I’m running on Windows 7 and I use Audacity 2.0.5. (and I have the same problem with 2.1.1), both downloaded as an .exe file.
When I connect my Blue Yeti (USB mic), my computer recognizes it without any problem. When I plug headphones in the mic, I can hear what the mic picks (just to say that the mic is working.)
When I go on Audacity to record, the Yeti appears in the list of input and output devices (see pic 1). So far so good.
But then, when I hit the record button, the red arrow on top of the tracks doesn’t move, and nothing is recorded.(see pic 2)
What’s going on?
I have connected and disconnected my mic many, many times, and tried with different cables, with and without an USB hub. And I rebooted my computer several times too. Nothing works.
Sound Activated Recording is not selected.
Thank you for the link. The only possible cause I can imagine would be low resources. However when I record, I only run Audacity and no other software. I still have 13 GB free, so storage shouldn’t be an issue. Also, I used to record with this computer with no problem before.
I tested the microphone on another computer using Audacity and it worked. So the mic’s cable doesn’t seem to be an issue.
Thank you. I changed it for DirectSound and now the cursor moves but nothing is recorded. I had a look back to the link (http://manual.audacityteam.org/o/man/faq_recording_troubleshooting.html#pauses) koz sent me and found a section for that too: “Why do I get only a flat line and no sound when I try to record?”
It explains how to set up the microphone. Basically, you plug/unplug the microphone and restart the computer until it works. I managed to record something by unpluging the mic and restarting my computer and Audacity at least 20 times. Then, I unplugged the mic to see if it would work again. And it doesn’t.
Does that mean I have to plug/unplug the microphone forever until it works, everytime I want to use it?
Have you tried the default MME choice? That is the most compatible host.
That procedure is only to get the device recognised by the operating system in the first place.
Once the device is recognised by the system, the only need for reboot “should” be to start anew with fresh resources.
When you only record silence, is the Blue still listed as a recording device in Windows Sound?
When you use Windows DirectSound or MME, is the Audacity recording slider still greyed out? You must turn the recording volume up in Audacity or Windows.
Also did you make some change to system audio just before the problem started, such as installing Skype?
Additionally the Blue expects to work at 48000 Hz http://www.bluemic.com/yeti/ so setting Project Rate bottom left of Audacity to 48000 Hz may be a good idea. Windows will have Yeti set to that rate unless you have changed it in Windows.
Does that mean I have to plug/unplug the microphone forever until it works, everytime I want to use it?
No. Yours is broken. We’re just flopping around trying to figure out why and how to fix it.
What we expect to happen is you plug in the microphone and give Windows a couple of seconds to “find it.” The Yeti has a little USB light, right? That should come on steady. Start or Restart Audacity and select the microphone from the list of available sound devices. Press Record. Perform show. Done.
Oh. Maybe it doesn’t have a USB light. Press MUTE and the mute light should glow.
That’s how it works for millions of Yeti users.
Yours is a little wacky, so now we’re going for more exotic problems.
I tested the microphone on another computer using Audacity and it worked. So the mic’s cable doesn’t seem to be an issue.
When was the last time you did an exhaustive virus scan? The one where you can’t use your machine for an hour… or overnight?
There’s also the remote possibility that the virus software is preventing Audacity from recording. Audacity is trying to record tiny sound snippets to the hard drive. If the virus system insists on critically inspecting each and every snippet, that’s not going to work.
Disconnect the machine from the network and temporarily defeat the virus software. Try to record.
Yes I tried MME as well. Same result as DirectSound.
Yes it is.
The recording slider moves at the speed it should but nothing is recorded. A flat line at 0 db. Skype is not installed on this computer, and no changes were made to the computer or audio system lately. I always had issues to connect the mic though. When I use a self powered usb hub, the mic is not recognized. Using a longer cable (the one that came with the mic) does not always work, and when it does, I get an high pitched sound in the background.
I didn’t know the Yeti was working at 48000 Hz, because all my projects are at 44100 Hz. I will switch to 48000 Hz in the future!
