harry325
asked on
Cabling interference
Hi, I recently got a new PC, but the fans (2 power, 1 MB, huge CPU for AMD +2200, 1 video card, 1 case fan) were so loud I decided to put the PC in the closet and put all the wires through a hole in the wall about 2 inches in diameter. Because I was short on my VGA monitor cable, I bought a cheap 6' extension cable. Now I am getting shadowing on my monitor (eg. white letters about a 1/2 charactor width after black letters). Also my speakers have a background low fuzzy sound even when the volume control is turned off (indicating interference - to me, no expert).
Through the hole is:
power for computer
power for external Zip drive
output to monitor, keyboard, mouse
output to USB hub
output to speakers and line in/microphone to audio card
CAT5 to router from NIC
Nearby is:
stereo speaker wire on the floor beside all these others
cable TV wire (about 1 foot away through separate hole in same wall
phone line about 1/2 foot away
stereo about 1 1/2 foot away
TV about 3-4 feet away
questions (assuming this is a signal interference problem):
1) what else could it be?
2) what would be the cause of the most (strongest) interference?
3) what could I wrap around my cheap VGA cable (and audio output) to prevent interference?
4) would physically separating certain cables alieviate certain interferences?
Any other suggestions? Questions?
thanks for any help.
Through the hole is:
power for computer
power for external Zip drive
output to monitor, keyboard, mouse
output to USB hub
output to speakers and line in/microphone to audio card
CAT5 to router from NIC
Nearby is:
stereo speaker wire on the floor beside all these others
cable TV wire (about 1 foot away through separate hole in same wall
phone line about 1/2 foot away
stereo about 1 1/2 foot away
TV about 3-4 feet away
questions (assuming this is a signal interference problem):
1) what else could it be?
2) what would be the cause of the most (strongest) interference?
3) what could I wrap around my cheap VGA cable (and audio output) to prevent interference?
4) would physically separating certain cables alieviate certain interferences?
Any other suggestions? Questions?
thanks for any help.
I will back up EvilPrince's comment about the stereo and tv nearby. These devices can definetly cause interference, at least with the sound.
Maybe you should try and figure out why your fans are so loud. Do they fit snuggly in the case and are all screws tight. Maybe take it back and have it looked at as it should still be under warranty (I'm guessing its still under warranty)
Maybe you should try and figure out why your fans are so loud. Do they fit snuggly in the case and are all screws tight. Maybe take it back and have it looked at as it should still be under warranty (I'm guessing its still under warranty)
Is there a power outlet on the wall near the hole? The biggest source of interferance would be a piece of hot romex. But besides that, the TV should have very little effect on it, only when it is first turned on. Check to make sure that your speakers are too close to the monitor (because they may not be properly shielded and can cause the mirroring). You may also want to try running the 2 power cords through a seperate hole and seeing if that helps...it could be the source of the problem. Voltage is usually the primary cause of distortion.
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just call the phone support for the product company. it'll be LOT easier than refreshing this page every minute checking for an answer.
ASKER
Hi, thanks for input so far.
Evilprince and dogztar: yes, I agree the problem is probably the cheap cable, but since I am cheap (hence the cable), is there a way to shield it myself, say with aluminum foil? or metal insect screen or foam covering to get more separation in the wires or ?? what kind of material would be best for shielding?
Rustyrpage: same thing ... is there something I could use to shield the power cords? My speakers are shielded (didn't have the problem before adding the cheap VGA cable( although I'm not sure if the speaker hiss was there before.
Also Dogxtar, yes it does get hot in the closet. I have the BIOS heat warning turned on (and it does work). I have looked into QUIETPC.COM but those solutions become rather expensive. Having it in the closet is just so much more quiet too.
R0ck3r: you mean like Dell or IBM? I have a clone. But I'm sure their answer would be: remove the extension cable or "what do you want us to do about the noise?"
