# Realtek crackling sound on Windows 7



## Red_Machine (Nov 30, 2014)

I just upgraded a laptop that was previously running Vista just fine, with no sound glitches.  As soon as I install 7, however, the audio crackles.  Doesn't matter if I'm using the generic HD Audio driver or Realtek's own driver.  I've googled around and it seems to be a well known issue, but nobody found a way to fix it.  Anyone have any ideas?  I'd rather not go back to Vista, because even though I love it this laptop likes to bluescreen when I watch HD video (I think it's a driver issue).


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## OneMoar (Nov 30, 2014)

try disabling any audio devices you aren't using
line in, hdmi
 ect ect


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## eidairaman1 (Nov 30, 2014)

If you know the vista driver used id use that


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## Red_Machine (Nov 30, 2014)

Same driver version was used on Vista and 7, but I think it's an OS issue as Microsoft's generic driver crackles too.


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## OneMoar (Nov 30, 2014)

sounds more like the audio chip is toast or the jack its self is fubar


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## Red_Machine (Nov 30, 2014)

It works fine with Vista.  Googling "Realtek sound crackling Windows 7" brings up plenty of other people reporting the same issue.  Seems that 7/8 have an issue with some Vista-era hardware.


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## flmatter (Nov 30, 2014)

what's the make and model of laptop? Also was Vista 32 or 64 bit same with win7, 32 or 64?  I would not say it was Vista era hardware more like XP era hardware. Either way it could be the same issue with your bsod with hd video's. If the gpu can not handle HD it will crash. Same could be true with audio not being able to handle the newer codec's. When exactly does it crackle? All the time or just when volume is raised or lowered?  Thanks


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## Red_Machine (Nov 30, 2014)

It's an E-System 1201.  Pentium Dual Core, 2GB RAM, SiS chipset/IGP, 32-bit OS.  The laptop plays HD video (was 720p) with VLC just fine, smooth playback with no stuttering or corruption, but will suddenly bluescreen at random moments with a "MEMORY MANAGEMENT" error.  The RAM isn't bad, I ran several passes of Memtest86+; my research leads me to believe it's the IGP drivers bugging out and crashing the system, because it ONLY does it when watching HD video.  The audio crackles all the time; lowering the bitrate/Hz level helps it some (goes from crackling during Windows sounds to only crackling when music or audio is played).


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## OneMoar (Nov 30, 2014)

old system is old I am surprised a SIS chipset is even supported in windows 7
the bsod is most likely related to hardware accleration
try mpc-hc


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## flmatter (Nov 30, 2014)

Have you tried disabling the HD audio and digital in ports?


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## Red_Machine (Dec 1, 2014)

Disabling everything but the output device (it's the only output device listed, anyway) yields the same result.


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## Nabarun (Dec 1, 2014)

It's not unusual for high bandwidth HD videos to cause sound crackling and even BSOD on so old dual core hardware. If you had a discrete gpu in there then may be it could help a little. But do try resetting the BIOS to it's defaults and playing around a little with the pci express link state power management and ASPM etc. Also, I recommend MPC-HC instead of vlc. In mpc, try different renderers, and toggling hw acceleration. Also, lower your audio's bitrate, sampling frequency etc. Install the k-lite mega codec pack - and associate mpc  with all videos. Also, in your system specs I see you're using both PEG and integrated graphics. Don't do that.


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## Red_Machine (Dec 1, 2014)

No, this is a laptop I'm talking about.  It's not HD video causing audio crackling, it's EVERYTHING.


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## eidairaman1 (Dec 1, 2014)

Check volume properties. Also you might want to go the usb audio route


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## Nabarun (Dec 1, 2014)

Red_Machine said:


> No, this is a laptop I'm talking about.  It's not HD video causing audio crackling, it's EVERYTHING.


Well, then, if possible, try formatting and reinstalling windows and *all* chipset and other  hw drivers, .net fx, vc++ etc  - all in order. Also, if possible, try updating the BIOS first. To see if there is any hardware problem, also try a different OS, like Ubuntu. You don't have to install it - just boot from the live cd and select "_Try Ubuntu without any changes to your machine_". I'm not 100% sure, but the audio drivers should be there. Then, if you need help figuring out stuff in real time, go to #ubuntu on *freenode* to use the web chat, or use your chat client. And as I said earlier, do try lowering down the audio quality a little. Lastly, try SRS Audio Sandbox. I hope it's not a HW problem. Good luck!


