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Hello!
I just recently built a 1500 EUR PC and I am having some issues with it. I posted similar support ticket to Gigabyte, will see how that turns out.
Details of problem:
I am having issues with rear line out port ( Green ) on GA-Z97X-SLI motherboard. I am experiencing quite noticeable audio interference from my GPU.
I experience buzzing noise that changes in pitch once GPU workload goes up, for example, higher FPS will make a higher pitch vibrating buzzing sound.
Solutions and measures conducted:
I have tried dedicated sound card as well as using front panel on my case, both did not have any interference issues, nor did I have any issues with USB headphones ( I guess they have a DAC on them ) I tried once.
Is this a faulty motherboard, because I thought this particular model had separated audio channels that are protected from interference.
I did change the PCI slots where the VGA was plugged in and it levied the problem very slightly, I guess because it is a bit further away from the ALC1150 audio chip, but the buzzing was still there, still noticable.
I also tried to change sockets in the house, to no avail.
1. Could this indicate that my GPU or PSU is faulty, because I only get interference when VGA is installed and working on something, if it's idle, it's almost not noticeable but when it's working, it's quite noticeable.
2. Should I RMA the motherboard or is this a common thing? I really like the amplified back panel Line Out, but I cannot stand the buzzing sound in silent moments.
3. Am I better of with getting something like -
http://hifimediy.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=87
System specs
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vWBcGX
CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-SLI ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: Kingston Blu 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Crucial MX100 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 290 4GB Tri-X Video Card
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: Corsair RM 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply
Monitor: Dell P2414H 60Hz 23.8" Monitor
Monitor: Dell P2414H 60Hz 23.8" Monitor
P.S.
Is it ok if my VGA stays on the bottom PCI slot ( closer to PSU ) ? Could the heat wear out PSU faster ? Would I be blocking any airflow, there is quite a bit of clearance though.
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United Kingdom20322 Posts
Your GPU has to be in one of the top two slots (lga1150 only does x16 or x8/x8 pci-e from CPU, so you only have two slots to choose from). You shouldn't compromise airflow on a 290 either
I get the same thing on z87x-ud3h, but only on the mic line. I can't hear it unless i have mic enabled and set to "listen to". That doesn't really bother me much, but on headphone that sounds terrible. Not sure what to suggest, or if the cheap dedicated sound cards have those issues
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I can hear the same type of noise if I don't use some sort of attenuation between my board and headphones, basically meaning some sort of external volume control.
My board has an amplifier that amplifies so much that I have to use a very low volume like 15% in the audio mixer app. That will already be pretty loud for normal headphones. It's as if the board's amp was set up to be used with high impedance headphones.
If I reduce volume on the outside so that I can have the board run at something like 60% audio volume, the noise will be unnoticeable for my ears. What seems to happen is that the noise is something separate and constant that get puts onto the line-out jack. The mixer volume has no influence on it. So that signal-to-noise ratio that is mentioned in the board's specifications is perhaps technically correct, but only if you have set the mixer to 100% volume.
I could not find any method to configure the intensity of the board's amp. Something crappy like this is the cheapest solution I found for my headphone problem: http://i.imgur.com/8Yp7Tu5.png
EDIT: I also had this problem on this board with two different PSUs. It was also there with the integrated graphics of the CPU without any graphics card installed in the PC. With the integrated graphics, it behaved very similar, noise when moving the mouse around, though it had a somewhat different sound if I remember right.
EDIT2: Note that I probably have written bullshit with regards to terms like "attenuation" and "high impedance" as I don't really understand what's going on there with low voltage and high current and high voltage and low current and the amp.
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@Ropid, thanks for a great reply, makes sense I guess.
I updated drivers and BIOS, but it didn't change anything. I wonder if they made any changes in motherboard's rev 1.1
I have Beyerdynamic DT 770 80Ohm PROs, not the highest impedance headphones but the highest ones I have and I need to use like 30% on the volume mixer to not blow out my ears due to the amplifier that sound goes through rear panel line out.
Well I guess I either have to use the front panel or get myself sound card/USB DAC.
Important note however, it doesn't matter what volume I have on the mixer, the noise is always there quite silent, yet quite noticable during silent moments in games, as in I can turn it as low as I want but the volume of buzzing does not change.
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That sounds exactly like what's happening on my board. The noise is like a layer that gets added at some point after it's already gone through the audio chip so the mixer controls of the audio device do nothing to it.
I use an audio extension cable that has a knob for volume control. Turning the volume down like this will completely remove the noise. A crappy volume control knob is perhaps degrading sound so might be depressing to use with good headphones?
For perfect quality, I've seen a -20 db attenuator adapter thingy for 3.5mm connector sold somewhere, but can't find it any more, can only find products with XLR connector. You might still want to look around to see if you can find something.
There's volume control knobs on headphone amps, but if you buy a headphone amp, you might instead rather use that money to buy a USB DAC?
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Well, I just opened up the case and I can hear the buzz near the VGA itself too but it's silent, I guess it's what others call "coil whine" and I guess there is nothing much to be done, right?
And why is it interfering with on-board sound card and not dedicated sound card/front panel sockets/USB headphones?
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For me it's also on the front panel.  It's everywhere that's run by the board's audio.
USB card and dedicated card is just something separate. Sound card perhaps somehow manages to protect itself. The USB stuff is a digital signal from the PC so no noise from inside the PC possible.
If you can hear something next to the graphics card, that's coil whine, but that might not be related to what you can hear in your headphones? It isn't for me.
My graphics card coil whine got better over time after some heavy overclocking. Whatever was vibrating perhaps melted. 
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EPT
