noise leaking thru speakers

[av8tor]

Hello...I have a Z68 Extreme4 Gen3 that is having audio problems. I can hear random noise like static and humming when I move the mouse or when downloading files coming thru the speakers. It has been going on for some time now but it's getting very annoying. I have check to see if all the wires are away from the chip and check for ground faults. But nothing seems to point to the problem. I'm using the on board audio with 4 speakers and a sub. Is there a fix for this ? If not then will I have to buy a sound card(need recommendations please) or use this as a excuse to upgrade to Z87. I really like this board and it has been running flawlessly since the first boot. I would appreciate any and all opinions.

The setup I have in my sig is a different one used for flight simming only. (I have 3 different computers.)

[IT Hertz]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

Seems to be a common issue with ASRock boards. See: http://forums.tweaktown.com/asrock/5...h-leakage.html

[profJim]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

Have you tried disconnecting the audio cable that goes to the front panel audio jacks.

If you want an excellent sound card, check out the HT Omega models.
I've been using the Striker 7.1 and Claro Plus+ PCI cards in my systems for several years and they are excellent.
It looks like the less expensive Striker card is discontinued but you might be able to buy one directly from HT Omega.
HT Omega tech support is excellent and they respond quickly.
HT Omega - Striker7.1

Newegg.com - HT Omega Sound Cards

I think that the Asus Xonar sound cards are very good and they have models from $30 - $230.
Newegg.com - Asus Sound Cards

I've avoided Creative sound cards due to their bloatware.

[wazza300]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

try with turning off c1e power saving state in the bios,and use balanced power profile in windows

I doubt a sound card would cure it tbh,its either the board/gpu/psu or a combination of all three that causes the noise,also close down any asrock monitoring software as that usually causes sound whine or latency

[parsec]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

Seems to be a common issue with ASRock boards. See: http://forums.tweaktown.com/asrock/5...h-leakage.html

Some boards have noisy audio, others don't. I have two ASRock Z77 boards, and they don't have noise in the audio outputs. I also use CPU power saving options, from C1E and all the way to C6. I also use AXTU on and off, and it does not add noise to the audio outputs.

OTOH, I have no doubt that those options can and do cause noise in a board's audio output. My GigaByte P43 and ASUS P67 boards both had noisy audio outputs. I had to use the SPDIF digital output on those boards, to a separate DAC, etc, to use the audio on those boards.

The first test above all others is to mute the audio from the main Windows volume/level control. Click the speaker icon to show the red circle with bar across it. This should indicate if the source of the audio signal is also the source of the noise.

My best advice would be to experiment by removing various peripheral devices, wireless mouse and keyboard, joysticks, USB devices, even USB hubs with their cheap cables.

Actually a quick way to do that is have your audio system on but not playing anything at all, just listening to the noise. That is with the PC idling at the desktop, running no programs. Increase the volume so the noise is very obvious. Then unplug everything one at a time, and keep them unplugged. Listen for changes in the noise level while you do this.

This includes mouse and keyboard (wireless or not), anything connected to a USB port, including add on hubs. If you use a wired Internet connection, unplug the network cable from the PC. If you use a wireless network card, disable it in Device Manager, or any other way you know will turn it off. Turn the monitor off... I know, radical but in this case guilty until proven innocent. Same goes for a video card, if you can switch to on-CPU graphics (gasp!), try that to eliminate the card as a noise source.

If the noise does not virtually disappear at some point, connect your mouse again, and play with all the level/volume controls you can find. There can be multiple controls that are not synchronized. From Windows Sound option, to your board's audio software, to the desktop volume control, you may find one that will help reduce the noise level.

[av8tor]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

Wow...I did not know this is such a big problem. Thanks to all who have tried to help. I have done all that was suggested except to switch the graphics card to on board because there is none. The noise comes from the mouse when using it even after I unplug it, the noise was still there, but not as pounced. I do however have Crucial Ballistx Tracer Ram (16gb) that I can hear after I turn off the volume in windows. Removing all my ram to test is not an option unless it will fix the problem. I spent a lot of $$ on this ram and I hope this is not the case.
Projim suggested I unplug the front audio cable which is the last step in this quest. I hope .....I have another asrock board that I use for my HTPC an FM2A85X Extreme4-M which is so quite I have to check to see if it's working. My point is that this seems to be related to a certain type of audio "chip"/ board combination. Any other suggestions before I shoot this bad boy

I will also check with Crucial and see if they have an answer.....I can hear it now....it's not our ram, speak to your Mother board manufacturer !

