Xonar Essense stx Random LOUD high pitched Ringing Noise?

[justtesting]

  I have a similar problem with my external USB DAC (Aune X1S) and Creative Audigy 4, so this problem is not limited to Asus' cards and it's rather Windows 10's fault. It's not as bad as with Xonar D1 I had before (there's just sudden silence or short weird noise, which could also be loud but I use an additional volume slider so can't really tell if it was extremely loud) and only happened once or twice (also occured during watching YouTube video).
 

 
Well, I've never had a banshee scream in these 8 months after replacing the DX (that was causing it very often) with a Sounblaster Z OEM in the same system last December.
 
On another computer where I'm reticent to place that DX, I'm currently using an old Audigy 2 (pretty similar to that 4 driver-wise) with latest Audigy Rx drivers for Windows 10 th2. You just need to decompress the SBA5_PCDRV_L11_3_01_0046.exe setup, and install them manually on your Audigy 4 via Device Manager. At least, nothing similar has happened.

 

[MajesticTwelve]

  On another computer where I'm reticent to place that DX, I'm currently using an old Audigy 2 (pretty similar to that 4 driver-wise) with latest Audigy Rx drivers for Windows 10 th2. You just need to decompress the SBA5_PCDRV_L11_3_01_0046.exe setup, and install them manually on your Audigy 4 via Device Manager. At least, nothing similar has happened.

 
I've already installed these drivers because they are also officially released for the Audigy 4 I don't remember if these problem occured before or after that installation.

 

[justtesting]

OT: Now that you mention it, there's also that SBA4_SII_PCDRV_L02_3_01_0046.exe for the Audigy 4 II/Pro with updated drivers I forgot, which I presume you're using. How can you access it via the main site instead of a direct google? If I go to this link, the Audigy 4's only have W7 drivers (like this). But if I google for that exe, then I get this page with a W10 driver for the Audigy Pro. Thanks!
 
Edit: Nvm, it's via the W10 Software Availability Chart direct links. Doh!
 
Edit2: Btw I mentioned that set of drivers for Audigy, because with the previous W10 Rx release drivers I've had BSODS with looped audio (almost banshee like too!) caused by the Audigy 2. It was possible to reproduce them if I had music or a video open, and then switched to another Windows User account without logging out while it was playing sound.

 

[MajesticTwelve]

  OT: Now that you mention it, there's also that SBA4_SII_PCDRV_L02_3_01_0046.exe for the Audigy 4 II/Pro with updated drivers I forgot, which I presume you're using. How can you access it via the main site instead of a direct google? If I go to this link, the Audigy 4's only have W7 drivers (like this). But if I google for that exe, then I get this page with a W10 driver for the Audigy Pro. Thanks!
 
Edit: Nvm, it's via the W10 Software Availability Chart direct links. Doh!

I chose Audigy 4 (I have a normal version, not Pro) and the drivers are there. Audigy 4 Pro uses a better DAC but there are no new drivers for this model because the new Audigy Rx and Audigy 4 II uses the same DSP (E-MU CA10300) as my old Audigy 4 and it's the reason they still release the drivers for the 12 years old Audigy 4 Audigy 4 Pro/Audigy 2 ZS on the other hand were better cards but the last drivers are from 2010 and they are no longer supported. If you look at the chart you mentioned there are no Win10 drivers for Audigy 4 Pro/Audigy 2 ZS.

 

[Aray]

Probably a long shot considering people who don't have this problem wouldn't be viewing this thread, but does anyone have this soundcard + windows 10 without the deafening screech issue?
 
I also wonder if those of us who have the issue have similar PC parts...

 

[kittinzaa]

Right now I'm so afraid to use headphone what I've treid is its happen on Firefox,Chrome or even a video player my suspect is it might be the windows problem becuase I'm never change soundcard driver for a while and never got this problem before until some windows update.

