Sound issues (getting static when I play music)

For the last couple of weeks I've had problems playing music on my PC. As a
matter of fact this problem coincides with my udpated to XP Service Pack 2.
Every music file I now play has an awful static noise to it, you can still
hear the music, but there's a lot of static with it as well. I didn't have
this problem before. I have checked all my cords on my speakers and on my
sound card (which is an Aureal Vortex 8810 Audio WDM) and they are all in
securely. I have tried adjusting the volume on both my speakers and in
Windows and it doesn't help me, hence the reason I'm here. Anyone have any
clue as to what the problem could be?