sound card distortion...anyone help?

[moose]

mmmmm, can anyone help me?

i've put up with this problem for ages on my computer and it really bugs me, i've tried getting help from creative tech support with no success, but i really wanna start playing around with some music making software so i really need to fix it...

Ok, basically with any audio it crackles and hisses like all crap and just plain sucks! i know it's not the card itself because the MoBo has an onboard audio codec and i get the same annoying hissing with it. I've checked all my IRQs and made sure the soundcard isn't sharing with anything else (it still shares an IRQ with 'ACPI IRQ holder for PCI IRQ steering' but i cant get rid of that no matter how hard i try), i've tried moving the card between all the PCI slots to help reduce interference, i've tried everything i can think of... HELP! {:-( :?

setup is:

-Athlon 1.1GHz
-AOpen AK73 Pro MoBo
-Creative SB Live DE 5.1
-Matrox Millenium PCI (old and crappy but i cant afford anything new at the moment, i have my suspicions that this could have something to do with it, what do you guys reckon?)
-and all the other usual bits and pieces

oh, and i realise its a crappy soundcard and not really suited to music prod. but i just wanna play around with it at the moment, so dont wanna splash out on a damn expensive one...yet!;)

[djbc]

hey moose,
I know stuff all about PC setups (I have a mac &protools) but if you know you're card is crappy then maybe try & get a 'decent' one for not tooo much dosh so you can have a better time playing about.... dunno if you can get good cheap ones... but sureley some thign that doesn't crackle at you.... unless someone comes along with the answer(there's some savvy PC dudes on the forum):)

[moose]

well it's not exactly crappy just not ideal for music prod. and i'm just worried that i'll have the same problem with any card, because both the onboard sound and the soundcard do the same thing....

[djbc]

mmm - maybe you need to re-solder your audio cconnections or it could be your leads/amp .../ down the chain etc... is it the same thru the headphones & built in speaker?

[phunkdust]

* check your line out sockets (blast them with a bit of compressed air or contact cleaner)

* check the cables (both internal and external) for rusty connectors, breaks in the cable

* make sure you're running the latest drivers

IF you're still getting problems after this...

something is interfering with your computer... this can be things like peripherals (your monitor, printers, scanners, phone lines close by/240v power close by)

240v power, cordless phones, mobile phones, radios, etc can put out a lot of interference... try using your computer at a friends house...

the internal power supply can sometimes cause problems, although this is rare - if you can borrow a power supply, try swapping them over...

is the crackling present all the time? or just when you are playing sound thru it?

[moose]

yeah the crackling's only present when im playing sound through it...i'd say it's something in the box because the noise is there whether using headphones/stereo/speakers or whatever

dont think its the internal power supply as i recently changed that over...

I'll check the cables tomorrow and let ya's know

thanks ;D

[phunkdust]

hrm if the crackling is only present when sound is playing, it points towards a few things

* soundcard drivers
* direct x version (make sure u have 8.1)
* the amp on the soundcard
* external interference

the first two are easy to fix, the 3rd is not likely since you said the onboard had the same problem...

so i'd be putting money on directX/drivers/interference

[moose]

direct X 8.0 according to DXdiag, would 8.1 make much difference?
sound card drivers are the latest

i thought it'd be interference, the hardest one to find the cause! X(

would a graphics card cause much interference? because i just have a feeling that it's my old crappy matrox millenium interfering with it...

or a CPU fan that sounds like a jet turbine winding up when running? ;) it's one of those dual fan 'SuperOrb' fans if you've heard of em

[moose]

oh, just reread it and you said external interference....so you dont think anything inside the box could be causing the interference?

