Windows 10: Sporadic popping / click sound on new computer

Hello all,

I came across this forum while looking for possible solutions for a strange audio issue (sporadic popping / clicking) I have with my new computer and it made a very good impression knowledge wise and how decent people communicate with each other. Maybe someone has a clue that could help me out of my desperation. *Smile

So far, I spent many hours of intense research and tried many fixing attempts. I build this computer myself and checked several times all connections / cables, but everything looks just fine.
But first let's start with my build:

OS: Windows 10 Pro 64bit (1903)
CPU: AMD Ryzen 3900x
Mobo: ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Hero (wifi)
GPU: ASUS ROG 2080 ti O11
PSU: Seasonic Focus Plus Platinum (750W)
RAM: 2x 16GB DDR4 G.skill (3600mhz, installed @A2 / B2)
HD: Samsung 970 evo pro M.2 (1x 250GB / 1x 1000GB)

I don't have speakers and went for a high-quality Headset which was overall rated to be great for Audio/Gaming and went for this bundle: Steelseries Arctis Pro (Headset) + gameDAC (USB external soundcard)

The computer itself runs fine and stable, all is up-to-date (Bios, Chipset, drivers...), temperature wise all in the green.

But audio starts sporadically popping / clicking after a few seconds when playing any source (e.g. youtube or ingame). I have 2 games installed so far, CoD:MW (Battlenet) and Hunt (Steam), both are showing the same issue, so it is not related to one Game. My impression is, that this issue appears more frequent in a game (multi-channel) than youtube (Stereo?).

I connected the DAC to a USB 3.2 Gen 2 port and after facing this issue, I changed it to a 3.2 Gen 1 Port (different USB controller). The audio issue is the same, but on top the DAC starts switching off/on after a while on one of these Gen 1 ports. Keeping it connected results in a permanent connection loss at some point, meaning it stays off, so I plugged it back to a USB 3.2 Gen 2 port but also here it does not switch on again. The device turns on again only after a complete restart of the computer . So for now, I keep it connected to a Gen 2 port. I tested other USB cables and the issue was still the same.

I connected the Headphones only (w/o DAC) via proprietary USB to 3.5mm jack directly to the line out of my onboard sound. But also, the same popping/clicking issue was present. No issues at all when connecting these headphones to my smartphone or another computer, so they are fine.
Same with the gameDAC, I tested it on another computer (Win 10 Enterprise, 1809) and audio plays without issue.

The only difference between my computer and the other one was in "Speaker properties - advanced - default format".
On my computer it is fix at "6 channel, 16bit, 48000hz" and greyed out, so no change possible. But on the other one it was "16 bit, 48000hz" and I had the possibility to change it to 44100hz. The DAC manual says, it needs to run at 16bit / 48000hz.

I completely uninstalled all audio devices, switched off my onboard sound and wifi in Bios, also uninstalled HD audio from Nvidia and cleaned up the "Apps" section for any realtek audio (onboard) and sonic studio 3 software.

Restarted the computer and installed freshly the DAC. But still, the issue stays the same and also the default format.
I ran "Latencymon" for 15min, also when ingame and the issue appeared, but it says that my computer works fine and can handle real-time audio without problems. All running tasks don't consume much resources.

CPU minimum powerstate was set to 100%, windows fast boot turned off, USB HUB power saving was turned off in device manager. Drivers were uninstalled and installed. Windows audio troubleshooter didn't detect an issue, same with USB troubleshooter.

Other USB devices like keyboard, mouse or external storage are running flawlessly.

I have no clue what else I could do... *sarc

:)

 

Sound Quality

One thing that sticks out from looking at your "My Computer" specs. You list "ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)" which suggests you do not have the correct sound hardware driver. Your motherboard has Realtek sound and the first step is to install the Realtek sound drivers. My ASUS also came with Sonic Studio 2 which is a sound enhancement package. Check the ASUS install disc to see if you have something similar.

May not be a speaker problem.

 

Good surround sound headset

I know you say you're not that guy, but stepping into the $250+ range really brings a change in build quality that might have you never having to buy another set. Otherwise, getting 6 speakers with decent sound in a headset is hard, and that's what you are asking for, and I have no suggestions, but just a bump up the list. *Stick Out Tongue

 

popping sound when begin to type..

Hi Jimmy,

This popping sound could be the Windows notification sound that is played when a new device is plugged in. If you are using an external keyboard or any other device connected through USB, that could be triggering the sound. I would suggest you to disconnect
any external connected device and then check if the sound is still played. if yes, it could be the notification for some other action. In this case, I would suggest you to right click on the volume icon in the notification area and then click on sounds. In
the new Window check the list of sounds for each action and check which sound is being played. This will give you an idea of what might be triggering the sound.