evilspoons

Got an iPod cigarette-lighter charger/dock with a 3.5 mm output. I connected a 3.5 mm to RCA adapter and plugged this into the line input adapter I got off eBay for my JVC KD-LH810 head unit. It sounds great off my iPod Nano, just like running an MP3 CD in the head unit, except when I crank the volume up I can hear a distinct buzzing from the alternator. So, I figure it's a ground loop issue and I pick up a ground loop isolator. Mine's got RCA jacks on both sides and is a smallish cylinder. It looks identical to this eBay item:

Tsunami Noise Filter FL-GL400 Ground Loop Isolator RCA - (eBay.ca item 260223094712 end time 30-Mar-08 13:50:50 EDT)

Sure enough, this fixed the buzzing. Unfortunately, it also killed pretty much all frequencies below 150 Hz, so it sounds like my woofers are disconnected. It's pretty obvious all this GL isolator is is a 1:1 transformer, removing DC and everything just above it (hence my lack of bass).

Is this normal for a ground loop isolator, or have I just ended up with a cheap piece of junk? Anyone else run an iPod/other digital device that has a ground loop problem without completely destroying the bass output?

Haunz

iTrader: (3)

A cheap isolator will filter high frequencies and can cause low frequencies to become distorted... but it shouldn't filter the low frquencies....

at anyrate, that does look like a pretty crappy isolator to me... try a PAC unit, I've heard stinger recommended, and Navone engineering makes a really good one as well..