Audio recording: quality loss after a while

Hello,

I am using Audacity 2.1.2 on an Asus laptop with Windows 10.

I try to record guitars (either accoustic or electric) directly with the laptop microphone.
It works fine at the beginning, but after a while the sound becomes suddenly bad, as if it was in very low quality.
I tried to change the recording settings (record volume, mono / stereo, MME / Windows DirectSound / Windows WASAPI), but I always get the same result.

I attached a sample sound of guitar recording in which you can clearly hear the quality loss at 13:00.

Does anybody know where this problem could come from?

Thanks.
Maxime

I didn’t listen to your recording, but turn off [u]Windows “Enhancements”[/u].

What he said. Unless you change it, Windows sees extended musical notes as “Room Noise” and is determined to protect your important corporate conference call from that damage.

That’s what Windows is thinking. Windows hasn’t been a generic recorder in a long time.

Koz

It works!!! Thank you for this quick answer!

Actually, when I searched the internet for a solution to my problem, I found this page about Windows “Enhancements”. I tried to change some parameters to prevent the tunnel effect, but I kept the Noise Suppression checked. I didn’t know my music could be considered as noise by Windows. It’s something you generaly expect from your neighours, not from your operating system…

Anyway, now I can record my music thanks to you guys, so thanks a lot!

Maxime

I didn’t know my music could be considered as noise by Windows.

I do. Windows isn’t magic. The only way it can tell the difference between your voice and noise is the noise is usually sustained…like a musical note. If you hold one note long enough for Windows to detect it, it’s gone. Windows will attack it with a stick (if you leave that setting on).

So it’s actually worse than you say. Your music is a cousin to air conditioner vent and computer fan noise.

Koz