What causes crackling and popping in game audio?

Two main causes: buffer underruns (the audio system runs out of data to play, glitching, usually because CPU load or a too-small buffer prevents supplying audio in time) and clipping (audio amplitude exceeding the maximum, causing distortion, from too many loud sounds summing or a mix that's too hot). Underruns correlate with load; clipping correlates with loud moments.

How do I fix audio buffer underruns?

Reduce audio starvation: ensure the audio thread/processing gets enough CPU time (keep it efficient, don't starve it under heavy game load) and use an appropriate buffer size (a larger buffer gives more timing margin at a small latency cost). Reducing overall CPU load helps, since underruns often come from the audio system not getting time under load, and they're more likely on weaker hardware.

Why does my audio distort when lots of sounds play?

That's clipping: the combined amplitude of many sounds (or loud effects) exceeds the maximum the output can represent, causing distortion and popping. Manage levels, leave headroom in your mix, limit how loud the sum of simultaneous sounds can get, and use a limiter if needed, so the combined audio doesn't exceed the maximum even when many loud sounds play together.

Why Does My Audio Crackle and Pop?

Quick answer: Your audio crackles and pops from one of two main causes: buffer underruns (the audio system runs out of data to play, producing glitches, usually because CPU load or a too-small buffer prevents supplying audio in time) or clipping (the combined audio amplitude exceeds the maximum, causing distortion, from too many loud sounds summing). Underruns correlate with load; clipping correlates with loud moments.

Crackling, popping, and audio glitches make a game sound broken and cheap, even if everything else is polished. These artifacts come from the audio pipeline being starved of data (underruns) or from audio being too loud (clipping), both diagnosable once you know which.

What Causes Crackling and Popping

Two main causes. Buffer underruns: audio is fed to the output in buffers, and if the game doesn't supply data fast enough (the buffer runs dry before the next is ready), the output glitches, producing crackles/pops. This is often caused by CPU load (the audio thread not getting enough time, especially under heavy game load or on weak hardware) or buffers that are too small. Clipping: if the combined audio amplitude exceeds the maximum the format/output can represent (too many loud sounds summing, or audio mixed too hot), it clips, causing distortion and popping.

Underruns produce intermittent crackling tied to load/timing; clipping produces distortion tied to loud moments (many sounds at once, loud effects). Which you have points at the fix.

How to Diagnose and Fix It

If crackling correlates with CPU load or busy moments (or improves with a larger audio buffer), it's underruns (starvation). If distortion correlates with loud moments (many sounds together), it's clipping (levels too high). Underruns often correlate with overall performance/CPU load, so field data showing high CPU load can indicate audio starvation; Bugnet captures performance and reports with context.

Fix underruns by reducing audio-thread starvation (keep audio processing efficient, use an appropriate buffer size, reduce overall CPU load), and clipping by managing levels (leave headroom, limit how loud the sum of sounds can get, use a limiter). See our guide on fixing audio crackling and popping.

Crackling is usually buffer underruns (audio starved by CPU load or small buffers) or clipping (levels too hot). Ease audio-thread load and buffer sizing, and keep the mix under the maximum.