Evilprince and dogztar: yes, I agree the problem is probably the cheap cable, but since I am cheap (hence the cable), is there a way to shield it myself, say with aluminum foil? or metal insect screen or foam covering to get more separation in the wires or ?? what kind of material would be best for shielding?
Rustyrpage: same thing ... is there something I could use to shield the power cords? My speakers are shielded (didn't have the problem before adding the cheap VGA cable( although I'm not sure if the speaker hiss was there before.
Also Dogxtar, yes it does get hot in the closet. I have the BIOS heat warning turned on (and it does work). I have looked into QUIETPC.COM but those solutions become rather expensive. Having it in the closet is just so much more quiet too.
R0ck3r: you mean like Dell or IBM? I have a clone. But I'm sure their answer would be: remove the extension cable or "what do you want us to do about the noise?"
ASKER
Hi, thanks for input so far.
Evilprince and dogztar: yes, I agree the problem is probably the cheap cable, but since I am cheap (hence the cable), is there a way to shield it myself, say with aluminum foil? or metal insect screen or foam covering to get more separation in the wires or ?? what kind of material would be best for shielding?
Rustyrpage: same thing ... is there something I could use to shield the power cords? My speakers are shielded (didn't have the problem before adding the cheap VGA cable( although I'm not sure if the speaker hiss was there before.
Also Dogxtar, yes it does get hot in the closet. I have the BIOS heat warning turned on (and it does work). I have looked into QUIETPC.COM but those solutions become rather expensive. Having it in the closet is just so much more quiet too.
R0ck3r: you mean like Dell or IBM? I have a clone. But I'm sure their answer would be: remove the extension cable or "what do you want us to do about the noise?"
Evilprince and dogztar: yes, I agree the problem is probably the cheap cable, but since I am cheap (hence the cable), is there a way to shield it myself, say with aluminum foil? or metal insect screen or foam covering to get more separation in the wires or ?? what kind of material would be best for shielding?
Rustyrpage: same thing ... is there something I could use to shield the power cords? My speakers are shielded (didn't have the problem before adding the cheap VGA cable( although I'm not sure if the speaker hiss was there before.
Also Dogxtar, yes it does get hot in the closet. I have the BIOS heat warning turned on (and it does work). I have looked into QUIETPC.COM but those solutions become rather expensive. Having it in the closet is just so much more quiet too.
R0ck3r: you mean like Dell or IBM? I have a clone. But I'm sure their answer would be: remove the extension cable or "what do you want us to do about the noise?"
disregard "r0ck3r"'s comment...he has posted the same thing in several other questions, obviously he is not here to help anyone, only to be a distraction/annoyance. We've had several people over the years who apparently have nothing better to do that irritate others with idiotic comments. If it continues I will report to Community Support.
As for shielfing the cable...I really don't know what you could use. Your Al foil suggestion is as good as any other (and cheap as a bonus!) But I have a feeling that you're just getting signal degredation over the length of the cable, and the shielding won't make much difference. This is why the screen image is "ghosted" looking and fuzzy. I have a Belkin switchbox here that degraded by The higher-quality cables just conduct the signal better.
-dog*
As for shielfing the cable...I really don't know what you could use. Your Al foil suggestion is as good as any other (and cheap as a bonus!) But I have a feeling that you're just getting signal degredation over the length of the cable, and the shielding won't make much difference. This is why the screen image is "ghosted" looking and fuzzy. I have a Belkin switchbox here that degraded by The higher-quality cables just conduct the signal better.
-dog*
harry:
Any particular reason you gave me a C grade? I'm not sure what other information I could have provided that would helped. What was the ultimate solution to the problem (if there was one?)
Thanks,
dogztar
Any particular reason you gave me a C grade? I'm not sure what other information I could have provided that would helped. What was the ultimate solution to the problem (if there was one?)
Thanks,
dogztar
Maybe you could save yourself a buncha hassle by buying quiet fans and chucking the VGA extension.