[ohhgourami]

I spent much of the beginning of the week with my current computer figuring out why I had issues with my audio drivers (generic usb audio) for my USB to SPDIF converter. After fiddling with more things I realized my issues were from my fans. In the BIOS setting for my fans, when I turn it down from "turbo" to "silent" mode, my audio drivers would have no issues. Today when I added another fan to a 3 pin header, the same problem came back. Same issue even happens when I have it directly to my PSU. It even does that start-stop thing during boot up if I pushed my OC too far. I switched to a lower power fan and everything went back to normal. I'm guessing my problems come from so sort of power issue during boot up that causes my USB port to not have enough power resulting in a bad connection leading up driver errors.

Here is the specs for my rig:
i5-2500K OC'ed @ 4.5ghz
Asus P8Z68-V-LX mobo
2x4gb ram 1600mhz
Seasonic X-750 watt PSU
HD 6850
2x SSD
5x 120mm fans

My PSU should have more than enough power so I don't get why this is happening. Please help.

 

[Roseval]

[size=10pt][size=10pt]This is probably not an issue with the drivers (software) or the capacity of the PSU[/size][/size]
[size=10pt]Some PSUs or other components can generate a lot of dirt (spikes, ripples)[/size]
 
[size=10pt]This might result in CRC errors.[/size]
[size=10pt]Sometimes it helps to try another USB port.[/size]
 
[size=10pt]Some trouble shooting guides:[/size]
[size=10pt]http://www.lindemann-audio.de/en/products/usb-audio/troubleshooting/[/size]
[size=10pt]http://www.m-audio.com/index.php?do=support.faq&ID=de0c17eee57afeeba3978a213b6d86ac[/size]
[size=10pt]http://thewelltemperedcomputer.com/HW/USB_Trouble.htm[/size]
 
 

 

[ohhgourami]

I'm sure those CRC errors do contribute, but when my problem comes up the driver refuses to install.  So I can even get audio out in the first place.  I guess I'll turn off Intel Speedstep and other stuff.
 
Got any other ideas?

 

[Roller]

You could force a more aggresive power state management while dismissing SpeedStep. And perhaps an USB isolator could help.

 

[ohhgourami]

I turned off SpeedStep, the high precision event timer, and C1E (idk why that was left on).  Seems to have fixed the problem!
 
Roller, know of any other power management settings I can change?

 

[Roller]

Do you need high clock rates when using the USB to S/PDIF converter?

 

[ohhgourami]

CPU clock rates?  Not sure what you are asking...   the USB to SPDIF is an audio-gd Digital Interface.

 

[Roller]

Well, some people disable dynamic CPU speed (clocks measured in MHz or GHz) and set a low clock rate when the computer is only used for audio playback purposes. Newer computer architectures like Sandy Bridge sometimes display issues with audio due to its hyperthreaded cores. You could try disabling HT in the BIOS.
 
But overall, I have to agree with Roseval. Your specific PSU has an overall good performance in terms of ripple, but tends to have a few spikes that can very well cause issues. Still, I find it odd that it would be enough to cause your specific issues.
 
And out of curiosity, but do you have the same issues if you run your CPU at stock clocks (in your case, 3.3GHz)?

 

[ohhgourami]

Actually, I still had this issue leaving it at stock 3.3ghz.
 
I would prefer not to set a low clock rate as my computer is for all around task from, music to gaming.  Would be too troublesome to have to restart every time I want to switch things.  I will try to disable HT, but I can't seem to find it in the BIOS.  I will have to look again.

 

[Roller]

You don't exactly have a low end motherboard, so the option should be there somewhere.
 
I've always said that high performance (or general computer usage) isn't friendly to audio. There are plenty of audio workstations that as the tech evolved, had core parts replaced by slightly less powerful parts that were more power efficient as well as having tidy PCB trace routing.
 
Have you considered getting an externally powered USB hub? That might help with your issue.

 

[ohhgourami]

Well strangely, the issue came back again while I had to shutdown to check how to turn off HT.  In the process, I found HT isn't supported so I don't need to worry about that.  Yes I do have a externally powered USB hub and when I plugged it in, the driver reinstalled and started working.  I then unplugged it and reinserted it back to a normal usb slot and it still worked, while it didn't initially at startup.

 

[Roller]

Lol, I just realized I thought you had a 2600K and not a 2500K. My bad. Your CPU doesn't support it, but the motherboard sure has the option, but some boards only display additional options when compatible hardware is installed.
 
Ideally you should always use the USB hub in your particular situation, as that's bound to both help with your issue and other power related issues that might occur in the future.

 

[ohhgourami]

hmmm I suppose that is a good solution.  The hub I have is a nice tripp-lite usb 3.0 hub so switching over to 2.0 for my DI would be slightly inconvenient. I could always buy another or a cheaper powered hub solely for my DI.
 
There is also the option of completely ditching USB and use the optical out from my mobo.  I have a feeling it would sound as good.

 

[ohhgourami]

Oh no way am I going to use an optical cable!  Sounds awful compared to USB via DI!
 
I guess I'll just get another powered hub.  I'll give it a few more days.  Hopefully drivers don't screw up again.  At least it has been consistently working these few days, but if it does screw up, I know how to fix it.

 

[Roller]

The current situation of USB 3.0 is that there are still a lot of incompatibilities between USB 2.0 audio devices and USB 3.0 ports, so I do recommend you getting a USB 2.0 hub plugged to a USB 2.0 port.
 
I find it curious that the sound from the optical out sounded that bad. There is still a lot of discussion over what's the best way to carry audio, and while I like the convenience of USB, I know it has some annoyances (more glitch free related than playback quality related).