Can a DAC fry a Motherboard? (SMSL DL200)

[Maxicut]

Is this possible, or is there something else going on?

I have a studio setup based around an RME Fireface UFX II that was running through an AMD X570 computer. A few weeks ago I bought an SMSL DL200...

...the DL200 sounded distorted out of the box & I was also getting audio dropouts ever few seconds. Then the computer started to randomly shut down, then it started blue screening, then the motherboard fried (I actually heard the crackling through my headphones). I had tried different USB cables, different USB ports, different power points etc & the Windows event log was no help. I had put the Motherboard's demise down to being nothing more than a coincidence & not the fault of the DL200.

So, I built a new AMD X870 computer & ran numerous different DACs through it for a few days while I was setting it up. Everything was working fine until I connected the DL200 again. It was still distorting & dropping out, so I quickly disconnected it... but now, whenever I connected another DAC or my RME AD/DA to my "new" computer, I'm still getting distortion?

The only thing I can think of is the Motherboard's USB controller, which as far as I know either works or it doesn't... but can they be partially damaged, causing the distortion? I'm still in the window of being able to send things back, so any help on this would be greatly appreciated!

 

[somebodyelse]

Only if it's faulty, or you have a mains wiring fault. Both are unlikely but not inconceivable. I don't know how it would result in lasting distortion with other interfaces on the new computer though.

 

[DVDdoug]

I suppose the safest thing would be to get a powered USB hub until you are confident that everything is OK.

Usually, USB ports are protected and you'll get an over-current message and then you might have to re-start the computer.

The dropouts may also be a coincidence. Usually, dropouts are from multitasking & interrupts. Your operating system is always multitasking even if you're only running one application. There is a buffer to keep the audio flowing-out smoothly but if something "hogs" the system for a few milliseconds too long and the buffer doesn't get re-filled in time, you get buffer underflow and a glitch. (There is also a buffer for recording and in that case the danger is buffer overflow when it doesn't get read in time.)

So, I built a new AMD X870 computer

And usually you are "safer" with a computer you built yourself because it doesn't come with a bunch of unwanted software that might be running in the background and eating-up CPU cycles.

There is a FREE online book called Glitch Free about optimizing Windows for audio. (Its mostly geared toward recording & production and they might be assuming ASIO drivers but there sill should be a lot of useful information.)

 

[Maxicut]

Thank you. It has to be some kind of fault with the DL200 though. The new computer was fine until I plugged it in?

 

[aagstn]

Did you use the same power supply to build the new PC? It is certainly possible that the DL200 is sending too much current, but that usually only fries the USB port. The most likely culprit for frying a motherboard is the power supply. I would test that power supply (if it is the same one from the previous build) if you have a meter to make sure it is putting out the proper voltage. A bad power supply can seem fine until there is the right load on it and then things start going pop. I sadly learned this the hard way and fried two different motherboards on my first AMD build many, many years ago.

 

[Maxicut]

Did you use the same power supply to build the new PC? It is certainly possible that the DL200 is sending too much current, but that usually only fries the USB port. The most likely culprit for frying a motherboard is the power supply. I would test that power supply (if it is the same one from the previous build) if you have a meter to make sure it is putting out the proper voltage. A bad power supply can seem fine until there is the right load on it and then things start going pop. I sadly learned this the hard way and fried two different motherboards on my first AMD build many, many years ago.

Ha, you read my mind... I ordered a new power supply yesterday! I still don't think it's the issue, but it's the only part that I recycled from my old build, so it's worth a try.