Hoosierdrummer Posted April 28, 2014 Share #1 Posted April 28, 2014 I have looked through all the threads on here, and I have not found my specific problem. Perhaps, it is not a common problem. I have a 1989 Yamaha Venture Royale and the intercom works perfectly when the bike is not running. As soon as I start the bike, I get a crackling noise in the speakers of both of my helmets. You can still talk between helmets, but the crackling gets terrible the higher the rpms. I saw that someone had a similar problem on a 1999 venture which happened to be a problem with the routing of the cb cable being too close to the coils. If anyone has had this problem before and solved it please let me know. Any and all help would be greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black wing Posted April 28, 2014 Share #2 Posted April 28, 2014 i haven't had that particular issue but the coils are highly suspect. there is a huge em feild around those things. so strong that if my amp got within 5-6 inches of it it would shut down, and i had to use insulated wires to get the sound out of the audio. so if i were you i would check to make sure there are no wires touching the black side covers inside the fairing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
videoarizona Posted April 28, 2014 Share #3 Posted April 28, 2014 I have the same problem. It's definitely the ignition system leaking into the audio signal. I can hear it on the CB as well. Easiest way to tell it's ignition is to rev the engine a tad and listen to the noise change with the rpm's. I'm going to look for a bad ground along the antenna system, the radio system and the CB system...in that order. Usually, motor ignition noise in an audio signal is a bad ground. Next is a poor shield somewhere in the wiring (or bad placement of the wires as mentioned). I won't be able to check my 89VR out for about three weeks as I'll be busy with another project....so maybe you will have found the solution by the time I can get back to the VR!! By the way, sometimes you can use a simple aluminum foil shield as a test and move it around the wires of the audio system. Find the weak wire and shield it. Good luck! I'll be hoping you can find it! david Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankd Posted April 28, 2014 Share #4 Posted April 28, 2014 On my 89, the noise that I had originally DID sound like it was ignition noise, but it was actually noise from the voltage regulator. How I was able to tell the difference was that my bike's noise reduced when I ran the driving lights, or stepped on the brake. When my turn signals flashed, the noise would reduce when the signals were lit, and get louder when they were off. If yours is the same, let me know and I'll write what I did to cure the noise. Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
videoarizona Posted April 29, 2014 Share #5 Posted April 29, 2014 Whoa! Good idea, Frank...will check it out today... thanks.. david Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saddlebum Posted April 29, 2014 Share #6 Posted April 29, 2014 I had the same issue with my 89. Now this may not apply to every situation but worth checking. I found the noise intensity changed when I hit bumps. I then noticed I could get it to change by hitting the fairing beside the radio. Taking the radio out I used a needle to squeeze in the sides of the brass contacts in the blue connectors under the radio. I then used a dental pick to tighten up the female terminals in the white connectors. So far everything has been good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosierdrummer Posted May 1, 2014 Author Share #7 Posted May 1, 2014 Ok, I believe the problem is definitely coming from the ignition system. As the bike increases in RPM's it the crackling sound in the headsets become more frequent. I took off the black top cover from the fairing where the radio fits in and found that the connection to the noise filter was corroded. I cleaned the contacts well with electrical contact cleaner and put some dielectric grease on the connection and the problem still exists. If anyone has anymore ideas, I would be very grateful to hear them... Pictures are a huge plus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankd Posted May 1, 2014 Share #8 Posted May 1, 2014 Hoosier, The noise in my 89 sounded just like ignition noise---it increased pitch as the motor sped up, but what I found was that it really was caused by the regulator. To regulate the output voltage, the regulator shorts out the stator to keep the voltage from going too high. It does this by firing thyristors connected across the stator leads. Because the alternator has a permanent magnet spinning inside of the stator, it always produces 100% of it's capacity---it only increases output as engine RPMs increase. Until I noticed that the level of the noise decreased when the load on the alternator increased, I thought I had ignition noise also. Do you have the noise at a hot idle (1000 RPM)? If not, increase the RPM until it just barely starts. Then without changing RPM, step on the brake pedal. Did the noise stop? If so, you probably have regulator noise, not ignition noise. Saddlebum, Mine used to get worse and better when I hit bumps also, and the noise was LOUD when it was in a bad mood. Also, every time I pulled the main radio chassis out and re-installed it, the noise would be gone.....for a little while. Over time, I've taken the radio chassis apart and tightened every screw that grounds the boards inside. Some were pretty loose. I