I recently purchased a 1995 Volkswagen T4 van and immediately noticed an issue with the audio system. At slightly higher volume levels, it sounded as if all four loudspeakers were broken. Upon inspection, I discovered that the previous owner had replaced the original loudspeakers with poor-quality ones and had installed two-way loudspeakers in place of the original tweeters on the dashboard and doors. Additionally, they had installed a cheap radio with a touchscreen.
One of the first things I did was to purchase a Continental DAB Radio with a retro look and a set of Alpine loudspeakers, including tweeters for the dashboard, 13" 2-way loudspeakers for the door, and a frequency filter for each side. I used the original wiring, except for the last part of the tweeters, where I attached a bit of wire for ease of use. Although the previous owner had done some wiring behind the radio, it did not appear relevant, and I fixed any poorly done wiring.
Unfortunately, after installation, the problem persisted. I tried changing the input polarity at the frequency filter, checked for broken wires, and played music from a USB or Bluetooth, but nothing helped. I also measured resistance for each wire connecting to the speakers and everything seems to be fine (meaning no broken wires). All four front loudspeakers sounded broken from mid-volume levels and up, meaning that I can barely listen to the radio while driving before the sound starts crackling.
The fact that all 4 loudspeakers are affected makes me thing that, if a broken wire is to blame, my bet is that it must be a ground wire, since it would be the only wire common to all loudspeakers.
I visited two local car audio workshops today, but they were unable to identify the problem. They suggested bringing the car in and checking all the audio wiring for a bad cable, but I like working on my car and I think I should be able to find the problem with a bit of help from you. What do you think could be the source of this problem?
One of the first things I did was to purchase a Continental DAB Radio with a retro look and a set of Alpine loudspeakers, including tweeters for the dashboard, 13" 2-way loudspeakers for the door, and a frequency filter for each side. I used the original wiring, except for the last part of the tweeters, where I attached a bit of wire for ease of use. Although the previous owner had done some wiring behind the radio, it did not appear relevant, and I fixed any poorly done wiring.
Unfortunately, after installation, the problem persisted. I tried changing the input polarity at the frequency filter, checked for broken wires, and played music from a USB or Bluetooth, but nothing helped. I also measured resistance for each wire connecting to the speakers and everything seems to be fine (meaning no broken wires). All four front loudspeakers sounded broken from mid-volume levels and up, meaning that I can barely listen to the radio while driving before the sound starts crackling.
The fact that all 4 loudspeakers are affected makes me thing that, if a broken wire is to blame, my bet is that it must be a ground wire, since it would be the only wire common to all loudspeakers.
I visited two local car audio workshops today, but they were unable to identify the problem. They suggested bringing the car in and checking all the audio wiring for a bad cable, but I like working on my car and I think I should be able to find the problem with a bit of help from you. What do you think could be the source of this problem?