Buzzing From Computer??

[drowner77]

Hi,

Weve got a cd running from a laptop into a new surround soud system but any time the jack is plugged into the laptop we get a constant buzz. Its reasonably loud and is not the normal amp buzzing quiet sound. There are suggestons that it might be the earth loop.... Any Ideas very welcome!

 

Thanks,

Andy :D

 

Andrew, I use my Toshiba computer for my small shows all of the time and know what you are going through and there are two solutions:

 

1) Buy a Mac.

 

However, failing that

 

2) Buy yourself a Sound blaster external sound card. You are most likely going through the headphone out on your computer and on Laptop PC's these are notoriously noisy and the sound quality through a PA is dreadful. I have used the Soundblaster external soundcard for over 5 years and it works a treat..

 

I think they go for about £50 and it really will solve your problem..

 

A concurrent post has been automatically merged from this point on.

 

Hi,

Weve got a cd running from a laptop into a new surround soud system but any time the jack is plugged into the laptop we get a constant buzz. Its reasonably loud and is not the normal amp buzzing quiet sound. There are suggestons that it might be the earth loop.... Any Ideas very welcome!

 

Thanks,

Andy :D

 

Andrew, I use my Toshiba computer for my small shows all of the time and know what you are going through and there are two solutions:

 

1) Buy a Mac.

 

However, failing that

 

2) Buy yourself a Sound blaster external sound card. You are most likely going through the headphone out on your computer and on Laptop PC's these are notoriously noisy and the sound quality through a PA is dreadful. I have used the Soundblaster external soundcard for over 5 years and it works a treat..

 

I think they go for about £50 and it really will solve your problem..

 

 

here is a link to the one that I currently use..

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Creative-Sound-Bla...l/dp/B0009AHV8U

[smalljoshua]

Or, if you'd read the entire thread, you'd also know that there are solutions 3 and 4.

 

Solution 3 consists of a Ground Loop isolator on the audio line

 

Solution 4 consists of a PSU that doesn't require an earth conductor.

 

Josh

[drowner77]

Or, if you'd read the entire thread, you'd also know that there are solutions 3 and 4.

 

Solution 3 consists of a Ground Loop isolator on the audio line

 

Solution 4 consists of a PSU that doesn't require an earth conductor.

 

Josh

 

Right, and after you have tried solutions 3 and 4 please refer back to solutions 1 and 2. (Solution 2 is the easiest).

[Bobbsy]

Andrew, I use my Toshiba computer for my small shows all of the time and know what you are going through and there are two solutions:

 

1) Buy a Mac.

 

However, failing that

 

2) Buy yourself a Sound blaster external sound card.

 

I'm sorry but I have to say that this is two bits of bad advice.

 

First off, a Mac is absolutely NO guarantee of good quality when you come out of an internal sound card. I've heard exactly the same problems with Apple gear as with any other computer. Nothing in the Mac design makes it immune to earth loops and internal computer noises.

 

Second, you're half right. An external sound card is a good start but NOT a Sound Blaster. SB cards are designed for gamers, NOT for quality audio. There are lots of other ones out there for not much more money (including the EMU range, also from Creative, but a whole different kettle of fish in quality terms) that are much better value for money--and much more professional.

 

Bob

[paulears]

Bob's 100% right here. My Dell laptop (and the ones before it) all have the problem with psu noise. For live use, for background walk in/ walk out music, a DI is ok, but there is no way that I could use it in the studio, or for quality live tracks. The internal sound card is just very poor quality - A necessary thing to travel with is a proper device - I use the Lexicon Omega - which is very clean, has phantom power, digital ins and outs and multiple mic and line level inputs - and is of course noise free!

 

The Mac is best statements really don't mean much anymore - we've now got to the stage that I don't worry about it anymore - for those brought up on PCs, and maybe, like me there are many PCs already in the building, then I don't wish to go Mac - just no time to re-learn. The same thing happens with Mac users. We can now even swap stuff around between Mac and PCs using office - so it genuinely doesn't matter.

 

Last thing - even plastic earth pin two core mains psus have the noise problem - just a problem the manufacturers can't be bothered to fix.

[Andrew C]

It seams that people are confusing the safety earth, and how the laptop/psu handle screw-up the audio/data ground. This Acer laptop is terrible, and will induce audio noise into a digital mixer when using USB for control ONLY; not audio connection.

[Sound Man]

Even with an external soundcard, you still need a Ground Loop Isolator connecting between it's output and the mixer.

