John Duncan
Well-known member
Hang on though - didn't we decide the crackles appear on another machine? So it's the files themselves?
Its all gone horribly wrong
I had another attempt at doing the driver thing.........................and I am now on a borrowed computer and mine is in the hands of a professional. It would appear I am super at uninstalling and not so great at re-installing.
I now can't wait to get itunes, crackles and all back!
I will report back to see if fixing drivers has cured the problem.
Damn computers, they are rubbish, thank goodness for the Bose Sounddock.
I now can't wait to get itunes, crackles and all back!
I will report back to see if fixing drivers has cured the problem.
Damn computers, they are rubbish, thank goodness for the Bose Sounddock.
Got the laptop back, all drivers fully installed and itunes still crackles. So it is not the drivers.
All I can see that is left is some sort of intermittent corruption when various CDs were imported and downloads were downloaded. I will pause for now and enjoy some (crackly) music before I embark on any other fixes.
All I can see that is left is some sort of intermittent corruption when various CDs were imported and downloads were downloaded. I will pause for now and enjoy some (crackly) music before I embark on any other fixes.
John Duncan
Well-known member
didn't realise this affected downloads as well - was about to suggest you take your crackliest album and re-rip it with error correction on...
Did the crackling just start recently? If so maybe it would be worth rolling back to an older version of iTunes to see if the problem persists there too.
Although in theory it shouldn't make a difference you never know - especially since they don't crackle in WMP.
iTunes really doesn't have many settings relating to audio you can adjust other than the Equalizer, Sound Check and Sound Enhancer. I leave all of these off and I assume you've got them off too.
I find the audio from iTunes to be a little muffled and I think Spotify Premium sounds better than many of my lossless files in iTunes, but it doesn't distort in anyway.
Although in theory it shouldn't make a difference you never know - especially since they don't crackle in WMP.
iTunes really doesn't have many settings relating to audio you can adjust other than the Equalizer, Sound Check and Sound Enhancer. I leave all of these off and I assume you've got them off too.
I find the audio from iTunes to be a little muffled and I think Spotify Premium sounds better than many of my lossless files in iTunes, but it doesn't distort in anyway.
Martyp:
Did the crackling just start recently? If so maybe it would be worth rolling back to an older version of iTunes to see if the problem persists there too.
The crackling has been going on for ages. I was hearing it on my ipod, particularly when I plugged it into the back of my amp for the first time, which resulted in me sending that amp away to be modified to 'fix' the problem! It has become more noticeable again finally loading music files onto my laptop and plugging it into my DAC. That made me go back to my ipod on its own through Sounddock and with headphones to check. The crackling is there, but it is hardly noticeable, so I was probably missing it.
Martyp:
iTunes really doesn't have many settings relating to audio you can adjust other than the Equalizer, Sound Check and Sound Enhancer. I leave all of these off and I assume you've got them off too.
I have switched all off, but I think that my present setup sounds best with them off. Iread elsewhere, after I had switched the eq off that the V8P amp sounds better without eq, so I have noticed what others have - its not just me! The crackling is there, whatever I do, but eq can help. For example Duffy's Rockferry went from unlistenable with the jazz eq to not bad with accoustic, but.....
Martyp:
I find the audio from iTunes to be a little muffled and I think Spotify Premium sounds better than many of my lossless files in iTunes, but it doesn't distort in anyway.
...I am the same as you there. The first time I heard Rockferry off Spotify my spine tingled. It sounded brilliant. I think that is down to Ogg Vorbis compression. It sounds great to you, me and Lordmortlock.
Did the crackling just start recently? If so maybe it would be worth rolling back to an older version of iTunes to see if the problem persists there too.
The crackling has been going on for ages. I was hearing it on my ipod, particularly when I plugged it into the back of my amp for the first time, which resulted in me sending that amp away to be modified to 'fix' the problem! It has become more noticeable again finally loading music files onto my laptop and plugging it into my DAC. That made me go back to my ipod on its own through Sounddock and with headphones to check. The crackling is there, but it is hardly noticeable, so I was probably missing it.
