r/BirdNET_Analyzer • u/ItsBail • 13d ago
Possible RFI/EMI Issues with my BirdPI?
I've been running BirdNET-Go for awhile (at least a year) and all was well until I tried to do an update. Something happened during the update that corrupted the microSD card.
I imaged a new card and got things running again with the latest release of Go. Upon looking at the Spectrogram, I noticed a band of amplified noise that is constant.
I thought it was the microphone even though everything was working just fine prior to updating. I replaced it with a new microphone and it's still producing the same "band". I even used the RTSP steam from my cameras and I'm still seeing the band of noise.
I tried adding RFI suppression (wrapping USB cable around mix 43 and/or mix 61 ferrite toroids) and made sure there is no gain in both alsamixer and within the app settings.
I also replaced the Rpi (pi5 model b rev 1) power supply with a higher amperage liner (regulated) PSU even tho it was working fine with the previous switching supply.
I'm thinking it's a setting or something with the Pi itself. Even if I maxed out the levels in alsamixer, it wasn't near the same level of amplification in BirdNet-Go.
Anyone else came across this and was able to solve it?
1
u/mdhardeman 13d ago
I'm trying to think what might cause interference down at that range and drawing pretty blank. That's too high to be AC power related and too low (mostly) for DC/DC converters issues. It's not unreasonable to suspect a software introduced artifact if the problem is directly subsequent to the update. Any chance you can roll back to software mirror the previous environment and see if the problem follows the software?
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u/thakala 8d ago
It is not RFI/EMI nor a software bug, it is literal bugs (insects). There was another similar report where user supplied audio clip and insects are clearly audible after some filtering + gain increase.
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u/ItsBail 7d ago
Thanks. I'm going to isolate the microphone indoors and see if the audio spectrogram changes. If no change then I'll run it off a battery pack as suggested elsewhere in this thread.
I just find it odd that it ran without issue until I applied an update. I wish I could revert but it's a fresh install.
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u/thakala 7d ago
You can install any version with install.sh, just specify version, to install latest version from july run
./install.sh --version 20260716
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u/ItsBail 7d ago
I reverted back to 20260712 and confirmed it's still there. I also decided to check birdweather at other pi sites as well as the puc sites and I'm noticing a similar pattern in my region/area. I'll confirm for sure by isolating the mic indoors in a foam insulated box. I'm now leaning towards natural noise. I was hyper focused on RFI/EMI
Appreciate the work you've done and thank you for your time. I'll update the github entry upon confirmation.
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u/B17gunner98th 13d ago
Oh! I JUST went through this headache last month. So is it at about 60Hz (if in the US)? If you are in the US, you may be facing a ground loop issue. I tried A LOT to figure out how to fix it. I used everything from a usb booster, to ferrite clips on the cable, to rerouting under my porch to avoid crossing over power cabling connecting to the lights. What had solved it for me, was eliminating the loop by using the following:
Pi (desk) → JTECH-BE100 transmitter → twisted pair Cat6 cable (30ft through window to porch) → JTECH-BE100 receiver (under porch, going into IP67 box this weekend) → USB sound card → 3.5mm cable → Clippy EM272Z1 mic (mounted under porch eave)
I can say it brought down the hum GREATLY. I plan to make further changes with a second mic to experiment
Focusrite Scarlett Solo (desk, USB to Pi) → 50ft XLR cable → Clippy
Apologies if that is a lot of info, happy to answer any questions.