 

External ones don't stop earth loop issues.

 

David

[david.elsbury]

Blanket statements like the one above... hmm...

 

Can we all agree on the fact that every situation is slightly different, and that most of the time, a good quality professional external soundcard will fix most of the problems associated with crappy laptops power supplies? If you can- run it off battery. Even better- look at a desktop with a good quality professional soundcard- the power supplies in desktops are often better built...

[Bobbsy]

Can we all agree on the fact that every situation is slightly different, and that most of the time, a good quality professional external soundcard will fix most of the problems associated with crappy laptops power supplies?

 

Wise words indeed. I'm cruel enough to have laughed a number of times at people who assure me the have a guaranteed fix for all laptop problems. Frankly there are so many things that can go wrong, singly or in combination, that you need a large tool kit of fixes to cover every eventuality.

 

And, when portability isn't paramount, the desktop idea is a good one. Hide the tower under the desk somewhere and just have a monitor and keyboard to hand---frankly, besides audio advantages, this can be a better control layout as well.

 

Bob

[drowner77]

Can we all agree on the fact that every situation is slightly different, and that most of the time, a good quality professional external soundcard will fix most of the problems associated with crappy laptops power supplies?

 

Wise words indeed. I'm cruel enough to have laughed a number of times at people who assure me the have a guaranteed fix for all laptop problems. Frankly there are so many things that can go wrong, singly or in combination, that you need a large tool kit of fixes to cover every eventuality.

 

And, when portability isn't paramount, the desktop idea is a good one. Hide the tower under the desk somewhere and just have a monitor and keyboard to hand---frankly, besides audio advantages, this can be a better control layout as well.

 

Bob

 

Gee, I wish I just said External Soundcard and left it at that. Forgive me for daring to put my head up above the parapet.

 

I am a bit of a loss as to why my advice is deemed bad as I have qualified that I am going from my experience. I use a soundblaster card for my Laptop P.C that has handled everything from my backing vocals and tracks into my M7CL and out through my Nexo Alpha system for my theatre show and for my small PS15 system through my Souncraft board for my solo show and the sound quality has been just fine. If there is better then that's dandy, but my experience is with what I have and what I have used.

 

The headphone out on my "Then in 2004" top of the line Toshiba was awful and being a "Mac Guy" who had to use a PC for the applications I was using at the time the Soundblaster card was given to me and worked and I never looked back. I don't doubt that there are better sound cards, but this is what I use.

 

If my assertiveness offended anyone's tender sensibilities (as it seems) or my advice gleaned from my experience is considered "bad" all I can say is that Paulears has heard my product using exactly what I mentioned and as I cannot speak about other soundcards or solutions that require technical acronyms I can only offer what has worked for me in my humble and seemingly unworthy experience.

 

As for the Mac thing I have never come across one that has not worked out of the box straight from the headphone out.. Saying that, I agree with Paul that it is pretty easy now to switch back and forth between the platforms but my Toshiba and unworthy Soundblaster card work perfectly well so this "Mac Guy" has not switched. But to be honest the Mac suggestion was just a bit of jocularity.. Perhaps an emoticon would have helped.. :D

[mervaka]

I think your blind allegiance to macs struck a few nerves, certainly mine. I dont dislike macs as much as some of their users, such as the ones who post "buy a mac" as a silver bullet solution.

[drowner77]

I think your blind allegiance to macs struck a few nerves, certainly mine. I dont dislike macs as much as some of their users, such as the ones who post "buy a mac" as a silver bullet solution.

 

 

Sigh..

 

Now I really wish I went with an emoticon..

 

I suppose my "Shop Humour" or "In Joke" technique needs a bit of work, and further your nerves must have precluded you from seeing that I use a Toshiba Laptop? My allegiance isn't that strong.

[maseaudio]

I use theese handy little boxes daily and they never fail.....not sure on the cost though.

 

http://www.interspaceind.com/products/product.php?id=7

 

or use a DI box and various adaptors.

[johndenim]

This is turning very quickly into a pc vs mac thread again. :)

[jamesperrett]

Can we all agree on the fact that every situation is slightly different, and that most of the time, a good quality professional external soundcard will fix most of the problems associated with crappy laptops power supplies?

 

I'm afraid that, in my personal experience with M-Audio and Focusrite kit, an external soundcard doesn't solve the problem. There are a few soundcards with isolated inputs and outputs that would help but they're fairly rare.

 

Cheers

 

James.