n2ocharged
Newbie
Good day everyone, I generally don't go to forums too much but I'm having a problem that maybe someone here has had an issue with.
I have 2 Motorola XPR4550s in my vehicle (VHF & UHF), no issues with it what-so-ever when I'm not running auxiliary lights. The signal is crystal clear on both radios, antennas are run to a bed rack on the back of the truck which has 2 auxiliary lights added. When I turn the AUX lights on the signal on the VHF radio either has static or cuts the signal completely.
Everything is run to a custom console inside the vehicle. The antennas are run to the same console and is an LMR-195 antenna wire. The Antenna itself is a dual band whip for VHF & UHF.
I thought it was a ground issue (the ground cable was not grounded very well) but I ran a cable to the engine bay and grounded it where the motor ground is located which also ties in the battery. This didn't solve the problem. The antenna wire and power wires are all run on opposite sides of the vehicle (Antenna run on passenger side while the power is run on the driver side).
If anyone can point me in a different direction, I would appreciate it... I don't have an issue buying new antenna cable if the LMR-195 isn't sufficient for this purpose. I also don't have a problem buying a specific type of power wire for the lighting as long as it is guaranteed to be shielded against the current setup.
I've attached a couple of pictures of the console/light rack on the bed for you to see. The light bars are in the orange/yellow rectangles and the antenna bases are circled in red.
This is not limited to this installation, I had a couple of lights on the front bumper that would cause the same interference. Power for those lights were run through the firewall into the engine bay, the antennas are run through a grommet on the back of the cab.
Any suggestions are greatly appreciated and I am willing to do whatever is needed to clear the problem up short of getting all new equipment.
That being said, this is more if a nuisance than necessity because I use the VHF mainly for listening to the weather channels and the AUX lights are not on often, but it is still annoying and I know there is a problem with it.
Thanks,
Nate
I have 2 Motorola XPR4550s in my vehicle (VHF & UHF), no issues with it what-so-ever when I'm not running auxiliary lights. The signal is crystal clear on both radios, antennas are run to a bed rack on the back of the truck which has 2 auxiliary lights added. When I turn the AUX lights on the signal on the VHF radio either has static or cuts the signal completely.
Everything is run to a custom console inside the vehicle. The antennas are run to the same console and is an LMR-195 antenna wire. The Antenna itself is a dual band whip for VHF & UHF.
I thought it was a ground issue (the ground cable was not grounded very well) but I ran a cable to the engine bay and grounded it where the motor ground is located which also ties in the battery. This didn't solve the problem. The antenna wire and power wires are all run on opposite sides of the vehicle (Antenna run on passenger side while the power is run on the driver side).
If anyone can point me in a different direction, I would appreciate it... I don't have an issue buying new antenna cable if the LMR-195 isn't sufficient for this purpose. I also don't have a problem buying a specific type of power wire for the lighting as long as it is guaranteed to be shielded against the current setup.
I've attached a couple of pictures of the console/light rack on the bed for you to see. The light bars are in the orange/yellow rectangles and the antenna bases are circled in red.
This is not limited to this installation, I had a couple of lights on the front bumper that would cause the same interference. Power for those lights were run through the firewall into the engine bay, the antennas are run through a grommet on the back of the cab.
Any suggestions are greatly appreciated and I am willing to do whatever is needed to clear the problem up short of getting all new equipment.
That being said, this is more if a nuisance than necessity because I use the VHF mainly for listening to the weather channels and the AUX lights are not on often, but it is still annoying and I know there is a problem with it.
Thanks,
Nate