Question Speakers buzzing in games

[LedAstray]

Me again - another issue I am having with my PC is speakers buzzing while playing games.

It started right around the time I swapped my GPU for Sapphire 7800xt.
The speakers are Kali LP-6 studio monitors connected to an old USB audio interface.
I noticed the issue is somewhat related to FPS I am getting - it happens in every game I tried so far, but testing on Space Marine 2 I noticed that if I put the FPS limiter on the buzz will change it's tone depending on the limit level.
I've googled the issue a bit and tried switching between 16 and 24 bit audio and enabling V-Sync, without any result.
Disabled all unused audio devices - no result.

There is no buzz on screen speakers (connected to GPU by DPI) and headphones - which are connected to the same audio interface that the speakers are - so this must be something else than the IF itself.
I've also plugged both speakers to a different outlet than the PC itself, which reduced the noise a fair amount, but it is still there.
I am afraid that this is about the extent of my ability to troubleshoot on my own. Any ideas?

 

[Lutfij]

When posting a thread of troubleshooting nature, it's customary to include your full system's specs. Please list the specs to your build like so:
CPU:
CPU cooler:
Motherboard:
Ram:
SSD/HDD:
GPU:
PSU:
Chassis:
OS:
Monitor:
include the age of the PSU apart from it's make and model. BIOS version for your motherboard at this moment of time.

It started right around the time I swapped my GPU for Sapphire 7800xt
What did you swap from if your current GPU is the RX7800XT?

I noticed that if I put the FPS limiter on the buzz will change it's tone depending on the limit level.
It could be assumed that the power draw in your build causes the noise you hear off the speakers. Might want to mention the make and model of your USB driven audio interface.

 

[LedAstray]

CPU: Ryzen 5 7800x3d (previously Ryzen 5 3600, replaced on Tuesday)
CPU cooler: Endorfy Fera 5 (since Tuesday)
Motherboard: MSI B450 GAMING PLUS MAX
Ram: Corsair 16GB (2x8GB) 3000MHz CL16 Vengeance LPX Black
SSD/HDD: Plextor 512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe M9PeG / Seagate BARRACUDA 1TB 7200obr. 64MB
GPU: Sapphire Nitro+ RX 7800xt (replaced Gigabyte GTX 1660 Super OC 6GB last month)
PSU: BE QUIET! Pure Power 12 M 850W 80 Plus Gold (replaced SilentiumPC Vero L2 600W 80 Plus Bronze on Tuesday)
Chassis: SilentiumPC Signum SG1 TG
OS: Windows 10
Monitor: Acer Nitro VG272X 27" IPS 240Hz HDR400 G-SYNC

Audio IF: UGM96 (I meant to replace it with Focusrite Scarlet some day, but never got around it, always had to spend money elsewhere)

The issue started after GPU was replaced in October - at first I thought it was due to different USB port, since I could not remember what was connected where when I put the PC back in it's place, and there were some other issues with the audio interface which were rectified by pluggin it in the front USB port "for the time being". Unfortunately the buzz persists regardless of where I plug it in.

 

[alceryes]

Try taking the UGM96 out of the equation. Plug headphones/speakers directly into the rear audio jack of the motherboard. It sounds like a noise/shielding issue to me.

 

[LedAstray]

That's going to be tricky - the speaker cables are the big 1/4 inch jacks, I've found some 1/8th inch to RCA cables but when I plugged them in instead there was no sound at all. I'm sure I had 1/8th to 1/4 adapter laying around somewhere, just cannot find it - if I don't then I'll grab one from the store and report back in as soon as I can.

 

[LedAstray]

Update:
Found the adapter, connected the speakers directly to mobo's line out - the issue got worse.
Also, there is no hum / buzz on headphones that are also connected to the UGM96.

Reading some other topics with the same issue (not all of them reflect my setup exactly though) there is often a mention of some sort of electromagnetic interference from GPU. Is this the source of my issues?

 

[alceryes]

Update:
Found the adapter, connected the speakers directly to mobo's line out - the issue got worse.
Also, there is no hum / buzz on headphones that are also connected to the UGM96.

Reading some other topics with the same issue (not all of them reflect my setup exactly though) there is often a mention of some sort of electromagnetic interference from GPU. Is this the source of my issues?

Potentially.
But you would usually only see this with cheap, unshielded speakers. Not with the ones you have. Have you tried the computer's front audio port? Maybe try replacing all the audio cables/adapters too. Adapters can definitely introduce noise/static.

 

[ex_bubblehead]

Buzzing in audio (especially speakers) is virtually 100% a grounding issue, most likely a ground loop. You might want to acquire a pair of ground isolators (left and right).