Just installed new head unit. Having a sound issue..
 

Ok I just installed a new Clarion head unit.

Before I actually put it into the dash I tested it to make sure I had everything hooked up correctly and sounding good. The test turned out good and everything sounded great.

So I continued installing the unit into the dash and after I finished I try it again and everything works great except the volume now is extremely low. If I crank the volume up to max, I would guess that it is only putting out 15% of its actual potential.

All speakers work, and there doesn't seem to be any static or interference type sounds in the speakers. There is also no external amp. Just the head unit powering my oem speakers.

My initial guess was that a wire had come undone or one of the harnesses was loose but that is not that case (at least from the eye) edit: double checked/ tugged all connections are solid

I am going to give it another try tomorrow. My only guess now is that maybe my ground wire came loose.. like it is grounded but maybe it came off a bit edit: ground is tight & solid. I always thought tho, that a ground was either 100% or 0% connected, but I am just guessing.. I am not a car audio or electrical guy by any means... Could it possibly be the yellow or red? It seems to be an equal distributed problem with all speakers so I wouldn't say it is any particular speaker wire in question.

Any tips or pointers would be really helpful.

Thanks

How many speakers are you using? 2? 4? If it's 2, I'd check the fade, if you haven't already.
Does it matter if you adjust the balance?

There are 4. I tried playing around with the fade and balance but no change in volume levels.

What year and type of car is it in?

Aftermarket or factory speakers?

What car?

Could be a factory amp issue or maybe a speaker impedance issue. Maybe you wired it out of phase? Did you use a harness adapter?

96 accord.

'06 clarion vrx765vd

oem speakers
I had a harness adaptor from my old jvc head unit that I used. I wired it to my head unit, and then plugged it into my accord harness. does that make sense?

It's just weird how when I wired it up, I tested it out and it worked perfect, and then when I moved the unit into the actual dash a minute after and retested it, the volume issue came. I think it's a minor issue but I don't know what it is.

When i pulled it out after i discovered the volume problem, i checked my connections and they all looked good. I put the unit half in just to rest it in there and it still has teh problem. That's how it sits right now.

Also I wanted to mention that I have a toggle switch hooked up to my unit.

There is my ebrake wire which connects to a toggle switch, and then the ground wire for that is the SAME ground used for the actual unit (which is the Accord wiring harness).

I powered the deck up without the toggle in place and I still have the same problem, however I only removed the switch, I did not actually remove the wire from the ground (I don't know if this would make any difference tho?). edit: I removed the ground wire completely and problem persists

I also checked my ground and it seems relatively good going into the harness. edit: i rewired my ground just for fun

I am really stumped right now. Is there a way to reset the head unit? edit: I reset the unit and still no change in volume levels. I also can't seem to find any settings in the manual regarding my issue. Nothing like a mute or something along those lines that would disable the level of sound coming out.

I just read the manual and realized that I did not remove the (-) battery terminal before installing the unit. It says it will prevent short circuits during installation. Maybe I shorted it? I don't even know what the exact effects would be if that happened.

ugh :\

edit: I tried running the power wire directly to the battery instead of thru the harness, still no change.

I have fumbled around with the settings in both DVD mode and CD mode (both have the same problem). I have changed the balance and fade and they both respond properly but do not seem to help with the low volume problem I am having.

Having my head unit cranked to the fullest sounds a little quieter than a very moderate listening level (say if you were listening to the news or a canucks game on the radio).

I'm really surprised I can't find anything on google. This is really starting to piss me off lol..

If anyone has any suggestions for what I can do, it would be really appreciated because at this point I am out of things to try.

edit: is there any way I can physically test the actual head unit? Maybe the internal amp is fucked up. It is a 50x4 on paper but really it sounds like a 50x1 or less. I guess if I had an amp I could test it, but unfortunately I do not have one laying around. Hmm

We can bench test it for you.

It's time to stop banging your head against a wall or anything like that. It's time to take it to a shop for a diagnosis.
We have special tools and loads of experience to help with your issue. Make an appointment and relieve yourself of the insanity of attempting this without the resources that we have as part of our daily activities.

I went to warm my car up today after work. I shut the door behind me and started walking back to the office and I heard my speakers pumping super loud. I went back to the car and then it got quiet again hahaha.. must be a connection?

I'm going to redo the entire harness tonight.

Yeah it's a connection.....or ten.

I was going to suggest an exorcist friend of mine. LOL


I'm guessing you don't solder your connections. It's always a good idea to secure all connections to save you hassles later on. I used to twist and slap on the electrical tape. Got sick of having to redo stuff later on. My installs take longer now, but I only have to do it once. People say butt connectors and crimp-ons are good enough, but there's nothing like a good solder joint - as long as you know how to solder. Just my 2 bits.

I rewired the entire harness last night (I use the tube connectors and crimp them always).

Same problem hahaa shoot me. :D

might be your factory amp, your deck or you might have a short in one of your speakers.. i would pull your deck out, while its playing start cutting speaker wires 1 at a time just to see if its a short

check all your fuses. Also if you have an extra car speaker you can test it on each of the 4 channels.

pull it out and try again...could be some gremlin

yeah i solder aswell, do it right the first time.