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[KOandCO]

I am having trouble with annoying popping sounds coming across from my PC to my stereo and/or TV when I am listening to music. They sound almost like a little blip or pop, not too loud, but definitely noticeable... takes me back to the days of LP's, but would prefer not to hear them. My computer is a Dell Inspiron 400 running Windows 7 Home Premium. I have tried switching the sound out options... both analog (mini-plug to RCA input on stereo) and HDMI out to my TV but the problem persists. When I eliminate the PC and simply connect to my iPod the sounds go away. My sound devices are: ATI HDMI High Definition Audio Device and Conexant High Definition SmartAudio 221. I hope I have tried the right problem solving steps. I would greatly appreciate any help/advice that you are able to share.

[patrickmarshall]

What do you mean by "coming across from my PC to my stereo and/or TV"? The sounds are coming out of the stereo and TV? How do you know they're originating in the PC?

The most common cause of popping sounds is interference from other devices and that is usually because of inadequate shielding.

[KOandCO]

Thank you for your response... I am assuming the sounds are coming from the PC because it only occurs when I am listening to the PC. If I switch to my iPod with the same connection (analog 3.5 to RCA) then the sounds go away. Also, no sounds when watching the TV normally or with Blue Ray.
I did some more looking and found a Windows 7 forum that was discussing similar sound issues. They suggested downloading a free program called DPC Latency Checker. I did so, and it showed levels way up into the red zone (1300-1400). They suggested that device drivers are the likely cause and to use Device Manager to systematically disable/enable different drivers to find the cause. I am somewhat nervous about disabling something crucial in that process.
Have you heard of the DPC Latency issue before?
Do you have a list of devices to safely disable and those that I would not want to ever disable?

[patrickmarshall]

Hmmm. It could be that delayed procedure calls (DPCs) are causing your problems, but they are more likely to lead to statis and sound dropoffs than to pops. But go ahead and experiment. You can't do any harm.

Feel free to disable any drivers, since you can always enable them again. The most common sources of problems are Wi-Fi adapters and battery monitors.