X-Fi weird screeching sound distortion???

[titaniumx3]

Hi,

I've had my X-Fi Xtreme Music (PCI) for almost two years now, with not a single problem. Using an Asus A8N-E Nforce 4-Ultra motherboard with Windows XP SP2.

The other day I turn my PC on, browse about for a bit and then when I go to youtube to watch a video, I hear what can only be described as an extremely distorted, screeching sound playing. You can just about tell that it's the music from the youtube video but it is extremely distorted, with little or no bass, just lots of nasty treble. The sound was also very loud and from my headphones; I was lucky I didn't have the headphones on at the time, otherwise I would probably have gotten permanant ear damage!

I tried playing music from foobar2000 and loading up a video file and the screeching distortion was there; I concluded that it affected all sound sources, so Irebooted the PC and all was fine again. A few days later it happens again, I try various things (like unplugging headphones, using speakers, etc) but the distortion is still there. I then switch the modes in the X-Fi audio console to 'Entertainment mode' and then back to 'Game mode' (I normally leave it at 'Game mode') and magically the screeching distortion is gone.

I've only recently changed my graphics card and I never experienced this with my old gcard, but I just don't see how that would affect the soundcard.

Anyone have any ideas?

 

[Hen_Dawg]

Sounds like (pun:sry) a possible graphics driver/creative driver clash which seems to happen.
Sadly I can't give a solution but if that's the only thing you've changed recently then it could well be causing it.

I gave up on my numerous X-fi problems and put it in my friends PC, with exactly same graphics card but different mobo and CPU and it works flawlessly in there.

I hope someone has some ideas for you here. Did you go from Nvidia to ATI or vice verse?

 

[titaniumx3]

Sounds like (pun:sry) a possible graphics driver/creative driver clash which seems to happen.
Sadly I can't give a solution but if that's the only thing you've changed recently then it could well be causing it.

I gave up on my numerous X-fi problems and put it in my friends PC, with exactly same graphics card but different mobo and CPU and it works flawlessly in there.

I hope someone has some ideas for you here. Did you go from Nvidia to ATI or vice verse?

Nope from ATi to ATi (x1900xt to hd4870).

It's just weird, like the amp inside the card is gone bust and the volume levels have been maxed. I have a feeling it might be audio from website flash players that is triggering it but it happens so seldom that I have no way of testing this.

I've just read up some stuff via google and theres this common problem called the "screech of death" attributed to audigy/x-fi cards, but descriptions of it seem to vary widly. Some say it only happens in games whilst others say it locks up the computer altogether; neither of which is the case with me.

Also, I've been using my new graphics card for almost four weeks now and the problem only started happening this week, hence my reluctance to believe its the graphics card causing the problem.