Background Noise - What part could be bad?

[Sir Wolff]

Hey,

 

I built my PC about 1 year ago and never really used High-End headphones or speakers so I am not sure if this is a new behavior or has been there since the beginning. I attached a noise sample - I backlooped the 3.5 Jack from the back through my xenyx 302USB to audacity. The front jack is just a little quieter but still has this static noise. I use a fresh Windows 10 install, every driver is up to date and the computer is the only thing attached to the wall, also no wifi.

 

My components:

define r4 (3 case fans at 5V)

bequiet 650w powerzone modular

msi z87-g45

xeon 1241v3 (aircooled)

gtx 970 g1 (no-fan bios, 2x1080p display connected)

toshiba q-series ssd

seagate 1tb (very loud)

 

periferals: (if needed)

g510 keyboard

g500 mouse

beyerdynamics 770Pro 80 Ohm

 

BTW The noise starts the same time windows is loading. I noticed that my PSU somtimes crackles, but no specific times like starting games or benchmarking. I stopped every fan to check if this clicking in the background could be a bad motor but it continued.

 

So finally my question: Where could this noise come from and how could I stop it? I am using the onboard audio - do I have to invest in a dedicated soundcard?

 

Thank you for your time,

Wolff

Rauschen.wav

[Maccat123]

Where abouts is it coming from? 
It could possibly be coil whine, but then again I'm not too sure myself, I'd wait on others to reply. 

 

Edit: Nevermind, I noticed you said you backlooped, I am unsure, sorry! 

 

Edited February 8, 2016 by The Lolikiller

[Prysin]

@Sir Wolff

have you tried one of these?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019393MV2?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

 

they help drastically reducing hissing or background static. i orded 5 of them recently, but atm their with my GF, and she was blown away how much it helped on background static.

[Sir Wolff]

Thank you for your replies so far and no I have not tried one of these yet. I thought they would work only with low frequencies (50-60Hz) and reduce the sound quality by blocking those frequencies. Personally I would not want to lower my sound quality - I am in a very silent area with decent headphones, hearing mostly music and only sometimes games or movies. But if this is no failing component or simply a problem of OnBoard Sound, I will try one.

 

When I plug my Headphones/Speakers directly into the 3.5 jacks the noise is quieter, but still present. It gets terrible when I plug a 3.5mm to 2cinch cable into my xenyx and amp it. This mixer is powered via USB from the same pc and the same back-panel so I thought this could not be a ground loop problem, please correct me if I am wrong.

 

Is anyone else getting similar noises from OnBoard sound? is this a driver problem or could any other component cause this?

[Sir Wolff]

After some investigations I think I finally found that the PSU might be the source. Is this kind of noise normal for Power Supplies (attachement)? Especially the hiss in the end seems to be similar to the noise on my 3.5mm jack.

Should I buy a new Power Supply or do you think this is normal? I do not know what to make of it because it seems that everything is working perfectly (not a single crash/BSOD since I built it).

Thank you in advance!

Netzteil.wav

[SSL]

Please check the Audio Interference Troubleshooting Guide in my signature. Hopefully that will help you narrow down the exact cause, it may be related to the PSU but not in a way that you expect.

[Sir Wolff]

Well the sound I attached in my last post is directly taken from the case of my PSU. I am sorry I did not mention this earlier.

Thank you for the link I will read it!

[SSL]

13 minutes ago, Sir Wolff said:

Well the sound I attached in my last post is directly taken from the case of my PSU. I am sorry I did not mention this earlier.

Thank you for the link I will read it!

 

Doesn't matter. Like I said, the behavior could be caused by something else and only manifesting in the power supply.

 

Group loop or incorrectly wired AC outlet are the most likely contenders in my mind right now.

[EndlessOyster]

What does this noise sound like?

[Sir Wolff]

@EndlessOyster I attached wav files to my first and third post. first is my mainboard 3.5mm jack looped back through an usb mixer, the second wav is recorded with a microphone directly on the PSU case.

[EndlessOyster]

1 minute ago, Sir Wolff said:

@EndlessOyster I attached wav files to my first and third post. first is my mainboard 3.5mm jack looped back through an usb mixer, the second wav is recorded with a microphone directly on the PSU case.

wtf, is that actually what it sounds like or is it the recordings not doing justice.
Sounds like someone was playing a drum kit in the background.

[Sir Wolff]

@EndlessOyster that is very very close to the actual sound. And no other noise was recorded with it (no neighbors, and I removed my harddrive). Mostly I am worried about the hissing (which sounds like a leaking gas bottle). The hum could be from a bad fan-mount of the PSU.

[EndlessOyster]

done a virus scan? I refuse to believe its some interference or ground loop. Saying it starts once windows starts loading makes it sound like its software based so maybe a virus. Or it is just something fucked up in the drivers or the operating system but thats unusual.

[SSL]

Just now, EndlessOyster said:

done a virus scan? I refuse to believe its some interference or ground loop. Saying it starts once windows starts loading makes it sound like its software based so maybe a virus. Or it is just something fucked up in the drivers or the operating system but thats unusual.

 

It's not unusual at all. Bad drivers are a frequent cause of these kinds of issues.

