Turning microphone off on computer

Can someone explain how I can shut off the microphone and stop it from recording while I am recording songs from my keyboard through a usb connection. I am brand new to this and have never used recording software before. I feel the volume is always super low and I can hear myself moving or making noise.

Also, is there a way for me to have my headphones plugged into my keyboard and to still be able to record? It seems when I plug in my headphones, the only thing that records anything is the microphone on the computer. I get no sound coming from keyboard through the usb connect. Why is this?

Thanks for your help.
Much appreciated.

Sincerely,

Kevin

Select the USB device as your [u]Recording Device[/u] and it will ONLY record that input.

from my keyboard through a usb connection.

But… Many keyboards have only USB MIDI (no USB audio) and Audacity can’t record MIDI. If that turns-out to be the case, you’ll need to make an analog connection to the line-input on a soundcard. Most laptops only have mic-in and headphone out, so if you have a laptop you’ll probably need an audio interface with line-in.

Or, you can look for a MIDI application.

If you’re not familiar with MIDI, it sends “messages” that represent the “notes & timing” (and some other information). There is no “sound” over the MIDI connection. If you are using a computer with MIDI, the sound is generated by virtual instruments (software). This allows you to change the instrument(s) or change/correct notes & timing, etc., after recording.

Thanks for this information Doug. It is very appreciated.
Going to see if I can find a Midi application that is free the way audacity is. Was only looking to just record the music that I am playing on the keyboard.
My keyboard has the following:

  • RCA Outputs
  • Headphone Output
  • USB

I didn’t realize I would find recording the music so difficult.

A common strategy is a [~$30] device which converts a computer USB socket into RCA inputs,
e.g. … https://youtu.be/5B1syXpqSEk