Issue with 2020 Head Unit - Door Speakers dead

[etherdude]

Just to clarify, the door speakers were never working

[QHawk]

So I picked up my new 2020 86GT today, and what do I find? Neither door speaker is working.


I'm scheduled to go back to the dealer for something else next week, but I'll have a look at the amp before then.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by QHawk

So I picked up my new 2020 86GT today, and what do I find? Neither door speaker is working.


I'm scheduled to go back to the dealer for something else next week, but I'll have a look at the amp before then.

Mine work! Or at least they dd when I was playing with the radio.
When the Hakones are shipped the heavy trunk mat is just rolled up and tossed in the trunk. Long shot but they may be knocking the plugs loose.

[LimitedSlip]

I don't know who to credit for the original photo but I took the liberty of fully labeling all the wires. With access to just this connector one should be able to narrow down fairly quickly where the problem with the door speakers might be.

1. Start with the vehicle off. If you have access to an ohm meter or just a simple DC continuity tester, unplug the connector and BRIEFLY check continuity out to each door speaker. Not only should there be continuity but there should be a scratchy noise coming from each of the two speakers when the tester is connected and disconnected.

2. Plug the connector back into the amp. If you have a DC voltmeter or a simple DC test light, turn on the HU so there is music playing from the dash speakers. Verify that there is 12 volts present on the "Amp Turn-On" pin.

3. Notice that there is a second connector on the amp for primary power. With the music still playing, verify that there is 12 volts present on that connector.

4. If you have a small speaker available, with the music still playing, briefly connect the small speaker to the "Audio IN" for each channel and listen for music.

This should at least give a clue to what's gone wrong.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by LimitedSlip

I don't know who to credit for the original photo but I took the liberty of fully labeling all the wires. With access to just this connector one should be able to narrow down fairly quickly where the problem with the door speakers might be.

1. Start with the vehicle off. If you have access to an ohm meter or just a simple DC continuity tester, unplug the connector and BRIEFLY check continuity out to each door speaker. Not only should there be continuity but there should be a scratchy noise coming from each of the two speakers when the tester is connected and disconnected.

2. Plug the connector back into the amp. If you have a DC voltmeter or a simple DC test light, turn on the HU so there is music playing from the dash speakers. Verify that there is 12 volts present on the "Amp Turn-On" pin.

3. Notice that there is a second connector on the amp for primary power. With the music still playing, verify that there is 12 volts present on that connector.

4. If you have a small speaker available, with the music still playing, briefly connect the small speaker to the "Audio IN" for each channel and listen for music.

This should at least give a clue to what's gone wrong.

I am with the other guys in saying that if it is anything more than an unplugged connector it is the dealer's problem under warranty.
If you can get the dealer to check the damned amp that is!

[LimitedSlip]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

I am with the other guys in saying that if it is anything more than an unplugged connector it is the dealer's problem under warranty.
If you can get the dealer to check the damned amp that is!

I agree with you. I just prefer to show up at the dealership "well armed" so someone doesn't needlessly disassemble my new door when they should probably be looking in the trunk.

[p1l0t]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Mine work! Or at least they dd when I was playing with the radio.

When the Hakones are shipped the heavy trunk mat is just rolled up and tossed in the trunk. Long shot but they may be knocking the plugs loose.

Mine verk, lol!



Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

[FR-S2GT86]

I spent a few years back in the late 90’s as a professional mobile electronics installation technician and security specialist. I’ve done my own professional level installs on every vehicle I’ve ever owned over the years except for my current FR-S, but knowing that the basics of car audio hasn’t made any major changes since those days, I feel I should chime in on this one. Much of what I’m going to explain here is true for OEM and also aftermarket car audio.

An inexpensive digital volt-ohm meter that can test for DC as well as AC voltage should be the only tool needed to test for the presence of 12 volts DC at the power and turn on leads at the amp, and for the presence of AC voltage for the signal wires into the amp and speaker wires out from the amp. The ohms setting of the meter will test your speakers.

