hmmmm - so what do I plug the headphones into? Some kind of amplifier? I was just getting used to a nice pair I found at Sweetwater (in my price range!) Tascam. would another piece of equipment fit in my wee studio? o dear.
Hope you do get a chance to check out my finished book (sometime this summer! at this rate!) you can also visit my site, survision.org, where I am about to post a chapter, using the handy hum remover. 
Linda
what do I plug the headphones into?
I rolled back through the forum messages and you never told us what your microphone or recording system is.
What is it? Descriptions and model numbers welcome.
Koz
I have a 2012 13-inch Macbook Pro running High Sierra OS 10.13.2 - a microphone on loan Lewitt DGT650, and Tascam TH-02 headphones (jack goes into the MacBook) And Audacity 2.3.3
Iām afraid this set up is partially prehistoricā¦Iām working in the corner of a closet measuring 2.5āā by 4ā and approx 7.5 ā high
At least, Iām having fun; and genuinely want to do this workā¦thanks again!
Linda
just did a short recording (posting it to survision.org today) While it met peak value (3.8) it was 28.6 RMS and 59.6 Noise floor
I ran Filter Curve as specified, RMS Normalize (target RMS -20) and Limiter (3.5) got all of it to work, but still heard a hum, ran remover as directed, still heard noise on the clip so ran noise reduction of the beast, then it sounded (to my ear) much better overall. 3.4 peak, RMS 20.4 and noise floor 76.7. (is this too quiet?)
gonna go outside and enjoy sunshine now ! 
thx,
Linda
and a pop filter, of course!
noise floor 76.7. (is this too quiet?)
No. The Audiobook noise limit is -60dB and itās recommended you hit it at least five dB quieter than that at -65dB. Youāre at -76dB.
These are the relationships.
It doesnāt count if you go āDiving For Noise.ā Set the listening system for normal performance volume and leave it there during the background sound. Some New Users crank the volume all the way up and complain about the āHigh Noise Level.ā Itās not high. Youāre listening wrong.
This is the address for your microphone manual if you didnāt get a paper version.
The microphone has a place to plug in headphones so you can listen to yourself correctly as you perform. It says so. Whatās less clear is how you have to adjust the settings to do that. That can be your weekend chore.
Thereās also a way to listen to computer playback so you never have to move the headphone cable.
Koz
Hello again Koz, just as a followup - I turned off my refrigerator indoors (I have another outdoors at the opposite end of the un-insulated house that I left on) turning off the indoor fridge did NOT make a difference! In fact the ACX check on the original clip was -55, louder than when Iāve recorded with this fridge on.
I did all the mastering steps, including hum remover and still had a buzz on the clip; when I ran the noise reduction, it went away. Noise floor dropped to 58 with hum remover, then 72 with noise reduction.
Do I have a very loud, humming rat in the walls somewhere? Next Iāll try turning off the outdoor fridge. This is going to be a problem if I ever record anything long, as we rely on our frozen foods out here in the wildernessā¦
Is there something else Iām missing? Thanks 
Warmly,
Linda
Ah, thanks for the homework!
pluggin in the mic cable is not self-evident, I will look at the manual. Thank you again!
Linda
except I donāt appear to have
breakout box with a microphone portā¦
boy do I feel stoooooopid!
I donāt appear to have breakout box with a microphone portā¦
I need to read through it again. You have the advantage of having the actual microphone in your hand. I have to imagine whatās going on from the instructions.
There are microphones such as the G-Track with a headphone connection in its base. I assumed thatās how this one worked.
~~
Itās the tallest day of the year. We have Marine Layer. I really wanted to see where the sun set now that there are new buildings in the neighborhood. I used to have the shadows marked.
Koz
Yes! sun is setting here now, at the farthest point north - no shadows but different points on the ocean horizon throughout the year. Enjoy!
