Question Strange problem with MSI Z170A onboard audio

[saihv]

I have an MSI Z170A Gaming Pro motherboard with a Realtek audio chip. I have been experiencing a strange problem with the onboard audio for the past week or so. I usually connect my speakers to the rear jack - Occasionally, the volume goes down by a lot, and the sound becomes muffled. When this happens, I notice a lot more static/popcorn noise than usual and the audio quality on the front headphone port also becomes horrible (glitchy and choppy). And after a few hours, this problem rectifies itself, and both front/rear jacks function properly. This is happening on multiple operating systems, and the speakers work fine on other computers. What could be the cause of this?

 

[popatim]

Are your motherbd drivers installed, including audio?
https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/support/Z170A-GAMING-PRO#down-driver&Win10 64

Have you run any audio latency checks?
https://www.thesycon.de/eng/latency_check.shtml