First, after a visual inspection of the plugs and wiring at the amplifier, (and since it’s so easy to access) I would test the signal input wires to the amp from the positive wire to the negative wire of each left and right channel at the amp while the plug is still snuggly plugged into it and the head unit is on and playing any kind of music at a normal volume. You are looking for a low AC voltage somewhere in the range of .2 to 5 volts that varies up and down as the music plays. If there’s no AC voltage signal on either left or right channels, then the problem is located either inside the head unit, or somewhere along the signal wiring running from the head unit to the amplifier. This would be a 2-minute test and would tell you where to tell the dealer’s technician to check. No AC signal = check the deck and signal wiring from it to the amp. Presence of AC signal = go to next step:
Check the amplifier speaker output wires, which will be another two-minute test. You are looking for an AC voltage signal that looks similar to the input signal AC voltage, though it will be a higher voltage, probably between 2 and 20 volts depending on how loud the music is playing.

If there’s no AC voltage signal on the speaker output wires, then measure to see if the amp has 12-volt DC power on the turn on lead and constant power lead. Place one of your meter leads on a known good grounding point (NOT THE METAL AMPLIFIER CASE, but a heavy bolt somewhere close by) and the other meter lead at the main power wire of the amplifier plug that is supposed to stay powered on at all times, then from ground to the amplifier turn-on lead. The constant lead should be main battery voltage (about 12 volts DC when the engine is not running and charging the battery) at all times. The amp turn-on lead will have 12 (or possibly even lower, like 5 volts DC) whenever the head unit is on and playing music. That same DC voltage should disappear when you either turn the head unit off or turn the key to off. (Or in the case with keyless start, push the button to shut the car off.)

If 12 volts is missing from ground to the main power lead that is supposed to have voltage on it constantly, then check for blown fuses. Something caused the fuse to blow if that’s what you find and simply replacing it MAY NOT permanently fix the problem, but at least it will give your dealer’s technician more information. There may be one or multiple speaker wires shorted to ground or even shorted together to cause the fuse to blow. A word of advice here is to turn the volume of the head unit all the way down, replace the fuse, then turn the head unit on and SLOWLY turn the volume up to see if one or both of the speakers is not playing or sounds bad or muffled. That might indicate a speaker wire short to ground. if it blows again as you turn up the volume, the problem is PROBABLY on the speaker side of the amp. If the fuse is not blown, there is an open circuit in the power wire from the fuse to the plug at the amplifier, and that will have to be traced. If the fuse blows again immediately when you insert it, the amp might still be good and there is the possibility of a direct short on the power wire to ground that the fuse is protecting the wire from. If there were no fuse to protect the wire from a direct short, the wire can get so hot that it can melt and start a fire. There is also be the possibility that the amp is shorted internally.

If 12 volts is missing from ground to the amplifier turn-on wire at the amp when the head unit is on, then the head unit is either not sending that 12-volt turn-on signal to the amplifier, or there is an open circuit in the turn-on wire from the deck to the amp. At this point, the head unit or amplifier turn-on signal wire is suspect.

On the rare possibility that you have 12-volt DC power at both the main constant power wire and the turn on lead, as well as AC voltage signal on the input wires but no AC output on the speaker wires, you may have a bad amplifier. But before you rule a bad amp, check it for a bad ground. Leave your meter test lead that is on your known good ground where it is, place your other lead on the amplifier case and check for 12 volts DC on the amp case. If you read anything between 2 volts and 12 volts from the amp case to ground, (you really shouldn’t read ANY voltage from the case to ground) then the amplifier is not properly grounded. Again, this would be so rare with an OEM amplifier that if it weren’t at all possible, I wouldn’t have even brought it up, but the possibility does exist. Ground the amp properly if you are reading any significant voltage. Finally, if the amp case is properly grounded AND you have signal in AND you have both constant voltage AND turn-on voltage AND still no speaker output signal, then your amp MIGHT BE bad. I will further explain below.

If after all of the above tests indicate the amplifier is turning on, it is getting left and right signal in on the signal wires and getting left and right speaker signal out on the speaker output wires, then the problem is located either in the wiring from the amp to the speakers or the speakers themselves are burnt open.

