hi, im a newbie to forum, but I have been using audacity on my own for over a year, my problem is when I set audacity to record one track while playing a previous track (software play through), It is delayed by a second or two. I play my own instruments, guitar, drums, piano etc. I lay one track down and then listen to that while playing and recording the next track. is there any way to have it record and play in real time with no delay? help! 
Software playthrough will always give a noticeable delay.
If you are recording with a conventional PCI or on-board sound card, it is usually possible to set the WINDOWS MIXER so that it will play both the audio playback from Audacity and the audio input from your sound card simultaneously.
If you are using a USB microphone, this is usually not possible and you have to make do with either, not hearing the microphone input through your headphones, or hearing the microphone but with a delay.
I’ve noticed the same issue (as I’m sure others have too). I’m using a conventional PCI card. Can you explain/expand on what you mean by setting the WINDOWS MIXER correctly?
Thanks.
@youthx - There is a page here about using the Widows Mixer http://audacityteam.org/wiki/index.php?title=Mixer_Toolbar_Issues
Hopefully that will answer your questions, but if you require any further assistance, post a new message on the board that is relevant to your set-up (for example “Audacity 1.3.x Windows”).