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Help Tesla Diagnose Electrical Noise in Speakers

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Hi Gang. Some of us are having an issue where occasionally we hear some Electrical Noise through the Speakers. For me it normally happens just after I start up the car and goes away after a minute or two. Usually sounds like a "Popping, Tapping, or Static" sound. Some may call it "Engine Noise". I spoke to Tesla about it and they sent me the following email to help narrow it down. If you are having this issue. Please add any information your can think of to help them find and eliminate the problem.

Regarding your concern about the noise coming from the speakers, I have a few questions that will help us in trying to determine the cause:

1) What audio source are you listening to when you hear this noise (i.e. AM Radio, FM Radio, USB Media/iPod, Slacker, etc.)
2) Have you heard the noise when there is no audio source selected?
3) Where do you typically place your cell phone when you get in the vehicle (e.g. in your pocket, in between the seats on the floor, in cubby beneath the display, etc.)
4) Have you noticed this noise to be more common in certain areas (e.g. Highway 280 near San Jose, Highway 17 in the mountains, etc.)
5) Does the noise seem to come from any 1 or 2 particular speakers, or can you hear it from front and rear speakers?



 
Based on what you described, I think it's related to #3...

Here's a video with what I think you're describing (turn your volume up around 0:15)

Bjørn's Tesla Model S videos - Page 18

A couple pages later in that thread, there is more discussion about it... sounds like it has to do with the cellphone going into 2G/EDGE mode.

EDIT: Found the post that explains this:

Last hijack post. Sorry Bjorn. Big fan here. :)

The noise you hear is interference caused by the type of radio transmission (the modulation technique) by mobile phones which use TDMA. GSM's radio interface (2G, if you will) uses it. IS-95 (aka CDMA) and UMTS (3G) do not (they both use CDMA).

If you have a Verizon or Sprint phone, you'll never reproduce it. If you have a T-Mobile or AT&T phone it will happen when you first power on your phone close to a speaker, or, if you lose "3G" and it falls back to 2G. Once your phone establishes the faster CDMA based 3G connection, you won't get any interference noise.
 
Based on what you described, I think it's related to #3...

Here's a video with what I think you're describing (turn your volume up around 0:15)

Bjørn's Tesla Model S videos - Page 18

A couple pages later in that thread, there is more discussion about it... sounds like it has to do with the cellphone going into 2G/EDGE mode.

EDIT: Found the post that explains this:

That's helpful thank you. That does sound like the noise I'm hearing. Never occurred to me it may have to do with the cellphone. I'll have to try turning off the phone and see if it continues to happen.
 
if you use a GSM mobile phone you can get coupling to speakers (e.g. stereo speakers in your house or on your computer) and noise, especially a few seconds before a call comes in. In the USA this is ATT & Tmo and NOT VZW or Sprint.
 
If that's the noise then that's definitely your cellphone unless Tesla's own cell hardware and related circuits are faulty. This happens to me on my VERIZON phone folks. (and note that the entire phone isn't LTE and not all transmissions are LTE even when LTE is showing)

Where do you normally place your phone? In the cubby?
 
Getting this intermittently and am trying to narrow it to something in common. Thought it may have been related to interference with the neighborhood gate which I cannot get to connect with Homelink. Have had it while driving in a low-lying area in a neighborhood as well. Both mobile phone and gate remote are in center non-console area. Sound seems to be coming from speaker area to left of dash. Trying to get video but it is intermittent.
 
@bareyb - Cell phone is very likely the culprit. Sometimes when a phone that is LTE can't find the LTE network, it will fall back to GSM (Edge or whichever your carrier has as a fallback). The radio kicks up and that's what you're hearing. Happens to me quite often in the AM, until I pull out of the garage, sometimes it's a few minutes.. I just pull the phone out of the cubby temporarily.
 
I have this same problem. I have verizon. I've had this problem both while my phone has been with me and not with me. My service manager suggested pulling out the master fuse and allowing the car to do a full reboot. We did that and I didn't hear the noise for several days and then it was back. So tesla is going to pull apart the dash and make sure all the wires are properly connected. @bareyb do you hear the noise in all your speakers or just one?
 
If that's the noise then that's definitely your cellphone unless Tesla's own cell hardware and related circuits are faulty. This happens to me on my VERIZON phone folks. (and note that the entire phone isn't LTE and not all transmissions are LTE even when LTE is showing)

Where do you normally place your phone? In the cubby?

I normally plug it into the USB Port and set it between my Seat and the center console. I put it into the Glove Compartment and we'll see if that helps.
 
I normally plug it into the USB Port and set it between my Seat and the center console. I put it into the Glove Compartment and we'll see if that helps.

Plugging into the USB port may be part of what's allowing the interference to occur. Glove compartment may be too close to the 17" screen for that to work. When it happens, move the phone around in the car - you should hear it change/disappear. If it doesn't, it's Tesla's own cell hardware. Assuming you don't have something else that's cellular (e.g. iPad or mifi).
 
I have had this problem and also the poster who pointed out to Bjorn that noise on his video. I have been testing this off and on, and so far I like having the phone in the door handle area thing. I still need some more anecdotal data on this to be 100% sure that is the best solution.
 
Update: Ever since I complained to the Service Center (see note from OP) the noise has gone away and has not come back. The only thing I started doing differently, is that I stopped leaving my phone plugged into the USB port and moved it into the Glove Compartment. Not sure if there was anything Tesla did at their end, but it's gone and it's been gone since I started this thread over a month ago. In my case, the noise may have been caused by leaving the iPhone plugged into the USB port.
 
I have this with my iPhone 5S in the Netherlands as well.

What I noticed is that when it's under the 17" screen is the worst. The farther I put it back in the center console the better. So if it's lying down there next to the USB ports it's just fine.

When it slides forward I start hearing these sounds.
 
I get this occasionally. I have verizon. My phone is always in the car and much of the time I bluetooth and play from the phone. The phone is not plugged into USB; it is plugged into 12V with a converter. I always place the phone on the "center console" floor and never under the screen. Just another data point.