver (or head unit in our application). This is the best sound that can be achieved with the iPod. It may be the best bet to avoid any type of "whine". The down side is you will not be able to charge the iPod while it is being used. This was the reason I went with Belkin set up.

Dell - I've used this Belkin connector in the past with no whine. It uses the botton connector to get the sound..then use use your headphone/RCA jack at the bottom of the power cord.... It might work better......... http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProdu...duct_Id=193794

I'll look into that. Thanks WLEE69.

The other piece to the puzzle is probably how good your RCA cable is. I think that some of the cheaper ones are not shielded and let in things like alternator whine. I used this one from Monster Cable. http://www.monstercable.com/mobile/m...Mobile%20Audio Now I'm onto the Denison product that connects thru the CD changer cable Good luck!

I thought about that but the connector you listed in the pic (like I was considering as well) comes AFTER the ground looop isolator. I would think that it would be harder to clean up with better cables after that point. Thoughts?

Here is a write-up I did on my iPod install Some observations: The whine is a ground loop impedance mismatch on the power feed to the iPod. If you remove the car's power source from the iPod and let it run on its batteries, the whine should go away, regardless if the audio is plugged into the headphone jack or the line out connector on the bottom of the iPod. I have not read of anyone that has successfully eliminated the noise completely from their setup using the Becker radios, but the best dampening of the noise has been achieved by taking the power and ground directly from the same lines that feed the radio, and use a ground loop isolator on the audio line in. I am using that setup now, and the noise is only noticeable at very high volumes in the car.

Thanks OE. I have read you write up many times before....very well presented.

I also have the same noise. However I have added an external amp and used the grounding screw that the headlamps use and have the same EVIL whine. I put the Radio ****** suppressor on it and it did little. In the past I have noted that the noise is related to putting either the power wire too close to RCA's. The wierdest things is however that I don't remember this whine being present before. I know that also using a different ground will work better. Ideas on a different ground? I guess I could use the battery -, but I have always used a chassis ground.

What happend with this? I now have the whine!

Quotes source post: 4835025

I followed Orient Express' methodology exactly. Went from bothersome whine whenever the iPod was plugged in .... down to a very faint whine that can be heard only when the Becker is still on AUX setting, but iPod is paused or between tracks.