USB DAC problem, looking for some help.

[ashpon]

Hey guys, hoping you can provide some assistance. I recently received a USB DAC I ordered, a Schiit Modi. To get right to my issue, at random intervals the sound will repeatedly stutter and the entire system locks up, leaving the stuttering loop of audio playing in the headphones and forced to do a hard reset. It never BSODS, just system lock-up. This occurs usually after about 30 minutes of audio play of any kind, but this timeframe varies greatly. By any kind of audio play I mean, audio produced from Foobar/VLC/iTunes/Chrome/Games.  Only sometimes, I could wait out the stutter, leave the system and come back in 20 minutes, audio has resumed and the system functions normally, only to then freeze/stutter again shortly thereafter. 

 

For a quick rundown of my system specs.  Windows 8.1, AMD 8350, sabertooth 990fx, 16gb of corsair vengeance, asus 7950, samsung 840 pro,  and 2tb hdd. Audio consists of the Schiit Modi via usb, connected via rca to Schiit Vali, Vali to headphones. Previous to the addition of the USB DAC Modi, I had the Vali plugged from RCA to 3.5mm straight into the mobo I/O. This issue did not exist in any capacity previous to the addition of the USB DAC Modi. Nothing else on the system changed at the same time as the addition of the Modi, meaning no other hardware was added, software, or updates. 

 

Troubleshooting I've tried thus far: 

 

- I plugged my audio set-up into my Macbook Pro, as well as my work laptop that runs Windows 7. Both were completely stable, and ran hours of audio for hours on end without any issue. This obviously points the issue to my PC, or more likely directly to Windows 8.1. 

 

-Research of USB DAC issues in unison with Windows 8.1 are rather prevalent on the web, although not many seem to find a solution, or at least a solution that is relevant to a USB DAC that operates off stock Windows native USB drivers. 

 

-I have performed all of the DAC and USB troubleshooting steps found on the Schiit FAQ section of the website.  I have an email out to Schiit support, but I am going to guess based on some of the language used on their site, its going to get chalked up as a Windows 8.1 quirk or issue.

 

- I have tried 3 different USB cords, same issue. I have plugged the DAC into every available USB port on my system, USB 2.0 and 3.0, same issue. 

 

- I have disabled all other audio drivers, Realtek and AMD chipset, same issue. 

 

- I have run registry scans/repairs via command prompt, same issue.

 

-I have fiddled with buffer size in Foobar, after seeing that the issue can potential be related to USB dropout. I have set the buffer to the minimum, maximum, and many intervals in between. The same issue occurs, although curiously enough, the audio stutter/loop that gets played into the headphones repeatedly is corresponding to the length in buffer time. Meaning if I have a short buffer time, the stutter plays maybe half a note in a song; and a long buffer time may loop a lyric or two of a song. 

 

- I have tried disabling the driver that the DAC uses (Microsoft 6.3.9600.16384), as well as uninstalling it and letting in reinstall upon reinsertion of the USB connection. Issues persists. A driver rollback does not appear to be an option available, or I would have located a Windows 7 driver to try.

 

 

That about does it I think. Any help would be appreciated! 

[mr moose]

the dac should be driver less which would lead me to think it is not specifically a windows 8 thing but more likely either a corrupt component of windows or an intermittent hardware fault between the usb port you are using (have you tried other ports?) and the any other part of the system. Have you run a memory test? If the device works on other computers you can rule out the cable and device. 

[ashpon]

the dac should be driver less which would lead me to think it is not specifically a windows 8 thing but more likely either a corrupt component of windows or an intermittent hardware fault between the usb port you are using (have you tried other ports?) and the any other part of the system. Have you run a memory test? If the device works on other computers you can rule out the cable and device. 

 

Right, the DAC is driverless but still shows up as "generic USB audio" in device manager. 

 

I have tried all of my available USB ports. All of the ~5 USB 2.0 ports on the mobo i/o, the ~5 USB 3.0 ports on the I/O, and the 2 USB 3.0 ports on the case. Another interesting notation, when connected to any USB 3.0 ports the audio sounds a little distorted and produces a POP noise every 10 seconds or so. 