cleaned up the chassis mounting bolts and the ground connections that were under the bolts and then coated them with grease so they wouldn't oxidize. I added another ground wire between the back mounting bolt and the bolt underneath the left side front of the seat. I added a wire from the back of the radio chassis up to the back mounting bolt. I also beefed up the filter board (the board to the front of the radio), but that didn't help at all. After this didn't help, I connected the radio to a regulated external power supply so that the bike no longer powered the radio, but the noise was unchanged---it's not getting in through the power source. I did find that the intercom connector that is under the rear of the seat (you have to pull the seat to get to it) had pulled apart slightly and when I pushed it in fully, the noise decreased significantly. Then I noticed something else......as I varied the intercom volume from minimum to maximum, the noise would be present at minimum, and decrease as I increased the intercom volume. At about 11:00 the noise would be completely gone. As I went above that, the noise got louder and louder. The noise would null out when the volume was at 11:00. That position of the null does change sometimes though. I hit a bump and the noise comes back at a low level. I turn the intercom volume slightly and it goes completely away. Then I'll notice that a low level noise returns, and then I can turn it back to 11:00 and it's quiet again. Fortunately this is a good level for my intercom. Now the obvious question.....Why do 89's have this problem? What's different about them? I did try an earlier radio chassis and it had no ignition noise, but the high frequency output of the intercom was much lower and I didn't like the way music sounded over the headphones. I've got my original back in. I only had the older unit in for a couple of days, so I can't say that I hit the right bump. Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosierdrummer Posted May 1, 2014 Author Share #9 Posted May 1, 2014 Frank, Thanks, I will check that out tonight. I cannot believe I am having an interference issue on this since the wiring doesn't seem to be extremely close to anything except where it runs along the frame next to the main wiring harness. I certainly do appreciate all the help offered by everyone.... I love this site! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosierdrummer Posted May 4, 2014 Author Share #10 Posted May 4, 2014 Frank, I tried your recommendation and there is absolutely no change to the noise. I guess I am just going to have to tear the bike apart to see if there is something that I can see that could be possibly causing the crackling noise... I will pass on my results as I find them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dacheedah Posted May 4, 2014 Share #11 Posted May 4, 2014 check connections for corrosion, noise filter and a cheap fix could try to put a ferrite bead on the power wire and ground wire feeding the audio. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankd Posted May 4, 2014 Share #12 Posted May 4, 2014 What you could do that may help give you an ideal on where the problem is would be to disconnect the intercoms from the main chassis, one at a time. The intercom plugs are the 2 back DIN connectors that are on the 'back' end of the chassis. Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marcarl Posted May 4, 2014 Share #13 Posted May 4, 2014 Check your high tension ignition wires, they should not be tied to the frame or run parallel to it for any real distance, they should also not run parallel to any audio wires and as far away from them as possible. The high tension wires will cause a magnetic field to be created in the frame and that can then bleed back into the audio either through the ground or the isolating jacket around the audio wires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosierdrummer Posted May 6, 2014 Author Share #14 Posted May 6, 2014 After taking all the plastic off the left hand side, I unplugged the second CB connection on the amp and the sound dissipated instantly. I then removed the CB/CLASS panel and revealed that the coax from the CB was loose and upon inspection of the cable that goes from the CB to the amp I found a section in the wire about two inches long that was missing part of the outside shielding. I taped up the wire and the noise was gone. I can't wait to ride this weekend! Thanks for all the help and suggestions. After spending a few hours in the garage I was able to find the problem and wouldn't have done that much to fix it had I not got so much help from all of you... Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
videoarizona Posted May 7, 2014 Share #15 Posted May 7, 2014 Excellent! Now I can't wait to get back and check out my VR.....let's hope your solution fixes my problem as well! Great ideas from everyone! david Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosierdrummer Posted May 13, 2014 Author Share #16 Posted May 13, 2014 Does anyone have a spare cable that plugs into the cb and goes around the air cleaner and plugs into the amp. If you have one you could part with I would be happy to purchase it from you. Please let me know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosierdrummer Posted May 13, 2014 Author Share #17 Posted May 13, 2014 I am also interested in some chrome front rotor covers to fit my 1989 Venture Royale. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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