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So I had just recently bought this microphone and when I connected it I started recording some test audio. But when I played back the audio I can hear some weird noise. I don't know if its because something is interfering or if I hooked it up wrong. Can anyone help me?

Comments

DonnyThompson Mon, 10/24/2016 - 01:45

Itzugia, post: 442542, member: 50055 wrote: The other way?

Kurt was having fun at your expense - and taking a bit of a friendly jab at you - in that the mic you're talking about having problems with is as likely as cheap and as bad-sounding of a mic as you could probably ever get.
Based on what I've read, this mic is a toy, and is designed for "fun"; such as hobby-level home recording, or karaoke purposes, etc., and is not meant for any serious type of recording where a quality sound is expected.

Its description - which is laughable at best - as a "studio condenser microphone", is misleading, because with the word "studio", it implies a certain quality ... that it can be used to get professional results, but I can tell you that no pro studio would ever use a mic of this low caliber. You're just gonna have to trust me on that one. ;)

Without knowing the specifics of your situation ( which you didn't give ) as to things like your audio capture device, whether or not it has the necessary phantom power for a condenser mic, how much gain the preamp has, what type of connection it has to your computer's audio i/o ( USB, XLR) your computer's specs, the program you are using to record with, etc.,... it's a fair bet that what you are hearing is simply the result of a toy, and what you get when you purchase a microphone for $20 and expect it to sound good.

Mass-produced, using the absolute cheapest materials and components possible, it's probably not even broken... it's just most likely the mic itself that just sounds, well, "bad", although without having the other info mentioned above, that's just an educated guess. And, because it's so cheaply made, you may have gotten one that is "broken" somehow - could be a bad wire, or a faulty internal connection or component - because cheaply made stuff will have these problems. You spent roughly $20, give or take, and the quality you get is directly connected to the money you spend... and this can be said for virtually anything, really.... especially anything that is mass-produced, and using the cheapest materials and labor possible.

None of this is your fault, per se', or meant to offend you -as you are obviously a beginner, and very new to recording, so your experience level with audio equipment is non-existent at this point, and it sounds as if you don't have a lot of money to spend, either.

We were all beginners once, and we all had to learn from mistakes, and from the advice and suggestion of others, so perhaps in the future, you should seek out the advice of people who know about these things before you spend any money. (?)

Take the mic back, get a refund, and then come back here and talk to us about what it is that you want to do, what you have to spend ( realistically speaking, please don't say $20, okay? ) and what you hope to accomplish.
We can offer some advice as to how you can do it, and sound the best way possible, for the low amount of money you have to spend.

Oh, and Welcome to RO. :)

-donny

Itzugia Mon, 10/24/2016 - 02:15

DonnyThompson, post: 442543, member: 46114 wrote: Kurt was having fun at your expense - and taking a bit of a friendly jab at you - in that the mic you're talking about having problems with is as likely as cheap and as bad-sounding of a mic as you could probably ever get.
Based on what I've read, this mic is a toy, and is designed for "fun"; such as hobby-level home recording, or karaoke purposes, etc., and is not meant for any serious type of recording where a quality sound is expected.

Its description - which is laughable at best - as a "studio condenser microphone", is misleading, because with the word "studio", it implies a certain quality ... that it can be used to get professional results, but I can tell you that no pro studio would ever use a mic of this low caliber. You're just gonna have to trust me on that one. ;)

Without knowing the specifics of your situation ( which you didn't give ) as to things like your audio capture device, whether or not it has the necessary phantom power for a condenser mic, how much gain the preamp has, what type of connection it has to your computer's audio i/o ( USB, XLR) your computer's specs, the program you are using to record with, etc.,... it's a fair bet that what you are hearing is simply the result of a toy, and what you get when you purchase a microphone for $20 and expect it to sound good.

