Crackling

[Mathijs Kok]

Since I updated to the latest version of Windows (22631.3155) I have rather heavy crackling in sound.
I tried the onboard audio, two different external USB dacs, different formats, different cables, speakers, all the same.
Only BT connections seem free of it. This is on a rog strix b550-e gaming motherboard, latest drivers for everything.

Anybody any suggestions before I order a new motherboard?

 

[staticV3]

Two suggestions:

If one of your USB DACs has Optical in, then try using that via a Hifime UT23.

If you need USB for hardware volume control, DSD playback, etc, then try using a USB isolator:
https://www.tpdz.net/productinfo/733226.html
https://hifimediy.com/product/hifime-high-speed-usb-isolator-v2/
https://aliexpress.com/item/1005001927948863.html

 

[DVDdoug]

It's usually something interrupting the audio. Your multitasking operating system is always multitasking. If something hogs the system for a few milliseconds too long you get buffer underflow and a glitch. (Bluetooth probably has a bigger buffer.) Try to minimize the number of applications and background operations. If you have anti-virus, try temporarily turning it off and if that helps you can either leave it off or try a different anti-virus one.

There is a free online book about optimizing your system for audio called Glitch Free. (It's mostly for recording & production but it should also help for playback).

 

[staticV3]

Also, try running LatencyMon.

If the crackle is caused by system interrupts, then Toslink or USB isolators won't help.

 

[Mathijs Kok]

Thanks all for the assistance. I found the culprit.

It was Chrome; using the same source in Edge or Firefox does not cause the issue. I completely re-installed (manually cleaned) it, disabled hardware assist, and got the same result. I did not see this in Bluetooth because I never use Bluetooth connections for stuff that runs in a browser.

 

[Mathijs Kok]

Btw, thanks for that link to Glitch Free, DVDdoug. A bit outdated but VERY useful reading.

 

[Mathijs Kok]

Small update on this.... Nahimic, how could I forget to disable to that shite.