Changing Input Recording Levels (Audio Technica LP120 USB)

Audacity 3 Help Forum macOS
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Hi All,

I have having some difficulty in transferring vinyl from my Audio Technica LP120 USB Turntable in that the inout levels from the turntable are pushing levels into the ‘Red’, exceeding the maximum recommended of -6db.

Looking at tutorials etc it would appear that Apple/MAC does not allow you to change the input level and when i try to move the slider on the ‘mic’ inout it cannot be changed, (is firmly to the right at maximum).

I have looked at both the standard sound settings on the MAC and the advanced MIDI controller set up function and cannot seem to find a way to change this.

The result at present is that recordings in a lot of cases are distorted because the input is too loud. The genre is very centred on low, (bass) frequencies and as such it doesn’t help lol.

Is there anyway i can get around this and get the settings i need to correct the recordings or is it a case with MAC that i need to make the recording as it is and then make changes through Audacity afterwards?

Is there anyway i can limit the monitor to not exceed -6db :laughing:

If the latter us the case any advice or help on what to do would be very much and greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your help folks and if you need any further info, happy to provide.

Cheers and a Happy New Year to you all

Simon.

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-6dB is just a recommendation to prevent [u]clipping[/u] on unexpected peaks. Nothing bad happens if you get close to 0dB but you’ll clip if the peaks “try” to go over 0dB, at which point your ADC (analog-to-digital converter) hard-clips. In your case, the ADC is built-into the turntable and there is no analog level control so there is nothing you can do. :frowning:

You can check the peaks after recording by running the Amplify effect. Your file will have been pre-scanned and Amplify will default to whatever gain (or attenuation*) is need for normalized/maximized peaks. For example, if amplify defaults to +3dB, your peaks are currently at -3dB, and if it defaults to 0dB you most-likely have clipping. (If you wish, you can cancel the amplify effect after checking.)



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  • Audacity itself can go over 0dB internally/temporarily, so if you do something like boost the bass and it goes over 0dB, Audacity will show potential clipping (if you have that enabled) but the audio isn’t actually clipped and you can use the Amplify or Normalize effects to bring the levels safely-down.
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Thank you, very much appreciated!
Simon