Windows 7: suddenly noise (all audio interfaces)

castlebravo · 14 Jul 2012

Hello,

I had a nicely working windows 7 with a nicely working external USB audio interface (NI Guitar Rig Kontrol). Suddenly (while using the audio interface) there started to be noise on the input signal.

A reboot didn't help, so I plugged in a second external USB audio device (Behringer Guitar link). There was the same noise on the input signal.

I then booted my computer into an old Win XP installation to check if something with my computer / hardware is wrong ("ground loops" or whatever..). Both audio interfaces worked perfectly without any noise.

Btw. sound playback is working fine in Windows 7 (with all audio interfaces).

Anyone has any idea what could be wrong with my Windows 7? Thank you in advance for any advice / ideas.

fireberd · 14 Jul 2012

That is a strange one. I have a recording studio, using Sonar X1. I also used to do a lot of support on the Dell users forum and don't recall any problems such as this ever posted there.

Some audio functions are handled differently in Vista/Win 7 than with XP and the differences could be what is causing the problems.

Try this with one of the devices. Connect it to the PC then go to the Device Manager - RIGHT click on the entry for the device and then LEFT click "Uninstall" (DO NOT check the box to also uninstall the driver). Physically disconnect the device, restart Windows and after Windows starts reconnect it and Windows should detect and reinstall it. See if that fixes it.

castlebravo · 15 Jul 2012

That didn't help. Still thank you very much for the idea.

I agree that this is a strange one. Before posting the question here I tried to google it and also found that nobody before had this problem.. So any further ideas would be greatly appreciated.

fireberd · 15 Jul 2012

Do you have the wireless option? If you do, disable the wireless adapater and see if that makes a difference. There have been some audio noise problems attributed to wi fi adapters.

Also, if you are connecting to a front panel USB port, try a rear port.

castlebravo · 15 Jul 2012

I tried both suggestions, but it did not help.

castlebravo · 15 Jul 2012

I recorded some of the noise. It is exactly the 50 Hz noise that you get from electric equipment magnetic disturbances.

However, I think it is not at all coming from the sound devices really picking up these disturbances (because they don't pick it up using Win XP, changing the position does not change anything etc.).

I found one difference in the behavior of the "Guitar Rig" and the "Behringer Guitar Link" device: for the "Behringer Guitar link" it does not matter whether you really have a cable plugged into the device. For the "Guitar Rig" the noise stops if you have no cable plugged into any of the input ports.

fireberd · 15 Jul 2012

It doesn't make sense. If it was a ground loop hum, it would also be present in XP.

Is there another Windows 7 PC that you can plug one of those devices into, just to see if the hum is there? If not yours, possibily a friend's.

henryeight · 15 Jul 2012

- - - doesn't this point to a fault in the Windows 7 PC ?
Have you tried a mic into the PC sound-card area? - that should show up any Windows 7 PSU/MBO issues.....

The odd thing is that PC's use switching PSU's so any noise should be chopping freq which will be many kHz - so out of audio range.... changing PC PSU seems rather drastic . . . . does OP fancy an upgrade maybe to a "quieter" PSU - might fix, can't hurt, etc.

Can OP provide external power to these interfaces? That might eliminate noise into the PC . . . and presumably you've not wrecked the input connector as that via USB...... there is no "audio" connection oherwise to the MBO...?
-and these interface appear to be noise-free on other PC's - that should be them out of the picture.... as I presume you've used the same USB connectors/wiring, etc...

Finally, has anything changed recently, or Opened the Windows 7 case ?
- & can "Drivers" cause this?

OP's test with Guitar cable, - I suspect removing the jack puts a short on the input, so it's ignored - maybe passes a "no-signal" msg to the USB control in the PC. Inserting any lead causes the PC to open-up the audio path in the device and in the PC where it picks up any PSU generated noise, etc.
By powering the Ext Devices (separate PSU) you should eliminate the suggestion the noise is from the USB-device . .. but that won't eliminate wiring issues, if say the Guitar had lost an earth...etc. although I discount this area since OP say they are OK on other PC's (but I'd separately power them anyway!).

Windows 7: suddenly noise (all audio interfaces)

suddenly noise (all audio interfaces) problems?