iDefender+

I didn’t know this “magic item” existed and didn’t believe it until I tried it!
Eliminate all usb loop noise .. AMAZING !!! (translated)

“I had terrible noise coming out of monitors and I know it was coming from pc to monitors because it only became noisy when i was video editing and my gpu was in use.
I purchase the separate usbc clean power cable that they sell. connected everything and now my audio is super clean sounding.”

I bought this for use with the Sennheiser GSX 1200 Pro. I was getting ground loop noise from the speakers on the line in jack due to the GSX being USB powered from my PC. Bought the iDefender to break it, but noticed some softer feedback from the speakers. So I bought an additional power supply for it (2.5amp 5volt). The iDefender comes with an adapter for this to use a normal DC connection. After plugging it in, I realized the iDefender needs this power supply to take your USB powered device completely OFF the 5v power rail of your PC and instead use an isolated power source. This eliminated the feedback COMPLETELY. If you bought this and it didn’t work, try powering it with an external power supply…

Read if you own an audio interface powered by USB from your PC:

I used this to combat GPU jutter / judder. Noisey output to my audio interface –> powered speakers.

Yes it’s expensive at $60, but it completely eliminated the noise – it’s NOT your XLR or TRS cables – balanced or unbalanced, NOR your dirty AC power outlets.

No, the problem is USB C audio interface (external DAC) being powered by the PC bus.

The solution offered by this magical little device to is route a different (clean) power source and eliminate the ground loop issue caused by PC bus powered DAC giving electrical interference to your powered speakers.

Yes it is expensive! Yes it is worth it! Nobody else makes a solution like this. The closest thing I saw on Amazon uses usb-B and is $500, and I’m not sure it would even work.

I initially balked at the idea of paying nearly £60 for a USB ground loop removal device but, after trying two other cheaper (£10-15ea) alternatives, one removed the noise but at the expense of removing USB connectivity entirely, the other didn’t work at all. So I pulled the pin and bought the iFi iDefender+ and wow, no switches, no gimmicks, it auto-senses if you have external power plugged in on the side port and removes the ground loop noise issue entirely! Absolutely fantastic!

“used from laptop USB and LG V60 usb out …. it added lower noise floor on top of IFiSilencer+ than connected to USB powered DAC (Hifime 9018),than I added external low noise Audio grade 5V 2A power supply and whole package got even better… imaging and stereo space and feel are much better , deeper , wider and higher soundstage with more of you are there feel , dynamics , transients , bass definition and airier highs …. this thing is for real.”

“Dubitatif au début, mais finalement convaincu puisque la clé a résolu un problème de boucle de terre infernal avec ma scarlett 2i2 !
Je recommande .”

Couldn’t be more happy. My USB hum issues are a thing of the past. Can’t believe it took me so long to get one of these and that it was such a simple fix.

So I run a Schiit Modi DAC + Schiit Vali tube AMP combo running to yamaha HS7 and HS8 studio monitors from my PC.

PC Specs :
Nvidia RTX 3090 FE
Ryzen 5900x
ASUS X570I Rog strix motherboard.

Under load or when running heaven benchmark, the studio monitors would have this buzzing sound. Even when playing games that stress out the GPU it would buzz. I tried everything, RCA hum eliminator, seperate powered USB hub with its own powersupply but the motherboard power noise would still get through.

I got this little USB and plugged it, first without the dedicated psu and the buzzing was still there. I tried the audioquest forest high quality USB cable for audiophiles and the buzzing reduced by like 20% but was still there.

But once I plugged in the external power supplyto the USB the NOISE COMPLETELY DISSAPRED. So a note to everyone out there. Just the USB on its own does absolutely nothing…for it to shine make sure you plug in the external PSU and that basically eliminates all the buzzing hissing audio.

Now im a big fan gonna order a couple of these just in this case I need it for other devices.

My nVidia 1080 Ti was causing a bunch of random speaker noise and this removed it!

I might try combining it with the iPurifier3 next to get the idle hissing down, but other than that it’s everything I hoped for.

I spent the last week tearing my hair out trying to diagnose a problem with loud, unwanted GPU noise bleeding through my external USB interface onto my speakers. After a LOT of trial and error, I was pretty confident that the noise was related to electrical ground loop interference from my PC, and that I needed an externally powered isolator like this one to resolve the issue. $50 feels extremely steep for how simple the device is, but lo and behold, it fixed my problem! I didn’t want to spring for their external power supply (for another, ridiculous $50), but used with an cheapo 5V phone charger it works fine.

I would definitely recommend it if you’re having a similar issue, with the caveat that it won’t magically resolve all types of noise and interference, just those related to ground loop interference and USB noise between components of a source device like a PC. Some of the reviewers are openly calling this item a scam, which it definitely isn’t- you just have to correctly diagnose your problem.

