Rod knock noise coming from engine

Loud lifter or rod tapping on drivers side of engine. I first thought it was a collapsed lifter so i installed a new Nissan set even though the old ones seemed fine. No change. Then I checked the rod bearings sure to find one bad. They looked great, all within tolerance, but I installed a new set anyway. Put it all back together noise still there. Been driving it with the OBDII hooked up and found the noise comes and goes with ignition timing. Driving easy the advance is thirty four to forty two degrees noise is loud. The harder you drive it the quieter it gets. WOT adv at eighteen degrees no noise. Heavy acceleration adv at 20 to 28 degrees no noise.
Can the ECM be the problem by advancing the timing too much? It is a metal to metal noise. Definitely not a pinging octane type noise.