Car Stereos: sub/amp problem, kicker subs, rca cables

Question
so i have a question
when i have my sub and amp connected together i have two different sets of subs 2 kicker 10's and a alpine 12 sws 1223. with the kickers i had no problem but just recently with my 12 it has been going constantly even when the music is paused. when i turn my truck off it stops. just wondering what would cause it to do that. it happens when i plug the RCA's in would they need to be replaced or is it the amp? running a kicker 300.1 mono amp. i tried it on the bench tester where i work and had no problems but when i put it in my truck that's where the problems start

Answer
Hi Owen,

I'm a little unclear on your current system setup: do you mean that you currently have all three subs running from the amp, or are you saying that you replaced the Kicker pair with the Alpine sub?  If you're just running the Alpine sub now, I'm assuming that the Kicker subs are no longer available for use with the amp?

Usually, when I see a problem like yours, it's been caused by a problem with the RCA signal ground connection.  The outside "shield" conductor in the RCA plug carries the signal ground; normally it's connected to the head unit's chassis ground connection inside the head unit.  If it's no longer connected to chassis ground, this might be caused by a defective RCA cable, but it might also be an internal problem with the head unit.  

The first thing I'd check is the amplifier's ground wire.  If the amp ground connection has come loose, this can result in current flowing through the RCA signal ground connection, which can damage the head unit's circuitry.  Once you're sure the amp ground is good, you can try replacing the RCA cables; but there's a good chance the problem is in the head unit.  In this case, you can try wrapping some wire around the RCA shield conductors at the head unit, and connecting the wire directly the the head unit chassis or the ground wire.  Sometimes this will fix the problem by bypassing the damaged ground path in the head unit.  

Hope this helps!

Brian