i was wondering where i could ground an amp in the rear cargo compartment and the directions for doing this

 

As close to the amp as possible. Just screw in into the body

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where could it be mounted?

 

ignore the last post
where could i connect the ground to the body any suggestions

 

I screwed my ground down where the wing nut is for the spare tire jack. Make sure you sand the area down first so you get good conductivity.

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[This message has been edited by Justins86bird (edited November 25, 2000).]

 

The amp and the head unit should actually be grounded at the same point to avoid a ground loop through the audio cable shield, which will cause ignition and alternator noise to be injected into the system. The head unit and the amp should be isolated from the chassis, as well. If the grounds are not attached to the same location, it may be necessary to insert an isolation transformer in the audio cable to break the ground loop between the two components. The common grounding point is sometimes referred to as a grounding "ring", or "golden spike". All components in the system interconnected by audio cables (fiber optic links are not subject to ground loops) should be grounded at the same point on the chassis.

Tim

 

I actually disagree with Tim. I don't ever ground my head unit and amps together because that requires a long run to the rear of the car for the deck, and the extreme length of ground wire in itself can create a ground loop. I always use the stock ground for the deck, and in the rare cases where I do develop a ground loop, I'll run a new ground to the passenger side kick panel for the deck. All of the equipment in the rear should be grounded to the same spot. I usually use an unfused distribution block for all of my grounds, then run the one wire to a location near the spare tire area, or to a similar spot on the other side depending on the orientation of my wiring. I like to use a separate hole rather than the jack stud. I drill a hole, and use a nut & bolt to tighten it down. I usually scrape the area so there is bare metal, then use star washers to ensure a strong connection.

A ground loop is created by a voltage potential between two different equipment grounds. This condition usually does not exist if both pieces of equipment have a sufficient ground at a point on the chassis that is not "noisy" from other electrical devices. 99 out of 100 times, a ground loop is caused by an insufficient ground, either because the connection was not properly attached and secured, the wire was inadequate, or some other situation where the resistance is measurably higher than that of other grounds. Running a wire from the deck to the back to mate up with the other grounds will add considerable resistance unless a ridiculously large wire is used (i.e. 10 gauge or bigger) which is usually impractical and costly. This was sometimes necessary in the past when car audio equipment had little or no noise filtering on their power inputs, but with new equipment, usually the only time you'll ever get a ground loop is with horribly cheap equipment, or improper grounding. Because the situation is so rare, I would never suggest running a deck ground to the rear until all other realistic solutions and trouble shooting measures have been exhausted.



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yes, what jim said. too many people out there making this car audio more confusing than it has to be.

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For grounding your amp, here's what to consider.

You want bare metal; I usually sand a small spot clean with a Dremel tool, but you could do it by hand as well.

It would be nice to have access to both sides of the panel, so you can use a nut and bolt. If you only have access to one side, you'll have to use a sheet-metal screw, and they can come loose over time.

If your grounding bolt goes through to the outside of the car, you might want to protect it from rust with undercoating or silicon or paint or something.

Things like your factory jack bracket are usually spot-welded to the car body. If there are only a few welds, or the welds are of poor quality, there could be some electrical resistance.

If you do decide to put a sheet metal screw in your car floor, make sure it won't poke into the gas tank.

What Tim Burgess said is true, and I've read it in many magazines and books. However, like Jim said, I always use the factory power and ground wires for the deck, and I've never had any noise problems. Plus, trying to splice a 10- or 8-guage wire onto the 16- or 14-guage ground wire coming from your deck won't be a lot of fun. (Although I guess you could just use a ring terminal and screw it to the back of the radio.) Just use the stock radio wiring (with a proper harness adapter, of course), and you'll be fine.

 

Also, try not to ground the body of the amp. That can cause a ground loop, not fix one.

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