Could radiation cause audio pickups??

[timewerx]

I have a stereo speaker plugged to my computer. Sometimes, I forget to turn the speaker off but I always turn off the computer at night.

At the same moment where I'm about to lose consciousness as I sleep, the speaker makes this weird buzzing noise that sounds like signal interference and it's loud and jolts me awake.

It happens all the time I forget to turn the speakers off. It never happens if I'm not using the speakers and it's unplugged all the time.

Could radiation like gamma radiation cause this? Could microwave radiation also cause this?

I'm starting to suspect there might be unaccounted radiation sources in the house that's been going on for many years. We've had visitors in the past, especially the more sensitives ones mentioning of symptoms related to radiation.

Is there a clever means of putting together a cheap DIY radiation detector off household items?

 

[mama2one]

don't know what stereo speakers can pick up

but when our child was young and we had a baby monitor, we heard next door neighbors talking (on their monitor)

neighbors across the street also had baby
they told us they picked up our conversation one evening

weird thing was we were sitting outside on our front porch at the time and not even near our baby monitor!

 

[JustSomeBloke]

the speaker makes this weird buzzing noise that sounds like signal interference and it's loud and jolts me awake

My HiFi system always used to do that if I left my mobile phone on top of the amplifier.

 

[timewerx]

don't know what stereo speakers can pick up

but when our child was young and we had a baby monitor, we heard next door neighbors talking (on their monitor)

neighbors across the street also had baby
they told us they picked up our conversation one evening

weird thing was we were sitting outside on our front porch at the time and not even near our baby monitor!

Funny, that is potentially embarrassing! 2.4 Ghz baby monitors are less susceptible to that problem.

Yup, the stereo speakers I have can pick up radio frequencies through the long audio cable but the frequency is directly turned into audio so all you can hear is buzzing or humming but not voices.

 

[timewerx]

My HiFi system always used to do that if I left my mobile phone on top of the amplifier.

This is a well known phenomenon. What I can't get my mind over is that it always make the noise just before I doze to sleep and I don't have a fixed time of sleep. Sometimes I sleep 11pm, sometimes 1am and it coincides with my sleep. If I just ignore it, it would get louder so I have to hurry to unplug it.

 

[AV1611VET]

I'm starting to suspect there might be unaccounted radiation sources in the house that's been going on for many years. We've had visitors in the past, especially the more sensitives ones mentioning of symptoms related to radiation.

If I had visitors over, and they experience symptoms related to radiation, I'd get out of that house quick, before I start glowing in the dark.

I'd say that's a pretty powerful energy field you're living in if someone can feel it; even if they are sensitive to radiation.

 

[nonaeroterraqueous]

but the frequency is directly turned into audio so all you can hear is buzzing or humming but not voices.

That rules out AM radio frequencies, unless I'm mistaken. Those are analogous to sound, and a direct transmittance into the line would come across as the sound of the radio, not buzzing, if it could be heard at all.

If I just ignore it, it would get louder so I have to hurry to unplug it.

That rules out digital signals, mostly, which operate at a uniform (but loud) volume. The exception is when interference causes the device to increase the signal strength, especially in the event that someone is jamming the signal.

What I can't get my mind over is that it always make the noise just before I doze to sleep and I don't have a fixed time of sleep.

Something to consider is that the timing with which you turn off your computer may be directly related to when you go to sleep. This is probably more plausible than that an outside source happens to magically coincide with your sleep habits. If this is the case, then you could be having a discharge or short or other kind of interference coming from the computer. Even though it is turned off, it still has potential access to a strong power source, and it still has reserve power in its capacitors. Also, a buzzing sound can be generated simply through a weak short across the line, even without added power from the audio input. The computer may be leaving the speakers in an in-between state of having a bad connection.

 

[timewerx]

If I had visitors over, and they experience symptoms related to radiation, I'd get out of that house quick, before I start glowing in the dark.

I'd say that's a pretty powerful energy field you're living in if someone can feel it; even if they are sensitive to radiation.

It was 20 years ago when I first heard someone reported feeling symptoms of radiation. I seldom notice it but occassionally other members of the family would also report symptoms or radiation exposure.

Whatever the source is, it seems to come and go.

 

[FireDragon76]

If I had visitors over, and they experience symptoms related to radiation, I'd get out of that house quick, before I start glowing in the dark.

I'd say that's a pretty powerful energy field you're living in if someone can feel it; even if they are sensitive to radiation.

Yeah, that would not be normal radio or microwave interference from a PC.

I have a simpler explanation . It is possible to experience hypnogogic hallucinations, including aural hallucinations, when falling asleep. Buzzing sounds or white noise are not an unheard of part of such an experience, and they are typically loud and startle a person.