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## Red_Machine (Dec 1, 2014)

It's just an issue with Windows 7, Vista has no problems with sound whatsoever.  It's not like I'm the only person who has this problem, either; dozens of people report exactly the same thing with their machines.


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## eidairaman1 (Dec 1, 2014)

Well put vista back on it and see if it goes away

I had a vista Toshiba Satellite upgraded to 7 and no issues with it


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## OneMoar (Dec 1, 2014)

Red_Machine said:


> It's just an issue with Windows 7, Vista has no problems with sound whatsoever.  It's not like I'm the only person who has this problem, either; dozens of people report exactly the same thing with their machines.


old chip-set is old rightfully that machine has no business running vista let alone 7
try this open this key in the registry editor
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Realtek\RAVCpl64\PowerMgnt
change they key "ENABLED" to "1"


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## Red_Machine (Dec 1, 2014)

I don't have that.  Mine goes:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Realtek\RtHDVCpl

And under that there is folders(?) DefLevel and General.


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## lZKoce (Dec 1, 2014)

My suggestion would be to go straight for a cheap USB soundcard. I know it will be clunky, but you can snatch a Creative X fi Go Pro, 2nd hand and be happy with headphones. Or some other card from Ebay, or a cheap DAC, if you mainly use headphones. You can even take it to your next machine after that.


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## OneMoar (Dec 1, 2014)

lZKoce said:


> My suggestion would be to go straight for a cheap USB soundcard. I know it will be clunky, but you can snatch a Creative X fi Go Pro, 2nd hand and be happy with headphones. Or some other card from Ebay, or a cheap DAC, if you mainly use headphones. You can even take it to your next machine after that.


he just needs to replace the whole laptop ... honestly hes way past the point for getting any kind of vendor level driver support for it so its most likely perma-broke


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## Red_Machine (Dec 1, 2014)

No joy, still crackles.  Looks like I'm going back to Vista and not watching HD video.


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## Nabarun (Dec 1, 2014)

It's not a problem with win 7. It _can_ be a problem with the device driver which is supplied by the device manufacturer and _not_ Microsoft. You said "No joy, _still_ crackles". What steps did you take? Did you at least try the Ubuntu live CD? Anyway, like others have said, I think for most people the most sensible thing to do is to get a cheap usb sound card rather than going back to the most terrible OS ever. But hey, to each his own.


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## Red_Machine (Dec 1, 2014)

Even Microsoft's generic "HD Audio Device" driver makes it crackle.  I don't need to try Ubuntu, because I know it's not a hardware issue as there are no crackles in Vista at all.


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## Nabarun (Dec 1, 2014)

Red_Machine said:


> I'd rather not go back to Vista, because even though I love it this laptop likes to bluescreen when I watch HD video (I think it's a driver issue).





Red_Machine said:


> Even Microsoft's generic "HD Audio Device" driver makes it crackle.  I don't need to try Ubuntu, because I know it's not a hardware issue as there are no crackles in Vista at all.



Don't you think those two statements are somewhat conflicting? BSOD means there is definitely a problem with either your hardware or your software/driver configuration. I have used many old hardware/sound cards with win 7 with no problems, much less BSOD. I would only hear disturbances with VERY high quality audio (like DTS-HD 5.1/24bit etc). It's not the OS's limitation, but your device manufacturer's unwillingness to keep supporting the old hardware. There are creative people who hack/mod drivers for better functionality in newer OSes, but I don't know whether you"ll be able to find one that meets your need. If you're sure Vista will solve all your problems, then by all means do that. But if you're serious about "fixing" the problem without doing that, then you will have to provide a bit more information about your current (problematic) configuration and exactly what steps you have already taken to fix that. 32bit or 64bit os? what version of driver? 32 or 64? Are there any IRQ issues? Any yellow on the device manager tab? Anyway, I googled a bit, and this is what I found from various places, and therefore suggest:



> 1) Go to Device manager, uninstall "Realtek High Definition audio" under sound,video and game controllers _(and any other generic audio drivers)_.
> 2) Now download and install *Realtek audio driver Vista_R214*. _(in compatibility mode - see below)_
> 3) Restart PC, the system upon log on to the desktop, it should now install the realtek hd audio bus, from preconfigured drivers i.e. the vista drivers you installed before rebooting.



