Things To Do When Head Unit RCA Output Not Working Properly

If you’re stuck with a broken RCA output in your vehicle, then you’ve come to the right place. This usually gets attention when you’re trying to connect an external amplifier to your car speaker system.

The entire system depends precisely on a pair of working RCA outputs. So what do you do when you see that the head unit RCA output isn’t working? We’re going to help you find that out.

Usually, there will be absolutely no music coming out of the speakers if the RCA outputs aren’t doing their jobs. So, let’s find out some core causes. After that, we can find a way to fix the issues.

Why Aren’t the RCA Outputs Working?

Before we get into fixing things, we need to figure out what’s actually causing the problems. So, here are a few causes which might lead to your RCA cables not working.

Reason 1: Manual Muting of Sub Level

This sounds pretty silly, but you still need to check it before anything else. You can actually adjust the amount of output going into the sub-level of the amp. It’s pretty normal for the bass to stop playing if you accidentally mute it.

You will have to make sure that everything is not actually turned all the way down. Most people won’t even realize this and look for more complicated issues. So, you should always start here.

Reason 2: Messing up the Sockets

There are multiple sockets, and it can easily get confusing. You will be surprised to know how many people actually put the cables into the wrong socket. Get this straight, there are actually a couple of RCA socket sets.

One of the sets is for the connection from the radio unit. And the second socket is used for a certain jumper so that you can add a new amp to the car.

Make sure that the cables are in the correct “Sub Out” sockets on the harness of your stereo. They are labeled pretty intuitively, but people can still mess this up.

Reason 3: Messed Up Cables

A cold case of bad cables has ruined so many perfectly working stereos to date. Yes, a bad cable connection is one of the major suspects when your RCA output isn’t working.

If you’re asking whether cables often go bad, let me answer you by saying that they don’t. Cables rarely get bad. But the chances are not zero or zilch.

This usually happens if the solder inside the end connectors of the cable is broken due to excessive tugging and pulling. A lot of us don’t realize that the excessive fiddling with the cable might actually damage them.

If this is certainly the case, you need to go out and buy a new cable. But make sure that you diagnose the issue perfectly before spending more money.

Reason 4: Internal Damage

Any RCA can have internal damage to the amplifier or the stereo. This is pretty common too, and you would see a lot of cars sitting at garages for this very issue.

So, why does this happen, you may ask? This happens as a result of connecting the power cable to both the amp and the stereo while they’re connected. To avoid this, you need to turn everything else off first.

This would eventually keep current from flowing. You’ve probably heard thumping sounds when you’re turning the system on for the first time after you initiate the ignition.

Surprisingly, the thumping sound is also a result of this. Although it might not look like much, this can actually lead to damaged resistors or diodes inside.

How To Get More Value Out Of My RCA Cables?

Well, cables do indeed degrade over time. This is quite rare, but this does happen. But you can always try to get the most out of your RCA output cables. And here’s how!

Well, to be completely honest, leave them alone for as long as you can. Fiddling with them is what causes all the fuss in the first place. Don’t unplug unnecessarily just to fidget around. This alone should extend the life of cables.

Cable management is another way to make the most out of RCA cables. If you keep them organized in the perfect manner, you can assume that they are safe to work with and won’t cause you any harm.

Temperature isn’t really the best friend for RCA cables. And this goes for every cable. Since these cables are made to work with cars, they automatically have higher heat absorption capacities.

But it would help if you still tried to route them through places that would be comparatively cooler.

Final Words

If you’re having issues with the head unit RCA output of your vehicle, you can refer to this article. Go through it again if you’re having second thoughts. And if you don’t think that you can tackle this on your own, always feel free to call a professional.

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