[profJim]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

Try testing with a bare minimum hardware setup where you only have one memory module installed.
If you are using a usb mouse (wired or wireless) test with a PS/2 mouse instead.
You might need to test with a different power supply, graphics card, monitor, speaker system, keyboard, etc.
This is a process of elimination and you are the detective trying to find the guilty party by eliminating suspects one at a time.

As I worst case scenario, I would remove your motherboard from the computer case and place the motherboard on a cardboard box, beside your case and keep testing. Be sure to also disconnect any wires that aren't needed, such as the front panel Reset switch and the front panel power and disk activity LED's.

I suggest that you unplug your power supply from the wall outlet and then carefully remove and reinstall every cable in your system.
Double check that your cpu cooler does not rotate and that it is securely attached to the motherboard.
I don't know if it will help, but you can also test after booting to Safe Mode in windows to see if it helps.
I would go so far as to disable your audio in the bios and in windows to see if this changes anything.
You should also remove and re-seat your video card and memory to make sure that everything is properly seated.

Do you have some headphones that you can test with after disconnecting your speakers?

Be sure to let us know if/when you are having fun doing all of the testing.

[parsec]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

Wow...I did not know this is such a big problem. Thanks to all who have tried to help. I have done all that was suggested except to switch the graphics card to on board because there is none. The noise comes from the mouse when using it even after I unplug it, the noise was still there, but not as pounced. I do however have Crucial Ballistx Tracer Ram (16gb) that I can hear after I turn off the volume in windows. Removing all my ram to test is not an option unless it will fix the problem. I spent a lot of $$ on this ram and I hope this is not the case.
Projim suggested I unplug the front audio cable which is the last step in this quest. I hope .....I have another asrock board that I use for my HTPC an FM2A85X Extreme4-M which is so quite I have to check to see if it's working. My point is that this seems to be related to a certain type of audio "chip"/ board combination. Any other suggestions before I shoot this bad boy

I will also check with Crucial and see if they have an answer.....I can hear it now....it's not our ram, speak to your Mother board manufacturer !

You lost me on the memory noise comment. I'm not implying that you're wrong or that is impossible, just trying to understand. The noise/sound from the memory is apparent as a noise source by itself (like a fan making noise) or is causing noise to be added to the audio output?

Are you saying you can "... turn off the volume in windows.", meaning no sound or noise from the speakers whatsoever, but you can hear the DIMMs making noise?

Or if the memory is adding noise to the audio output, how do you know that is the source of the noise?

When you say the noise was reduced when you unplugged the mouse, but still caused by the mouse, that is not possible. You have more than one source of noise, the mouse was one and there are others. If it was the mouse alone, you could unplug it, take it into another room, remove its battery if it has one, and the noise would be gone. An unplugged, un-powered mouse cannot cause noise.

[IT Hertz]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

I do however have Crucial Ballistx Tracer Ram (16gb) that I can hear after I turn off the volume in windows.

From what I've read on the Crucial site, I'll go out on a limb and guess that they've used some sort of on-board switching regulators for the LED's. This would be the only thing I can think of that might radiate at audio frequencies.
Further evidence of this design scheme would be if you can vary the LED brightness -- e.g., via the M.O.D. utility. Can you?
Of course, there's also the possibility that they're using an oddball scheme that [also?] switches the supply between the ground effect (ambient) LED's and the pattern LED's for efficiency/energy reasons. <shrugh><shrugh>

<shrugh>

I will also check with Crucial and see if they have an answer.....I can hear it now....it's not our ram, speak to your Mother board manufacturer !

Naturally, fingers will point at the other guy. You could try different RAM (borrow a friend's, buy some cheap subbers, w/e).

Have you checked whether there's noise when only in your BIOS/UEFI?
Have you tried different OS's? How about booting directly into DOS; maybe run some DOS games?

You can spend your time performing physical teardowns in desperation, but may ultimately yield to the fact that your board is either defective (possibly inner board GND plane layer pads/thru plating) or ASRock simply needs to improve shielding and filtering for their audio chains. Nothing you can do will correct either of these causes.