Just like the millions of Yeti users, my mic has a light. When the microphone is muted, it flashes. Otherwise, as long as it’s plugged, the red light stays steady. And since my computer recognizes the mic, the light is on.
So what I’ve been doing so far is pretty much what you wrote here: plug the mic, wait until it appears in the list of recording/playback devices, select it as default. Open Audacity, select the Yeti (which is already selected because it is now my default recording device), hit record. And nothing is recorded. When I plug headphones in the Yeti, I can hear everything live. But Audacity does not record it.
Yes, from that link.
Never. But I only use this computer for audio projects. The only thing I ever downloaded with it was Audacity and Melodyne (both from official sources). No torrent or anything.
Just like the millions of Yeti users, my mic has a light. When the microphone is muted, it flashes.
I wondered. That’s not entirely obvious from the literature.
I get an high pitched sound in the background.
The Yeti Curse.
Actually, that’s a clue. You only get the Yeti Curse when the microphone is working from the very beginning of the microphone analog processing (behind the rounded grill), all the way through to the Audacity recording. So 99% of the microphone is working; why is there no performance sound?
Just to cover it: The pattern knob on the rear is on cardioid (kidney-shaped pattern) and the volume control is all the way up?
I tested the microphone on another computer using Audacity and it worked.
I’m out.
I can start going down the exotic road by blaming a sub-standard USB connection with bad five volts, etc, but I have no idea. You said in the posts you sometimes have a hard time getting this to work even when it is working. That’s not normal, either. It’s supposed to work straight-away with no dances needed.
I have read on forums about other people having this issue, too. Unfortunately, I never found a solution. If you have one or know where to look for further help, please let me know. It’s not always easy to work with a 15cm long cable
I tried all 4 patterns, adjusted the gain and the volume and it doesn’t make any difference: flat line when recording.
This would be my guess as well. Maybe the USB ports of this computer give barely enough juice to power the mic? So sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Anyway, it doesn’t seem to be an Audacity issue anymore.
At least I learned that using MME or DirectSound instead of WASAPI and changing the project rate to 48000 Hz fixes the stuck cursor issue
Maybe the USB ports of this computer give barely enough juice to power the mic?
That’s my guess if I had to make one. Pre-baked headphone amplifiers and lighting manager chips inside the microphone will run from floor sweepings, but I’m betting the Analog to Digital converter is more particular about its supply, and its requirements are not being met by the computer.
But it has to be partially awake because that’s where the whine from the Yeti Curse comes from.
You understand it can’t be a supply problem because the microphone fails with a wall-powered USB hub.
The Venn Diagram of your problem has no center point.
Sorry, to be clear I meant the Audacity Recording Volume Slider:
That slider is greyed out in your image of recording with WASAPI.
So when you open Effect > Amplify… with the flat line recording selected, does "New Peak Amplitude (dB) say “-Infinity”? That would indicate something else than a USB port with insufficient audio gain.
Do you get blue waves recorded if you use the short USB cable?
Do you have a stereo audio line-in separate from the mic port? If so perhaps at a pinch you could record from the Yeti headphones output?
Is it feasible to leave the Yeti connected? There “should” be no need to have Yeti as default Windows playback device. After connecting Yeti, just change the default playback device to the speakers or headphones you want to use.
The system does make a recording. It’s possible to record Frying Mosquitoes. It will not record a voice performance.
Do you have a stereo audio line-in separate from the mic port? If so perhaps at a pinch you could record from the Yeti headphones output?
That would mean a complete blue/green/pink set of connections on the soundcard.
The blue one is Stereo Line-In and is roughly compatible with the headphone out of the Yeti.
Most new computers have only pink and green.
The pink one is Mic-In. Some computers can force that to work, but it generally produces low volume and distortion. Those two are designed for a headset.
I know I’m a million years too late, but I ran into this exact issue and the solution is frustratingly simple.
If you look back at OP’s picture you’ll notice that they have selected the Yeti option preceded by the word “Speakers”. You need to select the option with the word “Microphone” in front of it.
