USB Mic Interference - Could Coil Whine Be The Culprit?

[FVSantbrink]

So, this issue is a very strange one.

 

Setup as it relates to this issue:

• USB HyperX Cloud II Headset
• MSI 990FXA Gaming Motherboard
• EVGA SuperNova 1000 G2 80+ Gold
• Corsair K70 Gaming Keyboard

Issue Symptoms:

• My mic on the HyperX Cloud II picks up really weird interference such as static when plugged via USB directly to my PC, i.e. the Front I/O Panel or directly on the Motherboard's Rear I/O Panel. It may also stop functioning sometimes or suddenly pick up extremely loud feedback and get super loud, almost deafening. Sometimes it works fine for a little while. If I play with the chord for the headset and move it around the place, it may cause the issue to stop or start. For example, last night at one point if I positioned the USB dongle on the table, it would stop. If I picked it up and held it vertically, it would start having the issue. This doesn't always work though. There's no logic behind it other than it only happens when connected directly to one of the PC's USB ports.
• Works perfectly fine when connected through my keyboard's USB pass-through.
• Works perfectly fine on other computers.
• Headset speakers work absolutely fine whether they're connected directly to the PC or via the keyboard's pass-through. Only my mic is affected.
• Mic doesn't pick up static or break up when connected via the mic-in port on the motherboard. But, it still has issues because then it gets really muffled and sounds flat.
• All other USB devices work fine.

Possible Related Issue:

• My Power Supply has some small coil whine. It's audible at idle, under load and anything in-between. It never gets any better or worst. The coil whine remains constant. It's not that bad either unless you open up the case and listen to the inside. It's noticeable but not annoying when closed.

Is it possible that my PSU's coil whine is affecting my headset's mic when connected directly to the PC? What else do you guys think could be causing this?

[tlink]

i highly doubt it since you don't get the same problem when plugged in the mic in. this sounds more like a lose contact or something like that in the dac that converts the usb to analog.

[FVSantbrink]

21 minutes ago, tlink said:

i highly doubt it since you don't get the same problem when plugged in the mic in. this sounds more like a lose contact or something like that in the dac that converts the usb to analog.

If that is the case, how comes when going through my keyboard's USB pass-through it works fine? I'm not too savvy on this particularly topic but if it was a faulty DAC wouldn't it still be affected regardless of whether I'm going through another USB device? The signal would still have to go to the DAC and would be affected the same way, no?

 

My assumption is that sending it through the keyboard gives it some distance away from the coil whine interference. And to further protect it, since it's going through the keyboard, that means it's going through an extra ferrite core (that of the keyboard).

[tlink]

1 hour ago, FransV said:

If that is the case, how comes when going through my keyboard's USB pass-through it works fine? I'm not too savvy on this particularly topic but if it was a faulty DAC wouldn't it still be affected regardless of whether I'm going through another USB device? The signal would still have to go to the DAC and would be affected the same way, no?

 

My assumption is that sending it through the keyboard gives it some distance away from the coil whine interference. And to further protect it, since it's going through the keyboard, that means it's going through an extra ferrite core (that of the keyboard).

depends, loose contacts are pretty random in how they show up and therefore hard to diagnose. coilwhine could never on its own cause this interference unless it vibrates at a frequency that interferes with your devices over air but thats just really unlikely, coil whine may be part of the symptom but i highly doubt it. usb is a digital signal, if it suffers from interference than you would notice it on every device. did you plug it into a usb3.0 port or a usb 2.0 port? usb 3.0 itself can send out interference, this would be more likely to cause trouble.

[FVSantbrink]

14 minutes ago, tlink said:

depends, loose contacts are pretty random in how they show up and therefore hard to diagnose. coilwhine could never on its own cause this interference unless it vibrates at a frequency that interferes with your devices over air but thats just really unlikely, coil whine may be part of the symptom but i highly doubt it. usb is a digital signal, if it suffers from interference than you would notice it on every device. did you plug it into a usb3.0 port or a usb 2.0 port? usb 3.0 itself can send out interference, this would be more likely to cause trouble.

I've tried pretty much all USB ports on my PC to be honest. When I get home, I'll make sure to try every single one again to see if there's any difference or logic behind it.

 

But as for these loose contacts which you talk about. What exactly should I look for as it relates to that?

[tlink]

5 minutes ago, FransV said:

I've tried pretty much all USB ports on my PC to be honest. When I get home, I'll make sure to try every single one again to see if there's any difference or logic behind it.

 

But as for these loose contacts which you talk about. What exactly should I look for as it relates to that?

try wiggling the wire or pulling it slightly, holding it at odd angles stuff like that. tap the usb port while speaking to test it. if that doesn't turn up results than i don't have a clue either, you could try it on a different machine and hope that it also gives problems there then you at least know its your headset.