Mass-produced, using the absolute cheapest materials and components possible, it's probably not even broken... it's just most likely the mic itself that just sounds, well, "bad", although without having the other info mentioned above, that's just an educated guess. And, because it's so cheaply made, you may have gotten one that is "broken" somehow - could be a bad wire, or a faulty internal connection or component - because cheaply made stuff will have these problems. You spent roughly $20, give or take, and the quality you get is directly connected to the money you spend... and this can be said for virtually anything, really.... especially anything that is mass-produced, and using the cheapest materials and labor possible.

None of this is your fault, per se', or meant to offend you -as you are obviously a beginner, and very new to recording, so your experience level with audio equipment is non-existent at this point, and it sounds as if you don't have a lot of money to spend, either.

We were all beginners once, and we all had to learn from mistakes, and from the advice and suggestion of others, so perhaps in the future, you should seek out the advice of people who know about these things before you spend any money. (?)

Take the mic back, get a refund, and then come back here and talk to us about what it is that you want to do, what you have to spend ( realistically speaking, please don't say $20, okay? ) and what you hope to accomplish.
We can offer some advice as to how you can do it, and sound the best way possible, for the low amount of money you have to spend.

Oh, and Welcome to RO. :)

-donny

Well the microphone came with a usb to it. I had originally spent $47 on it through a app called "Wish" I had read the reviews on it and everyone said it works fine and did not experience any problems with it. I posted this on Yahoo Answers as well and they said its probably because of my 3.5mm adapter that it had came with. But if what you are saying is true then what is a good quality microphone that I could use? I still have my previous Blue Snowball microphone but should I get a better one to that? Thanks for the information also I really appreciate it.

KurtFoster Mon, 10/24/2016 - 08:03

Itzugia, post: 442542, member: 50055 wrote: The other way?

i was having a bit of fun at your expense. to me doesn't matter how much the mic cost though. what i was poking at was the lack of details you included. you asked if you were hooking it up incorrectly while you failed to say how you were hooking it up. i had to make fun!

let me ask this. does the Blue mic work right? if so why do you want to use this other mic?

you said the mic you bought is USB? why do you want to hook it up with an 1/8" adapter?

Itzugia Mon, 10/24/2016 - 10:02

Kurt Foster, post: 442551, member: 7836 wrote: i was having a bit of fun at your expense. to me doesn't matter how much the mic cost though. what i was poking at was the lack of details you included. you asked if you were hooking it up incorrectly while you failed to say how you were hooking it up. i had to make fun!

let me ask this. does the Blue mic work right? if so why do you want to use this other mic?

you said the mic you bought is USB? why do you want to hook it up with an 1/8" adapter?

Sorry haha I'm a big idiot when it comes to these things. In all honesty I don't know all the basics of hooking up any audio equipment, what size is best, best quality, and all of that. And yes it does work right but I thought that if I had bought this mic it would give me better quality and a more professional look.

Itzugia Mon, 10/24/2016 - 10:22

Kurt Foster, post: 442555, member: 7836 wrote: i doubt that a $20 mic will sound better although it might look better but what are you doing? recording or taking pictures? try the new mic with the sb connection and then let us know how that worked.

I am just recording gameplay mostly. When I saw the reviews I thought that this mic was good. So I bought it for $47

pcrecord Mon, 10/24/2016 - 11:25

Itzugia, post: 442556, member: 50055 wrote: I am just recording gameplay mostly. When I saw the reviews I thought that this mic was good. So I bought it for $47

Mics with usb connexion or 3.5mm for inboard soundcard aren't ideal but can do amateur jobs.
Recording studios turn to dedicated audio interfaces and better built microphones and mostly operate in tuned rooms with better acoustics than your average bedroom.

That said, before discarting your mic. See if the noise go away if you move it around. If the electronics are not well isolated you can pickup noise near monitors or ac adapters.
Also, make sure to speak very close to it (6 to 9 inches) and in front of it.
Last, your mic might have an included compression feature that will bring up a lot of room noises.. check the drivers ..