audio dropouts and artifacts (pops&cracks) HELP!

[Cvrk]

First of all hello, ima' back to the only forum online that solved my problems. You people here know how to get things done, and this is why I am here!
This is gonna be a long one so get ready.
Before coming to you guys I've done my homework. My opinion is that this is a general software / hardware problem and not necessarily a sound card /sound system problem.
I have been experiencing for a few months audio dropouts and artifacts (pops & cracks).
Here is the list of things that I have done to try fixing the problem (the order is random):
- Reinstalled windows. Tryed both 86 bit & 64bit version.
- Updated moderboard drivers / sound drivers.
- Got the latest windows 7 updates.
- Installed 86 bit Windows xp Proffesional. And noticed I have no audio problems using that one even with old motherboard & sound drivers.
- I have a integrated sound card. Disabled that one from bios and got an Creative Sound Blaster (don't know exactly with one, it's a new version 2009 I think) SAME exact problems, even with the Creative sound card.
- Adjusted CPU power management to High: processor power management - minimum processor state 100% - maximum processor state 100%. Same problem, didn't work.
- Changed the Processor Scheduling: whent to Advanced System Settings - Performance Option - Advanced - selected "Background services" . Did NOT work.
- Messed around with the buffer size of audio sampling. Did not work.
- Whent to BIOS and disabled CPU Termal Throttle. Did not work.
- Alsow in BIOS, changed PCI Latency Timer from lowest of 32 whent up to 96. Somebody told me that if it's to low bad, to high bad. I tested a few different options. NOTHING worked.
OK! I found the problem using LatencyMon: raspppoe.sys (RAS PPPoE mini-port/ call manager-driver)
This raspppoe.sys is killing my sound. :shadedshu and the thing is I NEED HIM! Cuz my lame ass internet provider is forcing me to use a dial-up VPN connection. I have to connect this system so I can connect to the net.

My system specs are:
Windows 7 Service Pack 1 x86 updated 2012 november
CPU: QuadCore AMD Phenom II X4 840, 3119 MHz
Motherboard: ASRock M3N78D (yes it sucks)
Memory: 4gb DD3 Kingstone
Video Card: Sapphire ati hd 5670
Storage: SATA 2 Seagate Barracuda 7200 rpm , buffer size 32 mb
PSU : Corsair CX600

I NEED HELP! how to FIX my sound
IMAGES:

 

[Depth]

Did you try to temporarily disable the driver?

 

[Cvrk]

not a good idea

Yes.
The internet stops working. Disabling it ,is not a solution.

 

[Depth]

Obviously. Did it improve the sound?

 

[natr0n]

use windows xp then with Creative Sound Blaster. win win

 

[TC-man]

Hi,

Perhaps try disabling HPET in motherboard's bios, I hear it reduces DPC latency. See if it works. Otherwise, try disabling power management related settings in bios and Windows OS, such as Cool 'n' Quiet, halt state C1 and so on.

 

[RCoon]

As with all hardware issues i have, first, stick it in the oven with all plastic removed for 12 mins at 375 deg f then you can rule out solder defects!

 

[Cvrk]

No Depth it did not. If I disable raspppoe.sys I am left with tcpip.sys and netbt.sys that act crazy and still make highest execution go around 1 - 2 point. Everything that goes more then 1 it is BAD! If it's in 0,7 it's still bad but the sound problems go away.
If I disable the network adapter, for some reason I am still left with a problem : ataport.sys - ATAPI driver extension
Bizarre indeed, but I have managed to dig up some information on this. In Computer Management / View Resurces by Type / Interrupt Request (IRQ) you can see all the systems running on the computer. They have number, if ONE PCI has same number as another one, I've read that this is very bad since the cpu doesn't know which one to pick first, cosing Latency problems
My High defintion Audio Controller has same number as 2 more others. I can disable as you can see in the picture below the usb host controller, but I CAN NOT disable the Standard Dual Chanel PCI IDE. I doesn't allow me to do so. I don't know how to turn this of, I've looked around the bios....,didn't find what I was looking for.


NOTE: I have disbaled the onboard network adapter from bios and installed another one, thinking the network adapter card is the problem. Did not work, same thing happend. It didn't solve anything

 

[WhiteLotus]

Ok i'm going to go out on a limb here and ask a question.

What is the source of the sound? MP3? During Games? What?

 

[Cvrk]

WhiteLotus, you can go on any limb you want, as long as you ask questions that means you are interested in my problem and willing to help.
I have just restated my pc and disabled in bios ACPI HPET Table & amd cool n quiet . NO EFFECT

Latency problems are in mp3, flac, wav, games, any movie of any kind. Basically everything that has to do with sound.
I just disbaled again my network adapter and noticed I don't have any more prolems as soon I enable and start my VPN connection I got the same 3 problems: raspppoe.sys , netbt.sys , tcpip.sys

I have tryed to update "standard dual channel pci ide controller" since I've noticed my drivers were from 2006. The only solution I found on google was to unnistal them and after rebot windows will install new ones. Witch it did,but no change. It updated them to 2006 AGAIN!
How can I update these things ? I am afraid they might cause some problems.

 

[WhiteLotus]

hmm if you're hearing the problem with both lossy and lossless file types then my idea is out. Sorry dude good luck!

However... one thought just came to mind.

Speaker cables? or Headphones? Perhaps a damaged cable needs replacing.

OK! I found the problem using LatencyMon: raspppoe.sys (RAS PPPoE mini-port/ call manager-driver)

Though just saw that. Don't think that idea will be any help.

 

[kenkickr]

I had a similar issue to what you are having. I would get the crackle and pop from any audio and when playing certain games I would see stuttering. Messed with the system for weeks to figure out the issue and from what DPC Latency was telling and what I found causing the issue were not even close.