 

All other system components have the latest drivers, and all of which were updated and ruled stable prior to the addition of the USB DAC. BIOS is up to date as well.

 

I have not run a memory test yet. My system has had zero issues prior the addition of this USB dac. But I am certainly willing to test other components, including memory. I'll run the Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool and report back the findings. 

 

Thank you for your reply. 

[mr moose]

, when connected to any USB 3.0 ports the audio sounds a little distorted and produces a POP noise every 10 seconds or so. 

 

I get this on any USB audio device if it is plugged into a hub that already has devices using it or it is underpowered. I don't know if that helps any really.

 

Currently I am leaning toward some sort of file corruption or setting in windows.

[ashpon]

I get this on any USB audio device if it is plugged into a hub that already has devices using it or it is underpowered. I don't know if that helps any really.

 

Currently I am leaning toward some sort of file corruption or setting in windows.

Ya, I read about hubs and under-powering being an issue for some people.  But me, I have not used a hub, all these tests and issues were done in direct connection to the mobo's USB ports, except for when I briefly tested on the two front panel usb 3.0 ports. My sabertooth mobo has a couple USB 3.0 ports that offer fast charging for devices, called superspeed or something, issue still exists on those two ports. So I don't think under-volting is the issue.

 

I am with you on your guess, that it is file corruption or a windows setting/config. 

 

My memory test just finished, completed with no problems detected. 

 

Any thoughts on where to go from here? 

[mr moose]

Ya, I read about hubs and under-powering being an issue for some people.  But me, I have not used a hub, all these tests and issues were done in direct connection to the mobo's USB ports, except for when I briefly tested on the two front panel usb 3.0 ports. My sabertooth mobo has a couple USB 3.0 ports that offer fast charging for devices, called superspeed or something, issue still exists on those two ports. So I don't think under-volting is the issue.

 

I am with you on your guess, that it is file corruption or a windows setting/config. 

 

My memory test just finished, completed with no problems detected. 

 

Any thoughts on where to go from here? 

 

sorry, I'm all out ideas.

 

does windows log faults? somewhere in the management section maybe a clue to what is happening there.

[ashpon]

sorry, I'm all out ideas.

 

does windows log faults? somewhere in the management section maybe a clue to what is happening there.

 

No worries, I appreciate your input.

 

The logs have a lot of data, I'm going to parse through it and do some research. 

[ashpon]

Update: Review of the logs didn't turn up to produce anything valuable to resolve the problem.

 

I started going through the list of updates again for components. Found a new BIOS and AMD driver available since I last updated in early December. 

 

For whatever reason since updating BIOS and AMD driver, I can get stable audio via only a USB 3.0 port. However, the USB 3.0 is still producing intermittent popping noises. 

 

I guess the condition of the USB DAC situation is slightly improved but I really need to figure out this popping issue. I got a USB DAC to reduce noise and distortion, not to worsen the experience from onboard. 

[erich808]

Ashpon,

 

I just started looking into a similar problem I'm having. I just bought a new iMac with a 3TB Fusion drive (part SDD. part HDD). As I'm sure you're found, here are many documented problems with USB3. Unlike "popping" issues experienced with USB2 connections, these USB3 problems are generally not power-related. Most of what I've read tends to lay blame on the OS. With Macs, this is being seen on particular drive setups (Fusion) or computers with particular processors (Haswell seems to be most problematic). I think I'm out of luck until Apple releases an OS update. On the PC side, I read several cases where Windows 7 was problematic. Hope this helps rule out a few things for you.

[TheProfosist]

Do you possibly have malwarebytes?

[erich808]

An update to the issue I was having--

 

As I hoped, the OS update that Apple released this past week seems to have addressed the problem (sooner than I expected!). Among the list of fixes was "Fixes an issue that may cause audio distortion on certain Macs."

 

I've listened to the MSII for about 2 hours without any issue--hopefully this message isn't premature. The MSII is plugged into one of the four USB ports on the back of the computer, and I've been using all three other ports for other devices/peripherals including a USB hub.