Static-like distortion on dashcam ....... in car only

[shinnen]

Hi all,
I have an Eivotor dashcam, which produces a static-like noise, over top of the regular recorded sound, but only in the car.
When I record in the house, I don't hear any distortion at all.
Any help is appreciated.
....... john

 

[gamesfrager]

That means you most likely have some interference causing the static noise.
If you have some aftermarket headunit/radio or AMP etc. I would start with disconnecting them and see if the issue gets resolved.

Another test you can do to see if the power coming into the camera is the cause, would be to get a power bank and connect the camera to it and use it inside the car. That is, if your can power the camera with an external power source like that.

 

[DAP]

Get a transistor AM radio and see if you get the same noise on that. If so, you can use it as an interference finder, move the radio around and find out where the interference is coming from.

 

[Nigel]

Hi all,
I have an Eivotor dashcam, which produces a static-like noise, over top of the regular recorded sound, but only in the car.
When I record in the house, I don't hear any distortion at all.
Any help is appreciated.
....... john

Try a different car charger, or maybe plug it into a USB socket if there is a suitable one and it has a USB connector, quite likely your current charger has a slightly low voltage.

 

[shinnen]

That means you most likely have some interference causing the static noise.
If you have some aftermarket headunit/radio or AMP etc. I would start with disconnecting them and see if the issue gets resolved.

Another test you can do to see if the power coming into the camera is the cause, would be to get a power bank and connect the camera to it and use it inside the car. That is, if your can power the camera with an external power source like that.

Hi gamesfrager,
I only use a power bank to run it, both in the house and car. I have it anchored to a metal grid on the dashboard, the car speaker, I think.
It's not connected to any part of the cars systems.
I'll try attaching it to the window, as it was designed to be. Maybe the speaker is somehow creating distortion, even though it's not on.
Thanks,
..... john

 

[shinnen]

Try a different car charger, or maybe plug it into a USB socket if there is a suitable one and it has a USB connector, quite likely your current charger has a slightly low voltage.

Hi Nigel,
I'm attaching the cam to the window, to see if the interference is coming from the dashboard. Will let you know how it goes.
Thanks,
.... john

 

[Nigel]

I only use a power bank to run it, both in the house and car.

If that is the same powerbank then there isn't much difference between the two situations!

Do you get the noise even if the engine is not running? If you have an engine, you haven't given us much detail...

 

[shinnen]

Hi,
I'm trying to provide relevant information; however, I'm not really sure what's relevant. Please bear with me.
I took the car out shopping this morning, and noticed much less crackle (its not really static) with it attached to the window. However, I did have some, which seemed to happen more often on bumpy pavement. Then I noted that there was a pronounced crackle when closing (not opening) the trunk, and the car door (not always with the door), as if the jarring action was causing it. So, I took the dashcam into the house and tapped in on the desk, which of course recorded a sound, but not a crackle. This leads me to think that the problem is not in the dashcam, i.e. speaker or loose connection.
When the car is completely stopped, engine on or off, there is no crackle at all.
Any thoughts are appreciated.
P.S. the car is an old gasoline driven Buick.

 

[Nigel]

When the car is completely stopped, engine on or off, there is no crackle at all.

Try powering it from a power bank with everything sitting on the passenger seat while the engine is running, that will show if it is caused by something around the dashcam rattling, or not, when it is installed.

P.S. the car is an old gasoline driven Buick.

Do you get a lot of AM radio noise? Could be the car's ignition causing radio interference that is being picked up by the microphone circuits, maybe your plug leads need replacing. Used to be a big problem, but modern ignition systems don't cause much radio noise.


Might help if we could hear the noise...

 

[DAP]

Do you get a lot of AM radio noise? Could be the car's ignition causing radio interference that is being picked up by the microphone circuits, maybe your plug leads need replacing. Used to be a big problem, but modern ignition systems don't cause much radio noise.

