On 2023-07-07 23:26, Chris Bennett wrote:
On Fri, Jul 07, 2023 at 06:23:26PM -0400, Ricky Cintron wrote:
I recently resolved an audio issue where I could hear a constant,
light
static noise in my earphones. It wasn't loud or distracting, but it
was
always there. The solution was to remove 'mix' as a source for mix2
and
mix3.
I wouldn't call this resolved. This is just a useful step in
troubleshooting. You now have more information towards a resolution.
That's a good thing, but not enough.
"My toaster shocks me every time I touch the metal case. I resolved it
by
not touching the metal part of the toaster."
However, once I got rid of that static, I noticed some additional
noise
that was apparently hidden behind the original static. Compared to the
first issue, this noise is quieter and not constant.
Don't assume that there are actually two issues here. It may all have
one cause or be two (or more) different problems.
Anyway, it
manifests itself in the following ways:
1) Very light static noise that never increases, but I've noticed that
when I load a web page (YouTube, for example), the noise is silenced
until the page finishes loading. This also sometimes happens when I
move the mouse cursor around the web browser window, but very briefly.
It's easier to notice when loading a page since it lasts longer.
2) Moving the mouse generates a barely audible buzzing sound, but this
either doesn't occur or is barely noticeable when moving the cursor on
a web browser window.
To troubleshoot, I inspected all the cables in the back of the
computer (power, DP, ethernet, USB keyboard, USB mouse,
speakers/line),
and unplugged them (except the power cable) one at a time. I didn't
hear a difference, good or bad. I also turned some mixerctl knobs with
no noticeable effects.
Did you troubleshoot your earphones? It is very reasonable that they
could now have bad wires or other problems. Do you still hear these
noises with other earphones or speakers?
Yes, when I first noticed the noise, I tested the earphones with a
MacBook Pro, and there weren't any audible sounds at all (silent as
far as my ears could measure). Before installing OpenBSD on this
computer, it was running Windows 11 for about 8 months, and I never
noticed any noises, but I can't guarantee they weren't there either.
I'm going to do some additional testing soon, and one thing I want to
try is to load up a Linux live environment with working audio. As far
as speakers go, I can't hear the noise through them (it's too faint
and not affected by volume level).
Does anyone have any ideas? This isn't a big deal since I can't notice
it while listening to audio, and it's pretty easy to tune out even
without audio, but I'd still like to remove it if possible. I'm
considering buying a USB audio interface, so if that even works, that
could be a solution.
I advise finding out what the problem is before buying anything new.
You
might find the same problem getting passed through another audio
device.
I suspect that you will need to fix a hardware problem.
Don't assume that audio noise is in software.
You are surrounded by 50/60Hz noise caused by the power in your
house/office/workshop.
I agree. I've been looking at audio interfaces for a while, and wouldn't
buy one simply to avoid noise.
Electrolytic capacitors can go bad (Even brand new capacitors can be
defective). Look up bad motherboard capacitors and you can find some
pretty good pictures and information. You can find some good YouTube
videos on it too.
I would also suspect grounding problems as a possibility.
Which can mean bad connections with cables even if they look good.
You can be having a power supply problem too.
Check for loose motherboard screws.
Are you using the computer with the cover off?
Do you get these noises with the computer on, but then turning off the
monitor and moving the mouse around?
Nope, the cover's on. I didn't turn the monitor off, but I did
disconnect
the display port cable, and the noises were still present.
Is your electrical wiring done properly? Do you have any other
equipment
hooked up that might be causing ground loops? Excellent videos on
YouTube about ground loops and audio problems. Do you have any OLD
radio
or TV equipment that could be latching onto the computer noise and
amplifying it?
Also, if you can, go unplug (not turn off) things around that could be
defective. For example, I have to throw away 3-4 USB chargers every
year. Nowadays, hardly anything is actually turned off anymore.
I used to hear noises like these too, but that was a long time ago...
I could hear them in my memory while reading your email.
Thanks for the ideas. I've compiled a list of additional tests I want to
perform (some will have to wait though).
Good luck,
Chris Bennett
