i don’t have a screen yet but i have all the audio items i need for hooking up my ps2. so just for fun i hooked everything up today but the results make me wonder if i should ditch this project altogether. [this is with the car off.] i plugged in the cigarette adapter. as soon as i flip the switch on the power inverter, my speakers start buzzing prettly loud (on level 1 volume on my alpine deck). although discouraged, i press on. i flip the switch on my ps2 and the buzzing diminishes somewhat, still loud tho. after pushing the ‘reset’ button, i can barely hear the ‘loading’ screen as i wait for my dvd to start playing. the dvd finally loads and again i can barely hear the background music, etc under all the buzzing.
what seems to be the problem? at first i thought it was the wires but even after i tried several combinations of placement the buzzing was still loud and present. in fact, i hooked up a portable cd player into the aux and it played flawlessly. so i know it isn’t the aux so far. that leaves the ac/dc inverter or the ps2. i have a strong feeling that because the yellow (video) rca isn’t plugged into anything it is creating noise that the audio rcas are picking up.
any help is appreciated. i was so looking forward to having video in my car. if any g2ic’ers have a monitor in their car, could you try unhooking the yellow rca and see if there is buzzing? tia!
The yellow(video) should not affect anything if is not plugged in. I have had no problems with my ps2 in the car. you will get some noise with video products and with inverters but not bad like you described. Try one audio rca at a time. try barely plugging the rca in so the shield does not make contact. Make the ps2 is set to pcm not dolby digital.
Does your aux input have a level control. the ps2 ouptut maybe a little lower than your portable and needs the input level offset.
Originally posted by Luciferi
[B]The yellow(video) should not affect anything if is not plugged in. I have had no problems with my ps2 in the car. you will get some noise with video products and with inverters but not bad like you described. Try one audio rca at a time. try barely plugging the rca in so the shield does not make contact. Make the ps2 is set to pcm not dolby digital.
Does your aux input have a level control. the ps2 ouptut maybe a little lower than your portable and needs the input level offset. [/B]
okay, i returned the circuit city power inverter and got one from wal-mart. good news and bad news. good news is that my ps1 plays flawlessly now (sorry forgot to mention that i tested my ps1 earlier). well there’s a little buzzing but it is barely noticable. bad news is my ps2 still has the dreaded buzz.
i noticed a relationship between the two inverters. i noticed that the ps1 only uses 17w of power while the ps2 uses 79w and that the noise (buzzing) levels are kinda related (more power consumption = more noise). the inverter i bought from wal-mart puts out 175w whereas the cc one only put out 140w. so maybe if i got one with double or triple the power then maybe the noise levels while also decrease by that much.
Luciferi… i’m sorry i didn’t mention that i used my ps1 earlier. now that the ps1 works great, would there still be a chance that it’s the rcas? i’m using the multiout with the 3 rcas, the one that works with both the ps1 and ps2. also, i tired setting the ps2 to pcm but that didn’t work. and finally my alpine 7894 doesn’t have aux level control.
so am i screwed? or do you think that a stronger inverter might help? tia!
The buzzing you are hearing is probably caused by the fact that your deck, amp(if you have one), and playstation all have different ground locations, and that the cigarette lighter’s crappy ground may be bringing in a lot of noise.
If your power inverter will allow it, wire it directly from the battery, and choose a good ground for it. The best is to have the same ground location for all equipment in the system, but usually, that is not possible.
If wiring it to the battery does not sound feasible, just get a noise filter, and hook it up between the PS and the deck.
I think you may have something about that unplugged RCA. I remember I heard that buzzing noise once in my system (just a regular audio system) and it was because an RCA plug had become loose and it was touching a metal brace behind the deck. Try just taping up that loose RCA. Just a thought.
Try a different PS2, it may have a problem since your ps1 works fine. Hard wire the inverter to large gauge(Ignition) wire for better current and ground with your amps. If you don’t have amps, try grounding the inverter and radio together directly to the chassis. This may better or worse.