Martyp:
iTunes really doesn't have many settings relating to audio you can adjust other than the Equalizer, Sound Check and Sound Enhancer. I leave all of these off and I assume you've got them off too.
I have switched all off, but I think that my present setup sounds best with them off. Iread elsewhere, after I had switched the eq off that the V8P amp sounds better without eq, so I have noticed what others have - its not just me! The crackling is there, whatever I do, but eq can help. For example Duffy's Rockferry went from unlistenable with the jazz eq to not bad with accoustic, but.....
Martyp:
I find the audio from iTunes to be a little muffled and I think Spotify Premium sounds better than many of my lossless files in iTunes, but it doesn't distort in anyway.
...I am the same as you there. The first time I heard Rockferry off Spotify my spine tingled. It sounded brilliant. I think that is down to Ogg Vorbis compression. It sounds great to you, me and Lordmortlock.
So, lets be clear.......
Playing the same track, you hear the crackles on your PC using iTunes and on your iPod (no PC involved). But if you play the same track though another PC media player you don't hear the crackles.
Is this summary correct?
Playing the same track, you hear the crackles on your PC using iTunes and on your iPod (no PC involved). But if you play the same track though another PC media player you don't hear the crackles.
Is this summary correct?
PJPro:So, lets be clear....... Playing the same track, you hear the crackles on your PC using iTunes and on your iPod (no PC involved). But if you play the same track though another PC media player you don't hear the crackles. Is this summary correct?
Yes PJPro, that is correct. One of the worst albums for crackles is Paul Leonard-Morgan's Filtales which I bought from the Amazon download store. If I play it on itunes it crackles terribly, on the ipod it crackles a bit and I have just switched to WMP and no crackles at all.
(Though on WMP it also sounds flat and dull compared to itunes where it sounds clearer and with greater dynamics).
Yes PJPro, that is correct. One of the worst albums for crackles is Paul Leonard-Morgan's Filtales which I bought from the Amazon download store. If I play it on itunes it crackles terribly, on the ipod it crackles a bit and I have just switched to WMP and no crackles at all.
(Though on WMP it also sounds flat and dull compared to itunes where it sounds clearer and with greater dynamics).
As I said earlier, I don't know anything about iTunes....but here's some ideas to try anyway (gleaned from the web).
Have you tried turning off the iTunes normaliser (Preferences > Effects > Sound Check)?
Try changing the QuickTime Sound Out Setting to improve the quality:
QuickTime 6
1. Click the Start button and point to Control Panel.
2. From the menu at the top of the QuickTime Settings window, choose Sound Out.
3. Select a different option in the "Choose a device for playback" menu.
QuickTime 7
1. Click the Start button and point to Control Panel.
2. Open the QuickTime control panel.
3. Click the "Safe mode (waveOut only)" checkbox.
Some PC audio hardware has audio-enhancing effects that can conflict with iTunes' Sound Enhancer feature.
To resolve these conflicts, do one of the following:
* Turn off the effects for your PC's audio hardware using the configuration software that came with your hardware.
* Disable the Sound Enhancer feature in iTunes:
1. Open iTunes.
2. From the Edit menu, choose Preferences.
3. Click the Effects tab.
4. Deselect Sound Enhancer.
If none of the above works, it's a long shot but take a look at this thread. Give the tool a go and report back.
Have you tried turning off the iTunes normaliser (Preferences > Effects > Sound Check)?
Try changing the QuickTime Sound Out Setting to improve the quality:
QuickTime 6
1. Click the Start button and point to Control Panel.
2. From the menu at the top of the QuickTime Settings window, choose Sound Out.
3. Select a different option in the "Choose a device for playback" menu.
QuickTime 7
1. Click the Start button and point to Control Panel.
2. Open the QuickTime control panel.
3. Click the "Safe mode (waveOut only)" checkbox.
Some PC audio hardware has audio-enhancing effects that can conflict with iTunes' Sound Enhancer feature.
To resolve these conflicts, do one of the following:
* Turn off the effects for your PC's audio hardware using the configuration software that came with your hardware.
