# A lot of noise and crackling, almost as if the signal were clipping or distorted

**URL:** <https://unity.neuraldsp.com/t/a-lot-of-noise-and-crackling-almost-as-if-the-signal-were-clipping-or-distorted/23682>\
**Category:** Support\
**Created:** [October 26, 2026, 1:58pm UTC](https://unity.neuraldsp.com/t/a-lot-of-noise-and-crackling-almost-as-if-the-signal-were-clipping-or-distorted/23682 "2026-10-26T13:58:50Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Dayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3bc359/32.png) [@Dayne](https://unity.neuraldsp.com/u/Dayne)\
**Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 1:58pm UTC](https://unity.neuraldsp.com/t/a-lot-of-noise-and-crackling-almost-as-if-the-signal-were-clipping-or-distorted/23682/1 "2026-10-26T13:58:50Z")

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I’m having a problem with my Quad Cortex. It produces a lot of noise and crackling, almost as if the signal were clipping or distorted. It has the latest firmware installed, and the problem occurs with all presets and scenes.

It started happening pretty much out of nowhere, without any obvious reason. It doesn’t even matter whether a cable is plugged in or not.

The crackling occurs both through the headphone output and via USB.

Could anyone help me figure out what might be causing this? Has anyone experienced a similar problem?

[![](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex020/uploads/neuraldsp/original/2X/a/a65b17dbf888599f59fcbd89525c088e790f55a6.jpeg "IMG 7811") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMBPmI7JtP0)

[![](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex020/uploads/neuraldsp/original/2X/e/efe9845a408af64841e9ba197351b255f3ad0823.jpeg "IMG 7812") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olMG9KeWSGA)

[![](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex020/uploads/neuraldsp/original/2X/7/77f0e7306de6e40274a33a28a10b8767a01edd2b.jpeg "IMG 7816") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQuYYMBOJAY)

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Dayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3bc359/32.png) [@Dayne](https://unity.neuraldsp.com/u/Dayne)\
**Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 2:49pm UTC](https://unity.neuraldsp.com/t/a-lot-of-noise-and-crackling-almost-as-if-the-signal-were-clipping-or-distorted/23682/2 "2026-10-26T14:49:56Z")

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Okay, problem solved! The issue was a faulty power supply.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![MP\_Mod](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ccd318/32.png) [@MP\_Mod](https://unity.neuraldsp.com/u/MP_Mod)\
**Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 4:57pm UTC](https://unity.neuraldsp.com/t/a-lot-of-noise-and-crackling-almost-as-if-the-signal-were-clipping-or-distorted/23682/3 "2026-10-26T16:57:58Z")

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That will do it, glad you got it resolved quickly!

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![MP\_Mod](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ccd318/32.png) [@MP\_Mod](https://unity.neuraldsp.com/u/MP_Mod)\
**Post date:** [October 26, 2026, 4:58pm UTC](https://unity.neuraldsp.com/t/a-lot-of-noise-and-crackling-almost-as-if-the-signal-were-clipping-or-distorted/23682/4 "2026-10-26T16:58:02Z")

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Closed on October 26, 2026, 4:58pm UTC