This thing works, for the GPU problem detailed by others here. It fixed the DAC noise from my GPU under load. Price is right.

Coil Whine from GPU and high pitch noise/jitter from motherboard.

Playing video games I would hear the video card a Zotac 1070Ti and doing absolutely nothing behind my computer I would listen to wonderfull acoustics from my Asrock Z370 extreme 4 motherboard noise/jitter, how wonderfull. These soul destroying acoustics where all purified by a topping E30 Dac with USB connection and amplified by topping L30 amp, listing to a beyerdynamic tygr 300r headphone.

But no more and this all ceased to exist after hooking this baby up to ifi iDefender with power. With out the power it did absolutely nothing for me. I used my 5v adapter from my old iphone and works like a charm. Big thanks to ifi making wonderfull products.

Solution was this ifi iDefender + power (Iphone adapter 5V)

I have experienced a loud buzzing on my speakers out of my Scarlet i2i interface for years – across multiple computers. It seemed to get worse when gaming or working my graphics card hard – I purchased this out of sheer desperation after being so tired of turning my beautiful speakers off whenever it was gaming time for the past 5+ years.

After plugging it in and connecting it to power (power is not included – I used a generic usb-c cable and a 5v “fast charge” wall adapter for a smartphone) – the buzzing was immediately removed and does not come back even when putting my GPU under heavy load. THANK YOU!

I have an old Scarlett 2i2 that had some bad interference from my computer. I plugged the idefender in with a separate usb c to power it and it works! No more loud hiss or buzzing.

Works great with my Schiit Fulla 3 DAC. I had so much ground noise from mouse and graphics card coming through the usb ports. By itself it did nothing because DAC is usb powered so I had to use extra 5v supply from extra phone charger adapter and extra usb/fan cord I had but did the job perfectly.

“I tried the Audioquest Jitterbug and it did nothing. So I returned it and purchased this. When I first connected it, it also failed to have any effect on the noise, but when I connected a power source directly to the iDefender, BAM. Pure silence from my PC to the DAC.”

Great product solved my hum issue in my studio!

The iFi iDefender is a good thing. In my recording studio, the computer always made strange noises via the audio interface. These noises came from my SSD disks. Whenever the computer had to work, a whirring can be heard. I’ve tried everything, other power supplies, separate grounding, cheaper alternatives (the data throughput was not sufficient), UPS (worked if only batteries were used. Plug in the socket, fault is there again. It worked
with the iFi iDefender. But it An external power supply has to be connected. Without it the malfunction did not go away. I just took a cell phone charger.

The title says it all……..
This gets the job done – worry free!! Definitely worth the money.

I wanted to isolate the output of my computer USB driving a CAD system to ensure ground spikes do not damage the only port available. It worked the first time it was plugged in and appears to do the job correctly..

I have a Topping E30, which receives its power on a SEPARATE cable than its data. According to the manual that came with this product, the iFi should NOT require external 5V power. However, this did not match my experience.

Without external power, the noise from the E30 actually got significantly worse. I was about to return this product as defective, but I had a 5V USB power cord lying around, so I tried plugging it in for the heck of it, and it made a 100% difference. The static/white noise basically disappeared. Whereas before, I could hear static/white noise from my speakers from several inches away, now, I can barely hear white noise, even if put my ear against the tweeter.

I would dock a star for the manual being misleading, but I’ll leave a 5-star review to counterbalance those other reviews that adamantly claim this product doesn’t work. It worked for me, but be prepared to plugin 5V power, EVEN IF your DAC gets power from a separate cable.

I had a coil whine issue that was being amplified by my speakers. Already tried all the obvious fixes, power conditioner, eliminating possible ground loops, ect. This was the magic button! No more noise through my interface! (PS don’t forget to order a power adapter if you are using it with device powered by USB. If the device has its own power, no power adapter needed)

I Didn’t even know how to address this issue at first. My usb interface was giving out thee worst waterboarding static like fm interference. Sooooo I buy a new usb interface, nope, new cords (trs and mic cord), nope, new soundcard for computer ( soundblaster z(nope), different outlets, nope, THIS $50 little itty thing, YES.

COuld not be happier, was going to get a whole new computer if it didn’t work. $50 seems like a lot and it is but it really saved the day for me. I just wish it was out there more so people would know what that terrible sound is and how to get this to destory it. I got lucky late night on youtube and found a sir whom used this.

I had a speaker that was driving me crazy with the bleeps and bloops. Connecting them to a common ground helped but didn’t quite solve it for me (indicating dirty power), so I decided to try this thing. With the USB-C power attached, it cleared the problem up.