Since he mentioned that the noise happens when he drives on bumpy roads, closes the trunk or door, it is more likely that he has a loose connection somewhere in the car for something that draws a significant amount of current (lights, AC, fan, etc.) A portable AM radio would probably be the best diagnostic tool for this since they are really good at picking up radio interference, and you would get feedback in real time. The noise will be louder, the closer the radio is to the source.

 

[shinnen]

Try powering it from a power bank with everything sitting on the passenger seat while the engine is running, that will show if it is caused by something around the dashcam rattling, or not, when it is installed.


Do you get a lot of AM radio noise? Could be the car's ignition causing radio interference that is being picked up by the microphone circuits, maybe your plug leads need replacing. Used to be a big problem, but modern ignition systems don't cause much radio noise.


Might help if we could hear the noise...

I have mounted it on the wind screen, and always use the power bank. When the car is stopped, engine on or off there's no crackling. I haven't used the AM radio for a while, but never had any noise a couple of months ago. I tried attaching an mp3 of the crackle sound, but it seems that they're not allowed.
...john

 

[shinnen]

Since he mentioned that the noise happens when he drives on bumpy roads, closes the trunk or door, it is more likely that he has a loose connection somewhere in the car for something that draws a significant amount of current (lights, AC, fan, etc.) A portable AM radio would probably be the best diagnostic tool for this since they are really good at picking up radio interference, and you would get feedback in real time. The noise will be louder, the closer the radio is to the source.

OK DAP. I'll try the radio. But I would have to move it around the car while it's moving??
... john

 

[LateralNW]

I tried attaching an mp3 of the crackle sound, but it seems that they're not allowed.

Here's a thought.

Film the noise. (Sounds odd saying that)lol
You can upload video.

 

[shinnen]

Hi LateralNW,
Yes, I can do that. Do you know if I can upload an mp4, or???
I wasn't able to find out which file formats are allowed.
.... john

 

[LateralNW]

Hi LateralNW,
Yes, I can do that. Do you know if I can upload an mp4, or???
I wasn't able to find out which file formats are allowed.
.... john

My bad John forget what I suggested. It seems I tested a picture that I thought was a movie.

So the other solution is to use a free service like drop box.

Create a personal account and select the option to just continue don't do the 30 day trail and don't do the buy now.

Dropbox.com

Dropbox helps you simplify your workflow. So you can spend more time in your flow.

www.dropbox.com

Once you have confirmed your email address you can upload the file.

Cheers

 

[shinnen]

So, the "Attach files" applies only to files residing on Dropbox or some similiar site?
..... john

 

[shinnen]

So, "Attach files" applies only to files residing on Dropbox or some similiar site?
..... john

 

[Nigel]

So, the "Attach files" applies only files residing on Dropbox or some similiar site?
..... john

I think it is meant for documents rather than videos. Most people put their videos on Youtube and link it in, which works well. Google Drive is another usable option. Both will take videos, no need to extract the audio.

 

[LateralNW]

So, "Attach files" applies only to files residing on Dropbox or some similiar site?
..... john

john 'attched files' means you can attach a file to your post.
What you can attach can only be:
Photos like .jpg .png I'm not sure what others
PDFs postscript documents
TXT text file

And none of them can exceed a particular size limit.

Note when I suggested drop box i was thinking you could use it as a place to allow anyone you choose could view it or download it. Basically a public parking spot for your file/s

There are many ways you could do this and YouTube and Google drive are other options like @Nigel suggested.

So I'm summary attached files are stored on the website 'dashcamtalk' but other types of files video sound etc are stored on your chosen site and then given access to how you want.

If you used YouTube for instance you can just post the link in this post and everyone will see it.

Hope that clarifies it. If not keep asking we'll get there in the end.

Cheers

 

[shinnen]

Hi,
OK, I'll try to a site to part it on. (The .mp3 file I have is only 157kbs; but I can convert it to any audio format.)
Thanks again,
.... john
P.S. OK. Try this https://youtu.be/FkfgHnu2oVA
By the way, I never receive notification of my posts.