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cademetz

2 Intern

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1.3K Posts

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October 4th, 2007 13:00

The Official Front Panel Jacks Buzzing Thread

Folks,
 
First, a disclaimer -- I am not a Dell employee. I am doing this for the betterment of the XPS Community. With that out of the way...
 
I've seen far too many threads speaking of buzzing noises when using the headphone / microphone jacks on the front of the XPS 720. As such, I am going to be proactive and try to get everyone to collect our information into one thread which may help Dell track down the issue.
 
There appears to be two categories of buzzing. Please try to identify which one you are experiencing.
Category 1: The buzzing is related to the LEDs
Some people have an issue that certain combinations of LED colors and brightness causes a buzzing noise. Generally, this buzzing is not related to mouse scrolling, etc. This buzzing, though faint, is evident in the BIOS which clearly points to a hardware problem To determine if you suffer from this problem do the following:
1. Ensure the  Microphone Boost is turned on
2. Plug in a microphone into the front panel
3. Turn your volume above normal
4. Using Quickset or nTune, adjust the LED colors and/or the brightness
5. If the pitch/tone and/or volume of the buzz fluctuates with the changes you call into at least category 1.
Category 2: Everyone else
It seems many people have complained about buzzing caused by a variety of things, though mouse scrolling is a common theme. Since the LED is a single item that has caused buzzing for some, at this time it has been set as its own category. If new trends emerge, I may create additional categories.
 
So, here's what I am asking. If you are experiencing a buzzing noise when you use the front panel headphone / microphone jack on your XPS 720 (or XPS 700/710 with the upgraded motherboard) please post in this thread. Please include the following:
 
- System Model (XPS 720 [Red / Black], 720 H2C, 700/710 w/ Upgrade)
- BIOS Version
- Operating System (XP MCE, Vista, etc)
- Sound Card (X-fi (D), On-board, etc)
- Any unsuccessful or successful fixes you have found
- System ship-date
- Mouse Make/Model & Connection type (USB Wired, PS/2, Wireless[Bluetooth / Other])
- Headphone Make/Model
 
To mirror DCF suggestions, DO NOT POST YOUR SERVICE TAG. If Dell wishes to collect service tags, a moderator will handle that through PM. I would respectfully ask that this thread NOT BE USED FOR DELL BASHING. Feel free to voice your frustrations, but do so in a constructive way.
 
-Cade
Relevant Threads:


Message Edited by cademetz on 10-04-2007 11:39 AM

cademetz

2 Intern

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1.3K Posts

October 4th, 2007 13:00

Madparade7 said his service technician diagnosed the problem as a faulty Intel ICH controller on the M/B. He is being shipped a new board to see if that corrects the problem.
I am not an expert, but I was unaware that the XPS 7xx series family used any Intel controllers on the motherboard chipsets. I was pretty sure they were all nVidia chips; both northbridge and southbridge. Someone correct me if I am wrong.

cademetz

2 Intern

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1.3K Posts

October 4th, 2007 13:00

I'll be the first to go:
 
I fall underneath category 1. I have not yet noticed buzzing occuring when scrolling with a mouse, etc.
 
System Details:
- XPS 720 Red
- A03
- XP MCE
- X-fi (D)
- No real attempted fixes to date
- June 27th, 2007
- Logitech MX Revolution -- Wireless, 2.4GHz
- Logitech / Model?
 


Message Edited by cademetz on 10-04-2007 10:26 AM

LupercalH

99 Posts

October 4th, 2007 13:00

I am under Category 2

When headphones are connected to the 720’s front I/O panel, there is a noticeable electronic 'buzz' whenever I scroll a webpage/folder/document with the mouse (connected via USB). When the connecting cable is removed and the headphones plug directly into the card (or into an external jack i.e. speakers), there is no 'buzz' noise.

- System Model XPS 700 Formula Red w/ Upgrade

- BIOS: A03

- Operating System: XP MCE

- Sound Card: X-Fi (D)

- Any unsuccessful or successful fixes you have found
*disabling onboard audio,
*moving the sound card to different PCI slots,
*muting all audio input lines,
*using different mice/headphones,
*using different USB slots,
*turning off LED lights,
*replacing the entire front I/O panel (and all related cables)

- System Ship Date: December 2006

- Mouse Make/Model & Connection type : Logitech G5, USB Wired

- 1/8" Sony headphones

On this thread,

http://www.dellcommunity.com/supportforums/board/message?board.id=Tech_Talk_XPS&thread.id=12114&page=3

Madparade7 said his service technician diagnosed the problem as a faulty Intel ICH controller on the M/B. He is being shipped a new board to see if that corrects the problem.

Message Edited by LupercalH on 10-04-2007 09:34 AM

DELL-Chris M

Community Manager

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56.9K Posts

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232.1K Points

October 4th, 2007 14:00

All,

Everyone should be adding the service tag number into your private profile.

evilping

217 Posts

October 4th, 2007 15:00

Category 2
 
710 w/ Upgrade
A03
Vista Ultimate 32bit
X-Fi Music
No fixes I'm aware of
x
Logitech MX Wireless
Sony Headphones (but other headphones have the same issue)
 
- System Model (XPS 720 [Red / Black], 720 H2C, 700/710 w/ Upgrade)
- BIOS Version
- Operating System (XP MCE, Vista, etc)
- Sound Card (X-fi (D), On-board, etc)
- Any unsuccessful or successful fixes you have found
- System ship-date
- Mouse Make/Model & Connection type (USB Wired, PS/2, Wireless[Bluetooth / Other])
- Headphone Make/Model

RRF985

563 Posts

October 4th, 2007 21:00

Category 1 for me. 
 
