It could be a physical USB port issue, such as a damaged connection or a bad solder joint on the board.
It could be a physical USB port issue, such as a damaged connection or a bad solder joint on the board.
Originally Posted by Simon Barden
Possible, it seems to be working fine now, I'm not getting that crackly distortion anymore.
After installing a new 1Tb M.2 SSD drive n my Acer laptop, and doing a complete clean install of Windows 10 64 Bit build 2004, I'm still getting the crackly distortion issue with my Scarlett 2i2 usb audio interface, I've tried installing the very latest driver from Focusrite, didn't fix the issue, tried un-installing it then installing an older driver, that didn't fix the issue either, tried a short usb lead with a ferrite bead on it, no luck, that didn't fix it, so my conclusion is that although Focusrite make great hardware, their software drivers are terrible.
Looks like I'm going to have to put money into buying a replacement usb audio interface from a different manufacturer.
The crackly distortion issue appears to be worse than it used to be, the only way to fix it is to set the sample-rate to 196kHz, and the buffer to 512, this gives me clean audio but high CPU usage, if I try lower settings, the CPU usage goes down, but the crackly distortion issue returns, increasing the buffer setting to 1024 (maximum) has no effect.
I'm starting to lose my patience with my Scarlett 2i2 2nd Gen usb audio interface.
Last edited by DrNomis_44; 27-06-2020 at 03:52 PM.
Doc, just a quick one to check, you've not got a floating ground in the system have you? That can manifest as pops and clicks and can sometimes seem to clear up with long buffers or high sample rates.
I don't think I've got a floating-ground, I'm using my Scarlett 2i2 with my Acer laptop, funny thing is, it works perfectly well with my studio desktop pc when I plug it into a spare usb 2.0 port on the pc.
Which sounds like it's then being grounded via the USB port connection. So probably no firm ground connection via the laptop. Use a multimeter to check for ground continuity from the Scarlet to the ground connection on the laptop's PSU power plug.
Hmmmmm....I've got a decent digital multimeter, so I'll give that a go, I think the laptop's power supply has a 3-prong 240V AC plug on the end of it.
Update:
I just checked the short red usb lead, that came with my Scarlet 2i2 2nd gen usb audio interface, to see if there was continuity between the two ground-connections on the usb plugs, and I get a resistance reading that varies between about 100 ohms and open-circuit, I did the same check with a spare usb lead and I get a solid continuity beep with it, so I think the short red usb lead is no-good anymore.
I used my multimeter to check for continuity between the ground on the usb lead and the audio inputs of the 2i2 and there doesn't appear to be any continuity at all.
Last edited by DrNomis_44; 27-06-2020 at 05:57 PM.
But the ground prong may not be connected.
Yep, checking that with my multimeter set to continuity check confirms that there's no continuity between the earth pin of the 3-pin 240V AC plug and the ground connection of the DC plug that plugs into my laptop's DC in socket.
So you could do with wiring up a plug that just has an earth wire running from it that you can attach to the metalwork or a ground connection on your interface or laptop. Or finding a suitable non-double insulated power supply for the laptop that has ground continuity.
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