Distorted audio from two laptops.

[JohnDoe1980]

Hello. I have a laptop that has distorted audio when playing at medium to high volumes. I grabbed a new laptop, cloned the drive to it and fired it up, to find the same issue. I pulled the drive and plugged it into my tech bench computer and loaded windows, tested audio, and it sounds fine. What are the chances that a new laptop would have the same problem? Any ideas would be helpful. The new laptop is an Acer Aspire 3 A315-43 N18Q13. The old laptop is also an Acer.

 

[Porthos]

Crappy laptop speakers?

 

[JohnDoe1980]

Crappy laptop speakers?

Tried with headphone jack, same thing.

 

[timeshifter]

Try with Linux boot CD?

 

[JohnDoe1980]

So I cloned the drive again to another new laptop, tried to boot and got BSOD "Inaccessible boot device". Pulled the first (working) clone out of the first new laptop, swapped it with the second and the second said again "inaccessible". Put the second clone into the first new laptop and it boots and audio is fine. This makes no sense to me at all. Took the second clone (Nvme) and plugged it into my tech bench, deleted all partitions, used diskpart to clean the drive, took it out, put it back in the second new laptop, same thing, cannot read the drive. Took a new Nvme drive, put it in that laptop and getting same thing, no boot device detected. Going to return that machine as the touchpad also doesn't work. I'm having bad luck with Acers lol. Thanks everyone for your feedback.

 

[Markverhyden]

It's entirely possible, that instead of cheap speakers, the audio circuits is unable to properly handle increases in volume. I've seen that in the past. Make and model? Go back to the original setup and download some other audio related stuff test with.

 

[Philippe]

As there are multiple volume settings, maybe one of them is still maxed out?

 

[timeshifter]

I grabbed a new laptop, cloned the drive to it and fired it up, to find the same issue. I pulled the drive and plugged it into my tech bench computer and loaded windows, tested audio, and it sounds fine.

If the old laptop and the new laptop are running the same "drive" or Windows install and therefore using the same exact driver, then chances are that the problem is software related. I don't think swapping or cloning drives between two different laptops is a good test, unless they're identical computers in every way except serial numbers.

Pulling the drive and putting it in your test computer doesn't make sense either if you "loaded Windows". That means any audio drivers are likely replaced. I can't see a path where just a drive would effect audio.

You should include in your posts the original laptop make and specific model number (beyond it being an Acer), the make and specific model of the second one (you did in first post). Also include the specific hardware identification for the sound card and driver versions, for both laptops and the test bench desktop.