Large Transport; Low Wing; 2 Turbojet Eng
Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Air Traffic Control Time Certified In Pos 1 (yrs) 4
Communication Breakdown; Troubleshooting
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
Air Traffic Control Provided Assistance
ATC Equipment / Nav Facility / Buildings; Weather
Working Cambridge with decent traffic. Was having issues with the frequency; which is a common problem at Cambridge when there is a lot of moisture in the atmosphere; and it was a very foggy morning so that was the case today. A large amount of static made it very hard to hear aircraft; especially north and south over the Hudson Valley and on the east side by Concord. I heard someone check on but did not hear the callsign. I asked the aircraft to say again. Aircraft X checked on; and during his check on there was a loud tone; similar to when a microphone is brought too close to a speaker. I acknowledged the transmission and climbed the aircraft. A similar tone occurred on the readback. I did not advise Aircraft X of the tone; as I believed the issue was on our end due to the aforementioned long-term frequency issues. Looking back; the tone might have been an equipment issue on Aircraft X; I suspect this due to the nature of the tone and its dissimilarity to other tone incidents I have experienced at Cambridge. I was relieved almost immediately after the tone incident; and advised the relieving Controller of the frequency issues.This event; which was a combination of major frequency static and two tone incidents; happened due to the long-term frequency issues at Cambridge; which are a known problem to the Controllers and Tech Operations. Tech Operations has tried for years to fix these issues; to no avail.The tone incident itself may have been caused by interference of some kind on the Aircraft X flight deck; but I am unable to verify this. Regardless of this; it is my understanding the communications equipment is supposed to have volume limiters in it to protect Controller's hearing.The frequency needs to be replaced. Tech Operations has done everything they can think of to my understanding to fix it; to no avail. The frequency has issues most often during weather events with a lot of moisture in the air; which is when we are at our busiest and most complex. This presents a major safety hazard when we cannot hear aircraft. Additionally; the frequent tone incidents stand to damage Controllers' hearing over time; which is also a safety hazard.
ZBW Controller reported a frequency problem related to weather issues.