 

[timewerx]

Something to consider is that the timing with which you turn off your computer may be directly related to when you go to sleep. This is probably more plausible than that an outside source happens to magically coincide with your sleep habits. If this is the case, then you could be having a discharge or short or other kind of interference coming from the computer. Even though it is turned off, it still has potential access to a strong power source, and it still has reserve power in its capacitors. Also, a buzzing sound can be generated simply through a weak short across the line, even without added power from the audio input. The computer may be leaving the speakers in an in-between state of having a bad connection.

I did experience this while fully awake in a short moment after turning the computer off. It made a sound similar to the sound an active microphone makes when tapping on it with your fingers.

The other sound I experience is different. Sometimes I would sleep 30 minutes after turning off the computer. It seems to coincide with my time of sleep much more closely than the time I turned off the computer.

I'd be in bed the whole 30 minutes, The moment I became unconscious it would act up. It reminded me of a hilarious episode of Mr. Bean (in his case, dealing with an annoying TV that can't get the signal right).

Have also ruled out someone playing pranks. I suspect may be related to another event 20 years ago. And sometimes I sleep 2am, a few hours after turning off the computer. Have also ruled out interference from nearby power sources.

My biggest worry if not radio interference if something far more dangerous is involved like gamma rays. If gamma ray is capable of inducing currents in an audio cable. It is an ionizing radiation after all.

 

[timewerx]

Buzzing sounds or white noise are not an unheard of part of such an experience, and they are typically loud and startle a person.

It always happen everytime I forgot to unplug the speakers.

So I don't think I'm hallucinating things.

 

[nonaeroterraqueous]

My biggest worry if not radio interference if something far more dangerous is involved like gamma rays.

I've never heard of gamma radiation causing interference in that way. It's not a harmonic electromagnetic wave, so it doesn't have the same kind of effect. Rather than being a wave, it's more like bullets flying through the air. The Geiger counter is about the closest thing to that, where they essentially designed the positive and negative electrodes as a rod within a tube, with a vacuum in between, so that the colliding subatomic particles could knock electrons off of one and onto the other, creating a ticking or crackling sound. That's not a hum or buzz, because of its irregularity.

It seems to coincide with my time of sleep much more closely than the time I turned off the computer.

I would think carefully about what things you do that coincide with your sleep timing, especially if it has anything to do with electricity.

It was 20 years ago when I first heard someone reported feeling symptoms of radiation. I seldom notice it but occassionally other members of the family would also report symptoms or radiation exposure.

You never stated what the symptoms were. There's quite a range, depending on exposure levels. The mildest symptoms are common to other causes. If you didn't get advice from a doctor, then we don't really have any confirmation.

 

[JustSomeBloke]

It seems to coincide with my time of sleep much more closely than the time I turned off the computer.

What other items do you usually turn on or off before going to bed? For example, modern low energy light bulbs have quite a lot of circuitry inside them, could it be one of those?

 

[timewerx]

What other items do you usually turn on or off before going to bed? For example, modern low energy light bulbs have quite a lot of circuitry inside them, could it be one of those?

I keep my light on....just to keep the big bad bugs away!

Swamp cooler or AC is always on. Only the computer and speaker gets turned off completely if I didn't forget to turn off the speaker which is plugged to a different socket.

My neighbors sleep 1 or 2 hours early than me. I don't have to sleep that early since I work from home (no fixed shift and no need to beat the rush hour traffic).

 

[Mountainmike]

In answer to questions - yes electronic equipment is sensitive to ionising radiation, but it is highly unlikely it is such as gamma in this instance.

More likely there is such as an inductive loop somewhere, eg an earth loop- in that case there are mutilpe earth paths to the same point , Which can be in the equipment itself then a small but high frequency magnetic field will introduce electrical noise which is amplified. Many electronic devices can be the source.

I suspect you're noticing the time it wakes you, rather than the time of sleep. For a period just after sleeping you are probably more sensitive, and your sensitivity is conditioned on the level of background noise which isclower at night.

I did experience this while fully awake in a short moment after turning the computer off. It made a sound similar to the sound an active microphone makes when tapping on it with your fingers.

The other sound I experience is different. Sometimes I would sleep 30 minutes after turning off the computer. It seems to coincide with my time of sleep much more closely than the time I turned off the computer.

I'd be in bed the whole 30 minutes, The moment I became unconscious it would act up. It reminded me of a hilarious episode of Mr. Bean (in his case, dealing with an annoying TV that can't get the signal right).

Have also ruled out someone playing pranks. I suspect may be related to another event 20 years ago. And sometimes I sleep 2am, a few hours after turning off the computer. Have also ruled out interference from nearby power sources.

My biggest worry if not radio interference if something far more dangerous is involved like gamma rays. If gamma ray is capable of inducing currents in an audio cable. It is an ionizing radiation after all.