Crackling noise when playing Beatport Link in Traktor PRO 3

Hi,

I have issues with playing Beatport Link music in Traktor PRO 3. All songs come with a crackling sound when the bass kicks in.

This is not an issue with any songs played from .wav, .aiff or .mp3 files on my computer. Only songs from Beatport through the Link menu. (Not even the offline locker makes any difference)

The load of the CPU is around 15% (64GB of RAM), so I do not believe that is the issue.

Anyone had the same problems, with a solution?

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Accepted answers

Niiqo

I recently tried new solutions, and I found a lead through this article: https://www.amd.com/en/support/kb/faq/pa-410

It seems that AMD CPU in combination with Windows 11 cause audio bugs because of the mandatory TPM security chip, it would be a Windows 11 + AMD + BIOS bug, but not Traktor directly.

So, having returned to Windows 10 for Traktor to work fine, I disabled my TPM chip in the BIOS, and attempted an update to Windows 11 21H2 again (by modifying the parameters to lift the TPM obligation, I dont recommend to do that because it lowers the security...)

Verdict: No more crackling and stuttering on Windows 11 !!

It seems to be a lead, but not the solution, because being a mad guy I tried to update to Windows 11 22H2 released yesterday (still without TPM) and there: crackling and stuttering return :(

The solutions for the moment:

Go back to Windows 10 or
Windows 11 without TPM
(or maybe the Traktor devs can do something, I don't know...)

I hope this helps other people, and the Traktor team to find a solution.

Note: as mentioned in the article, if the problem actually comes from the TPM, a solution exists at the hands of the motherboard manufacturer by publishing an updated AGESA BIOS, but this is not my case, thank you Asus... and i dont know if it same for CPU intel i5/i7, i don't have one to test.

All comments

Niiqo

I had same issue since last update of Windows 11, i came back to Windows 10, that solved the problem.

(I tested fresh install of windows 11 and a lot of version of traktor : same issue)

zephry

What controller are you using?

With the S4mk3 and the S8 I have always had to use the Asio drivers, Wasapi drivers have never worked for me. I had problems with one of the Beta releases a while back. But none with the current release 3.6.

Pretty much every playback problem I have had is either the driver selected or too low of latency. I am only familiar with the S4 and S8 models on Windows.

elthomas

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/31294#Comment_31294

Hi Zephry,

I am using ASIO4All driver, but I suspect the issue is related to Windows 11 as mentioned above.

I might install a clean Windows 10 on another partition, to see if this works.

Thanks for your reply

zephry

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/31295#Comment_31295

What controller are you using? The Asio4all panel will let you choose many drivers that may not work.

What is the driver selected in the Asio4all panel?

For instance I have a low spec Lenovo Yoga I use for preparation and mapping. I use the Asio4all driver and have to be very careful how I set up latency and what driver I use.

The Asio Driver I use with the S4mk3 and S8 are both specific to those controllers, not Asio4all.

zephry

Ok I clicked your profile. It shows you are using the S8. You should be using the S8 Asio driver and be able to access the S8 control panel.

My optimal settings for it have always been 512 ms for latency either 44000hz or 48000hz. (I have seen it recommended to use the setting your computers audio driver is at so I chose 48khz). And I have always used the 3ms usb buffer setting.

In that panel you can also run a test. The goal is to get a constant and below yellow readout.

zephry

Oh also, since this seems to be specific to Beatport streaming, check your internet speed and connection. If there is any background applications monitoring internet traffic (firewall) be sure to add Traktor as a trusted application.

zephry

Oh I just remembered something else!

If you are using Autogain. Each track loaded from Beatport Streaming needs loaded twice. To lower or increase the gain.

When we are streaming my GF never loads twice and the volume is louder on many tracks she plays. Luckily we keep the signal low. So it takes 4 or 5 dB to distort.

djsatchel

I am having the same issue. I am on a brand new Alienware laptop. i7, 16gb ram, etc. I have 1 Gbps internet, etc. I have tried every driver I know to try, upgraded firmware, upgraded drivers, everything. I have been going back and for with NI/Traktor support for several days. Thus far, no potential solutions outside of stuff they have publicly posted for audio issues, and nothing that has actually worked. It's looking like the streaming thing just isn't feasible with Traktor Pro 3 at this point, at least for me. Posting here just to follow the thread. For sure this crackling sound happens specifically more in more bass-y parts of the songs, and it only happens with streaming through Beatport. Downloaded songs are not effected. I was really excited to have access to mix whatever from Beatport, but it's looking like a dj pool might be a better option until they figure this out. The crackles drive me absolutely insane. I can't focus on anything but the crackles.

Niiqo

I recently tried new solutions, and I found a lead through this article: https://www.amd.com/en/support/kb/faq/pa-410

It seems that AMD CPU in combination with Windows 11 cause audio bugs because of the mandatory TPM security chip, it would be a Windows 11 + AMD + BIOS bug, but not Traktor directly.

Verdict: No more crackling and stuttering on Windows 11 !!

It seems to be a lead, but not the solution, because being a mad guy I tried to update to Windows 11 22H2 released yesterday (still without TPM) and there: crackling and stuttering return :(

The solutions for the moment:

Go back to Windows 10 or
Windows 11 without TPM
(or maybe the Traktor devs can do something, I don't know...)

I hope this helps other people, and the Traktor team to find a solution.

zephry

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/32655#Comment_32655

So there was no bios update for you? Or it didn't fix the problem?

On my Asus Rog zephyrus I have had at least 3 bios updates since last fall. One solved the computer hanging when shut down.

The bios updates were available through the Support application.

elthomas

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/32655#Comment_32655

Hi, I am running on an i7 Intel CPU. So sadly this will not sort out my problems. :(

d_j_m

Oh wow glad to see this, this just started happening to me in the past couple of days and it's been SUCH A BIG DOWNER but if nothing else I'm glad it's a common problem (sorry) and not something technically broken with my gear. I'm evaluating how I use Beatport Link because of it and thinking maybe it's time to take a break for a little bit.

zephry

So after a recent update I suddenly had this issue. To get rid of the crackling I switched back to a different Windows version. I still am using 11. No issues now. I also tweaked the registry so that I update Windows myself. No more unexpected auto updates.

I posted on this thread.

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/35351#Comment_35351

Viper_BE79

Confirmed, after removering the Windows 11H2 update the 'crackling sound' problem is solved.

Extra details: the 'crackling' issue only occured in Traktor DJ Pro with the Win11H2 update . I even installed Rekordbox to test and there was no issue.

Please let me know if anybody needs additional details.

Thanks for the insights guy's!

ErwinC

I'm joining this club.

Using this laptop and traktor + Beatport for months every week.

This week it cracks in the first split seconds when you start a tracks and then the whole tracks it ticks and cracks a lot. Especially but not exlusivly with loud parts as a bass.

And it's only with beatport stream tracks. I have no problem with my Beatport purchased tracks.

It's an 11th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-11370H @ 3.30GHz, 3302 Mhz, 4 Core(s), 8 Logical Processor(s)

I do have Windows 11 22H2, but I think I already have it before this started.

I'll give it a try to uninstall if I still can.

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