I've built a number of computers since 1980 (not all IBM/PC, obviously), have used on-board audio on some of the PC builds and to the best of my recollection, the FM2A85X Extreme6 is the first mobo that I've had this issue with. It also happens to be the first ASRock board I've used. Unfortunate coincidence? You decide...</shrugh></shrugh></shrugh>

[av8tor]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

Try testing with a bare minimum hardware setup where you only have one memory module installed.
If you are using a usb mouse (wired or wireless) test with a PS/2 mouse instead.
You might need to test with a different power supply, graphics card, monitor, speaker system, keyboard, etc.
This is a process of elimination and you are the detective trying to find the guilty party by eliminating suspects one at a time


As I worst case scenario, I would remove your motherboard from the computer case and place the motherboard on a cardboard box, beside your case and keep testing. Be sure to also disconnect any wires that aren't needed, such as the front panel Reset switch and the front panel power and disk activity LED's.

I suggest that you unplug your power supply from the wall outlet and then carefully remove and reinstall every cable in your system.
Double check that your cpu cooler does not rotate and that it is securely attached to the motherboard.
I don't know if it will help, but you can also test after booting to Safe Mode in windows to see if it helps.
I would go so far as to disable your audio in the bios and in windows to see if this changes anything.
You should also remove and re-seat your video card and memory to make sure that everything is properly seated.

Do you have some headphones that you can test with after disconnecting your speakers?

Be sure to let us know if/when you are having fun doing all of the testing.

I will Profjim...but to be honest if I was to do a tear down that would be my last resort for sure

From what I've read on the Crucial site, I'll go out on a limb and guess that they've used some sort of on-board switching regulators for the LED's. This would be the only thing I can think of that might radiate at audio frequencies.
Further evidence of this design scheme would be if you can vary the LED brightness -- e.g., via the M.O.D. utility. Can you?
Of course, there's also the possibility that they're using an oddball scheme that [also?] switches the supply between the ground effect (ambient) LED's and the pattern LED's for efficiency/energy reasons. <shrugh><shrugh>


Yes I do use the MOD and I can adjust the light colors and the flashing speed to give it max bling! I bought these at a perimum and would like tpo keep them so I will change these out for some gskills I have laying around and see if it's the culprit
<shrugh>


Naturally, fingers will point at the other guy. You could try different RAM (borrow a friend's, buy some cheap subbers, w/e).

Have you checked whether there's noise when only in your BIOS/UEFI?
No I have not and that's a good question. I will put that on the top of my list to do so....what if there is no sound in the BIOS? what does that mean?

Have you tried different OS's? How about booting directly into DOS; maybe run some DOS games?

I Don't have a different OS........also no dos games...sorry

You can spend your time performing physical teardowns in desperation, but may ultimately yield to the fact that your board is either defective (possibly inner board GND plane layer pads/thru plating) or ASRock simply needs to improve shielding and filtering for their audio chains. Nothing you can do will correct either of these causes.

I've built a number of computers since 1980 (not all IBM/PC, obviously), have used on-board audio on some of the PC builds and to the best of my recollection, the FM2A85X Extreme6 is the first mobo that I've had this issue with. It also happens to be the first ASRock board I've used. Unfortunate coincidence? You decide...</shrugh></shrugh></shrugh>

This is exactly where I am at this very moment. Is it worth it to do as ProfJIM suggested, which is a total tear down?(there goes my weekend) or just pack it up and wait for hasewell.

You lost me on the memory noise comment. I'm not implying that you're wrong or that is impossible, just trying to understand. The noise/sound from the memory is apparent as a noise source by itself (like a fan making noise) or is causing noise to be added to the audio output?

Are you saying you can "... turn off the volume in windows.", meaning no sound or noise from the speakers whatsoever, but you can hear the DIMMs making noise?

Yes I mute the volume in the audio manager and I can still hear the noise/feedback thru the speakers. Even if I don't move the mouse so I was thinking it could be the dims because of the type I have. To explain the sound better it's like a pulsating buzz if you will, fading in and out WHEN i'm not touching anything. When I move my mouse or download a file it get more "scrambled" and louder.


Or if the memory is adding noise to the audio output, how do you know that is the source of the noise?

I don't know if that's the problem...that's what I was asking.



When you say the noise was reduced when you unplugged the mouse, but still caused by the mouse, that is not possible. You have more than one source of noise, the mouse was one and there are others. If it was the mouse alone, you could unplug it, take it into another room, remove its battery if it has one, and the noise would be gone. An unplugged, un-powered mouse cannot cause noise.

MY mouse is a Theron wired mouse with adjustable lights...(I love my lights!)


