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The Editor 26 September 2014

Hello, thank you so much for helping. Let me just put out, I am an audio noob. Now lets begin with the weirdest microphone story ever heard. First, let me list the equipment:

1. Audio-Technica ATR Condenser Microphone
2. 2010 Apple IMac Desktop
3. Audacity

Now the main problem I have is a pop sound that would happened randomly, and a buzz that would happen throughout the audio. I went on other forum to ask for help, and the weirdest thing happened. When I changed the sample rate from 44100 to 48000, the buzzing and pops lowered dramatically. Instead of making the audio unusable, the pop thing would only happen sometimes, and the buzz was a lot more quiet. To fix the pops, I just plug the USB into a different socket each time until it works. The buzzing changes in volume and intensity with different plugs. It is completely random, so I just plug USB into a port that works at that time.

Now I have a Rossetta Stone headset microphone that works perfectly. No buzzing or hissing.

I have a unpowered and powered USB hub, and both don't work for the Audio-Technica. I really just want my microphone to work. Please help me, and the person who solves this will be my everlasting master and hero. Thank you.

Comments

dvdhawk Sat, 09/27/2014 - 00:14

Are you changing the sample rate in Audacity, or some software/driver/control panel associated with the mic?

Sometimes you can get random pops and snaps, when two devices (even though they might be set to the same sample-rate) will have conflicting clocks. The slightest error will cause the devices to drift apart. If you have the option, try setting one device or the other, to use the "external clock" in this case, provided by the other device. If you have that option on both devices, try it both ways and see if one works better than the other. All other things being equal, I'd have the DAW provide the master-clock and the connected devices slaved to the DAW. Your results may vary.

Boswell Sat, 09/27/2014 - 16:16

I got called in to advise on a similar problem recently. I solved it by modifying a USB extension cable to inject power from an external 5V power supply. The data remained untouched, unlike using a powered hub. I had been unable to find a commercial USB power device that passed the data through without regeneration but allowed the power to be applied separately. A related problem is to find a quiet 5V power supply, but there are several 500mA or 1A linear types around.

anonymous Sun, 09/28/2014 - 06:11

I have a unpowered and powered USB hub, and both don't work for the Audio Technica. I really just want my microphone to work.

There could be a few reasons for this...

1. The mic is defective. Have you tried plugging it into another computer?

2. The cable is defective. Is the USB cable on the AT mic hard wired or can you change out USB cables?

3. Does the manufacturer give any direction as to which version of USB to use? For example, some USB 2.0 devices won't work if you plug them into a USB 3.0 port.

4. You may have a problem with USB recognizing the drivers for the mic. In most cases, USB is plug and play, but very often the drivers in the computer are outdated and newer ones need to be downloaded and installed.
A. Did the mic come with an installation disc?
B. If not, have you visited AT's support page to make sure you have the latest drivers and firmware for the mic installed?

5. If all else fails, contact AT support.

Audio-Technica U.S., Inc.
Attn: Audio Solutions Team
1221 Commerce Drive
Stow, Ohio 44224-1760
Telephone: 330-686-2600 x5000
E-mail: [[url=http://[/URL]="http://www.audio-te…"]audio-solutions@atu…[/]="http://www.audio-te…"]audio-solutions@atu…[/]

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