headphone jack, both buzzing and humming... (sennheiser dj headphones)

hey guys, just asking if thats normal that i have a buzzing, humming on both of my headjacks using my sennheiser dj headphones, especially when using the touchpad.

I also realized that using the touchpad increases it a lot, once i dont use the touchpad anymore its less obvious. when i take my fingers of the touchpad its a lot less, almost not noticeable.

on my ipod these headphones (sennheiser: http://www.sennheiser.com/sennheise...ssional_headphones-headsets_headphones_502103 ) work just fine...

EDIT: Having uninstalled Dells touchpad driver, not using any touchpad drivers but the microsoft standard drivers reducing the buzzing quite a lot. i guess because it uses less ressources/features.

EDIT 2: Running only on battery reduces the buzzing even more with the touchpad.

But that cant be the solution, to uninstall touchpad drivers, not being able to do 2 finger scroll or scroll at all and only running on battery!

 

no one has a solution or discovered this problem?

 

have you tried using an attenuator? When I use my in-ear monitors i HAVE to use one or i get a lot of hum.

 

Using the touchpad causes alot of interrupts - much more than a regular mouse (interrupts are generated to tell the CPU to wake from idle and do some work, in this case handling your input on the touchpad)

It sounds like there's probably a coil somewhere in the audio output circuit picking up some induction current from the CPUs rapid cycling in and out of the C0 C-State (C0 means the CPU is actively processing a workload, the higher C-States are deeper and deeper types of idle) This is not an uncommon problem (the inside of computers are very noisy places, EM wise)

You could try disabling all power management features, if the rapid changing of C states is causing the problem, running the CPU at 100% all the time, would reduce or eliminate it. Of course that would also kick your arse power management wise!

There could also be a grounding differential somewhere, although usually you'd only see that if using speakers that are independently powered, and the grounding level is different between the laptop and the speakers.

One possible solution is to disable the internal amplifier and hook up your headphones through an amplifier such as This DIY one. IIRC if you change the sound output to speakers rather than headphones the internal amp is disabled, but you'd have to test that.

 

Thanks for ur answer, apparently this was in issue in older versions of dell laptops, check:

Re: headjack buzzing/humming using touchpad (xps 1645) - Laptop Audio Forum - Laptop - Dell Community

What do u think? I mean I shouldnt have that problem with a laptop of this kind and price tag...

 

No you shouldn't! But having experience working with small scale electronics involving audio circuits (usually headphone jacks on mobile phones) I know how hard it can be to isolate things properly.

I don't think you'll find a better solution than those you've quoted, if the problem is the same it's a grounding differential between the ground on the headphone jack and the rest of the laptop. Unfortunately dell doesn't seem to have a very high quotient in the QA department for the studio xps 16s (dust under lcd, headphone buzz, edge-to-edge screen scratching from being closed and abrasing the keyboard, etc.) - apparently that QA foible extends to the audio subsystem too.

One solution that doesn't involve bending metal would be to route a wire internally from the headphone ground to the chassis, which should level out the ground level (you'd need to test with a multimeter to make sure you've got the right spot) - not something you should have to do on a laptop like this, for sure.

 

Something like this might also help, if grounding is indeed the problem: PAC 3.5mm Ground Loop Isolator

Also, have you tried both of the headphone jacks? It might be possible that one works fine while the other doesn't.

 

you can try the above GLI, but I always find most laptops have crappy onboard audio processors and if I want a good clear sound I wind up back to using an external DAC ( sound card )

 

well it does it for both jacks and sometimes i get a high pitched noise like a electrical shock lol but thats rarely...

mhh should i try isolate it or call in dell?

 

I doubt anything dell will do short of a motherboard or system replacement would address the issue. And that would only be if it's not a design flaw (which it likely is, I doubt dell put much emphasis on the audio circuitry outside of making sure it functions)

Incidentally you'll generally see this problem on all on-board audio solutions in desktop machines too, there isn't really an incentive for motherboard designers to spend the kind of money needed to ensure quality hi-fi audio reproduction. The demand just isn't there.

 

so i guess u guys dont have this problem or cant test it simply because u dont have high quality headphones?

also, why does uninstalling touchpad drivers, using microsoft standard ones, reduces the noise? does less features in drivers mean less disturbance?

 

well i hope i wont need any big replacements...

I double checked my sennheiser headphones on my bros and moms laptop, my mom has a msi ex 623 laptop. sennheiser headphones work great no buzzing or humming at all, and this machine was damn cheap!

I also connected another headphones to my dell and i couldnt definitely hear the humming, buzzing, especially when using the touchpad. I hope these fixes above work for the 1645 as well...

 

I have Sony MDR-V6 headphones, I don't pick up the buzz in these. However they are not the highest quality headphone (one of the best closed-ear cans under $100, but there are plenty better over $100)

One suggestion I forgot to mention before, make sure in your mixer all audio sources except for the PCM (wave) output are muted. Sometimes line-in/mic will cause the buzz.

The synaptics touchpad drivers may activate a circuit or feature in the touchpad that is otherwise not enabled (for example, multitouch/gesture capability), that increases the noise.

 

Well if u cant hear it and I can even hear a difference when using the touchpad, something is wrong.

I tried muting evereything but didnt work, seriously thinking of opening this baby up and isolate the wires or jacks?
So u were in a quiet, really quiet environment?

