Xonar DX and EMI?

[Nullki]

So I made a silly mistake and listened to the builders guides on Bit Tech when picking a sound card. I went with a Xonar DX which I'm sure many of you worthy forumites would rapidly point out is old and crappy, etc. It's certainly not the best fitting card in the world!

The problem I'm having is that I get screeching through my headset/speakers when not doing anything. Occasionally, browsing rapidly through webpages will trigger the screeches in an obvious manner. I can't hear the noises over game sound / music, but it's very annoying to have to take off the headset / switch off the speakers when I'm merely browsing.

I'm thinking this is due to EMI, possibly from either the PSU or graphics card. Is there anything I can do to rectify this? E.g. is there a cheap EMI shield I can buy for the card? Or am I going to have to chuck it (a few days past the months anniversary of purchase - I've been worrying about other issues in the interim!).

GPU: Nvidia GTX 570 Inno3D(OCUK), PCIE x16 slot ~4" above Xonar
PSU: Corsair HX 1000 (original release), ~6" below Xonar
CASE: HAF-X (i.e. PSU at bottom)
MOBO: Asus P8P67 Pro
SND: Asus Xonar DX, bottom PCIE x4 slot. No access to PCIEx1 slots due to GPU and CPU coolers!

If it's the PSU I do have an HX750 available to replace it, but that might not resolve the issue (both PSUs would be considerably underutilised by my system at the moment, and will handle overclocking with ease).

My backup plan is onboard sound, but RealTek have caused me problems in the past.

 

[Uriel]

Do you get the same issues with front and back panel.

I would disagree that the Xonar DX is old and crappy. It's still one of the best soundcards on the market for the money (depending on usage).

Could be a case grounding (or other ground loop) issue - especially if you're using the front panel.

 

[Tealc]

I get no screeching on my DX and they aren't that old, are they?

To be honest I don't think those EMI shields the more expensive cards come with make much difference and are more a gimmick.

You can DIY one I suppose but how would you prevent electrical noise and interference coming from the PCI-E slot, the PSU and every other component not directly shielded by the metal cover.

I wonder if the noise is feeding from your PSU, if so maybe a ferrite core on the floppy power cable would help and some on frontpanel wiring if you are using them.

 

[Marsman]

No, D1/DX is newer than the D2/D2X, which is about 3-4 years old. That's not old. Creative are still peddling their SB Live! in various disguises, and that IS old.

Yep I agree. EMI shields are just fancy selling points. They are not totally worthless, but they are certainly not the solution to stop EMI. I've seen quite a few cases where D2/D2X, Essence and X-Fi Fatality EMI sheild were just useless.

Issues aside, the DX is a decent card. EMI will turn any decent sound card into a completely useless circuit board. It can be hard to pinpoint what is the cause. You could put the same card in a similar machine, and it will have no issues. Theoretically, you could swap a bunch of components and still not find the solution. Motherboard itself is a possibility.

 

[Tealc]

I read on one forum that a front mounted USB device was the cause of interference to their Xonar DX. Just goes to show that even the most inisgnificant thing could be causing an issue.

Do you get any EMI issues with onboard sound?