 

[Sanctuary]

  Probably a long shot considering people who don't have this problem wouldn't be viewing this thread, but does anyone have this soundcard + windows 10 without the deafening screech issue?
 
I also wonder if those of us who have the issue have similar PC parts...

It isn't just windows 10.  This started with Windows 8.  I have two of these cards in two different systems, and it never happened once in the Windows 7 machine, and it happened a few times a month in the Windows 8 machine.  It's also not just browser based either, as I've had it do that **** multiple times just watching a video through MPC-HC whenver it would switch to the next file to play after the previous ended.

Now, both systems are Windows 10, and both systems have the problem.  It started with Windows 8, and whatever was the problem there, carried over to Windows 10.  It has never happened once while listening to music on any OS or playing games.  Always and exclusively a video playback problem.
 
It's extremely odd too that this issue does not get many complaints on the Unified driver forum either.

 

[racofer]

Ordered a Sound Blaster Z a few days ago. I've had enough of Asus sound cards. The worst part is that I can't even sell my Xonar because that would be downright irresponsible on my part to pass along something that can damage your hearing.
 
I honestly don't care if it started with 7, 8 or 10 or whatever. This issue is being reported on Asus forums for years (http://vip.asus.com/forum/view.aspx?SLanguage=en-us&id=20090222084608127&board_id=21&model=Xonar%20Essence%20STX&page=1&count=49), from as far back as early 2009, way before Windows 8 release, and nothing has been done to address it. Why don't other cards have it if it's Windows fault? Why, apparently, it is restrict to AV100 chips? The issue points to something regarding Asus only, and I honestly cannot blame Microsoft at all for changing something on their end that merely exposed an issue on Asus cards. If Windows audio stack was bugged, then surely we would've heard of this issue affecting many more cards from every maker.
 
Again, if anyone finds this thread in the future after having the worst audio experience of their lives, by having their headphones nearly blowing their ears off, I just say this: keep away from Asus sound cards.

 

[bcschmerker4]

For @racofer and @kittinzaa:  The problem is an incompatibility of the C-Media® CMI-8788 with the Vista audio stack; even ASUS® engineers have been hard-pressed to replicate the 6 kHz scream that I encountered on rare occasions in Win 7, and the Microsoft hotfix didn't address the issue for everybody.  I transferred my XONAR® STX to a LinUX box prior to dist-upgrading the ASUS® CM1630-06 from 7.0.8001 to 10.0.10586 and have zero problems with ALSA snd-virtuoso in Ubuntu® 16.04.1-LTS (LinUX Kernel Family 4.4).  As @MajesticTwelve pointed out in an earlier Post:
 
Quote:

  I have a similar problem with my external USB DAC (Aune X1S) and Creative Audigy 4, so this problem is not limited to Asus' cards and it's rather Windows 10's fault. It's not as bad as with Xonar D1 I had before (there's just sudden silence or short weird noise, which could also be loud but I use an additional volume slider so can't really tell if it was extremely loud) and only happened once or twice (also occured during watching YouTube video).

So far I haven't run into a problem with the Creative Laboratories® SB1550 under either Build 1511 10.0.10586 or Build 1607 10.0.14393, whereas - ironically - I had some issues with ALSA snd-emu10k1, which had been designed for the CA10K1, CA10K2, CA0100, and CA0102 (the since-failed SB0350 in the LinUX box had the CA0102) and hadn't been updated for the CA10200 and CA10300 to my knowledge, under 16.04.1-LTS.

 

[Aray]

i think we should post our computer specs...because i had windows 7 and 8 + the xonar STX and never had the problem. i got a new rig and upgraded to windows 10 shortly after and had this problem. it could very well be that my old rig wouldn't have done this even on windows 10.

 

[TetraSky]

  i think we should post our computer specs...because i had windows 7 and 8 + the xonar STX and never had the problem. i got a new rig and upgraded to windows 10 shortly after and had this problem. it could very well be that my old rig wouldn't have done this even on windows 10.