[FVSantbrink]

Just now, tlink said:

try wiggling the wire or pulling it slightly, holding it at odd angles stuff like that. tap the usb port while speaking to test it. if that doesn't turn up results than i don't have a clue either, you could try it on a different machine and hope that it also gives problems there then you at least know its your headset.

You mean the wire of the headset? If I move the wire of the headset itself around it either causes the issue to start if it's not already and sometimes it causes it to stop. But it honestly doesn't have a specific technique to it. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. One thing is for certain is that the static/interference only happens when connected directly to any of the USB ports on the PC.

 

And Lol. That's the "unfortunate" thing. I know it's not the headset because it works through my keyboard USB pass-through as well as on other machines.

[tlink]

3 minutes ago, FransV said:

You mean the wire of the headset? If I move the wire of the headset itself around it either causes the issue to start if it's not already and sometimes it causes it to stop. But it honestly doesn't have a specific technique to it. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. One thing is for certain is that the static/interference only happens when connected directly to any of the USB ports on the PC.

 

And Lol. That's the "unfortunate" thing. I know it's not the headset because it works through my keyboard USB pass-through as well as on other machines.

well im not sure about anything anymore at this point but maybe its power fluctiation on the usb ports? and that your keyboard smooths it? do you have a usb extension cable <2 meter? if it is interference from any component on your pc than that should show it.

[FVSantbrink]

3 minutes ago, tlink said:

well im not sure about anything anymore at this point but maybe its power fluctiation on the usb ports? and that your keyboard smooths it? do you have a usb extension cable <2 meter? if it is interference from any component on your pc than that should show it.

That is something I was thinking of trying. I've put a little checklist together of things to continue trying when I get home.

• Doublecheck Motherboard Grounding
• Try Different Power Cable for PSU
• Update BIOS (If Needed)
• Disable All Other Audio Devices in Hardware & Sound
• Try USB Hub or USB Extender

Apart from that, if anyone has further suggestions it's more than welcome. I will post results after following this checklist tonight.

[tlink]

7 minutes ago, FransV said:

That is something I was thinking of trying. I've put a little checklist together of things to continue trying when I get home.

• Doublecheck Motherboard Grounding
• Try Different Power Cable for PSU
• Update BIOS (If Needed)
• Disable All Other Audio Devices in Hardware & Sound
• Try USB Hub or USB Extender

Apart from that, if anyone has further suggestions it's more than welcome. I will post results after following this checklist tonight.

you can also try a different power outlet and a different circuit group, sometimes that matters too.

[FVSantbrink]

30 minutes ago, tlink said:

you can also try a different power outlet and a different circuit group, sometimes that matters too.

Will give that a shot as well. Thanks!

[FVSantbrink]

So, to update. I have:

1. Screwed down all motherboard stand-offs again.
2. Tried a different power chord.
3. Tried a different outlet.
4. Number 2 & 3 together.
5. Tried different sample rates and bit depths.
6. Reinstalled HyperX 7.1 Audio Driver.
7. Disabled and re-enabled HD Audio from the BIOS.
8. Didn't update/reinstall BIOS because it's already up to date and this board is only a few months old.

Still no juice.

 

Tomorrow, I'll hopefully be able to borrow a power supply with no coil whine to see what happens.

[Proph3cyBreaker]

Could be your cell phone too. Depending on how close it is to you headset. Heres an article http://blog.rfvenue.com/how-to-prevent-cell-phones-from-interfering-with-audio-equipment/

[FVSantbrink]

15 hours ago, Proph3cyBreaker said:

Could be your cell phone too. Depending on how close it is to you headset. Heres an article http://blog.rfvenue.com/how-to-prevent-cell-phones-from-interfering-with-audio-equipment/

The interference doesn't sound like that, so I'm not too sure that's the cause. But it's something I'll definitely check out as it's easy to test.

 

In other news I managed to get another power supply today. I'm not sure if I can use it though because it only has a 4-pin CPU connector, whereas my board uses an 8-pin. From what I've been reading it's safe to use only 4 pins, as the other 4 are more meant for when you overclock and require more power. Not sure how true that is. If anyone can shed some light on that for me, that would be awesome.

[FVSantbrink]

Okay, the cause of the problem has been determined. My new motherboard is faulty - which I simply didn't want to believe. But I now have definite proof.

 

After using a new power supply and new video card in the machine, I still had coil whine and still had the issue with my mic. Turns out my motherboard itself is experiencing coil whine and is therefore faulty.

 

Really sucks considering it's brand new. I didn't want to spend the money to upgrade just yet and simply got a motherboard with similar specs to replace what I already had. Oh well, everything else about it works, so I suppose I will just use my headset through my keyboard for now and just prepare for a full upgrade of motherboard, CPU and memory a few months down the line.

 

Thanks for all the help everyone!