Most automotive speakers have an impedance (resistance which can be measured with your volt-ohm meter using the ohms setting) of between .5 and 8 ohms. (I’ve even seen 16 ohm speakers.) The only way to check the speakers for this resistance and rule out the wiring going to each is to remove the door panels, unplug the speakers, and test for that resistance at the plug wire of the voice coils. If you see that the resistance is between .5 and 8 ohms, the speaker is most likely still good. However, if an infinite resistance (an open circuit) is indicated, that speaker’s voice coil is burnt out (a blown speaker). If the resistance is less than .5 ohms, the voice coil is probably shorted internally. This can damage the outputs of the amp or cause it to go into a protection mode if it has one which you should also be aware of when attempting to diagnose a bad amplifier. If you do find a shorted speaker, you may find it useful to disconnect both speakers and test your amplifier speaker outputs again for AC voltage in case the shorted speaker was causing the amplifier to go into protection mode. This would prevent unnecessarily replacing the amp due to no output when it was simply temporarily protecting itself from the shorted speaker.

The above tests should let you know where you need to steer your dealer’s technician to focus his (or her) diagnosis. If you find a simple plug did not get plugged all the way into or somehow fell out at the amp, it’s a quick fix for you to keep from having to take your new ride into the dealer. Anything else, the dealer should be involved seeing how it’s under warranty but at least you’ll be armed with knowledge of where to start looking.

Knowing that this is a brand new car, my personal opinion coming from many years of troubleshooting experience is that there is probably nothing wrong with either door speaker and probably nothing shorted concerning any of the wiring. There is most likely a plug somewhere that is not plugged in, or was plugged into the wrong connector at the factory or dealer. My next guess without actually performing my own diagnosis would be that there is a defective head unit or amp. I would be interested in learning what the final diagnosis, cause and remedy is though.

[QHawk]

Checking the amp with a meter and small speaker shows the following.


Continuity to both speakers: good.
Audio signals from HU to amp: good.
Amp turn on signal: missing, I think, although I had trouble finding a reliable ground point.


And thanks to LimitedSlip for the clear, simple guidance.

[soundman98]

Originally Posted by QHawk

Checking the amp with a meter and small speaker shows the following.


Continuity to both speakers: good.
Audio signals from HU to amp: good.
Amp turn on signal: missing, I think, although I had trouble finding a reliable ground point.


And thanks to LimitedSlip for the clear, simple guidance.

you should be able to use the metal amp chassis as the ground point for testing

[LimitedSlip]

Originally Posted by QHawk

Checking the amp with a meter and small speaker shows the following.

Continuity to both speakers: good.
Audio signals from HU to amp: good.
Amp turn on signal: missing, I think, although I had trouble finding a reliable ground point.

And thanks to LimitedSlip for the clear, simple guidance.

You're welcome.
Were you able to check for primary 12VDC on the gray wire below?
Notice that primary 12VDC and the Turn-On circuit both run through connector HD2. If HD2 wasn't connected correctly . . .
Though it appears that all the Audio I/O connections for the amp also pass through HD2 and those seem to be working.
Probably should verify with an ohm meter or continuity tester that the black Primary Power wire is actually connected to chassis ground.
(Credit to @Bobharp for the connector picture)

[LimitedSlip]

H1 is the Power Amp chassis ground point.

[QHawk]

I rigged a reliable ground for testing and found no 12v on either the turn on or primary line. The ground on the black wire is good. I looked for the HD2 connector under the dash but couldn't distinguish it from the other connectors, but I admit to having little desire to twist my spine tightly or long enough to check carefully. Poking every connector at least a little did nothing to wake up the door speakers.

Where do the illustrations that you posted come from? I had a 2013 FR-S for more than 3 years and had lots of good docs and schematics, but I'm still looking for similar up-to-date material about this new 86.

[FR-S2GT86]

Originally Posted by QHawk

I rigged a reliable ground for testing and found no 12v on either the turn on or primary line. The ground on the black wire is good. I looked for the HD2 connector under the dash but couldn't distinguish it from the other connectors, but I admit to having little desire to twist my spine tightly or long enough to check carefully. Poking every connector at least a little did nothing to wake up the door speakers.

Where do the illustrations that you posted come from? I had a 2013 FR-S for more than 3 years and had lots of good docs and schematics, but I'm still looking for similar up-to-date material about this new 86.

Looking at the location in the picture where the HD2 connector is, it appears to be behind the driver’s side kick panel (on a USD vehicle, passenger side on a right-hand drive model). I’ll bet that a couple of the wires are in the wrong pin positions of either the male or female plug at that location and aren’t mating up to their respective male or female pins.