Hi,
I'm having one of the strangest audio problems I've ever seen on my PC right now, which seems to be linked to my internet connection (of all things), which uses an intel network driver.
First off I'm the sort of PC user that likes to leave the system on 24/7 and power off the displays when not in use, as this allows me to run certain background tasks (like automated file backups) overnight.
After leaving my system running for a few days I started to notice an erratic popping noise in my audio, a bit like static, but not as consistent. After doing some research online, I learned about something called DPC latency and used a program called 'DPC Latency Monitor' to try and diagnose the problem.
The data I collected pointed to my Intel network driver as a possible culprit for my audio issues, so I tried disabling the corresponding network adapter from the network and sharing center, and re-ran the latency test. The results with the network adapter disabled were greatly improved, and I could no longer hear the popping noises when listening to offline audio.
As soon as I re-enable the network adapter the problem returns, and so far the only solution I have is to randomly reboot my system, which I find rather inconvenient, as it also requires me to save all data in all open programs, exit out of everything, and then open it all back up again later.
I've already used Intel's driver update utility to ensure I'm on the latest drivers, and am unsure of what to do next.
The following is a compilation of the data I collected while trying to figure things out:
DPC latency monitor data, with network adapter enabled and before a system reboot:
With network adapter disabled and before reboot:
Network adapter enabled, after reboot:
Output from Intel system support utility:
