- Joined
- May 25, 2020
- Messages
- 37
- Motherboard
- GIGABYTE Z390 DESIGNARE
- CPU
- i9-9900K
- Graphics
- RX 580
Hi,
I recently set up my new Hackintosh essentially based on the brilliant Gigabyte Designare Z390 (Thunderbolt 3) + i7-9700K + AMD RX 580 by @CaseySJ and it works like a charm. Having said that, I'm having a weird and annoying issue with my USB audio interface sending a lot of noise to the speakers. The noise kicks as the OS is booting up and lasts the entire time the system is on. It's a crackling buzz, similar to a fax machine or an old printer. The noise seems to react to the system working, so with certain processes, I get more noise activity. Adjusting the system audio output volume doesn't change the amount of noise. If you crank up the knob on the speakers themselves, you can hear the noise get much louder. So I cranked it up and brought my phone near the speaker so you could really hear the noise I'm getting.
This is overall low in level, but definitely audible and continuous. Needless to say, this is definitely not ideal given that I work in pro audio.
I'm certain this isn't a ground loop issue as I am running the entire computer and all studio gear through a Furman PST-8. I'm also using balanced audio cables throughout. I ran a TON of troubleshooting. Unplugging devices, switching power cables, switching audio cables. And it never gets better. Sometimes it actually gets worse. For example, when I unplug the power to any of the three screens, the noise gets way worse. Which is bizarre, to say the least. Why would the noise coming through the speakers get worse when I unplug a device? I’d think it would get better due to fewer devices being powered that could cause interference.
Finally, I ran a test by connecting the audio interface to my MacBook Pro instead, and lo and behold, there was no noise at all. So the problem definitely has to do with the Hackintosh.
Having dug through the forums here it seems that a LOT of people have reported this issue, but few threads seem to have any concrete solutions. Some mentioned disabling Serial ports, but that's doesn't apply to the Z390. And all other attempts, like disabling X.M.P. Profile 1, or disabling the XHCI Hand-Off, have led to no change.
All reports seem to point to some issue with the USB ports and Audio Interfaces. Can you please help?
I've attached my EFI folder in hopes that it ends up shining light on what may be wrong in my configuration.
Here’s my setup:
- Intel Core i9-9900K 3.6 GHz Eight-Core LGA 1151 Processor.
- Motherboard: Z390 Designare.
- Case: Fractal Design Define R6 USB-C.
- Power Supply: EVGA 750 G3.
- Graphics Card: Radeon RX580.
- Drives: 2x Samsung 860 EVO.
- RAM: HyperX Predator 4x16GB 3600MHz DDR4.
- Cooler: NH-D15S.
- Fenvi FV-T919 wireless network adapter.
- 3x 27” 2k LED Acer monitors.
- Audio Interface: Apogee Duet for Mac/iOS.
- Speakers: Yamaha HS50M with HS10W Subwoofer.
- MacOS 10.14.6.
- Clover 5122.
Any ideas as to what this may be and how to fix it? Let me know what I should provide to help solve this faster.
Thanks a lot!
I recently set up my new Hackintosh essentially based on the brilliant Gigabyte Designare Z390 (Thunderbolt 3) + i7-9700K + AMD RX 580 by @CaseySJ and it works like a charm. Having said that, I'm having a weird and annoying issue with my USB audio interface sending a lot of noise to the speakers. The noise kicks as the OS is booting up and lasts the entire time the system is on. It's a crackling buzz, similar to a fax machine or an old printer. The noise seems to react to the system working, so with certain processes, I get more noise activity. Adjusting the system audio output volume doesn't change the amount of noise. If you crank up the knob on the speakers themselves, you can hear the noise get much louder. So I cranked it up and brought my phone near the speaker so you could really hear the noise I'm getting.
This is overall low in level, but definitely audible and continuous. Needless to say, this is definitely not ideal given that I work in pro audio.
I'm certain this isn't a ground loop issue as I am running the entire computer and all studio gear through a Furman PST-8. I'm also using balanced audio cables throughout. I ran a TON of troubleshooting. Unplugging devices, switching power cables, switching audio cables. And it never gets better. Sometimes it actually gets worse. For example, when I unplug the power to any of the three screens, the noise gets way worse. Which is bizarre, to say the least. Why would the noise coming through the speakers get worse when I unplug a device? I’d think it would get better due to fewer devices being powered that could cause interference.
Finally, I ran a test by connecting the audio interface to my MacBook Pro instead, and lo and behold, there was no noise at all. So the problem definitely has to do with the Hackintosh.
Having dug through the forums here it seems that a LOT of people have reported this issue, but few threads seem to have any concrete solutions. Some mentioned disabling Serial ports, but that's doesn't apply to the Z390. And all other attempts, like disabling X.M.P. Profile 1, or disabling the XHCI Hand-Off, have led to no change.
All reports seem to point to some issue with the USB ports and Audio Interfaces. Can you please help?
I've attached my EFI folder in hopes that it ends up shining light on what may be wrong in my configuration.
Here’s my setup:
- Intel Core i9-9900K 3.6 GHz Eight-Core LGA 1151 Processor.
- Motherboard: Z390 Designare.
- Case: Fractal Design Define R6 USB-C.
- Power Supply: EVGA 750 G3.
- Graphics Card: Radeon RX580.
- Drives: 2x Samsung 860 EVO.
- RAM: HyperX Predator 4x16GB 3600MHz DDR4.
- Cooler: NH-D15S.
- Fenvi FV-T919 wireless network adapter.
- 3x 27” 2k LED Acer monitors.
- Audio Interface: Apogee Duet for Mac/iOS.
- Speakers: Yamaha HS50M with HS10W Subwoofer.
- MacOS 10.14.6.
- Clover 5122.
Any ideas as to what this may be and how to fix it? Let me know what I should provide to help solve this faster.
Thanks a lot!