Webcam woes - TOSHIBA Equium A60

stduc · Oct 26, 2007

A new msi star clip cam is giving grief. Basically whether using MSN or Skype for video there is a continous chuff chuff chuff noise over the top of the audio. The noise only stops if you put a hand over the lens to block out all light. In addition the video freezes sometimes for no reason and on a couple of occasions with skype the whole machine has frozen requiring a long press of the power button to force a restart.

Hardware - TOSHIBA Equium A60 768MB installed RAM 720896Kb RAM reported by BIOS 720364 KB by Taskmanager and 704 MB by Computer Properties.
3.07 gigahertz Intel Mobile Pentium 4
40.00 GB Drive with 20.65 GB free
O/S Windows XP Home Edition Service Pack 2 (build 2600)

So far the following efforts have been in vain.
Use a different USB lead
Use different USB ports
Back to store and swap camera.
Install MSI's latest driver off their website.
Re-install but allow the default microsoft driver to load.

So I conclude it is not the lead, nor the camera, nor the drivers.

I am fresh out of ideas - bar some obscure hardware fault on the mobo of the laptop. But I know you guys will think of something.

Over to you.

PS

As an aside - why are all those reported RAM figures so different. I'm thinking 48MB is used by video and 512KB shadowing ROM?

linney · Oct 27, 2007

Does this Webcam have an inbuilt Microphone? Are the Microphone settings correct or too sensitive in that they are picking up sounds from the machine such as fans etc?

In either case what happens if you mute any microphone?

What speed and type of Internet connection do you have?

Do you have the latest version of either messaging program?

As to your RAM it seems that your Video Card is set to use 64MB of RAM, whether it uses all that amount, all of the time, thus giving the 48MB discrepancy in some displays, I wouldn't really know.

BadBigBen · Oct 28, 2007

Did you try a SHIELDED USB cable? as the CHUFF CHUFF sound is the refresh rate the camera sensor is using, which may get transmitted (as in a radio) and gets picked up by the audio hardware or software (Linney's suggestion)

about the RAM:
768mb = 786432 kb
786432 - 720364 = 66068 = 64,51 mb
66068 - 512 (shadowram) = 65556 = 64mb (which the graphics card is set to)

(720364 + 512 (shadowram)) / 1024 = 703.98mb (rounded up = 704mb)

so you actually see that the figures relate, and that there is no 48 mb that are missing but actually 64mb and 512kb...

hope this clears things up a bit...

Ben

"If it works don't fix it! If it doesn't use a sledgehammer..."

stduc · Oct 30, 2007

linney said:
Does this Webcam have an inbuilt Microphone? Are the Microphone settings correct or too sensitive in that they are picking up sounds from the machine such as fans etc?

Yes it does have an inbuilt mike. Have tried an independent mike and that is fine.

linney said:
In either case what happens if you mute any microphone?

Don't know - will try that soon.

linney said:
What speed and type of Internet connection do you have?

Theoretically 512Kb/2Mb ADSL - But a speed test shows 212Kb/376Kb. Research shows that the exchange is only some 600 metres away (300 metres as the crow flies) so time to either switch ISP &/or complain methinks.

linney said:
Do you have the latest version of either messaging program?

In a word - yes.

BadBigBen said:
Did you try a SHIELDED USB cable?

That sounds like a good idea, so I'm arranging to get one. The problem is the webcam seems to have its own unique usb connector. Thanks for the explanation of the RAM numbers.

Finally found a way to adjust the video RAM. Setting it to 128MB causes the system to hang much quicker. So set it to 32MB which seems (finger crossed) to have fixed the picture hanging in MSN. It also seems to have stopped Skype freezing the whole system - but Skype itself still freezes periodically but then recovers after a few seconds.

Having tested the broadband and found it so abysmal would I be correct in thinking that this is the cause of Skype freezing? (While making a video call on Skype all of the available reported ADSL bandwidth is in use - as reported by taskmanager)

Have also run memtest86 and that ran through 6 full tests overnight, no errors reported.

BadBigBen · Oct 30, 2007

I can only suggest to install more RAM...

any Video capturing application benefits from as much ram as possible...

as Skype is capturing the video, it fills the RAM, and the bottleneck (DSL) just can't push it out fast enough, thus it is possible that it hangs...

Ben

"If it works don't fix it! If it doesn't use a sledgehammer..."

linney · Oct 30, 2007

Ditto on Ben's comments, and perhaps change the Pentium 4 for a Core 2 Duo processor.

Cheap solutions aren't they?

stduc · Oct 31, 2007

I've initiated a performance trace to see what that throws up.

It's a laptop - so can't change the CPU - could add more RAM though I suppose.

However all of a sudden my PC is BSODing
see this thread for details

[navy]When I married "Miss Right" I didn't realise her first name was 'always'. LOL[/navy]

linney · Oct 31, 2007

Are you saying that two machines are now having problems. Is the Webcam a Logitech in both instances?

Time to talk to Logitech if that is so.

stduc · Nov 1, 2007

My friends is an msi star clip cam and mine is a logitech quickcam.

[navy]When I married "Miss Right" I didn't realise her first name was 'always'. LOL[/navy]

Tek-Tips is the largest IT community on the Internet today!

Members share and learn making Tek-Tips Forums the best source of peer-reviewed technical information on the Internet!

Webcam woes - TOSHIBA Equium A60

stduc

Programmer

linney

Technical User

BadBigBen

MIS

stduc

Programmer

BadBigBen

MIS

linney

Technical User

stduc

Programmer

linney

Technical User

stduc

Programmer

Similar threads

Part and Inventory Search

Sponsor