Experiencing slight pause every four seconds

For many weeks, whenever I play audio files (e.g., MP3s, using the Groove Music app) or video files (e.g., MP4, using the Movies & TV app), I notice a very slight pause about every four seconds; the pause is accompanied by a barely audible buzzing noise. I'm guessing the pause is affecting all running apps but I'm only noticing it when playing audio/video files.

I've closed all other open applications, including nearly every item in the system tray. Task Manager hasn't helped identify the problem; I don't see any spikes (in CPU, Memory, Disk, Network, or GPU) corresponding to the issue; I don't see any apps or background processes taking up large amounts of resources. Windows Defender does not report any issues.

This is a Dell desktop PC running Windows 10 1803. It has 20GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD C: drive, and a 750GB HDD D: drive.

Any suggestions?

dalchina said:

Hi, try running LatencyMon (free).

If that indicates you have latency problems, search the forum for
LatencyMon
and
stutter

to find possibly related posts.

No one here is an expert on resolving this; there are some helpful posts on the internet.
The cause could be a driver- you may need to use an older one- or some other thing entirely.
You can try a process of elimination by temporarily disabling drivers and comparing the outcome.

You may find there's some utility you need to uninstall.

Thanks. LatencyMon does, indeed, indicate I have latency problems. I'll search the forum, as you suggest. I haven't always experienced this problem--so I'm guessing an "update" to a driver introduced it.

Acknowledged. I upgraded to a new video card a few months ago. I can't recall with certainty when the problem began; i.e., before or after upgrading to 1803.

Searching for "LegacyMon" and "stutter" results in 159 threads. Looks like I have a lot of work ahead of me.

I searched and reviewed quite a few topics, here and elsewhere, but wasn't able to resolve the issue.

LatencyMon identified three drivers that were causing most of the DPCs: storport.sys, nvlddmkm.sys, and usbport.sys. Storport.sys was by far causing the highest DPC delays.

I tried multiple things--including verifying my PC's BIOS and chipset are current, updating the drivers for my Nvidia video card, disabling numerous Device Manager devices--without success. I couldn't find a clear way to disable, upgrade, or downgrade storpart.sys.

One reference that mentioned LatencyMon and storpart.sys attributed the problem to Samsung's SSD driver and recommended doing a clean install of Windows 10. Since my PC has a Samsung SSD, I tried that: I formatted the drive and then re-installed Windows 10 1803. At the end of the install, when Cortana begins speaking, the same intermittent buzzing is occurring. That same reference next recommended installing updated Samsung drivers. I guess I'll try that next (if I don't already have them) but I'm not hopeful because I verified I had the latest Samsung drivers prior to formatting/re-installing. [emoji45]

dalchina said:

- in particular, is that since you upgraded to build 1803, if indeed you have? (Check your Update History).

If 1709 was ok, you may need to use an older driver, assuming it is indeed driver related.

What's a Samsung SSD driver? (See my specs...) If you mean the Samsung Magician, for now you could simply uninstall it.
Driver Update for Samsung SSD? - [Solved] - Storage

I believe the issue began when I installed 1803 but I'm not sure. Because I formatted the drive and installed 1803 (directly from the ISO/DVD), the details in Update History have been lost. [emoji45]

The reference simply suggested upgrading the Samsung driver; I'm uncertain what it meant by that. I have not yet installed Magician after the format/re-install (yet the issue is still present) so I don't believe there's anything Samsung-related to uninstall. (I'm assuming something Samsung-related is what's causing LatencyMon to identify storpart.sys as one of the DPC culprits.)

You've given me an idea: Install 1709 and see if the issue is present. A challenge may be finding a legitimate ISO of 1709; I believe the build on my earlier DVD is older than that--1607 or 1703. Even so, installing any version prior to 1803 (and not checking for updates during the install) should be helpful.