I have an Asus P6T based system. I was using the on-board sound (plugging in Logitech X-230 2.1 analog speakers in the green 'front speakers' 3.5mm analog output, then plugging in my headphones in that). I was quite happy with the sound quality (didn't hear any static noise if volume was turned down to my normal listening level).
Then about a week ago I started having terrible static noise from the left channel, and no normal audio on that left channel. Right channel had more static noise than usual but did have a bit of sound. I tried using the AC'97 in front of my case but that seemed to have no signal.
I decided my on-board sound card has gone bad and bought an internal sound card to replace it (Startech 7.1Ch PCI). This fixed the 'no sound from left channel problem', but I still had a fairly audible static noise (not the really terrible one after my on-board sound went bad, but worse than when it was working well).
I decided the card was low quality and/or it had interference from all the other things happening inside the computer case, and bought a Sweex SC016 external USB sound card.
Static noise when headphones plugged in. The audio from the laptop speakers sound fine but as soon as i plug in my headphones i get a static sound that doesn't go away. I've tried restarting, power without the battery and then without the power cable connected, and muted all sound and tried other headphones and it still continues.
But even with that I have static noise in headphones (though better than with the Startech card). Positioning the USB sound card differently doesn't seem to help. Trying the other analog outputs (e.g., surround) doesn't help.
The static noise in all cases is proportional to the volume.
I have tried different headphones, but the situation is similar though perhaps the flavour of the static noise changes slightly.
So what are my options? What is the cause of the problem, and what hardware do I need to replace?
tl;dr - Two different sound cards both still have static noise in headphones.
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John MJohn M
2 Answers
The question title has been rephrased since I created, but basically I solved my problem.
I ordered a mid-range PCI-E sound card (Asus Xonar DX) and the static noise is gone.
Whether the source of the static with the cheap PCI card and cheap external USB card was poor product quality or something else, I don't know. Perhaps you get what you pay for; the new card was about 3 times more expensive than either of these previous cards.
This is not to be constituted as endorsment of Asus products, the on-board sound card that died and caused all the issues was also by Asus. Probably a quality replacement sound card by another manufacturer would work just as fine.
John MJohn M
I solved a similar problem by buying a optical output converter from ebay. Costs about $10. You can search for 'Digital Optical Toslink SPDIF Converter'. Go for a version with the optical cable and power supply. If your motherboard have a Toslink/SPDIF optical output, this doesn't propagate grounding noise. Some versions have power through USB cable, but it's important to power it independently, and not on the computer's USB, but on the same outlet to avoid ground loops. I also tried putting ferrite loops on the cables, but this alone didn't help. If your motherboard don't have optical sound i'm afraid the only solution is going for the soundcard, which is much more expensive.
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Jun. 19, 2019 / Updated by Bessie Shaw to Windows 10
Static sound in headphones is one of the hardware issues after the Windows 10 upgrade. When you plug in a set of headphones on your Windows 10 computer, the headphones start making loud electric sound or static noises. Then you cannot play your audio files normally.
Generally, the static sound in headphones can be caused by many factors, such as the headphones issues, incorrect audio configuration, faulty audio drivers, etc.. If you extremely detest this and cannot stand such static sound or buzzing noise any more, go on the reading for solutions to fix it.
Solutions for Static Sound in Headphones on Windows 10 PC
There are quite a few different solutions you can use to try and solve the static sound in headphones issue on your own. Some of the methods mentioned below may take you minutes to hours. Just try.
Solution 1. Check the Hardware Related to Static Sound in Headphones
It is important to make sure there are no problems with the headphones issue related hardware, which should be checked just in case you waste time on other useless computer operations. You can check:
1. The headphones. Plug your headphones to other computers that work properly and see if the hissing sound can still be heard. If the static sound annoys you again, you need to buy a new one.
2. The sound card. Check the sound card on your computer. Make sure it is right in the port. Also, clean up the dust around the sound card. Besides, if you have a cheap integrated sound card on your computer, it may produce the static sound that changes with the processor or the drive activity. So you can change or install a dedicated sound card.
3. The sound controlling buttons. Make sure the speaker icon on the task bar is not muted. If it is, switch related controlling buttons, for example, the Fn + Fx (F1/F2/F3…) function keys, to disable the no sound status.
After the checking, if there’s still static sound in your headphones, go on the reading.
Solution 2. Modify Audio Settings
Incorrect Windows 10 playback settings can also result in loud buzzing sound in your headphones or other playback devices. If there’s no problem with the headphones itself, it is worth going to audio or sound settings to make some changes.
Adjust Playback Settings
Step 1. Right click the speaker icon on the Taskbar and select Playback devices to open Sound settings. Double click your headphones device to open the Properties.
Step 2. Choose the Levels tab and then adjust the Microphone slider to 0. Click Apply.
Step 3. Go to Enhancements tab and then check the Disable all sound effects. Click OK twice to exit.
Adjust Recording Settings
Step 1. Right click the speaker icon on the Taskbar and select Recording devices.
Step 2. Double click the Microphone and open the Properties box.
Step 3. Go to Levels tab. Adjust the Microphone Boost slider to 0. Click OK twice to finish all the settings.
Now plug in your headphones and try playing some audio files. You will never hear the static sound in the headphones any more.
See Also:Fix: Microphone Not Working on Windows 10 Creators Update
Solution 3. Use Windows Troubleshooter to Fix the Static Sound Problem
Windows troubleshooter is a built-in tool in Windows 10. It is used to check for audio device issues. You can use the troubleshooter to fix the static sound issue occurring when you plug in the headphones.
Step 1. Use Windows shortcut keysWin + X to launch the Jump List and then select Control Panel.
Step 2. In the view of Large icons or Small icons, select Troubleshooting. Then go to Troubleshoot audio playback under Hardware and Sound.
Step 3. Click Next and Windows 10 will detect audio playback problems automatically. When it finishes, you will see a report in details or solutions for the hissing sound.
Solution 4. Update Audio Drivers
Outdated, missing or incorrectly configured audio drivers are the culprits of issues like no sound, headphones with static sound, microphone not working, Bluetooth speakers sound delay, etc.. Without the sound or audio drivers, Windows can’t keep communication with sound-related hardware. So it is necessary to download proper audio driver updates for your Windows 10 PC.
You can download the drivers manually from Internet as well as use driver download and install utilities like Driver Talent to update audio drivers automatically. Just click the button below to have it directly.
Here are 3 quick steps to fix the audio drivers issue and stop your headphones from making static sound on your Windows 10 computer.
Step 1. Click Scan to make Driver Talent to detect all the problematic audio/sound driver problems.
Step 2. Click Update to download and install the best-match audio drivers. If there are any broken sound drivers, click Repair to fix them.
Step 3. Perform a restart to make the audio driver changes take effect properly. Plug in the headphones to see if it makes no static sound.
Note: It is better to backup drivers before any driver changes in case other driver-related issues occur, like IDT High Definition audio error, Windows 10 graphics error 43, HID-compliant mouse not working, etc..
All of the above are the possible best solutions for how to fix static sound in headphones. If you know any solutions of such Windows 10 sound issue, inform us by comment and share with other users please. For more solutions of Windows 10-related issues, see Windows 10 Issues and Fix section.
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