*Installing sound driver in different compatibility mode*.
You may follow the steps mentioned below to install hardware in different compatibility mode.
1. Place the driver installation file on the Desktop.
2. Right Click the driver installation file and select Properties/Compatibility Tab. Select the appropriate options in from the list in the following image.
3. Click Apply/OK.
4. Right Click the file and select the Run As Administrator option to install.

For more information, you may visit the link mentioned below:
http://social.technet.microsoft.com...e/thread/80cae5ee-dc98-4a2f-8284-a1ab826059b7
Make older programs run in this version of Windows
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/Make-older-programs-run-in-this-version-of-Windows

Then install k-lite mega codec pack and try mpc-hc with different renderers for HD videos.
Let me know if you have tried these and the result.


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## Red_Machine (Dec 1, 2014)

It's a 32-bit OS, using the latest driver from the Realtek site (which works fine on Vista).  I've tried disabling all "audio enhancements", I've tried disabling everything but the speaker output, I've tried every sound format (bitrate and Hz), I've tried resetting USB drivers and power states (was recommended as a fix by someone in a forum thread I found in a google search), tried a format and reinstall, tried just using Microsoft's generic driver.

I just tried the driver you provided, and good bloody god it works!  I knew it was a software issue, but I didn't fancy wading through all the old driver releases until I found one that worked.  Thank you.


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## Nabarun (Dec 1, 2014)

Glad it worked for you. Cheers!


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## OneMoar (Dec 1, 2014)

what driver @_@


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## Red_Machine (Dec 1, 2014)

OneMoar said:


> what driver @_@


This one:


Nabarun said:


> 1) Go to Device manager, uninstall "Realtek High Definition audio" under sound,video and game controllers _(and any other generic audio drivers)_.
> 2) Now download and install *Realtek audio driver Vista_R214*. _(in compatibility mode - see below)_
> 3) Restart PC, the system upon log on to the desktop, it should now install the realtek hd audio bus, from preconfigured drivers i.e. the vista drivers you installed before rebooting.


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## OneMoar (Dec 1, 2014)

Red_Machine said:


> This one:


*stares blankly*


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## Red_Machine (Dec 1, 2014)

There's a link in the quote.  "Realtek audio driver Vista_R214", do you not see it?


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## OneMoar (Dec 1, 2014)

Red_Machine said:


> There's a link in the quote.  "Realtek audio driver Vista_R214", do you not see it?


nope


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## Red_Machine (Dec 1, 2014)

Hm, maybe you're not seeing quotes?  Because I can see it fine.  Here's the link, anyway.

http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/1311/realtek-hd-audio-2-14-vista/


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## JIM987654321 (Dec 6, 2014)

Hi all - been having the same exact issue on a new 2014 Dell XPS 8700 that I could not
test in time before return policy expired. Dell installed a new motherboard and that also did 
not fix it. Have tried every thing under the sun (the familiar list - _everything).  _I wonder if a
similar fix may work for my system? I'm running Windows 7. Perhaps its unlikley as I am
on a nearly brand new 64 bit system?


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## Nabarun (Dec 7, 2014)

JIM987654321 said:


> Hi all - been having the same exact issue on a new 2014 Dell XPS 8700 that I could not
> test in time before return policy expired. Dell installed a new motherboard and that also did
> not fix it. Have tried every thing under the sun (the familiar list - everything).  I wonder if a
> similar fix may work for my system? I'm running Windows 7. Perhaps its unlikley as I am
> on a nearly brand new 64 bit system?


That's some real shitty audio you got there, mate. My first (and recommended) advice would be to get a decent sound card. It doesn't have to be a pricey one - some creative and Asus sound cards are exceptionally good for their price. Even an Asus Xonar DG (for pci) or Xonar DX (pci-express) or Creative Sound Blaster Audigy FX will be a LOT better than what you have now. I did some googling, and there seems to be problems with most of Dell's AIO stuff, and the answers they provide on the support forums are nowhere close to helpful. Anyway, I don't know what motherboard you have, but looks like your Wave MaxxAudio 4 is implemented on top of some Realtec HW. If that's the case, then uninstall your existing driver and install the Realtek ALC3861 Audio Driver. (Someone recommended this on Dell forums)


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