PC noise on onkyo only

PTL-Pioneer

Super Member
Hi all, issue with noise, scrolling, moving mouse etc on an onkyo a10 when connected to PC, no matter the input.
Really weird, does not happen on my Sony amp at all.
The onkyo is black quiet when I hook up a CD player or my phone or mp3 player.

I would be pointing finger at the PC but its dead quiet when connected to the Sony.

I opened the onkyo, check all grounding, and rca jacks, cleaned them.
I even ran a cable to phono ground and PC chassis which did not eliminate problem.
I uninstalled and reinstalled my audio software and drivers, I use the muck onboard sound.

Stumped!
 
It kind of looks like it.
Would that mean being in proximity to the PC would also contribute to the noise?
It is only when connected to the PC it makes this noise. All testing was performed with amps right beside each other

Would an external DAC sort it out? I kinda wanted to use the Onkyo as my main PC setup so i need to get some resolution, maybe an external dac with its own power supply could be the solution??
 
Try every possible combination, even lifting the ground wire on one of the units. Also, disconnect every other equipment from the computer and from the amplifier. Leave just a standalone computer and the amplifier. Sometimes weird loops are created with other components connected to the computer. And of course double check the connectors are clean and doing proper contact.
 
I had a similar problem with my last setup using a computer as a source. I had an external dac coming out of onboard sound and then a sound card in the pc. I noticed it only happened when I had a lot of screens open, things going on and the ram was working hard. I have since upgraded my pc, and changed my pc sound setup so I cant say for sure but I always suspected more ram might have helped. I can also say for me at least, that the external dac did not solve it. Good luck!
 
I just disconnected the ground on my amp and that eliminated it, only downside is that now if the chassis ever becomes live for what ever reason, anyone who touches the amp becomes the ground wire until breaker flips...
 
I just disconnected the ground on my amp and that eliminated it, only downside is that now if the chassis ever becomes live for what ever reason, anyone who touches the amp becomes the ground wire until breaker flips...
That ain't good, I like living, especially given the quality of my restorations!:)
 
That ain't good, I like living, especially given the quality of my restorations!:)

You could try using a S/PDIF DAC. I have a theory that the noise produced by computers is to do with the video cards, I've noticed that the noise seems to change a lot with load on the video card. I also recently upgraded my video card and the sound seems a lot less noticeable with this new one.
 
I need a DAC anyway really. I'll try a mates DAC, if that fixes it I'll just buy one, I have tried multiple inputs, multiple cables, multiple outlets, multiple isolations, and setups via software. Checked every ground to chassis point on the onkyo. Its totally quiet on everything except my PC.

My PC is totally quiet connected to the Sony no matter what.

Might be just one of those things.
PC has like 16gb ram a gtx970 and an i5 at 4.2ghz. Middle of the road for games but hammers all other usage.
 
I need a DAC anyway really. I'll try a mates DAC, if that fixes it I'll just buy one, I have tried multiple inputs, multiple cables, multiple outlets, multiple isolations, and setups via software. Checked every ground to chassis point on the onkyo. Its totally quiet on everything except my PC.

My PC is totally quiet connected to the Sony no matter what.

Might be just one of those things.
PC has like 16gb ram a gtx970 and an i5 at 4.2ghz. Middle of the road for games but hammers all other usage.

My previous card was a 970 specifically a MSI Gaming card and it was pretty noisy. It could be that the Sony isn't grounded which is why it isn't as noisy.
I'm currently running a I7 2600k @ 4.2GHz as well as 16 gig of memory I made a sidegrade from my 970 to a RX 580 since I needed more VRAM. She's getting on in age but still keeps up.
 
I just disconnected the ground on my amp and that eliminated it, only downside is that now if the chassis ever becomes live for what ever reason, anyone who touches the amp becomes the ground wire until breaker flips...
The ground is going to the PC chassis ground. You are safe if your amp is connected to any other device connected to earth ground. You are not protected if none of the devices interconnected have an earth ground connection.
 
So can i remove the earth connection from onkyo plug and safely power on both PC and onkyo?

Has to be the onkyo if all other amps I have tried are good. All grounds on the onkyo are good from what I can see, all secured to chassis, no dirt etc. And the PC works perfectly with other sources.
Frustrating as f***.
 
So can i remove the earth connection from onkyo plug and safely power on both PC and onkyo?

Has to be the onkyo if all other amps I have tried are good. All grounds on the onkyo are good from what I can see, all secured to chassis, no dirt etc. And the PC works perfectly with other sources.
Frustrating as f***.

I just removed the ground from my amplifier and tuner. As Elnaldo said anything earthed you hook up to the amp will also ground the amp causing this same issue.
 
I'll admit I am a bit lost. Both the a10 and the PC are grounded. So s the Sony amp that does not have this issue. All are plugged into a power strip that is grounded, has ground light. If I disconnect the ground wire from onkyo, the only connection to ground it can have is through the rca cable connected to it, which comes from the PC.
The onkyo is about 4ft away from PC and the Sony and monitor are both right beside it, and plays with no issues or noises. No receivers at play all integrated separates.

Apologies for the lack of understanding
 
The only computer noise I get comes from scrolling in Firefox. I had to go to a USB sound card to stop it.
 
Could not believe how loud my noise was coming through. I have ordered a cheap topping d10 also to see if I get an improvement on the on board audio which should not be hard.
Not familiar with the digital stuff, how does one bypass the onboard audio completely? Or is it a specific media player that's required?
In audio settings I set audio quality output, surely the DAC is supposed to take over that job.
 
If you connect an external DAC , the operative system will ask you which device is the default audio output . The setting should be of course in the "audio" control panel or Icon. Check instructions for your specific OS to bypass or avoid downsampling or resampling. Usually you need to set "same as source" somewhere. Read any info you find about "bit perfect" playback. That can do a difference in the same hardware. I've tested in my computer. Different audio settings and media players DO sound different. Find some player that allows bit perfect playback and bypass or disable any resampling.
 
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