Only recently - I’d say from Audacity 3, it has been behaving strangely - suddenly dropping the recording levels to almost zero, with no apparent trigger.
I checked all the points mentioned in this thread and shut down Audacity. When I restarted it - the volume was normal again.
Since this issue appeared not long ago and goes away when the program is restarted, it indicates an issue with Audacity. The mic is the same, my computer is the same, the only variable is the new version of Audacity.
Not many people use condenser mics for podcast and other voice recording (it’s an acquired taste ) that’s why probably not many users report this issue.
Is this something you could look into for the next update of Audacity? why does it have a problem with condenser mics, specifically with Yeti Pro?
oh, one more thing, perhaps this is a clue: - not only the recording volume drops, by the quality of the recorded voice changes noticeably - it’s much thinner, almost echo-e, without that lovely bass cushioning.
As it says in that post and above, Audacity may do that when it loses contact with the Yeti. It will start looking for a sound connection that’s still alive and that’s generally your built-in. If you never unplug your Yeti, you might try unplugging it and re-plugging a couple of times to refresh the electrical contact. If you unplug and replug all the time, the connection itself may be worn out. That thin layer of gold doesn’t last forever. Can you change USB connections?
When Audacity first starts, it maps out and collects pointers to system audio devices. If you unplug a USB device, then plug it back in, Audacity is not informed - so if start to use it again, Audacity uses the old pointer.
Sometimes this works, sometimes not.
It is always best to do Transport > Rescan Audio Devices after changing your USB configuration.
There’s two ways to do that: Audacity scans for audio devices automatically when it starts. You can force a scan while Audacity is running with Transport > Rescan.
You can clear one assumption right away by intentionally connecting to your built-in microphone and see if it sounds like your error connection. The name of each connection will appear in the Audacity microphone window. That’s not always useful because the USB “name” may not have anything to do with the maker of the microphone.
Note what that window says when the system is running normally, and then again when it goes crazy. I bet they’re different. Write down the display.
You can also do a scratch test. Gently scratch each microphone to see which one is active. Consult your instructions to see where your computer microphone is. Mine is to the left of the left-hand Caps-Lock key.
Audacity gets its microphone connection from Windows, not the device itself. Other applications can interrupt the connection, so it doesn’t have to be an old or broken cable. We should note that Skype, Zoom, Meetings, etc. take over your computer’s sound when their running and you can’t stop it. These controls don’t always go away when the application is closed, either, but it’s much worse if you leave them running in the background by accident.
And to bring this home, I don’t think Audacity is misbehaving. You are the poster child for an intermittant microphone connection.
When I checked my audio devices I saw that not only the native mic is disabled in Windows (which I knew) but also that my monitors don’t actually have a built in mic (which I forgot).
So I can’t test it and that’s out as a potential source.
in the Audacity window the only two mic options I have are
Yeti Blue Pro
Microsoft Sound Mapper Input
Hi. WASAPI will generally provide a lower latency than MME. It will also allow you to record audio being played back on your computer in case you need to do that.
not only the recording volume drops, by the quality of the recorded voice changes noticeably - it’s much thinner, almost echo-e, without that lovely bass cushioning.
Are you recording Stereo, two blue waves? A Yeti will do that. It’s a multi-capsule microphone and stereo is one of the options.
Your problem fails one of the Koz Tests. If somebody wrote me a really big check to force your machine to break, how would I do it? I can think of ways to make a Yeti sound like that, but not to have the effect come and go. None of these failures would reset when you restarted Audacity.
Describe your system. What kind of computer? Model numbers? What are your monitors?
Has the problem ever cleared by itself?
You can’t force it to break, right? It always happens by itself? Anything magic about it? It always fails after 3:35PM? Only on cloudy days? That’s a programming joke. Programmers have failures they call “Moon-Phase-Errors.” "When the humidity is over 65% and it’s a Thursday…
That’s one version of the microphone losing good quality contact with Audacity. The sudden reduction in volume and bad sound quality is another. Audacity can do that when the connection to the microphone vanishes briefly.
Do you have another USB cable?
I did notice that the USB cable supplied with some microphones is longer than is good and healthy. As a fuzzy rule, 6 feet or 2M is maximum.
I think this is a “printer” cable, right? USB-A on one end and USB-B on the other.
This is where you find out that the cable on the bottom of the Yeti is loose.
what does a printer USB cable have to do with my Mic cable?
they are not the same.
I think that the USB ports on my PC are the issue as other cables plugged into other ports are wobbly - the ports are crap. they are not deep enough and not tight enough.
BTW how did you embed the image in the post? When I clicked on the picture icon it would only accept the URL.
It’s a .png graphic. Uncompressed screen grab picture file. First I heard of anybody not being able to view them.
The older printer cable is the one that the Yeti used. Square connector under the microphone and rectangular in the back of the computer. I think the newer Yeti’s used a mini under the microphone. This is the Yeti with the optional XLR analog cable, right?
That one is a .JPG. Can you view that one?
I think that the USB ports on my PC are the issue as other cables plugged into other ports are wobbly - the ports are crap.
That would do it. You’re describing a bad USB connection.
) that’s why probably not many users report this issue.
