Galaxy S5 auxiliary input static noise help

[charleston2012]

I have researched this problem for quite some time. When I plug my galaxy S5( I have had 2 and one Galaxy4) into the stereo auxiliary input jack in my car, I get a static bad grounding noise. If I use an Apple, my daughters 5 and 6, no issue at all.
So, I got the 4 pole plug to ensure it goes into phone and is identical to factory Samsung headphones. No change.
I have cleaned it, no change,.
There seems to be a lot of "fixes", but I cant find an actual FIX.
What is the problem with this phone, Samsung etc?
Please advise.

 

[FoxKat]

The noise you are likely hearing is interference being picked up by the phone and the wires between the phone and the car's head unit (*radio), and then transmitted into the car's head unit, and is what is known as RF Interference. The inside of a car is a VERY NOISY environment from the RF Interference perspective. The car's Alternator is one of the biggest noise offenders but you also have spark plugs or other electronic ignition modules which are essentially creating miniature lightning bolts (spark), small selenoids and motors for things such as the car's ventilation system, seat adjustment, electric locks, and more. This mess of un-shielded electrical interference is all extremely noisy, imparting interference comparable to what you'd hear on an AM radio during a lightning storm.

The solution is to use what is called a Ground Loop Isolation adapter. These devices are designed to break the electrical connection between the source and destination of the audio, and send it across an electromagnetic connection by using 4 coils (2 pairs), placed in close proximity to each other. The source signal is pushed (or transmitted), through one coil, and the second coil is placed next to it to receive that signal and send it to the destination. This is similar to the 2 coils (transmitter and receiver), used in a wireless charging system for phones.

They can be purchased online in any number of popular online markets including Amazon.com (see below), as well as at local retailers such as Advance Auto Parts (also below), though they may be more difficult to find in the configuration you prefer. They are typically set up with Phono plugs on one end, to plug into the back of a home Audio/Video Receiver, and Phono jacks on the other end to receive the plugs from the desired device such as a CD player or DVD player.

They can also be purchased configured to work directly with 1/8" (mini or 3.5mm), headphone plugs and jacks as are on our cell phones. You are more likely to find the headphone style isolation adapters online rather than at a Walmart for instance. If you have a Radio Shack or other similar electronics store nearby you may get lucky there as well. I've used the Radio Shack ones exclusively after testing others and finding them ineffective. A good isolator will stop the noise completely, dead silence on the receiving end. Ones that are inferior will reduce but not completely stop that noise. Some will say you need an RF Choke (a carbon tube), threaded over the wires but they are ineffective in most situations.

https://www.amazon.com/PAC-SNI-1-3-5-3-5-mm-Isolator/dp/B001EAQTRI

Buy Pyle 3.5MM / 1/8" Stereo Audio Ground Loop Isolator PLGI35T at Advance Auto Parts

RadioShack Audio System Ground Loop Isolator

The only other possibility that I can think of which you may be experiencing is a poor connection between the phone and the car head unit. Sometimes the plug on the phone for the headphones it becomes contaminated from dirt, oil, and even corrosion (the inside of your pants pocket is a dark, damp area that promotes the corrosion of metal. These corrosive and contamination issues cause the plug for the headphones or external device to create "crackling" and poor connection, sometimes partially interrupting the audio, and other times completely cutting it off.

You could use a very short piece of a "pipe cleaner" doused with 90% Isopropyl Alcohol, and clean out that plug on your phone. This needs to be done VERY carefully so as to not bend or disrupt the spring loaded contact pins in the plug.

 

[cr6]

Or, you can simply purchase an FM transmitter and be done with it. It's easy, quick and inexpensive. Don't go with a super cheap brand, but you can find a decent one around 20 bucks, tops.
Good luck and let us know how you make out!

S5 tap'n

 

[FoxKat]

Or, you can simply purchase an FM transmitter and be done with it. It's easy, quick and inexpensive. Don't go with a super cheap brand, but you can find a decent one around 20 bucks, tops.
Good luck and let us know how you make out!

S5 tap'n

There are definitely advantages to using an FM transmitter, however I have found that depending on where you are, adjacent channel interference is sometimes difficult to avoid. if you are in a metropolis such as Philadelphia (to use my own area as an example), there are LOTS of radio stations with HUGE transmitters, and virtually every channel available is already taken up by them. This means that your tiny transmitter in the car has to be able to get more of its signal to the radio than the ones coming from local broadcasters' antennas.

Some transmitters also limit you to a very narrow band of channel locations, usually near the low channel numbers, 88 mHz to 92 mHz, and with only a 200 kHz separation between channels it allows for a very few possible open channels. This section of the FM band also is commonly popular with the lower-powered high school and college radio stations as well as other smaller organization such as churches, religious organizations and not-for-profits. Still, these tend to be more concentrated in inner cities so getting a clear channel becomes even a more difficult task.

What I've found is that I may find one or two channels in that section that are quiet enough (lower signal level transmitters on adjacent channels) that the car transmitter is able to bust through against the "bleedover" from those nearby larger transmitters. Also, as you drive around you may be forced to change channels as you get nearer to higher powered transmitters on adjacent channels. There are transmitters that allow choosing a channel anywhere along the 88 mHz to 108 mHz bandwidth. This may give you another couple "quiet" channels to use, however in the middle and higher channels, you are now competing with the MAJOR broadcasters with many thousand watt transmitters.

To put it into perspective, in the Philadelphia market, there are a number of smaller school and other transmitters that broadcast with as little as 460 watt transmitters, and the largest of them still being only 13,500 watts. In contrast, the major broadcast stations are using transmitters with between 20,000 watts and 50,000 watts or more, and with antenna towers with heights of from 250' to as much as 1,276' above grade, placed on high hills in the Philadelphia area (Roxborough).

Also, in some cars the transmitters don't work as well as in others. A lot depends on where the car places the antenna for the radio. Today, the antennas are often hidden in external moldings or on the top of the car in a protrusion that is mounted to the roof. If the antenna is on the outside of the car and there is a metal panel (such as the roof), between the passenger compartment and the antenna, the tendency is for the signal to be rejected or severely attenuated unless the transmitter is placed in close proximity to either the radio or near the windshield. It also helps to stretch out the wire and drape it along the dashboard, or coil it up and push it under the dashboard near the rear of the radio.

If you choose to use a direct wire connection to the radio you will avoid all the issues mentioned above, you'll get a cleaner signal, free from RF disturbances or reduced audio quality of these smaller FM transmitters, but you may be forced to use a Ground Loop Isolation adapter as mentioned previously to accomplish that cleaner signal.

 

[charleston2012]

I ordered and tried the Pac SNI. Works okay. There is some noise changes going on, as it sometimes filters treble out..
Anyways, I work in an industry where I deal with EMI, and grounds. Very high end Military stuff.
The issue is a Samsung issue, and no one has found the smoking gun in samsungs design. All we have is fixes, that bandaid the issue at hand. My daughters and wifes iPhones don't do this at all, in 4 cars I have tried. But, the Samsung, and this is the 3rd design I have had, does it.
So, I will eventually get a Bluetooth deck for my car, as it is just my driver/work car. But, really, Samsung has an issue, and no engineer has been tasked to fix it..

 

[3dsrules]

The noise is not a big problem, in my opinion.

 

[charleston2012]

The noise is not a big problem, in my opinion.

And that is your Opinion.

 

[FoxKat]

The noise is not a big problem, in my opinion.

It's true that for some the noise is either very minimal or non-existent at all.

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