Is it true that running a amp ground to the battery instead of using a chassis ground can cause a "white noise or light static" sound through speakers?

 

NO I've always grounded to battery grd and never had issues. Rockford also did a backstep recently and said to ground to battery ground.

http://www.rockfordfosgate.com/suppo...ew=1#knowledge

 

you have a LOT of factors that will cause this but the main two are ground loops and gains set too high. When you raise the gains, you elevate the floor noise of the amp to a condition to be heard.

If you're dealing with a ground loop, then odds are likely to be in your favor that it's not the ground wire going back to the battery but a poor ground up in the fairing for your other audio components.