Spectre x360 Noise

[foxracinginc]

Someone found a workaround for the linux audio issues here:
http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-PC-Sound-and-Audio/HP-spectre-x360-on-linux/m-p/5122160#M66839

Worked fine for me. All you have to do is edit the GRUB config. Apparently this puts the audio device in HDA mode instead of I2C (?!) though, whatever that might mean or entail 😉

[cynicist]

So my laptop has returned, and strangely enough the technician didn't overlook anything... the noise is gone! Well, if I hold the vent directly over my ear I can hear the faintest sound of buzzing, but it's so quiet that you have to strain in order to avoid missing it. It's a vast improvement from before. 🙂

It's hard to imagine what happened. All I did was reset my pc (not refresh, it was the one that wipes all your personal settings and restores Windows to its pristine state) and ship it over. I've been trying to trigger the noise again through all manner of fiddling with power profiles, high cpu load, resolution changes, etc, but nothing seems to bring it back so I think I'm in the clear.

Perhaps it was a broken software setting, windows update, or maybe just having it powered off for a few days while in transit that solved it. I wish I knew exactly what the fix was but I'm glad the ordeal is over. I'm only sorry I can't do anything to help others having the issue.

[benke_u1]

Thanks for keeping us updated.

The only solution that worked for my notebook was disabling the integrated graphics card (HD5500).

Will see what happens.

[jlonomo]

So, I got a replacement laptop today, because of the battery issue that I had. I don't think the shop would have replaced it if it was just the noise.

I opened up the replacement laptop in the store and powered it on, and could hear the buzzing on the windows setup page. The technician heard it and thought it was the hard drive... until I told him that the SSD would not make any noise. He wouldn't let me open another new laptop to check a third one though! He ran a couple of diagnostic checks on the spot, with obviously no errors.

Cynicist, I'm glad yours came back with no noise. Any way to find out whether the technician actually made any changes?

hp_client, disabling graphics is the only surefire way that I have determined to stop the noise, but it is really not a suitable workaround.

I had read on another forum that it might be possible to isolate the particular component responsible for the noise, if its a capacitor or coil whining. If the component can be isolated, some users of other systems reported that a drop of hot glue stops the resonance and the noise.

Can anyone say whether opening the bottom of the case will 'void the warranty'?

[cynicist]

Jlonomo, he told me himself that he didn't make any changes. He said that he couldn't hear a noise like I described, and so he asked me more about it over the phone. I did my best to convey the idea to him but of course it truly wasn't there, so he told me that he would run a few standard diagnostics tests to check that my machine was in good working order, and that it's the best he could do.

I was annoyed and frustrated (not at the technician of course) until it came back fixed. Since then I've replaced Windows with Linux and it is even more quiet because the fan is not being activated by background updates. It really is a wonderful little machine now.

Although it may accomplish nothing, you could do what I did. Reset Windows and send it in for repair. Maybe whatever happened to my computer will happen to yours. I'm a fairly technical-minded person, so not having a concrete answer is annoying, but there are too many variables involved to determine exactly what happened.

[DanAir]

I have the same morse code noise that others have indentified.  The strange thing is that I only noticed it about two weeks after I started using the laptop. This could be because I was never in a room quiet enough for it to be audible, or because the issue developed recently, perhaps following a driver update or Windows update.

Sorry for reopening this thread but the issue is driving me nuts and I'm wondering if anyone else has identified and solved the issue, or indeed if anyone can confirm that their laptop doesn't suffer from this noise - i.e. put your ear to the vents on the underside of the laptop, particularly near the fan area, and confirm that you cannot hear the sound - this would suggest that it's isolated and I would push harder for a replacement.

[moham1]

Hi there, Did you find any solution for this noise? if you found please let me know. Thanks.

[jlonomo]

Hi moham,

Other than disabling the integrated Intel graphics device in Device Manager, I have not found another way to quieten the noise.

I have to say, though, after being really annoyed with it for a long time, I now barely notice it. I do wonder how prevalent this issue is (I have had two of these laptops that both make the noise) but have a feeling that most people just don't notice it.

[DanAir]

The HP engineer I spoke to yesterday sounded very knowledgable but hadn't heard of this problem before.  They are replacing my laptop and if the new one also makes I noise then I think we'll have a strong basis to assume that it's found on all laptops.  It's possible that you need to be particularly sensitive and have very quiet enviroment for it to be a problem which is why it's not as widely reported as you'd think.

[moham1]

Thank you so much for your reply. please let me know if you can find a solution for this issue. I am searching online perhaps I would find other solution for it.