USB headphones and interference

Devrij · 19 May 2016 at 16:45

So I bought a pair of razer carcharias headphones because I needed a cheap pair of open backed headphones (gotta be able to hear the baby!) and I had owned a pair of the originals and they were comfy.

What I didn't realise is that the new ones are USB powered (not sure if internal amp or just for the stupid lights) and cannot be used on the analogue inputs alone. I get absurd amounts of interference from any of the ports on my pc (front or rear panels) so have had to plug it into a wall socket via a USB phone charger. Even so, there is a noticeable background hiss.

Is there a way to reduce interference for USB powered headphones or am I stuck with these until I'm able to go back to my sennheiser pair? Surely they can't all be this bad?

Marsman · 19 May 2016 at 18:37

It's a shame Razer made them USB powered. I think it was so they could be compatible with console as well. I've seen no end of complaints about buzzing noise. The original version that was analogue only was very good headset.

I think the only thing you can do is to try using a mains USB charger for tablet or smartphone, to power them. That's helped a lot people get rid of the buzzing, although it probably doesn't work for everyone. Might be because of where they plug the USB adaptor into; extension mains lead along with the PC. Different wall mains socket would be better.

Devrij · 19 May 2016 at 19:04

Yeah that's what I've done and it has helped a lot, but there is always a subtle hissing if you have them on. I will avoid USB headsets like the plague in future

Marsman · 19 May 2016 at 23:05

Just remembered that you can get USB ground loop isolators, but maybe not worth trying due to the cost. The analogue variant is cheap and is always worth a go, but the USB one isn't cheap at £30. Not guaranteed to eliminate the hiss, so a waste of £30 if it doesn't work.

It's entirely likely that the newer Carcharias, is just a poor design though. Other USB headsets might work OK, unless you have noisy USB ports. It is hit and miss though with PC audio when it comes to interference. It's the luck of the draw to some degree, whether motherboard audio or sound card is affected and/or USB.

It's always harder to get round the problem with a headset though, as the microphone always needs an electrical connection to the PC, whether it's USB or analogue. It's easier to get round the problem with just headphones, as a DAC connected to the PC via optical has the best chance of avoiding interference.