I get popping out of the speakers whenever the LEDs change.  So if I use the WMP plug-in, I get heavy popping, and if I just change the colors it makes the speakers pop also.

Madparade7

52 Posts

October 4th, 2007 21:00

Catergory 1and 2
I just got the new mb, so I'll try it out. I have plugged into the card directly in the back, and it works great, the problem is that the front should work. We paid for a machine that works properly, and thats what we should have. A Dell tech told me on one of my first calls " why dont you just use the back then?" that really ticked me off and this guy got an earful. I wonder how many people have had this problem. The intel ICH controller issue was found when we tried to run diagnostics on my machine, and we could not run the tests from bios , or from disc. The error message was " cannot complete diagnostics no intel ICH controller was found" and the machine re-booted. The tech said this was a mobo problem, and perhaps replacing it would help. My buzzing is worst when the video card is under stress.. when I play any game or watch a video, any scrolling or panning makes the buzz change pitch, but is faintly there all the time. Anyways, it will be a couple days before I can replace the board, so I'll keep checking back until then.
 
UPDATE--
I tried messing around with the led's, when I turned off the front lights , the buzzing went away when the machine was idle , but was still there when gaming or watching a video.... more baffling stuff..



Message Edited by Madparade7 on 10-04-2007 05:02 PM

Message Edited by Madparade7 on 10-04-2007 05:04 PM

Message Edited by Madparade7 on 10-04-2007 05:12 PM

odenwalder

1.2K Posts

October 4th, 2007 22:00

I don't appear to fall into either category and have no problems. I have the cable to the sound card routed from the front connector to the outside of the case just inside the door and on the outside of the cooler support bracket and then to the XFI.
 
I am just wondering if the cable being routed too close to some electrically noisy component is part of the reason that this is being experienced by some of the folks. Another thought might be to try and determine which device is causing the electrical interference if indeed the cabling is the culprit. Unfortunately I can't think of any way to determine if it is the cable or something else.
 
Ideas ???

MoneyGuyBK

2 Intern

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2.3K Posts

October 4th, 2007 23:00

CadeMetz; great thread you started here...
 
At first I thought you started this thread for the 700 upgraders....
but it appears that a few 720 buyers are chiming in as well.
 
* So, I must say that Dell did a great job with my Beast... I have no issues with my sound
   nor any buzzing of any kinds using the front or rear panel.  Lucky me. Kudos to Dell :smileyhappy:
 
I do wish I had less heat and noise though, but this thing hums along just fine, and I am certain that Folding@Home running 24/7 has a lot to do with the heat.
 
Peace
 
 

LupercalH

99 Posts

October 5th, 2007 00:00

Sorry, the only effect I had with the cable is removing it.  My tech and I have tried different ways of routing it around the box with no success.

cademetz

2 Intern

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1.3K Posts

October 7th, 2007 18:00

Folks,
 
I need to revise what category I am in. I put on some headphones with mic (using the front jacks) and cranked the volume WAY up. Sure enough, I can hear static noises that coorespond to mouse scrolls. There is also a lot of general static even when not scrolling the wheel; but again, very obvious static that cooresponds to the mouse.
 
I found, though, that turngin OFF the microphone 20db gain, or unplugging the microphone got rid of the general static in my situation but DID NOT affect the static from scrolling the mouse.
 
Curious, those that have reported static when scrolling, how loud is the noise?


Message Edited by cademetz on 10-07-2007 03:51 PM

LupercalH

99 Posts

October 7th, 2007 20:00

In my situation, its not LOUD, but noticeable.  Its barely audible through speakers, but its there when the front panel is connected to the card.  Its clearly audible with headphones.  I've found that if no cable is present (i.e. unplugged from panel and card), there is no such noise.

PaulTech

49 Posts

October 8th, 2007 14:00

I can't really use the front sound ports either (XPS720 air, QX6800, 2x8800GTX,X-Fi, 4GB, 1TB drive). They buzz like crazy.

If I understand correctly, the front I/O uses the motherboard sound controller, whereas the rear uses the X-Fi.

From what I understand from the Linux community with people who install on the XPS ... there are no drivers for the X-fi in Linux, and the buzz from the on board card is unbearable.

The solution? Take out the X-fi card (since there is no driver anyway) and use the on board sound.

The problem goes away.

It appears that the existence of the X-Fi screws mercilessly with the motherboard sound.

Those who have had the problem notice that it completely goes away with the X-Fi is removed from the machine. At least from the community posts I have read.

Take that for what it's worth ...

cademetz

2 Intern

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1.3K Posts

October 8th, 2007 15:00

PaulTech wrote:
If I understand correctly, the front I/O uses the motherboard sound controller, whereas the rear uses the X-Fi.
How sure are you about this? As I understand it, the front panel jacks are connected to the X-fi card via the audio cable. Also, I can still use the Creative CMSS-3D when using headphones plugged into the front jacks which would seem to imply the X-fi card is driving those jacks.

Madparade7

52 Posts

October 8th, 2007 16:00

Ok. so I changed out the motherboard, no change. "The Buzz" is still there. I wonder why I didnt have any trouble with this on my 700 board. I'll try tech support again this afternoon.


Message Edited by Madparade7 on 10-08-2007 12:02 PM

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