Battlefield 2042 Crashing & Audio Crackling with Focusrite Scarlett Interface
I’m running into a serious issue with Battlefield 2042 and my Focusrite Scarlett audio interface, and I’ve seen a few other people mention similar problems, so I’m hoping to find a solution or confirmation.
Whenever I play Battlefield 2042 with my Focusrite interface connected, audio starts crackling heavily after a few minutes, then all system audio becomes delayed (grows worse with each crackle), and eventually my PC blue screens.
Other games and apps work fine - this only happens with Battlefield 2042.
Here’s everything I’ve attempted so far:
- Unplugged and replugged the interface (issue disappears when it’s disconnected)
- Changed buffer sizes in Focusrite Control (128 → 1024 samples)
- Reinstalled latest Focusrite drivers
- Completely uninstalled drivers and reinstalled clean
- Tried different sample rates (44.1 and 48 kHz across Windows and Focusrite)
- Disabled Exclusive Mode in Windows sound settings
- Used Voicemeeter / Virtual Audio Cable to reroute BF2042 audio (still crackling)
- Tested different USB ports and cables
- Ran LatencyMon → shows FocusriteUSB.sys spiking during the issue
- Verified the issue is ONLY with BF2042; other games and general playback are fine
My system details:
Focusrite model: Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen
Windows version: 10
Running Battlefield 2042 via Origin
It seems like a driver-level conflict between Focusrite USB drivers and Battlefield 2042 (maybe related to WDM handling or the anti-cheat system). I’ve read similar posts, so I think it’s not just my setup.
Is there a known workaround for this?
EA: Is this being investigated?
Any help would be appreciated. If anyone else is running into this, please share your setup.
