Labdoc

Solved! I had been running the computer without an add-on graphics card. My reasoning was that it was not used for games or any graphics-intensive application. The clue came with LatencyMon reporting DirectX frequently with DPC overruns. By adding a graphics card, and setting Bios to use only the add-on graphics, the Ticks and Pops are gone.

Yes, I am running insider builds. However, in the recent past, I used released builds and had the same problem. The Win Update optional drivers are all installed. The sound card is a pro audio RME UFX+ with the latest driver. There is an active RME user forum and no reports of this issue due to Win or ESET incompatibilities (except my post re dropouts with ESET). On the other hand, ESET is not used by any respondent there. The audio setup is [external digital source] > AES input to RME > digital routing in RME windows interface > ASIO out to RME DAC. So, no actual audio player in Windows, only digital audio signal routing and mixing. I have a Ubuntu 20 machine with ESET installed. I will test it if possible (not sure that RME supports Linux.) Thank you for the ideas

I have audio playback ticks (short dropouts) approximately every 5 minutes with Eset Internet Security x64 v14.022. The problem does not happen when EIS is uninstalled and Windows built-in antivirus is used. The system is a clean install of Windows 10 x64 v.21H1. The problem also occurred on earlier Win versions, e.g 20H2. The machine is an Asus Z370-A i7-8700k 32 MB RAM without any overclocking. I have tried various "tweaks" recommended for audio without success. The only thing that works is disabling or uninstalling ESET IS. Resplendence Latencymon reports inconsistent results for which process is causing excess latency. Where should I go next to troubleshoot?

In Win 8.1, Eset Smart Security latest version (7.0.317), is there a way to stop the ESS popup window every time I download a file? It is worse than the old windows UAC prompt! Update: Yes, it is set in scanner options to detect unwanted, unsafe and suspicious apps. This is true in my Win 7 setup as in Win 8, but only in Win 8.1 is there a large popup notification window (attached jpg). I am running in Desktop mode on Win 8.1, not Metro mode. E.g. of program download is GoodSync, and many other legit programs from their original web sites. Sorry, no screen shot until I am allowed to add a reply - seems newbies only get one post per 24h! and cannot reply to the thread before 24 h.