High pitched and Popping noise when the device (SP3) plays the sound.

Question

Hi.

I've been using a Surface Pro 3 for almost an year and half now, and noticed only recently (around more than a month) that the device emits very high pitched noise and/or popping noises when it plays the sound. The devices has run perfectly fine for the last year and half but now it seems to malfunction.

To describe the symptoms;

1. Devices emits very high pitched noise when it plays any sound such as music, movie or notifications etc. It is so high pitched that my phone could not record the sound either by taking videos or using a voice recorder. I suspect the noise comes out from the external speaker because the noise turns off when I reduce the volume to 0. Pausing videos (or any other sounds) stops the noise only temporarily, but it continues as playing the videos again.
2. Device emits somewhat very short 'pop' sound when it plays very short sound such as notifications. This sometimes replaced by the 1) symptom.
3. The symptom is very frequent and random. 
4. The noise issue does not happen when connected to a headphone or a Bluetooth speaker. Another reason why for suspecting the external speaker.
5. The noise still starts when the device plays sounds even if the volume is set to 0. In this case, there is nothing much I could do to turn the noise off.

The solutions I have tried are;

1. Re-installing the audio driver via device manager.
2. Changing the power setting of the Usb hubs via device manager.
3. Running surface diagnostic manager provided by an online staff.
4. Turning off the sound enhancement (Dolby audio) via playback devices.

I am very concerned that the issue is persisting even after consulting with an online staff. 

I would really appreciate if you could help me with this.

Kind regards,

Jay

Answer 1

Hi Jay,

Apart from the things you looked into, other settings along with possible software conflicts may be causing the problem when your Surface Pro 3 plays audio. Let's see if there will be a difference if we disable Hardware Acceleration on your device. When this feature is enabled, the hardware performs functions faster than it could. Follow these steps to disable the feature:

1. On the system tray, right-click on the icon for Speakers.
2. Choose Playback devices.
3. Select Speakers.
4. Click on Properties.
5. Go to Advanced.
6. Under Hardware Acceleration, uncheck the box for Allow hardware acceleration of audio with this device.
7. Click on Apply then OK.
8. Restart your Surface Pro 3.

Let us know how it turns out.

Answer 2

Dear Ruz

Thank you for your suggestion.

Unfortunately, I cannot find the option Allow hardware acceleration in the advanced tab.

However, I did find Exclusive mode which has options of allow applications to take exclusive control of this device and Give exclusive mode applications priority.

I have unchecked them both and restarted the computer, but it has not fixed the issue yet.

Would there be any other suggestions?

Kind regards,

Jay

Answer 3

Thank you for updating the Community, Jay. Exclusive mode is a feature that gives a program exclusive control of the audio driver so other applications will not interfere with the audio playback. This feature may also play a part in the problem you are experiencing, so we are on the right track. Did you also try testing different sample rate and bit depth options? This setting can be found on the same window where you disabled Exclusive Mode.

It will also be helpful if you go back to Device Manager and tell us some information about the audio adapter you have. Refer to these steps:

1. Go to Device Manager.
2. Expand Audio inputs and outputs.
3. Right-click on the adapter you find.
4. Choose Properties.
5. Go to the Driver tab.
6. Take note of the details about the driver and share it here on the post. You can also post a screenshot of the tab so we can check it for you.

We'll be looking forward to your response.

Regards.

Answer 4

Dear Ruz

Thank you very much for your reply. Following your instructions, I was unfortunately unable to load the driver's detail.

The screenshot I am attaching below was all I could get.

I really appreciate your help

Kind regards,

Jay

Answer 5

We appreciate the information. Looking at the screenshot you shared, you seem to have Microphone Array on your Surface Pro 3. Is this something you installed by yourself or did it come integrated with the device?

If it's not too much to ask, please share a screenshot of the list of recording devices you have. You can follow the instructions below:

1. Right-click on the Speakers icon on your system tray.
2. Choose Recording devices. You will find the list of recording devices you have.

Give us an update so we can move forward.