I appreciate the information these guys have on their website, USB cable noise is complicated since there are at least 3 different things that can be causing noise (all at the same time) and they are probably the one place on the internet you can get some clarity as to all the different types of issues and solutions.

Definitely recommend going there and reading up before ordering since there are several products that might help you based on your scenario.

But I had to buy an extra adapter to be able to power it with 5v. I bought the one from the same brand the iPower and it works perfectly.

I had a pretty annoying ground loop issue which we couldn’t fix. Believe me, we tried everything. At the end I almost went crazy but I found this little piece from heaven. And guess what. It solved the issue. No more noise. Worth every penny.

did help with some of the interference i had did seem to need a bit more better plug i tried the amazon kindle plug but still some issues but it did make my mic have a wider audio

The price made me a tad sceptical but it has reduced the amount of computer GPU skitter I get when my laptop is plugged in. I do a local radio station and podcast and this has helped me out. Would recommend, despite the price.

This device saved me from many more hours of online search. I had a loud buzzing sound from my powered pa speakers when I connected a dj controller to my PC. After many countless hours of searching, I came across this device. I was skeptical because I only saw one review. I am so happy that this product proved me wrong. It actually worked!

– Great product! The buzzing sounds became total silence.
– Make sure to plug the 5V to the USB, otherwise you’ll think it doesn’t work.
– It comes with a USB C plug but you will need a 5v output power supply. If you have a phone charger, most are 5V output. However, you will need a USB A to USB C.

CONS: For the price, I wished it came with a USB A to USB C cable or a USB C 5V charger.

I couldn’t quite believe it at first, but after plugging it into my seperate power unit (I just used a powered USB dock plug) it worked perfectly! All my signal noise gone! Such a relief. Can get on with making tunes on my new PC now, yesss.

Worth noting however, that without the seperate power unit the device had no effect. So make sure you get the seperate power unit iFi sell, or get your own fairly decent one (for a bit cheaper)

If you’re having ground loop issues with a new desktop, this is the product for you. So pleased with it

Had annoying noise issues through my guitar amp which is connected via a DI output to a mixer then usb to PC. Also use Line 6 Helix Effects connected to same PC via different usb and instrument cable to guitar amp.

Ultimately I’d created a loop from amp to PC to helix to amp. Used 2 of these on the PC usb ports connecting to the Helix and the amp – result was no more noise injection. Able to control guitar rig from PC and have clean sound at the same time. Extremely happy with the result.

Bought along with the new ipower x to replace idefender 3.0 and ipower. Using nano iusb 3.0 and igalvanic 3.0. First impressions smoother top end more mid range detail and more depth in sound stage.Also using multiple ac purifiers and dc purifier to power Arcam r head.

Watch it here…

It works. It legit works. But you have to properly diagnose your issue first. I have a yamaha modx that I connected line outs and USB to so I can control my DAW and record from the line outs.

Because the line outs go to a standalone DI and grounds there and grounds to the keyboard and the USB had its own ground it creates a ground loop.

The USB is also picking up a bunch of noise from the computers motherboard.

The ifi decouples the ground thus getting rid of the noise.

If you have a DAC or sound card that uses usb to power it you will need to buy a additional 5V power supply to power it. Since the ifi cuts the ground and only transmits data

Does what it says it will do!

My RTX 2070 generates this horrible buzz via my external headphone amp / dac. With the adapter inline and powered via an external usb power brick there is no noise at all. Highly recommend this if your have any interference / ground loops via usb.

It works, I had a ground loop issue on my USB ports via my MB, and now its silent, Little to no noise coming from my monitors, The only noise is just some hiss from my monitors themselves.

This adaptor will only work if your USB port has any group loop issues. Best way to find out is plug your audio interface/Speakers/Headphones in a different laptop or device and if you cant hear anything you ground loop may be via your USB port.

If you Finally, make sure to use the 5v input on the adaptor or it will not work, You don’t need to buy the external PSU from the company, Just use a USB charger and make sure its 5v dc @ 2A.

For the last few months I’ve been getting a horrible electrical buzz coming from my speakers, tried everything from new balanced TRS / XLR cables to new usb cables and nothing helped, whenever i moved something on screen the sound got a lot worse so it seems to be tied to GPU refreshes. Found a review for iFi iDefender online and thought i’d have a look.

On the product page it says if you’re not sure what’s causing the buzz (at the time i wasn’t 100%), contact them and they’ll work through it with you. They asked I send them a recording of the file and then they offered to send me out a tester unit to try and see if it fixes it which they did (free shipping both ways which, ya know is above and beyond). Instantly solved my issue so i boxed it up and sent back the test unit and ordered the product the same day, one day later my retail unit arrived and I’ve been so happy with the results and no longer have that horrible buzz!

iFi, the rep I spoke to Connor and the product have all been fantastic, highly recommended!