* Disable the Sound Enhancer feature in iTunes:
1. Open iTunes.
2. From the Edit menu, choose Preferences.
3. Click the Effects tab.
4. Deselect Sound Enhancer.
If none of the above works, it's a long shot but take a look at this thread. Give the tool a go and report back.
Just been going through this thread - sounds a little like the problem I've been having on my laptop for a year or so and was featured in the questions pages of WHFSV a couple of issues back. I get crackles, clicks, scratches (call them what you will) on tracks I've ripped from CD, but not downloaded tracks from itunes in my case. Frustratingly it's not all CDs/Tracks either - I ripped two new commercially produced CDs a couple of weeks back, one was absolutely fine and the other was unlistenable due to clicks all through it.
I tried all the software things I could find, new versions of itunes didn't seem to fix it, tried ripping in different bit rates/lossless etc., ripping into WMP and even then tried ripping with an external CD drive. Again frustratingly there seemed no pattern - clicks appearing with less frequency or in different places but still there whatever I tried. Some tracks are fine throughout, some have the clicks/scratches right at the end of the track after the music stops but as the end of the track is counting out, and some have the clicks all the way through. I seemed to be the only person in the world who'd come across this as well!
An IT guy I got to come and look into the problem couldn't diagnose it but thought my laptop didn't have enough processing power to rip the tracks - I told him this was nonsense as it's a 2ghz, 2Gb RAM laptop so if it couldn't rip a single CD without having a breakdown then most people must be in trouble!
Only conclusion I've come to is that it must be something to do with the soundcard (or whatever else hardware-wise is involved in ripping a track from CD but not downloading). Planning on updating the laptop when Windows 7 comes out in Nov/Dec so I'll live with it for the moment. Will keep an eye on this thread as I'd love to know what else it might be!
I tried all the software things I could find, new versions of itunes didn't seem to fix it, tried ripping in different bit rates/lossless etc., ripping into WMP and even then tried ripping with an external CD drive. Again frustratingly there seemed no pattern - clicks appearing with less frequency or in different places but still there whatever I tried. Some tracks are fine throughout, some have the clicks/scratches right at the end of the track after the music stops but as the end of the track is counting out, and some have the clicks all the way through. I seemed to be the only person in the world who'd come across this as well!
An IT guy I got to come and look into the problem couldn't diagnose it but thought my laptop didn't have enough processing power to rip the tracks - I told him this was nonsense as it's a 2ghz, 2Gb RAM laptop so if it couldn't rip a single CD without having a breakdown then most people must be in trouble!
Only conclusion I've come to is that it must be something to do with the soundcard (or whatever else hardware-wise is involved in ripping a track from CD but not downloading). Planning on updating the laptop when Windows 7 comes out in Nov/Dec so I'll live with it for the moment. Will keep an eye on this thread as I'd love to know what else it might be!
Jarnesque:
Only conclusion I've come to is that it must be something to do with the soundcard
I'm not sure it's anything to do with the soundcard when ripping the track from CD.
The thread I pointed idc to might be worth a gander.
Only conclusion I've come to is that it must be something to do with the soundcard
I'm not sure it's anything to do with the soundcard when ripping the track from CD.
The thread I pointed idc to might be worth a gander.
PJPro:As I said earlier, I don't know anything about iTunes....but here's some ideas to try anyway (gleaned from the web).
Have you tried turning off the iTunes normaliser (Preferences > Effects > Sound Check)? Try changing the QuickTime Sound Out Setting to improve the quality: QuickTime 6 1. Click the Start button and point to Control Panel. 2. From the menu at the top of the QuickTime Settings window, choose Sound Out. 3. Select a different option in the "Choose a device for playback" menu. QuickTime 7 1. Click the Start button and point to Control Panel. 2. Open the QuickTime control panel. 3. Click the "Safe mode (waveOut only)" checkbox. Some PC audio hardware has audio-enhancing effects that can conflict with iTunes' Sound Enhancer feature. To resolve these conflicts, do one of the following: * Turn off the effects for your PC's audio hardware using the configuration software that came with your hardware. * Disable the Sound Enhancer feature in iTunes: 1. Open iTunes. 2. From the Edit menu, choose Preferences. 3. Click the Effects tab. 4. Deselect Sound Enhancer.