My Ps2 worked fine on a 140w plugged into the lighter of a Dodge van. Tht integra is 140 w also but hardwired with no problems.
Check around the connecter of the ps2 for damage or bent pins.
tonight i went to wal-mart again and bought a ground loop isolator. damn, that thing made a BIG difference! there’s still some buzzing tho (not even as bad as before). so i went ahead and exchanged my inverter for the next model up, the one that can be connected directly to the battery (didn’t get a chance to hook it up yet). so far so good. after i connect the inverter directly to the battery, the buzzing problem can only get better right? hopefully it’ll be the cure and i can ditch the ground loop isolator altogether. sweet, this project might just work after all thanks guys!
today i connected the inverter to the battery and grounded it where i have my ground for my deck. result? no difference compared to when i had it plugged into my cig. lighter. i still have to use the ground loop isolator too. otherwise the crazy buzzing comes back. so my question is… where is a good spot to ground in the front of the car? the location of my ground currently is where the stock cass. deck mounting screws were (the metal beam that stabilizes the deck). is that a sufficient spot to ground? i’ve had my deck grounded there the whole time and i didn’t have any problems with buzzing.
moving on… i’ve been watching (actually listening cuz i don’t have my screen yet) some movies and i’ve noticed the buzzing is related to only the higher frequencies. for example, if i turn down the treble all the way, the buzzing becomes less and less noticable (almost perfect, except that everything seems ‘muted’)but as soon as i turn it up to +2 (where i usually have my treble set at) the buzzing comes back in full force. also, when i turn off my deck’s internal amp and just let my sub play, there is no buzzing at all (none, zip, nada). does this mean i need a line-driver? or is this still an inverter related problem?
my screen is coming in 2-3 days, please help me out (a lil more ) so i can enjoy my system when it arrives (hopefully there won’t be any trouble with the screen knocks on wood), thanks!
update… (sorry for so many posts, but i really want this to work)
yesterday i went to radio shack and picked up another ground loop isolator cuz the one i bought from wal-mart came in a beat-up package. long story short, there was no change regarding the buzzing.
later that day, i relocated my inverter from under and behind the dash to under the passenger seat. i also relocated the ground from behind the dash to a screw nearby the parking brake. another long story short, no difference again. frustrated, i called it a night.
today, i went to circuit city and bought a dvd player just to experiment. result? same buzzing sound associated with my ps2.
i’m up against the wall guys. i’ve tried pretty much everything you suggested except the line-driver. my screen should be coming in tomorrow. if the buzzing isn’t solved by connecting the yellow (video) rca, then i’m stumped. my dad strongly believes the problems lies with the inverter. for those of you with ps2s in your car, what brand and model power inverter are you using? i’m willing to order the inverter if i can’t find it here in hawaii, i just want this project to work.
if i missed anything or you have a suggestion, please let me know. thanks!
Sounds like you’ve tried everything. If the noise is not coming from the ground side of the power supply, it very well could be alternator noise. You didn’t mention though, if it does this with the engine on or off. If it’s only when the engine’s on, it’s definitely alternator noise, and you can get an inline noise filter from Radio Shack that goes on the + side, between the power inverter and the battery. THAT my friend, should fix it.
Actually, try this even if it’s buzzing with the engine off. I believe the noise is entering through the power supply somewhere.
after work today i hooked up my screen (5.6" emerson, better than i expected) and just by connecting the yellow/video rca to the “brain” of the monitor, the buzzing disappeared! no ground loop isolator or anything! guess i was right from the beginning j/k. but i’d like to thank all of you who contributed time and effort into solving my problem. once again, thank you guys!
if any g2ic’ers have a monitor in their car, could you try unhooking the yellow rca and see if there is buzzing? tia!
thanks guys!
but i’d like to thank all of you who contributed time and effort into solving my problem. once again, thank you guys! 