 

OP, please go through the guide. One of the steps is booting into safe mode. This should determine whether or not it is a driver that is causing the issue. Let me know if you have questions about what some of the steps mean.

 

A virus scan isn't a terrible idea; I might add that to the guide if I can find real-world cases.

[EndlessOyster]

Just now, SSL said:

 

It's not unusual at all. Bad drivers are a frequent cause of these kinds of issues.

 

OP, please go through the guide. One of the steps is booting into safe mode. This should determine whether or not it is a driver that is causing the issue. Let me know if you have questions about what some of the steps mean.

 

A virus scan isn't a terrible idea; I might add that to the guide if I can find real-world cases.

usually when its a bad driver it just doesnt work or sounds bad when you try and play something, not a permanent fucked up noise and its such a strange noise as well.

[SSL]

1 minute ago, EndlessOyster said:

usually when its a bad driver it just doesnt work or sounds bad when you try and play something, not a permanent fucked up noise and its such a strange noise as well.

 

Not at all. Bad drivers often introduce latency that cause interference. Granted this doesn't sound much like that, and it's coming from the PSU, but it is in the ballpark of possible behavior.

[Sir Wolff]

Ok, so in safe mode the hissing isn't as bad as it is normally, but you still can clearly hear flowing currency. Also the 3.5mm noise is very quiet. I use Bitdefender and a few hours after a fresh windows install a virus shouldn't be a problem...

[Sir Wolff]

To eliminate all driver problems, I will do a fresh Windows installation now and not install a single driver. This hurts a lot, but maybe it is neccessary...

 

[SSL]

7 minutes ago, Sir Wolff said:

To eliminate all driver problems, I will do a fresh Windows installation now and not install a single driver. This hurts a lot, but maybe it is neccessary...

 

 

Completely pointless as safe mode will allow you to eliminate the problem without so much trouble. Then use latency checking software to confirm which driver.

[EndlessOyster]

Does it make the noise when you plug the speakers into another device?

 

[Sir Wolff]

@SSL I don't have any clue how to do this and I already uninstalled every single driver I had been able to remove without deleting my system... And I think a clean install isn't as bad - I get rid of many junk applications I already installed on my (relatively) fresh windows...

@EndlessOyster Every single audio port has this noise problem

[Dackzy]

 

16 minutes ago, Sir Wolff said:

@SSL I don't have any clue how to do this and I already uninstalled every single driver I had been able to remove without deleting my system... And I think a clean install isn't as bad - I get rid of many junk applications I already installed on my (relatively) fresh windows...

@EndlessOyster Every single audio port has this noise problem

A easy fix would be just to get a dac and amp combo, but that will cost you some money.

And yes I know that you can fix the problem with out buying a dac and amp but since you don't know how to do the things SSL guide are saying you should do.

[Sir Wolff]

Ok. After this fresh install I can tell a few more things. Reboots have R2-D2 sounds, but barely noticeable. The loud white noise (gas leaking) starts with the loading circle of windows 10. And even during the installation-menu of windows I got R2-D2 / ant sounds. During the extraction process of windows I could hear my SSD writing stuff and now, when my system is under some load (opening settings app or store) the noise goes completly.

I run at "High Performance" energy setting so this should not be related to my CPU changing clock speed.

@Dackzy I am very sorry for my impatience. I am willing to learn those things some time soon, but currently this problem is annoying me a lot and I wanted some new results quickly. Maybe now that I know this isn't a custom-driver problem (only windows drivers installed) I could look into it.

 

I just realized I should have recorded the sounds with a second computer or something so I can attach another sound sample... Maybe next installation

 

Could it be my mainboad? I mean I never heard my SSD write before...

[Dackzy]

1 minute ago, Sir Wolff said:

Ok. After this fresh install I can tell a few more things. Reboots have R2-D2 sounds, but barely noticeable. The loud white noise (gas leaking) starts with the loading circle of windows 10. And even during the installation-menu of windows I got R2-D2 / ant sounds. During the extraction process of windows I could hear my SSD writing stuff and now, when my system is under some load (opening settings app or store) the noise goes completly.

I run at "High Performance" energy setting so this should not be related to my CPU changing clock speed.

@Dackzy I am very sorry for my impatience. I am willing to learn those things some time soon, but currently this problem is annoying me a lot and I wanted some new results quickly. Maybe now that I know this isn't a custom-driver problem (only windows drivers installed) I could look into it.

 

I just realized I should have recorded the sounds with a second computer or something so I can attach another sound sample... Maybe next installation

 

Could it be my mainboad? I mean I never heard my SSD write before...

You probably have some electrical interference on your board, you can maybe fix it but if you really need a fast fix get a dac and amp combo.

[Sir Wolff]

@Dackzy wow, I am sorry! #Edit: Thanks but no, I don't want a dac+amp solution.

Do electrical interferences on my board make my PSU make leaking gas bottle sounds?

I can not remove any other device from my board, since I have a CPU without integrated graphics. My case is closed without any window and stands away from any wall with only 1 Monitor, my USB-Mixer and Power plugged into it. No HDD, no Case fans, no CPU fan. I have a modular PSU so I only have the neccessary cables in use. Everything is tied up properly in one straight line behind the back of my case.

Where could those interferences come from?

Edited February 22, 2016 by Sir Wolff