All of the above tried as stated and itunes still crackles.
PJPro:If none of the above works, it's a long shot but take a look at this thread. Give the tool a go and report back.
I had found that programme before, ran it and was getting loads of red and yellow spikes. So then I embarked on disabling stuff and could not trace the cause of the problem.....and then my PC packed in and I had to take it to PC Repair Glasgow who fixed it for £30. All of the drivers are up to date and working according to them. So I have just run the latency checker again and there are loads of red and yellow spikes.
This may be relevant but I do get occasional clicks and dropouts(short pauses in the music) with Spotify, which never happens with itunes. Itunes just crackles as it plays. It does not click and dropout. Is it a case of I have been trying to fix the Spotify dropouts instead pf itunes crackling?
P.S - occasional dropouts in Spotify does not bother me, itunes crackles is seriously irritating.
Thanks PJPro.
Have you tried turning off the iTunes normaliser (Preferences > Effects > Sound Check)? Try changing the QuickTime Sound Out Setting to improve the quality: QuickTime 6 1. Click the Start button and point to Control Panel. 2. From the menu at the top of the QuickTime Settings window, choose Sound Out. 3. Select a different option in the "Choose a device for playback" menu. QuickTime 7 1. Click the Start button and point to Control Panel. 2. Open the QuickTime control panel. 3. Click the "Safe mode (waveOut only)" checkbox. Some PC audio hardware has audio-enhancing effects that can conflict with iTunes' Sound Enhancer feature. To resolve these conflicts, do one of the following: * Turn off the effects for your PC's audio hardware using the configuration software that came with your hardware. * Disable the Sound Enhancer feature in iTunes: 1. Open iTunes. 2. From the Edit menu, choose Preferences. 3. Click the Effects tab. 4. Deselect Sound Enhancer.
All of the above tried as stated and itunes still crackles.
PJPro:If none of the above works, it's a long shot but take a look at this thread. Give the tool a go and report back.
I had found that programme before, ran it and was getting loads of red and yellow spikes. So then I embarked on disabling stuff and could not trace the cause of the problem.....and then my PC packed in and I had to take it to PC Repair Glasgow who fixed it for £30. All of the drivers are up to date and working according to them. So I have just run the latency checker again and there are loads of red and yellow spikes.
This may be relevant but I do get occasional clicks and dropouts(short pauses in the music) with Spotify, which never happens with itunes. Itunes just crackles as it plays. It does not click and dropout. Is it a case of I have been trying to fix the Spotify dropouts instead pf itunes crackling?
P.S - occasional dropouts in Spotify does not bother me, itunes crackles is seriously irritating.
Thanks PJPro.
Jarnesque:
Will keep an eye on this thread as I'd love to know what else it might be!
Welcome fellow crackle sufferer, a problem shared and all that
Will keep an eye on this thread as I'd love to know what else it might be!
Welcome fellow crackle sufferer, a problem shared and all that
The_Lhc
Well-known member
idc: This may be relevant but I do get occasional clicks and dropouts(short pauses in the music) with Spotify, which never happens with itunes. Itunes just crackles as it plays. It does not click and dropout. Is it a case of I have been trying to fix the Spotify dropouts instead pf itunes crackling?
That sounds more like your internet connection not getting enough bandwidth, which will probably be quite common at busy times of the day. I doubt it's got anything to do with your other problem.
That sounds more like your internet connection not getting enough bandwidth, which will probably be quite common at busy times of the day. I doubt it's got anything to do with your other problem.
Thanks the_lhc, we get bandwidth throttling in our area. It has happened a couple of times this morning.
Right an update. I sent away a crackly music file to the experts at What Hifi towers for analysis. It does not crackle. I am listening to the same file on WMP (my new music player until this is resolved) as I type and no crackles. Not even the hint of a crackle.
I have uninstalled and reinstalled and reinstalled without fist uninstalling itunes. So if I have a corrupted version of itunes, I keep replacing it with another one.
