I had the same problem and after reading through this thread I tried to uncheck all TCP/IPv6 from all my network adapter( I have 1 LAN, 1 PPPoE, 1 VMware Network Adapter and 1 openvpn TAP-Win32 Adapter) and the DPC spikes was disappeared.
My first problem is that it cannot be forced... it happens when it happens and never fully recovers until a reboot. I originally experience the issue with onboard audio so I added an extra PCI sound card I had but still had the issue. All drivers are up to date, but..... I didn't experience the problem until AFTER I updated my BIOs about two weeks ago. My system is currently not overclocked either.
I run Ventrilo while playing pretty demanding video games, 50-50 shot whether the issue will begin during gameplay. Sometimes it will start after I close a game and resume normal computer use. But when it happens, it starts off a slight static and popping, quickly turning into heavy screeching, distortion and lag as well as some visual lag.
I an attempt to shorten the list of possibilities, I reformmated my computer and installed a fresh copy of Windows 7 64bit, as well as the motherboard's latest chipset, audio and sata drivers. Nothing else, then I loaded DPC Latency and ran a few mp3s and YouTube videos. Although my problem was not as severe as previously, I did experience several major spikes at times.
GIGABYTE GA-P55-USB3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 USB 3.0 ATX Intel motherboard
Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core processor
XFX Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Expres video card
Microsoft virus scanners apparently can contribute to the problem. If you are running Microsoft Security essentials or Forefront, try this:
1. Open Microsoft Security Essential or Forefront.
2. Click the Settings tab.
3. Click Excluded files and Locations
4. Click Add.
5. Select either of the following paths, depending on the scanner you are using:
c:\Program files\Microsoft security essentials\MsMpEng.exe
C:\Program Files\Microsoft Forefront\Forefront System\Client\AntiMalware\MsMpEng.exe
6. Click Ok.
7. Click Save changes.
8. Close the scanner program, and then restart the computer.
You might also try excluding other network intensive programs like iTunes.exe or iTuneHelper.exe.
For more on this, see the following:
http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/msestart/thread/0519ba5e-f3d8-4caa-a193-01fea178aa4f
Thanks for the reply. Obviously there is a common problem amongst us all, but no one knows what it is.
That case thinks its Security Essentials and Torrent related. I think its Ventrilo related but unfortunately I replicated the problem on a fresh install of Windows with nothing installed.
Odd incident a few minutes ago though, I noticed my sound was starting to slowly act up while talking on Ventrilo. I was playing a video in WMP and it looked and sounded fine but somehow I noticed while I moved the mouse cursor, then the sound started cracking bad. As soon as I stopped, the video looked and sounded fine again. However a minute or two later it didn't matter if I was moving the mouse or not, high latency spikes and distorted piercing audio.
Update: Here is a screen capture from the DPS Latency Checker. The yellow and red spikes toward the beginning were while I was moving my mouse cursor, and the huge block of reds in the middle were while I was holding down my Ventrilo talk key. As soon as I let up, greens. https://i.imgur.com/1I3cS.png
But again there are times where I am doing nothing with the keyboard or mouse and sound is just coming out distorted.
Another possible point of interest.... I used a screen capturing program to record exactly what I'm talking about, moving things and whatnot. I experienced the problems doing recording however when I went to play back the file, the sound was captured normal.
Last edited by TheRandalovic; 09 Jan 2011 at 23:02.
Hi guys, I recently started having the same problems but under wholly different circumstances. My computer has been fine for the last 9 months or so until recently i accidentally activated the norton internet security 2010 promo that came with it and quickly got rid of it using the norton removal tool but after norton was gone i noticed two things, first of all the audio popping and lag problems the rest of you have and second my internet has slowed to a crawl most of the time. Has anyone else had anything similar happen? Any suggestions would be hugely appreciated. :)
Hey , i have been going through this thread and finding many similarities to my current situation.
Ive had the current build of OS and hardware for almost 18 months now. Ive been running Win 7 Ultimate with no faults or problems. My sound card is a Creative Xi Elite Pro with 7.1 speakers - which again have been faultless.
The mobo is a Asus P5N-D with Realtek HD onboard audio which has been disabled.