 

I'm using Sennheiser HD280pro's, and I don't notice any buzzing on mine. I could very well just be a motherboard or chassis problem with your laptop, though you're not the only one who's written about this same problem on this board.

 

well if u dont have it, i shouldnt have it, since its really annoying, especially when using the touchpad while browsing through ur music collection...

sometimes i even hear a hig pitched beep...

kinda feel sad getting this dell man to my home all the time

 

A test that you can try that usually determines if its the ground problem is to unplug the laptop and run on battery.

If it doesnt happen it was a ground fault problem.

If its the sound card then you need an external card to fix it unless its considered a defect and you can RMA for one that works.

When it comes to external cards you may as well get a nice DAC/Amp combo.

 

well when disconnecting ac and run on battery, its slightly better. but not vanished... so what is that telling me? i mean its really bad when using the touchpad. its less, a little less bad running on battery.

 

hey, i experience the same issue - I have Westone 3 in-ear-monitors, these are professional $400 dollar headphones. I get buzzing and static and it is also tied to when I use my mouse wheel, like I'll hear squeals and whatnot as it turns and stops when the mouse wheel stops. Very odd, I think the audio on the SXPS 16 is just worse off than other laptops, my old E1705 had much better higher powered and clearer sound then this thing does.

 

mouse wheel? u mean a mouse connected via usb? i have no such issues. can you please test the same issue with ur touchpad only?

 

suppose I could later, but point is this system has poor quality audio, very interference prone, nothing much you can do about it.

 

well it woudl be great if u could test it and i would ask my grandpa, electrician to isolate the jacks.... like people did with previews dell models.. ? would be great if there was a tutorial as how to reach the jacks and isolate them.

but like others said, some dont have it, so maybe it is my systems fault?

Maybe I should start another thread with a poll about who has this problem and who dont?

 

You can add a poll to this thread instead of creating a new one. However, I checked again, and I also notice a faint hissing sound in my headphones, but it is very faint, and I can only hear it if there's no other sound playing. This may just be the sign of a cheap sound card, and may not be the same, more significant, problem with humming that you're having. Also, the faint hissing I hear is not affected by using the touchpad, scroll wheel, or an external mouse, it's just constant when no other sound is playing.

 

Here's my test results: volume is at 30% in Windows, Westone 3 IEM's connected directly to headphone jack (middle port), there is the following distortions present when using input devices:

Keyboard: Ticks when pressing all keys on keyboard, hold the key and it makes a ticking sound every time Windows recognizes a new key stroke. O_O
Trackpad: When I even press the trackpad (or trackpad buttons), I get a screeching sound for about a second, same when I use it to scroll up/down.
USB mouse (Logitech G9x): Same, when I use the pointer I can hear a sound, and there's a slightly different one when I use the mouse wheel.
Xbox 360 Controller (USB): Nothing happens when I use it.

Without using any of the input devices, there's a constant buzzing/fuzz/distortion present regardless. Using a mouse or something changes it a bit or amplifies it. Disconnecting all USB devices doesn't help.

 

what drivers are u using? i dont hear much when clicking any keys, but i have a constant buzzing just touching the touchpad... hovering with my fingers increases the buzzing a lot....

 

Using Dell IDT driver version 6.10.0.6289. This happens with all drivers regardless, and this is the third motherboard replacement and second SXPS 1645 overall -- all had this problem. The keyboard ticking sound is a little bit softer than the other distortions, and I have very acute listening ability combined with the Westone 3's, that might account for why you don't notice it all as much.

 

well, for me if i unisntall synaptics touchpad driver, it is much less when i hover with my fingers over the touchpad. having installed the synaptics driver with all its functions its a lot louder very noticable...

i will still report it to dell as u dont seem to have the same issue as i have. i only have problems using the toucpad and its humming/buzzing only when using it.

ofc there is a slight distortion when doing nothing.. i could live with that but not with the buzzing using the touchpad...

are u saying that the westones 3's make it more or lesss obvious?

 

well more probably, the Westone 3 are very high-end in-ear-monitors, they go inside the ear and create a seal blocking about 30dB's of outside noise, so yeah noise and detail are more noticeable. I can tell the difference (BIG TIME) between lossless/CD and 320kbps mp3 with them, for example. Only lossless will do with these things, IMO.

I'm not such a huge fan of the sound quality with the SXPS 1645, there's far too much distortion and less power than other computers/sound solutions.

 

Whether you can hear such noises or not strongly depends on impedance and sensitivity of earphones, if you have try to put so called "flight adapter" in between laptop and earphones, it has a huge impedance and you will see that most if not all of the noise disappear...another way is to try another less sensitive/higher impedance headphones...

Also most of the hum and scratching noise is caused by HDD, as its magnetic field induces noise on the bus...try laptop with SSD and you will see what I'm talking about...

EDIT: touchpad often causes noise as well, sometimes it doesn't, I don't know what's the difference, but I suggest you to use wireless mouse anyway (preferably logitech). I mean you spend how much 1400E on laptop and you can't afford 30E mouse?

 

I have a great mouse, usb sidewinder.. no problems with that. its about using the touchpad when i dont or cant use my mouse.

what do u mean and how do u get this impression that touchpad often causes noise but sometimes doesnt?

 

Well on most laptops I ever had it did cause some noise, sometimes even very loud noise...and on some laptops it didn't. Maybe those were using Alps touchpad, but on the other hand Alps sucks in comparison to Synaptics...