Squealing/static in headphones when framerate is high

HangTime

HangTime

HangTime

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I've got an issue since switching to using onboard audio instead of a soundcard. Basically when a game is running at extreme framerates I seem to be getting some sort of interference or whatever causing a faint high-pitched buzzing noise in my headphones. I have tried untangling cables etc to try and improve matters in case it was getting interference from poorly shielded Displayport cable or whatever.

I don't think it is a problem with the headphones as it didn't happen when I used a dedicated soundcard (can't use it any more as new mobo has no PCI slots). It's almost like the equivalent of coil whine you sometimes get with some graphics cards at high framerates except manifested in the headphones. I'll probably try a different set of headphones at some point though in case it is poor shielding or something.

It's not THAT bad that I can't put up with it and I sort of tune it out when playing a game, but I'd like any ideas on how to get rid of it (without capping the framerate at a lower value).

Obviously I can't move the audio jacks on the mobo and the case doesn't have any ports on the front. I don't want to move the GPU as it will run slower in the second slot.

Any ideas?
 
Could be worth trying a cheap USB soundcard/adapter - if that solves it then it's obviously related to the motherboard (which other than maybe changing the PSU not much you can do), if not then it's the headset cable, in which case you could try a better shielded extension lead or maybe a ferrite ring
 
I've seen this before, but it was from the GPU directly. Are you sure it's not coming from the GPU?

You could put a frame rate limiter on, which could help. I've seen this when in game menus and things when you're running at 200+ FPS etc. Why do you not want to do that, is it affecting in-game?

As above, onboard sound is never that good anyway, may be worth looking at a USB sound card or AMP/DAC.
 
This will be coil whine, or at least a direct side effect/relative of it. It's switching noise from VRMs on the graphics card.

Either it's being emitted and picked up in the analog bits of the audio circuit, or the interference/noise is being carried across the board in the copper. It may vary between cards or even power supplies, but likely is also down to motherboard design.

You might be able to filter it out with some cleverly placed capacitors but as it's audible frequencies, you run the risk of also attenuating treble from your audio signal.

As mentioned, a discrete sound card of some kind will likely sort it.
 
That's just mobo's integrated sound card being EMI magnet.
Without own dedicated PCB it's lot harder to keep interference out.

Changing headphones won't solve it.
Unless it's fixed voltage EMI induced into output traces, in which case higher impedance headphones needing higher signal voltage lower volume of interference compared to actual sound signal.
 
alex24 said:
I've seen this before, but it was from the GPU directly. Are you sure it's not coming from the GPU?

You could put a frame rate limiter on, which could help. I've seen this when in game menus and things when you're running at 200+ FPS etc. Why do you not want to do that, is it affecting in-game?

As above, onboard sound is never that good anyway, may be worth looking at a USB sound card or AMP/DAC.
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No it's definitely coming through the headphones. I've had audible coil whine from GPUs before, this isn't it.
As mentioned in the OP I don't want to cap framerate so low that it stops this noise. It's probably not worth going into detail over as I have a very niche use case, I play a competitive online game on a 360hz monitor.
I don't really want to buy a soundcard if I can avoid it, the problem isn't THAT bad, although I appreciate this may be the easiest/most obvious solution.

One thing I haven't tried yet, is plugging the headphones into my monitor and routing the audio to that over displayport. But that will be a bit of a faff because I use two monitors, one for single player games and one for multiplayer, so I'd have to keep switching the cable over I think.
 
HangTime said:
No it's definitely coming through the headphones. I've had audible coil whine from GPUs before, this isn't it.
Click to expand...
Coil whine is caused by coils vibrating from that frequency pulsating current.
And any pulsating current always sends EMI (that's how radio transmitters work) besides being present in power traces.

Motherboard's integrated sound card simply picks that up in one way or another into its analog signal.

DisplayPort is digital connection and such interference won't usually get through it.
 
Only on motherboards with well thought out audio traces have I found them free of this kind of thing - on most I can even hear slight static in the headphones from moving the mouse never mind the GPU under load.

On many boards the integrated audio is a kind of last minute addition using whatever space is left, often with long traces running parallel to power traces, etc. with bits spread out far further apart than is desirable for quality audio :( i.e. the DAC near the back left of the board near the PCI-e slots further from the CPU then running the audio down past the PCI-e power traces to an amp near the first PCI-e slot and on to the rear audio connections.
 
EsaT said:
Coil whine is caused by coils vibrating from that frequency pulsating current.
And any pulsating current always sends EMI (that's how radio transmitters work) besides being present in power traces.

Motherboard's integrated sound card simply picks that up in one way or another into its analog signal.
Click to expand...
Yeah I get that, I assumed that the root cause was interference like this. I was responding to question that was suggesting it was an audible sound coming directly from the GPU.
 
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