Hero VIII sound issues (yet another thread)

[Stormshadowtige]

I see all kinds of posts both here and on Goggle with the same issue, but so many different causes and possible fixes. Hoping someone may be able to help here a bit.

I am getting latency issues on my rig, built about 3 weeks ago, in the form of audio artifacts. After a couple hours, the audio starts to pop, hiss, crackle or sound computerized. A reset of the system seems to resolve for a short time.

I ran LatencyMon and under it's suggestion turned off SpeedStep. I have since turned it back on as it doesn't seem to be the issue. I have also tried disabling various hardware items in the device manager including Bluetooth, LAN, ACPI and a couple others. Again, no change.

I have removed many items from startup thinking perhaps there were issues with some of the start up items.

I also turned off things like the interface for my G910 keyboard, the profiler for my joystick and unplugged the HDD I have connected via USB3.0.

I upgraded the audio drivers to the latest provided by Asus as well as updated the RAMcache as suggested in another thread (I also have it disabled currently).

Nothing seems to resolve the issue. Latencymon always shows me a warning within 20 seconds that my system may have trouble with real time audio.,.......

Any suggestions?

Win10, ROG Hero Viii, i5-6600k, 16GB RAM (it is supposed to be 2400, but can only seem to get it running at 2133, possibly the issue????), Asus AMD 7870 video, Kingston 250GB SSD, Hitachi 1TB HDD.

Another oddity which may shed light but isn't an issue - I had a USB 3.0 card installed and it refuses to boot the system, I have it removed currently.

[Stormshadowtige]

I should add, wdf01000.sys is the usual culprit in Latencymon, although when the computer first boots, possibly as long as 30 min or so, everything seems normal, and I am told the system appears to be suitable for real time audio.

wdf01000.sys is the one that spikes though when the latency starts to appear.

I have also seen the mouse start to slow down when this occurs......possibly a bad mouse driver? I will check Madcatz for a newer driver and try that now that I think about it, but feel free to toss ideas my way.

[Chino]

Have you tried a fresh install?

[Stormshadowtige]

Yes this was a fresh install.
No I have not reinstalled since. Not sure anything would change as I would be using the same OS and driver set as I have currently.

[Chino]

Can you list the drivers that you've installed?

[Stormshadowtige]

I used all the drivers that came on the DVD supplied with the motherboard. I have since updated using the RAMCACHE 3+ version your sticky on these forums advises.
I also have the latest drivers for my G910 Logitech keyboard, RAT7 mouse and joystick (also a Madcatz device).
I am using the last full version, non beta of the AMD Crimson video drivers (unless something came out this week).

Sorry, not at my computer right now to get version numbers, but when I checked about a week ago, everything was the latest version. I manually checked the mouse, keyboard and video drivers for updates as well.

I wondered if the issue was the Asus BT400 dongle, but disabling it didn't seem to make any difference.

The issue seems to come on gradually, latency is fine when I first boot. As time goes on, the wdf01000.sys starts to create more and more trouble, but I can't tell what it is tied to.

**********************
Update: 15.12 Crimson on my AMD video.
Sonic Studio 2.2.7
Supreme FX 6.0.1.7687 (this also matches the build ID in device manager for the realtek audio device).
AMD High Def audio (is this there due to the AMD video? Can I disable?) 10.0.0.2

I also downloaded and flashed to the BIOS released 2/26/2016 although I don't have the number handy.



Something odd I noticed tonight is I can play WOW and not have the DPC latency climb. However, I do see it when playing Rise of the Tomb Raider and Xcom2. Is it possible that Steam is somehow to blame? Further testing require tomorrow with other non-steam games.....and possibly some Steam as well to see what happens.

[Stormshadowtige]

I downloaded every file that came on the DVD and reinstalled them this morning. Still seeing high DPC latency in wdf01000.sys.
Thought perhaps it was the Game First iii software, but after uninstall of that, no change.
Intel doesn't seem to have a newer driver than that supplied by ASUS.

I guess at this point, I will wipe and reinstall the OS over the weekend and experiment. I am afraid though that it will all be for naught and that I will continue to see the DPC issues I see described across the internet.

Only other thing I can think of is to replace the video card (but this doesn't seem to be the issue) or install a discrete sound card (no guarantee that will change anything).

Anyone have any other thoughts before I Nuke and Pave?

[Celador]

Stormshadowtiger wrote:
I downloaded every file that came on the DVD and reinstalled them this morning. Still seeing high DPC latency in wdf01000.sys.
Thought perhaps it was the Game First iii software, but after uninstall of that, no change.
Intel doesn't seem to have a newer driver than that supplied by ASUS.

I guess at this point, I will wipe and reinstall the OS over the weekend and experiment. I am afraid though that it will all be for naught and that I will continue to see the DPC issues I see described across the internet.

Only other thing I can think of is to replace the video card (but this doesn't seem to be the issue) or install a discrete sound card (no guarantee that will change anything).

Anyone have any other thoughts before I Nuke and Pave?

Don't reformat if you haven't done it yet. I've had sound/latency issues with wdf01000.sys myself twice. First time it was Asus AISuite or more specifically - q-fan part of it. Unfortunately you can't disable it separately but uninstalling the AISuite fixed the issue.

Second time it appeared after a ROG RamCache update which would create huge latency spikes whenever it was used. The most recent available version fixed this issue.

Basically what you want to do it uninstall software one by one until the issue disappears. I recommend looking at:

1) AISuite
2) RamCache
3) RamDisk
4) Sonic Studio
5) Aida64

[Chino]

Yes, please do. Completey reformat. Don't install any other Windows update or program. Measure your DPC in between driver install. Report back your results.

[Stormshadowtige]

I have a new SSD ordered....going to switch from a Kingston 240GB SSD as a boot drive to a Kingston HyperX Savage 480. Will be getting rid of the 1TB mechanical HDD as well. Once the new drive arrives I will reinstall the OS on it as a fresh install and if all goes well I will post good news. If the latency issues continue, I hope there is another idea to resolve it.
Sounds like late in the week before I get the drive (Amazon is quick, but not that quick LOL).