[gevorg]

If anyone is having hardware problems with USB audio such as random pops/clicks, I suggest to try a dedicated USB PCI add-on card for your USB audio device. Make sure that there are no IRQ conflicts/sharing on that PCI slot. It seems the USB cards with NEC based chipsets are more stable/faster than Via chipsets. Either way, they're all pretty cheap to try (under $20).

Solved the pops/clicks in my system (with EMU 0404 USB) since I have a bunch of other USB devices: mouse, keyboard, scanner, hard drives, etc; which are now using the motherboard's USB ports.

Feel free to share your finding/results.

 

[obobskivich]

I would not at all be surprised if a component flying the VIA flag underperformed or had other "issues"

any hints on finding cards with specific NEC chipsets? (such as: which card did you buy?)

 

[gevorg]

Here it is:

Newegg.com - Koutech PCI to USB2.0 Card Model IO-PU520 - Add-On Cards

 

[uraflit]

nice. thanks for the heads up!

 

[Quaddy]

yep, you can do the same in a laptop with an add in PCMCIA USB card to bypass the onboard shared USB bus for your dac output. same principle

 

[Fidel]

I've heard clicks and pops from my Dac1 in the past and I realized it was my soundcard causing the problem. Wasn't really sure why.

 

[obobskivich]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fidel /img/forum/go_quote.gif I've heard clicks and pops from my Dac1 in the past and I realized it was my soundcard causing the problem. Wasn't really sure why.

was the DAC1 connected through the soundcard?

 

[Kibble Fat]

Did my thread from a few days ago (here) prompt this thread? I was asking about snaps every 5-10 mins. After unplugging my fridge from the power strip, its more like a few times per day

I guess this is a good solution too. Are there external options for laptops you would suggest?

Eric

EDIT: ...or am I missing something?

 

[Quaddy]

hi eric, see my post a few posts above regarding laptop, is this what you mean?

 

[obobskivich]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kibble Fat /img/forum/go_quote.gif Did my thread from a few days ago (here) prompt this thread? I was asking about snaps every 5-10 mins. After unplugging my fridge from the power strip, its more like a few times per day I guess this is a good solution too. Are there external options for laptops you would suggest? Eric EDIT: ...or am I missing something?

did you have a minifridge and a computer on the same power strip?

 

[Kibble Fat]

Quote:

Originally Posted by obobskivich /img/forum/go_quote.gif did you have a minifridge and a computer on the same power strip?

yes.

 

[obobskivich]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kibble Fat /img/forum/go_quote.gif yes.

well thats your problem, haha

the fridge puts a ton of noise out with its compressor and whatnot during charge/decycle

 

[t0dy]

Would adding a PCI USB card help me on my quest of bypassing KMixer?

 

[gevorg]

Quote:

Originally Posted by t0dy /img/forum/go_quote.gif Would adding a PCI USB card help me on my quest of bypassing KMixer?

No, PCI USB card will only help in separating the USB audio stream away from other USB devices to ensure no conflicts with I/O, bandwidth, etc. It pretty much solves most hardware related issues.

As for KMixer, there are various ways to bypass it, for example, by using ASIO. Just search the forum, there are plenty of threads about KMixer, ASIO, etc.

 

[roosta]

Ive narrowed my problems down to 2 possibilities. one are my USBs are playing gremlins on me, the other is that its my NVIDIA display driver. i found a thread earlier which seems to show a link between nvidia drivers and pops. this also explains why it occurs more when i scroll through documents/web pages quickly, since it would have to render the page as i do that. it also explains why this problem is more common on laptops (shared memory, low 2D clock speeds to reduce temps/power consumption)

ive just updated every driver on my laptop which has increased my average latency, but decreased the occurence of big pop-causing spikes. i updated HDD, BIOS, chipset, touch buttons, mouse, WIFI, modem, ethernet, card reader, internal soundcard, and a couple of software bits.

i might ask over at notebook review about overclocking the 2D clock speeds. a lot of people there have done 3D speeds for gaming, but ive not heard of anyone playing with 2D speeds. if it works, il report back. it should be safe since in 2D mode it shouldnt generate much heat anyway and shouldnt be under much strain.

wish me luck!