I actually encountered this issue at least once in Windows 7, so it's not new to Windows 10. I just feel that it didn't happen as often with Windows 7 though...
 
PC specs :

CPU : Intel Core i7 875k @3.4GHz Quad cores, up to 3.7GHz turbo boost single core.
Motherboard : Asus P7P55D-e LX
RAM : Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GBx2 DDR3-1600
GPU : Gigabyte Radeon HD7970 GHz 3GB
PSU : Corsair TX850w
Soundcard : Asus Xonar STX
Operating System : Windows 10

 

[Aray]

  I actually encountered this issue at least once in Windows 7, so it's not new to Windows 10. I just feel that it didn't happen as often with Windows 7 though...
 
PC specs :

CPU : Intel Core i7 875k @3.4GHz Quad cores, up to 3.7GHz turbo boost single core.
Motherboard : Asus P7P55D-e LX
RAM : Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GBx2 DDR3-1600
GPU : Gigabyte Radeon HD7970 GHz 3GB
PSU : Corsair TX850w
Soundcard : Asus Xonar STX
Operating System : Windows 10

If you encountered it in Windows 7 then I'm almost 100% sure it's some kind of hardware related issue, be it chipset, some bios setting, or whatever in combination with the later Windows OSes. In the years I've owned this soundcard it never happened to me on Windows 7 - 8.1 on my previous rig (q9450 @3.4ghz, GA-X48-DQ6). It does it on this new rig, though, and I initially thought it was because of Windows 10 since I upgraded to W10 about a month after I got my newer parts.

 

[bcschmerker4]

  i think we should post our computer specs...because i had windows 7 and 8 + the xonar STX and never had the problem. i got a new rig and upgraded to windows 10 shortly after and had this problem. it could very well be that my old rig wouldn't have done this even on windows 10.

Except for the Antec® TruePower® New™ 750 Blue™ PSU and more recently the Creative Laboratories® SB1550 audio card, I had an all-ASUS® rig.  The CM1630-06 Essentio Series™ mini-tower is based on a version of the M4A78LT-M:
 
2.90 GHz Advanced Micro Devices® Athlon II® X2 220 (Socket AM3)
AMD® RS760G/SB700 chipset with integrated ATi® Radeon® HD™ GPU
8 GiB DDR3-1333 main memory
Realtek® RTL8168D 10/100/1000Base-T4 network host adapter
 
The XONAR® STX used a C-Media® CMi-8788 DSP through a PCIe-PCI bridge, while the Creative SB1550 uses the Creative Technology CA10300-IAT DSP through an ASMedia® PCIe-PCI bridge.

 

[jeph0309]

I created an account just for this thread. Its been happening for about two years now and it just happened a few moments ago. I'm really about to throw this thing to the garbage, it is really, I mean really dangerous!! My ears hurt right now, and I discourage anyone to continue using this product. Sometimes it happens everyday, and after a few months, it happens every 2 months or so.. 
 
Running Windows 10,
ASUS Maximus VI Hero,
i5-4670k @4.0Ghz,
8.0GB RAM,
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti

 

[Sanctuary]

  If you encountered it in Windows 7 then I'm almost 100% sure it's some kind of hardware related issue, be it chipset, some bios setting, or whatever in combination with the later Windows OSes. In the years I've owned this soundcard it never happened to me on Windows 7 - 8.1 on my previous rig (q9450 @3.4ghz, GA-X48-DQ6). It does it on this new rig, though, and I initially thought it was because of Windows 10 since I upgraded to W10 about a month after I got my newer parts.

That doesn't really match my experience.  Never had it happen once on my Windows 7 PC across three and a half years, but it happened constantly on Windows 8.1.  Now that both of my PCs are Windows 10, it happens on both.  If it's in any way hardware related, then it just seems more like an issue of each iteration of the OS being less compatible with certain hardware then.  Windows 10 is just Windows 8.1 apology edition anyway.