DPC showed TCP/IP was the latency hog which wasn't resolved after trying default windows drivers and different Realtek versions.

How I resolved it was updating the AHCI driver. Never again did I see the problem after that.

Have you noticed stuttering in games or applications? I do see your on a AMD setup and mine is a Intel setup but maybe it could get you in the right direction to nip this in the butt.

 

[Kalevalen]

Is this on-board sound? what if you bypass the windows mixer. Bypassing Windows Mixer typically results in lower latency between decoding/rendering and output.

Note that low latency playback is relevant to real-time processing and editing only. It's completely useless for music playback; in fact, higher latency is better in this case as it gives better protection against glitching from buffer under-runs.

http://http://www.audialonline.com/html/articles/kmixer/

 

[Cvrk]

quick respond to Ken: I don't even have AHCI enabled in bios. it's set on IDE. Googled the problem, seems that I have to reinstall my windows if I wanna use AHCI or try to do some registry modification. Found a tutorial on that. As for updating AHCI drivers, I found them on AMD website. I will give it a try.

OK. BACK! I can't use AHCI. If you put the SATA controller in AHCI mode, and try install Windows, it will it seas,can't find a storage controller on your computer and abort the installation. In this case,somebody told me that I need a floppy drive and a floppy disk with the native SATA drivers on it. Press F6 when prompted during the Windows setup to have it load the drivers from the floppy. So complicated Just to install AHCI

 

[Cvrk]

Kalevalen for me the tutorial don't work. I don't have an USB Audio DAC. I'm suppose to chose the USB Audio Device Channel 1 in the ASIO Virtual Device Editor window. Sorry I don't have an usb audio dac

 

[Mussels]

can you try with another OS? even a bootable linux one?


might turn out to be software, and a format/reinstall could be the easiest way to solve this.

 

[Cvrk]

Well yeah it's the software. like I sead the xp proffesional sp3 I didn't have any problems. But I need windows 7. Windows Xp can't handle quad core processors. When I got the new computer last year, first I had windows xp installed, big mistake. My computer was running as slow as with the old AMD Athlon 3000+ it's like I didn't even had a new computer. When I installed windows 7 everything came to life! My computer still is very fast, I have no problems. I constantly multitask and do everything on it. I played with bad sound problems Modern Warfare, Black Ops 2 NFS Most Wnated 2012, alllt he new games at full graphics, with an HD 5670 card, can you belive it! The only problem is this sound

 

[Frag_Maniac]

Haven't read through all the posts, but by any chance have you checked your IRQ settings and tried configuring the devices in question to be on their own separate IRQ channels? Also, have you tried any internet optimizer tools that tweak the TCP/IP settings?

The sad thing is, you can't do much with dial up anyway. There's always going to be latency issues mixing old tech with new. I get a few seconds of delay sometimes just when I click on my secondary 1TB HDD, or a program on it if it's library isn't already cached because I'm using old SATA II mediocre speed drives on a W7 64 bit OS.


BTW, I have switched from IDE to AHCI on W7 before without re-installing the OS via using the reg tweaks, and I had no problems with it.

Love your avatar btw. LOL

 

[Cvrk]

Yes Frag, maybe I wasn't clear enough in my older posts. I to did the same, found a tutorial online that told me what reg. to modify in order to change from IDE to AHCI. I alsow managed to update ALL of my drivers including the old 2006 AHCI drivers and the network card drivers and everything else.
The problem is still there. I will give it a go with what you suggested.

BTW: you are not using an old SATA -2 HDD. Old would be like from 2000. Your hdd is probably from 2010. Min is from 2011 ...and I consider it to be relevantly new. Yes SATA 3 is out and has been for some time but everybody has money to constantly upgrading their hardware.

 

[Frag_Maniac]

I PMed you back about the IRQ. When it shows no conflicts like that it won't allow you to change anything because you don't need to, and hence it wouldn't make any difference even if you could.

A dial-up optimizer might be the last resort, but it's kinda a stab in the dark really. Oh, and I'm looking to upgrade drives soon. Getting tired of these 70Mb/s ones.

 

[Depth]

Maybe it's time to save up for a new motherboard? Any mid-range board should suit your needs and wouldn't set you back all that much.

 

[Cvrk]

As I tested and explained my hardware works perfectly. The problem is with the software. Give me money and I will buy a new computer from alienware. Depth if you don't have any more solutions, shut up! Don't spam my thread. There are people here who respect me and try to help with my problem,unlike you.

 

[Mussels]

As I tested and explained my hardware works perfectly. The problem is with the software. Give me money and I will buy a new computer from alienware. Depth if you don't have any more solutions, shut up! Don't spam my thread. There are people here who respect me and try to help with my problem,unlike you.

Not every solution can be fixed by poking it. replacing the motherboard is likely the easiest and fastest solution, dont be rude to people offering help.

 

[Frag_Maniac]

replacing the motherboard is likely the easiest and fastest solution, dont be rude to people offering help.

I agree, and although I can see you're frustrated Cvrk, I just lost interest in helping myself after that last insulting rant. MBs can be had cheap, respect can't.

 

[Depth]

Motherboard: ASRock M3N78D (yes it sucks)

As I tested and explained my hardware works perfectly. The problem is with the software. Give me money and I will buy a new computer from alienware. Depth if you don't have any more solutions, shut up! Don't spam my thread. There are people here who respect me and try to help with my problem,unlike you.

The issue is only partly software. There is a bleeding effect between rendered audio and components interacting with the motherboard; network usage usually being the main culprit. You said yourself your motherboard sucks.

You don't need a $5000 new flashy pc, but a single low-mid range motherboard with the same socket. I don't know how much you earn but if the mere thought of spending $100 sends you into a rage fit then I'm not entirely sure there is anything anyone can do.