It looks like I have my whole weekend worth of trouble shooting and it's going to be in the high 90's so I will attempt to get to the bottom of this at some point. I thank all of you for your time and patience. Your inputs will help with this almost impossible task. I will keep you informed of my progress and post all my findings...now what to do first

[parsec]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

Now I get it, your DIMMs have LEDs, I looked them up. I suppose that is a possible source of noise, but I've never heard of anyone having that problem. I think that would be known by now.

The main thing is, the kind of noise you have is exactly what I've had with some boards, and I never used the memory you have.

[IT Hertz]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

what if there is no sound in the BIOS? what does that mean?

edit: Forget what I said about my mobo being silent when in UEFI. I just cranked my speakers up full blast and it's noisy as hell when I move the mouse or use the keyboard. There's a somewhat quieter pulsing beat when I'm not doing anything in there. Should you decide to experiment similarly, remember to turn off your BIOS/UEFI sound effects (if any) first! If you forget to do this, you'll probably regret it.
Btw, I just tried a bootable DOS CD and it's just as noisy as the Windows environment.

Yes I mute the volume in the audio manager and I can still hear the noise/feedback thru the speakers. Even if I don't move the mouse so I was thinking it could be the dims because of the type I have. To explain the sound better it's like a pulsating buzz if you will, fading in and out WHEN i'm not touching anything. When I move my mouse or download a file it get more "scrambled" and louder.

Well, that's different than what I thought you were referring to with your RAM. It's very much like my sypmtom; background noise always present, noise gets worse/louder with video and drive activity.

Now try something that may/will blow your mind. Uninstall all audio drivers, remove audio devices in Device Manager and then disable all audio in UEFI, then reboot. If it's like mine, it won't make any difference -- as described in my thread that I linked to earlier, I get the same noise even with the Realtek chip disabled! Since speaker/cable/case grounding and EMI/RFI from external devices are not issues with my machine, this, IMHO, clearly indicates a serious design flaw and/or a defective board.

MY mouse is a Theron wired mouse with adjustable lights...(I love my lights!)

I went through the "pull this, yank that, substitute this for that" phase. I get the noise with everything disconnected, including all drives and peripherals and, as I said, with the chip itself disabled.

You can try the simple stuff before a really involved (and, IMHO, unnecessary) teardown. Some you've already done:

Unplug your USB devices.

Maybe try a PS2 keyboard, see if it makes a difference.

Remove all peripherals (serial, parallel, ethernet, rear panel, front panel, etc. etc.).

Disconnect drives. If your OS and mobo are hot-swap capable, enable that feature and then remove the boot drive after you boot into OS, see if it makes a difference -- also, use on-board SATA after you remove any controller cards.

Remove any other cards as well (fax/modem, tuner, capture, etc.).

I know you can't remove your GPU, since you don't have integrated APU, but I doubt that would matter -- I'm using my AMD's APU and still get the noise.

If you're OC'ing, try going back to default settings -- after which, if you're using H2O, temporarily remove power from your pump (it goes w/o saying this should be done only long enough to check for noise elimination, and don't run any CPU or GPU intensive apps while the pump is unpowered).

Try a different power supply if you have one handy or can borrow one.

Move the pc to a different outlet -- not likely to help, but sometimes one outlet will have issues that others don't in the same house. If you're using a GFCI, try the pc on a regular outlet. If you're using a line conditioner or even just a basic surge/spike suppressor, try the pc temporarily w/o it (when skies are clear ).

or just pack it up and wait for hasewell.

Chalk up another Intel build. I'll be putting together a Haswell rig later this year and this AMD/ASRock machine will go to relatives. I'll probably try to cure the noise with an add-on sound card, though, so they won't have to suffer.

[wazza300]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

it shouldn't make any noise whatsoever

two pc's I have atm a z68 and z77 don't make any noise,last boards that did that noise were all x58 boards

either switch the psu/gpu or motherboard,usually its the motherboard

I also tried a xonar dx soundcard to no avail,still made the screeching noise

[av8tor]

Re: noise leaking thru speakers

well just an update on this problem...I tried everything that was suggested in this post to no avail. The only thing that did work was to remove my speakers!(as suggested by my GF) so either I change the mother board or try and return it for a new one. I truly believe is a defect in the board . Sad because I really like this board with the 2500k. Awesome combo...has work flawlessly since day one! except the sound problem of course....