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Speakers are making strange noise

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Dan0512

Member
Joined
Aug 27, 2004
Location
Switzerland
Recently my speakers have started acting strange, very strange.

They are emiting strange noise, both when the computer is running and when it's turned off (yet has power). What has given me the creeps though, is that the sounds resemble muffled human voices, like if they were talking over an old phone.

I was thinking it could be interference from my cell phone, but it can't be since the sound has already woken up my parents twice while I was out clubbing, along with my phone of course. Imagine the scare they got, they probably thought I had gotten back home and was doing something on the computer, but they opened my room door only to find the PC not running, lol.

It's pretty strange though that they've only waken us up (they're quite loud) on the weekends, over the week I always leave my PC plugged in, but the speakers have never made the sounds then.

Any ideas why this is happening? Maybe the motherboard is giving false signals? Interference? Speakers possessed by the devil :eek:?

dan
 
Someones using a transmitter (most likely a CB radio as they're usually the culprit) and they're using too much power and have a really bad signal because of it. The signal is being picked up by your equipment because of that transmitter using too much power, and "bleeding" over onto other frequencies. You can try to alleviate the problem by using a different outlet (thats of course on a different circuit then the current outlet), using a ferrite bead, and/or moving the equipment or routing of the wires around. Really though, it sould not be you who has to fix the problem, but the station thats transmitting itself. If its a CB, a call to the FCC could bring both confiscation and very heavy fines to the culprit if caught. If its a legitimate, but improper installation of a transmitter (maybe a Cab service opened up nearby?), it would again fall onto them to remedy the problem or be fined by the FCC.

[Edit] I re-read your original post, and gotta say the culprit is probably some type of CB radio, since its only happening on the weekends and not throughout the day. Could also be a Ham radio too, but most Hams wouldnt want to break the FCC rules for risk of loosing thier license and confiscation of thier equipment + fines, although your location says Switzerland, so I dunno how the government laws regarding transmissions work there. Either way look around your neighborhood within a 100foot radius for any long, thin antennas. Your culprit is probably there. Contact them and explain the situation, as I'm sure you wont be the only person in the vicinity experiencing interference and reception of thier transmissions on thier electronics (TVs and radios are prone to picking up really strong/bad signals). If they refuse, go with the government route and let the agency in charge of transmissions handle it, or go the evil route and handle the problem yourself by "pinning" thier line. :beer: [/Edit]
 
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Sorry, I forgot to mention that I live in an apartment building, so my direct neighbors could also be the culprits.

And, the sound that's being made is always the same (like someone repeating the same sentence). And, I think my motherboard is the one being affected since the sound stops as soon as I pull the connectors from the motherboard jacks.

The sound also only comes from the front center speaker.

It is also veeryyy random, when it happens, it's only once or twice a day.

And what does exactly ¨pinning a line¨ mean?


dan
 
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Being an old CB'er from way back.

I used to sign-on with the same e saying very time, With a 500 watt linear amp. Everyone I knew would then jump to the sideband I liked. I could make speakers that were just sitting there make sounds. No wires needed.

The only other explain would be watch DS Channel on the ghosts. Though I think someone is leaking a lot of tx power somehow somewhere, in a freq. range, your wiring and speakers like... It could be as stupid as an old microwave leaking. Unlikely, but not to far out there.
 
Apartment building could also mean an indoor antenna directly on the other side of the wall. Doesnt even have to be amplified, as just a few watts could affect an unshielded circuit, since the op said its only the center channel when connected to his PC. Try moving the PC and/or equipment to a different location in the room, as far away from its current location, and see if that does anything. Also try a different outlet as I said before. Could be that, although you have your own power circuits, the outlets may share a common ground (especially if the outlets are directly next to each other on the same wall).

Btw, "pinning the line" is a term that means to put a pin (needle) directly through the center of a coaxial cable. It creates a path from the shielding (ground plane) to the center conductor, which would exffectively short out the persons transmission. Good way to get rid of those illegal CB'ers, since pinning, if done properly, would be nearly undetectable (would have to throw out the whole cable to get a new one), and if thier really putting some juice (wattage) into thier output, could also result in the frying of thier equipment. Right Enablingwolf? ;)

Old CB'er myself :beer:
 
Apartment building could also mean an indoor antenna directly on the other side of the wall. Doesnt even have to be amplified, as just a few watts could affect an unshielded circuit, since the op said its only the center channel when connected to his PC. Try moving the PC and/or equipment to a different location in the room, as far away from its current location, and see if that does anything. Also try a different outlet as I said before. Could be that, although you have your own power circuits, the outlets may share a common ground (especially if the outlets are directly next to each other on the same wall).

Btw, "pinning the line" is a term that means to put a pin (needle) directly through the center of a coaxial cable. It creates a path from the shielding (ground plane) to the center conductor, which would exffectively short out the persons transmission. Good way to get rid of those illegal CB'ers, since pinning, if done properly, would be nearly undetectable (would have to throw out the whole cable to get a new one), and if thier really putting some juice (wattage) into thier output, could also result in the frying of thier equipment. Right Enablingwolf? ;)

Old CB'er myself :beer:

haha that is SO devious! But brilliant :D
 
Oh, you want to create a feedback loop to give him back his own? Blowing the linear/amp rx filters. Crafty, evil one there... It does put a stop to rude transmissions. :rolleyes:

The trick is to find his rx and use a meter to get the right plane. A ground sleeve can do this and once you find center... POW!
 
Oh, you want to create a feedback loop to give him back his own? Blowing the linear/amp rx filters. Crafty, evil one there... It does put a stop to rude transmissions. :rolleyes:

The trick is to find his rx and use a meter to get the right plane. A ground sleeve can do this and once you find center... POW!

In all of what you just said I understood the following:




POW!


Hehe, do you guys still use CB?
 
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