Rich Wales wrote:
> I *may* finally have managed to pinpoint the cause of the intermittent
> static in the front left tweeter of my 2004 VW Golf (with aftermarket
> Kenwood receiver and stock Monsoon amplifier and speakers).
>
> Over the weekend, I put a few layers of electrical tape on either side
> of the big plug that (I believe) is what carries audio signals to and
> from the amplifier -- and then I pushed the plug in firmly, all the
> way, so it's held in place not only by the clips on the long sides
> (where I naturally didn't put electrical tape), but also by the extra
> bulk of the (slightly squishy) tape.
>
> The static problem appears to have basically disappeared. There may
> have been a couple spurts of brief static, which went away on their
> own, but for the most part, I'm hearing great sound now (including
> clean highs out of that tweeter).
>
> So it looks (or, shall I say, sounds?) like the main cause of the
> static problem was an intermittently bad contact in the connection to
> the amplifier. Presumably, the vibrations of driving would cause the
> plug to jiggle slightly, resulting in a bad connection (most likely in
> the wiring going to the front left tweeter, since no other speaker was
> ever affected). Sometimes, more vibration would make the connection
> become "good" again -- making the issue that much harder to track down.
>
> The plug was snapped "properly" into place, as far as I can tell, so
> the bad contact must presumably be something very subtle.
>
> Two questions.
>
> First, does this sound reasonable? Does this sort of thing happen in
> real life? :-}
>
> And second, is there a more "proper" way to fix a problem like this,
> or is padding the plug with electrical tape for a tight fit as good
> a solution as anything else?
Sounds entirely reasonable. It's possible there's just oxidation and/or
corrosion on the contacts, especially if you live near an ocean (salty
air).
What you can try doing to cleaning the contacts both on the plug and on
the amp - use some contact cleaner or isopropyl alcohol (the higher
percentage, the better). Then when it's dry, apply a little light
grease to the contacts before reconnecting them, ideally something sold
for battery terminals for exactly the same purpose: preventing further
oxidation/corrosion.
|
