Bursts Of Noise, Noise bursts Options

[Nels]

mrintenso,

DP wouldn't have to be in use, but it sounds like your noise could be caused by something else all together. Hopefully, this topic will keep going a while longer and that your problem will be resolved. In the mean time, if I find anything out, I'll certainly post back.

Still, if you have any type of expired software, it could cause that random glitch/noise to occur.

[DANO10]

Hi Nels,

Thanks for the kudos. I hope I'm right.

DANO10

[Jaysee]

That could well be the cause of the problem for me too. Almost every music app on my hard disk is properly authorised and works fine. Still i'm reluctant to trash the few 'trial' CD cover demos from my system, especially the CS80 and minimoog;-{
I'll have to sort it though
JC

[joehosefat]

We were recently tracking keyboards via SPDIF into my pal's DP system, and were having this same problem - random bursts of digital noise, lasting from a moment to a couple of seconds. After scratching our heads for a couple of days, we noticed that the time of day seemed to play a role - during business hours, it happened more frequently. We then thought, power. We checked the voltage, and it was varying from less than 115 v to over 124 v within a few minutes. My pal went and got a decent power conditioner, and voila, problem stopped. This may or may not help, but it can't hurt.

[Jaysee]

Hi Joehosofat (great user name BTW:-) 'scuse my ignorance but is a power 'conditioner' the same thing as a surge protector? I have Belkin's most expensive 8 socket plug board, but I dont know if my house wiring is a bit iffy or not.
cheers, JC

[td3k]

is a power 'conditioner' the same thing as a surge protector?

No, it is not. Surge protectors only block power spikes and surges.
UPS's provide battery backup and surge protection, (also NOT power conditioning)

A power conditioner maintains a constant AC power level and provides clean power to your devices. They are usually 1U rack-mount devices and provide multiple outlets.

Furman is a popular manufacturer of power conditioners.

Cheers,

[joehosefat]

Precisely - a power conditioner should keep the voltage and current levels constant (not the same a surge protection). Varying voltage/current levels can cause devices to malfunction or exhibit abberant behavior. No absolute concrete proof that this will solve your problem, but it did the trick in our situation. Power conditioning is an often-overlooked component in the typical small scale home studio.

Cheers, J

[Jaysee]

re the 'bursts of noise problem: March issue Sound on Sound magazine has an interesting article about something similar but for PC platform. It stresses the importance of getting rid of old or redundant drivers from your Hard disk, but also addresses the thorny matter of just how on earth do you completely get rid when the app has no 'uninstall' button. I keep finding little bits of stuff I *deleted* ages ago lurking in some obscure folder in some unlikely, seldom visited location. I guess apart from that explanation the olnly thing to do is by process of elimination....which I find rather hard to contemplate logically as I have the short term memory of a goldfish!
I'm not even very clear on sorting out simple signal paths matters like 'do the monitors plug into the main out or control room?' or 'are the RCA line ins on my mixer fed by the outputs of my delta44 breakout box TRS sockets, and is it output 1 and 2 (left and right) or doers the TRS socket carry the stereo left and right from a stereo TRS plug to two RCA line in phono plugs??? arrgh do I need the mixer at all.

maybe checking a headphone mix would rule out the monitors and mixer if a hardware synth going straight into the mixer rather than straight into the breakout box. thenI guess use the minijacks audio in and out of the mac built in sound before finally including the PCI soundcard, as thats seems like the most likely culprit for pecular noises and drivers issues.
Apologies if this reads like utter bollocks, I'm sort of thinking aloud in my confusion:-)

Thanks for the power conditioning link BTW,
JC

[Nels]

Well, I've come across many articles since my last post, but nothing worth mentioning. Mostly 10.3.8 issues or things we've already covered. And my computers are still in 10.3.6 & 10.3.7 mode. ..Don't quite trust 10.3.8 yet.

As to deleting all, without the in-unstall.... I usually go to Finder/Find, then I type in eaxctly as written on the culprit I'm trying to completely get rid off. Usually, everything that's related to the original file, plus the original itself, will pop up in the Finder reveal box. I'll then proceed to trash the culprits. Must be typed Exactly, though, ..other wise Finder comes up empty. If I suspect there might be left overs, I'll put on my Columbo hat, but that rarely happens.

Wish all software had the un-install option, but then, ...there I go dreamin again.

[gogmagog]

will i need to rinse more thoroughly than usual afterwards, oh, and will the conditioner clash with the dandruff shampoo i use?