Popping and shit driving me craazee. Solution?

[alexc2005]

Hey guys,

So recently my computer audio has started popping sometimes once every second or so, sometimes nothing at all.

My mate who lives with my has the same problem so its not my computer, he has tryed both speakers and headphones and they both do it.

He has a powerboard with filter and that didnt help at all.

So i figure that there is some kind of bad power source here or something fluctuating.

How to eliminate this problem?

Ive seen these ferrite? rings that you can put around your power cord for filtering? Not sure what they actually do, but does that make sense?

Another idea we had was to get a UPS and use that to filter, but not sure how effective that would be.

So guys, Any suggestions?

Cheers

Alex

[$3@N]

Common your not even going to tell us what gear you have!? How do you expect us to help you? GeeZ!

Taking a wild guess i would say if your not using the rear ports at the back of the computer for connecting your speakers and using the front panel connectors then you would not be getting the shielding provided by the backpanel

If its intergrated sound then your lucky you can hear the clicks and pops, normally average users would not notice it.

Can you record a sample of the sound?

[qwertylesh]

Yeah, sounds like electrical interference, you might have a bad appliance somewhere which is causing it. A filters not gonna do you much good but a UPS is, or better yet, work out whats causing it in the first place and eliminate it.

[alexc2005]

hmm, its connected at the back of the computer sorry.

i didnt think the gear was important since it happens on two COMPLETELY different systems.

i could record a sample, but its not happenign all the time, so by the time i get it it might have stopped lol.


I might grab a UPS next time i go home.

Hmm, finding it might be a little hard, i think my mate has turned everything in the house off and still had the problem. So fucks me what it could be ay.

And yeh im using integrated sound, i can hear it quite loudly, my mate has a XONAR STX + a stereo amp and he can hear it too. but its not near as bad if he plugs his mp3 player into the amp..

so it seems to be the computer itself that is the issue.

[qwertylesh]

I still think its power source related. You'd get the same kind of popping turning on and off an electric heater when running your computer.
a UPS should filter out the popping provided it isnt your computer thats creating the popping.

[alexc2005]

Originally Posted by qwertylesh

I still think its power source related. You'd get the same kind of popping turning on and off an electric heater when running your computer.
a UPS should filter out the popping provided it isnt your computer thats creating the popping.

ok cool, i doubt it would be my computer, unless me and my friend happened to have exactly the same issue.

So next time i go home ill grab the UPS and see how that goes , thank god mum and dad have some lying around haha.

Cheers for your help mate

[qwertylesh]

No problem, hope it gets rid of the popping completely for ya

[alexc2005]

Originally Posted by qwertylesh

No problem, hope it gets rid of the popping completely for ya

if it doesnt i will probably neck myself, it ruins everything i listen to/watch

[$3@N]

you have to get a line interactive ups which levels out the amp and volt too and from your computer, if you just get a cheapy which only cuts in when the power is completely out you will still be hitting your head against the wall.

You and your friend in the same unit or what?

[alexc2005]

Originally Posted by $3@N

you have to get a line interactive ups which levels out the amp and volt too and from your computer, if you just get a cheapy which only cuts in when the power is completely out you will still be hitting your head against the wall.

You and your friend in the same unit or what?

yeh we live in the same house.

hmm, im not sure what the one at home is but i will look at that first before i spend any money (or ill put up with it for a few more months)

[qwertylesh]

glad someone knew the specifics

Well said $3@N.

[SnooP-WiggleS]

edit: missed bit about headphones

In terms of the problem a line interactive UPS won't offer much benefit over standby, assuming similar power/surge filtering employed. I could be wrong, but i don't think the line interactive can switch voltages quick enough to filter out a pop if thats the idea (at least going off wikipedia explenation). Only the really expensive online UPSs will guarantie pops are filtered out.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uninter...ne-interactive

[alexc2005]

wat to do then snoop dogg?

[SnooP-WiggleS]

Start saving

http://www.itsky.com.au/catalog/part...=OPT-UPS-38212

Cheaper options to try could be dedicated sound card instead of onboard, change power supply in computer (if you've both got cheap ones they'll both have minimal filtering), no guaranties that either of those would help though! Similar for a standby or line interactive UPS, the power filtering in them could help, but no guaranties it will.

You could try working out if the source of the pops is an appliance (by turning everything off at wall / fuse box as applicable except for pc) or external.

[oohms]

Popping can be a spark arcing between switch or relay contacts, that gets picked up by nearby equipment. I think that's what it could be, especially since it happens on all of your audio gear, and your housemate's too. Maybe its the fridge?