[phunkdust]

oh shit yes, internal interference runs rank in a lot of PCs...

the matrox isnt exactly a high power card so i wouldnt be looking towards it (high speed processors are notorius for EMF)

i'd be investigating that fan, my bet is that its a mofo big DC motor, which of course generates heaps of interference...

i'd be vary wary of removing the fan tho - the Athlon WILL burn and destroy itself if it reaches critical temperature

try swapping the video card out for another one temporarily...

im not sure how you'd go about checking the fan, but play some sound so you can hear the crackles, then reach into the case and disconnect the fan's power... the heatsink should keep the athlon's temperature down for a good 30 seconds, remember to plug it back in after 30 seconds or risk blowing your CPU.

hard drives can set up a fair bit of intereference from the servomotor driving the heads...

ideally you need a scientist buddy with an EMF meter :lol:

and yes, DX8.1 is important. stupider things have happened. trust me. 8-)

[polarbear]

compressed air? emf meters? resoldering sound cards?

YEAH FOR MACINTOSH!

[djneo]

Hey moose, what programs are you running?


Does this only happen with music making proggys?


For example in Rebirth and Reason if the audio buffer is too small, the sound comes out all distorted and crackly and is easily fixed by enlarging the buffer time in the preferences :D

[moose]

nah, it does it when playing any sort of audio...

i think phunkdust is right and there's some sort of interference going on (which is what i suspected from the start), it's just going to be a bitch to find where it's coming from:( and i dont think i trust disconnecting my cooling fan like he suggested, too dang easy to fry the cpu

[djbc]

Originally posted by polarbear
compressed air? emf meters? resoldering sound cards?

YEAH FOR MACINTOSH!

:lol: :lol: ;D :lol: :lol:

[phunkdust]

Originally posted by polarbear
compressed air? emf meters? resoldering sound cards?

YEAH FOR MACINTOSH!

yeah macintosh. upgrade = throw out old mac, buy new mac...

[polarbear]

> yeah macintosh. upgrade = throw out old mac, buy new mac...

whatever you think. or plug in firewire device. buy new hard disk. get new display card

oh hang on - you're talking about motherboard upgrades????

well....ok...then...you win....

;D ;)

[phunkdust]

;D :lol:

the inital outlay cost for a mac is waaaay over what a lot of us can afford anyway... if macs were cheaper than pcs id be running mac

[Tax Invoice]

Originally posted by phunkdust
;D :lol:

the inital outlay cost for a mac is waaaay over what a lot of us can afford anyway... if macs were cheaper than pcs id be running mac

...If macs were the same price as PC's I'd be running Mac.

[nicko]

i had problems with my live value soundcard, it turned out it was firstly because i had the older drivers and then later cos i attempted to split the signal with a simple 3.5mm double adaptor. for some reason the digital signal didn't like this and so i had to get a switching box.

there's SO much information about live cards and crackling problems on the net, along with all sorts of fixes. that's how i originally fixed my problem.

good luck. i know how fucking annoying it is..

edit: you may have to install the drivers a few times. im not sure if this was the actual cause as i was fiddling around with other things as well, after reinstalling the first time didn'y work

[driload]

this isnt your answer but some bastard advice

the single most positive thing you can do to make your audio better is throw away your cheap card and install something of quality.... i favour M-audio cards because they tested quietest a few years back and were some of the first mid-priced 24/96 available, but theres tonnes out there to choose from

get a second hand Delta44 for around 300 if you look around


anyway, apart from that you can get Matrox g400 dual-monitor video cards for... i kid you not... 50 bucks and they are stable and lovely (and two monitors makes life easier)


and finally have your pc, amp, mixer and other sound source gear on the SAME power-strip (dont max out 10 amps though)


like nicko said, its a pain in the ass and it might be so simple


i remember when it took me (dont laugh) two weeks to work out why cubase was recording a delayed/doubled signal when recording audio.... (stupid "global monitoring")


worse comes to worse take your system over a nerd friends house and Caffiene the problem until it sorts itself out.

[Rik_]

I'm assuming the mobo has a Via chipset... they're not the best chipsets due to clashes with soundcards, namely the creative range. I'm not experienced with other cards, but from what I've read, sound cards are hardly ever 100% with the chipset.
Which means a mobo upgrade :~( But that is a last resort. It could be the smallest of small problems though, like a fluro lamp running nearby or an aircon unit on the outside wall. Goodluck with it though!

[mungo]

oi drillroad get us some of those G400's for $50. I will pay a 20% spotters fee and all postage involved.

email me at aistorm@netspeed.com.au