Bad scratchy noise from speakers, but speakers OK. No IDE ATA/ATAPI???

[Caledonia]

Hi! Please bear with me ... I will not be using the correct terminology, but hope I explain myself OK all the same!
I have a DELL studio XPS PC With Windows 7. I used to have a DELL screen, with a speaker section attached, which belonged to my previous DELL. (Altec Lansing 5650 5.1 Surround Sound Speakers with Subwoofer set).
I ditched this due to the plastic attachments breaking, and the fact that I could only get sound from 2 of the speakers, not all 4, after changing my PC. I therefore thought it was an unnecessary amount of "hardware" kicking around my desk just for getting sound out of 2 speakers.
So, I bought Creative T15 Wireless (Bluetooth) speakers, although I use the wire directly into my PC due to not having Bluetooth. These worked fine to begin with - OK sound, so not complaining.
Now, I'm not sure whether this happened simultaneously with buying a New screen (a Samsung 24") but all of a sudden I started getting very scratchy noises coming from the left speaker. This noise comes even when unplugged from my computer. I contacted Creative who said that if the speakers work when attached to my ipod/iphone then there is nothing wrong with them:

That means the speaker is good. If speaker is faulty, the issue will remain the same no matter as to what device you connect it. Issue seems to be with your computer sound card's audio out. Check the settings in your computer, playback application settings . Reinstall/update the computer sound card driver if required. Also make sure DMA is enabled for the hard drives in Windows 7.

How to enable DMA:
- Click Start Control Panel Hardware and Sound Device Manager. If the User Account Control dialog box appears, click the Continue button.

- Double-click the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers icon.

- For each ATA Channel in the list, right-click and select
Properties.

- Click the Advanced Settings tab and select the Enable DMA
checkbox.

- Click the OK button.

Now, I cannot find the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers icon, as it is missing from the list. Have I unwittingly deleted something, and can I reinstall? Or is it relatively normal for this to be missing from the Devices manager list?
I replied to Creative, and received the following answer:

There is no noise if you change the audio source like your iPhone . Correct? That means speakers are good. If the noise exists even with alternate audio source means the issue is related to the speakers.

IDE ATA controllers are usually placed below Human Interface Devices in Windows. Mostly DMA is enabled by default. If incase its disabled , it can create audio distortions when playing digital contents . You may contact your PC/Laptop manufacturer on this for assistance.

Hence trying this forum, to see if anyone understands the issue.
Thanks, in advance.

 

[fireberd]

I started getting very scratchy noises coming from the left speaker. This noise comes even when unplugged from my computer

If I understand that statement, your speakers have the scratchy sound, even when unplugged from the computer. Does this happen if the monitor is powered off? (trying to determine if there is some radiation from the monitor that is affecting the speakers).

 

[Caledonia]

Yes, the scratchy sound is still there even when the monitor is turned off.

 

[Caledonia]

Update:
I just tried moving my left speaker further over to the left ... still lots of scratchy noise. I then moved it far right onto my windowsill, obviously confusing the stereo effect big-time However, it is now quite peaceful when using my computer - no scratchiness! So, there must presumably be some sort of interference going on? Why it only affects my left speaker I have no idea ...

And I still have no idea why I don't have the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controller option. Is this a problem?
I appreciate any replies.

 

[fireberd]

The noise may be coming from the computer. Power off the computer and then check for scratchy sounds. If none the computer is where the interference is being generated. However, it may still be a problem with the Left speaker (not properly shielded (regular PC speakers are shielded internally to minimize interferences), or possibly the cable from the right speaker (I assume the right speaker is the main speaker) is not shielded.

The IDE ATA/ATAPI Controller issue is for another forum section (if it is a problem).

 

[matts6887]

Im with fireberd; its more than likely interference from your computer. he is right though; if you are using speakers that are cheap inexpensive ones; they are more than likely not going to be shielded; therefore allowing interference to come into play

 

[Caledonia]

Thanks for your replies. Seems I'm still getting noise, though less now that the speaker is further away from the computer (though this isn't a satisfactory longterm solution).
The guy from "Creative" was so insistent that it was not a speaker issue, as they seemed to work fine when plugged into my iPhone.
I'm puzzled that I've only had this problem for the past month (I bought the speakers in June). If it was a non-shielding issue I'd have expected this problem to have been there since the start.

 

[fireberd]

Speakers made for iPhones and MP3 players do not have to have the shielding, both in the cabling and speakers that ones specifically designed for PC's do. Cell Phones, MP3 players, etc do not emit interference (RFI) like a PC and CRT monitors do.