Now to the problem:
So about 2 weeks ago im playing Battlefield Bad Company 2, much like i have done in the past when all of a sudden, the sound becomes distorted and crackles. It culminates into a high pitch piercing noise then then stops altogether. About 5 seconds later it all comes back on again. So i continue without problems for a few days.
A few days later i am then back playing BFBC2 when it happens again with the piercing noise followed by total cut out, then 5 seconds later it all comes back.
I quit out the game and do a reboot of the PC. When i come back into windows, i have perma crackle with any audio. WMP is worsened by mouse clicks, web pages opening. If i try and even start BFBC2 the sound will cut out on the opening video before i even get into the game.
I did initially think that the sound card was on its way out so i thought i would try the onboard HD audio. Alas, i have the exact same issue with this too. Also to the same severity as i did with the creative card.
I began to google the issue and saw many "quick fixes", and ive tried them ALL. The reboots, the enhancements, the 65% output levels, driver updates, rollbacks, daniel K's.....absolutely everything.
So through pure frustration and anxiety......i decided to go through a full clean install of Win 7 again. So after a full format of my 2 drives and a fresh shiny copy of Win 7 and all the shipping drivers installed..........i still have the same issue.
So, again i decided to udate ALL my hardware to the latest drivers and then onto Beta drivers if available. I must add that after every driver install i check to see if the issue has gone....and still it stays ever the same.
Ive now ran DPC and im idling at anything between 130-370 without audio playing. When i start WMP, this range doesnt change at all yet im still getting the crackles and pops.
I will confess that DPC is confusing me somewhat, as if im idling upto 370 without any apps open, does this mean that i have an issue before any sound is attempted to be played?
What i really cant get my head around is why all of a sudden this issue has occured. I didnt install anything new, didnt update anything, didnt change anything. I was just playing BFBC2 and all of a sudden BOOM it happened. The issue is more confounding me considering it happens with both the X-Fi card and the Realtek onboard sound.
I appreciate this thread is very old but i thought it appropriate to post here as this thread without doubt has the most similarities with my issue.
Any help would be greatly received as i am now officially at a loss!
Spec:
Win 7 Ultimate 64 Bit (now fully updated)
X-Fi Elite Pro / Realtek HD Audio
Intel Core 2 Quad @ 2.93
Asus P5N-D mobo
4gb OCZ memory
Nvidia GTX 295
Thanks for the advice. I uninstalled malwarebytes and prevented Security Essentials from scanning itself and itunes and the crackling is all but gone. Thanks again. The PC i was working on was old (AMD XP3000 with 1.5gigs of RAM). I put Windows starter on it thinking it would work fine. For the most part it did with the exception of the audio. that being said the CPU and drives were being worked and i expect that is where the issue arose from. A few sound cards later and i know i was in for a fun ride.
Anyway thanks for helping to leave me a little of my sanity.
Update to my original post:
After numerous installs i have now got the problem down to drivers.
On a fresh install of OS, i update the X-Fi Elite pro driver to latest and i have absolutely no sound issues what-so-ever. I have ran BC2 and it works like a dream with sound. Naturally however without a graphics driver the game runs poorly with graphics in mind. So, i then began to go through all the old drivers from Nvidia for my card, and oddly, no matter what driver i install, the minute i restart with an nvidia driver, BOOM, the crackling is back.
Anyone have any suggestions? Im beginning to think its time to rebuild a new system as this is getting really frustrating. I either lose the sound on games or lose the fluid gameplay via graphics.
Any help would be much appreciated.
The following is a possible fix/solution for Creative popping/crackling/distortion. Before doing this solution my speakers would crackle and pop like fire crackers were going off in my room. Doing this fix just about all but fixed it. I still do encounter cracks/pops but it's now a rare event and greatly reduced in duration when and if it does happen.
Possible Creative Popping/Crackling/Distortion Solution:
1- Control Panel > Sound
2- Playback Tab > Speakers (Default Device) > Properties
3- Levels Tab > "0" out & mute all levels below Play Control.
For realtek sound cards, installing this driver may solve the problem: ftp://ftp3.realtek.com.tw/SiS_Chipse...llMode_Upd.zip
user: enduser
pass: enduser256
This finally worked for me after trying all kinds of possible solutions suggested in the forums.
Good luck!
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