Galaxy Note 3 audio popping issues when recording video\audio topic

Long time lurker here but this is my first thread. I've only read one other thread about this issue on here, but there were absolutely no replies, so I thought I'd give it a shot.

I've had Tmobile's Galaxy Note 3 since around the time it launched. Since day one, I've noticed that it has an annoying issue when recording video or audio alone. The audio will have horrible popping\crackling noises no matter how still the phone is held. This should obviously never happen with a high-end phone such as this. The issue is somewhat random, but it ALWAYS occurs and it seems to go away as the video recording app runs for a while. I always try to record a couple small clips first, then use it for the main video, but this is insanely annoying to do and isn't always practical (especially if you decide you want to record something very quickly out of the blue).

I'm actually still running JB 4.3, which is what the device shipped with at launch. I'm rooted and have everything set-up exactly how I want it. All my other apps work flawlessly, which is why I've been hesitant to upgrade (even though there are plenty of FW updates available, including Lollypop). I plan on flashing the stock version of Lollypop in the near future and then re-rooting the device. But this audio issue appears to be a hardware problem because it occurs regardless of the recording app I use. Has anyone found a way around this issue, or at least a workaround of some sort? I can't believe a phone this popular has such a horrible audio issue and none of the big reviews mentioned it at all. This leads me to believe not every device is affected, although a Google search does confirm I'm not alone.

I would appreciate any advice at all. Thanks.