I have uninstalled and reinstalled and reinstalled without fist uninstalling itunes. So if I have a corrupted version of itunes, I keep replacing it with another one.
John Duncan
Well-known member
idc:I sent away a crackly music file to the experts at What Hifi towers
Cool - was that after you sent it to me?
Cool - was that after you sent it to me?
JohnDuncan:idc:I sent away a crackly music file to the experts at What Hifi towers Cool - was that after you sent it to me?
LOL and for clarification, JD is 'the experts at What Hifi towers'
PJPro. I had found those threads, but the jargon baffled me. Also, they seem to get crackles all the time. I only get them with specific tracks on itunes. Everything else works fine
LOL and for clarification, JD is 'the experts at What Hifi towers'
PJPro. I had found those threads, but the jargon baffled me. Also, they seem to get crackles all the time. I only get them with specific tracks on itunes. Everything else works fine
John Duncan
Well-known member
This is really annoying me now. Can we recap?
You get it from both the DAC and the plain old headphone out?
It happens with some files but not all, and the file you sent to me doesn't crackle for me (unless I'm missing something) but does for you?
You've reinstalled iTunes (and QuickTime) innumerable times and turned off all the sound enhancements?
It doesn't happen with WMP?
You get it from both the DAC and the plain old headphone out?
It happens with some files but not all, and the file you sent to me doesn't crackle for me (unless I'm missing something) but does for you?
You've reinstalled iTunes (and QuickTime) innumerable times and turned off all the sound enhancements?
It doesn't happen with WMP?
John Duncan
Well-known member
Oh, by the by, vaguely amusing story for you. When you sent me that file, I downloaded it to my desktop and plugged my headphones in, turned the PC off mute (cos I hate it making beeping noises every time a mail arrives), and played the track in iTunes, but it's really quiet. I turn it full up on the PC volume, and it's not much better. "Aha", thinks JD, "it's a really quiet track and there's some weird signal to noise ratio thing going on and it's clipping and blah blah", until I realise everybody's staring at me, my headphones are plugged into the Line In socket, your music is playing full blast down the office, and I'm hearing it quietly through my noise-suppressing 'phones...
JohnDuncan:This is really annoying me now. Can we recap? You get it from both the DAC and the plain old headphone out?
Yes and very faintly using my ipod. It was that faint crackle that meant I sent my amp away to be modded as a means to fix it.
JohnDuncan: It happens with some files but not all, and the file you sent to me doesn't crackle for me (unless I'm missing something) but does for you?
Yes, the album that file is from suffers badly as does 'Let It Be', which was imported on CD. Peter Gabriel is also quite bad and some of those albums are downloads from itunes. Duffy .Rockferry' (imported CD), Elbow, various stuff (downloads from e-music when they were giving them away) and Radiohead, various stuff mainly 'Kid A' (imported from CD), they are the worst offenders. The crackling is absolutely obvious, it is not a faint background noise.
JohnDuncan: You've reinstalled iTunes (and QuickTime) innumerable times and turned off all the sound enhancements? It doesn't happen with WMP?
Yes (yes), yes and yes! Bonkers!
Did anyone ask what you were up to? Or are there requests for more Paul Leonard-Morgan at full volume!
Yes and very faintly using my ipod. It was that faint crackle that meant I sent my amp away to be modded as a means to fix it.
JohnDuncan: It happens with some files but not all, and the file you sent to me doesn't crackle for me (unless I'm missing something) but does for you?
Yes, the album that file is from suffers badly as does 'Let It Be', which was imported on CD. Peter Gabriel is also quite bad and some of those albums are downloads from itunes. Duffy .Rockferry' (imported CD), Elbow, various stuff (downloads from e-music when they were giving them away) and Radiohead, various stuff mainly 'Kid A' (imported from CD), they are the worst offenders. The crackling is absolutely obvious, it is not a faint background noise.
JohnDuncan: You've reinstalled iTunes (and QuickTime) innumerable times and turned off all the sound enhancements? It doesn't happen with WMP?
Yes (yes), yes and yes! Bonkers!
Did anyone ask what you were up to? Or are there requests for more Paul Leonard-Morgan at full volume!
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