Is there a way to fix recording weirdness?

[Diogenes]

Hi, I'm fairly new to Audacity but I've used it to record things in the past so I'm familiar with its basic functions. Today I was recording an oboe solo with piano accompaniment and some weird things happened with my recording. Certain notes (for example, all high B-flats) or parts of the song recorded much quieter than the rest, and I don't quite know why. Additionally, other parts sound a bit like trying to record too much on a cheap microphone (and the one I'm using, at least in my estimation, is pretty nice, it's borrowed from a friend who's a music teacher), kind of "fuzzy," but not due to background noise. Is there a way to mitigate the effects of these crazy dynamics? I understand it's not going to be perfect no matter what I do, but I'm using this as an audition so I'd like for the quality of the recording not to compromise anything. Additionally, if someone could tell me why exactly this might happen and what can I do in the future before I record to prevent this from happening, that would be awesome. Thanks!

[whomper]

Hi, I'm fairly new to Audacity but I've used it to record things in the past so I'm familiar with its basic functions. Today I was recording an oboe solo with piano accompaniment and some weird things happened with my recording. Certain notes (for example, all high B-flats) or parts of the song recorded much quieter than the rest, and I don't quite know why. Additionally, other parts sound a bit like trying to record too much on a cheap microphone (and the one I'm using, at least in my estimation, is pretty nice, it's borrowed from a friend who's a music teacher), kind of "fuzzy," but not due to background noise. Is there a way to mitigate the effects of these crazy dynamics? I understand it's not going to be perfect no matter what I do, but I'm using this as an audition so I'd like for the quality of the recording not to compromise anything. Additionally, if someone could tell me why exactly this might happen and what can I do in the future before I record to prevent this from happening, that would be awesome. Thanks!

if it is that important as for an audition
i would record it again

post a clip so we can hear what your problem seems to be

[kozikowski]

You may be recording Mix-Out in addition to the microphone or sound channel you were expecting. On a newer machine, that can cause some pitches and notes to cancel out. On older machines, it can cause a clear echo, so those are easy to spot

Mix-Out is the setting you need to record internet audio.

There is an assist page for getting into Mix-Out, but I don't of one that can get you out.

You need to get into the Windows Control panel for sound.

http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Recor ... e_computer

And yes, if that's the case, your recording is trash. You need to make sure your machine is working perfectly before your next recording session.

Koz

[Diogenes]

You may be recording Mix-Out in addition to the microphone or sound channel you were expecting. On a newer machine, that can cause some pitches and notes to cancel out. On older machines, it can cause a clear echo, so those are easy to spot

Mix-Out is the setting you need to record internet audio.

There is an assist page for getting into Mix-Out, but I don't of one that can get you out.

You need to get into the Windows Control panel for sound.

http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Recor ... e_computer

And yes, if that's the case, your recording is trash. You need to make sure your machine is working perfectly before your next recording session.

Koz

Forgive my lack of audio knowhow, but...I'm not really following. As far as I can tell, the devices in both the control panel and audacity are configured only to receive input from the external mic--I don't really see anything about Mix-Out or anything like that--so how exactly would I check/correct the settings for future recordings?

I'll attach a short clip just to demonstrate what it sounds like (although that diagnosis sounds pretty accurate):

[kozikowski]

Oh. Forget the Mix-Out thing. You're damaging the sound channel. I need to go back and read the thread again..

Koz

[kozikowski]

<<<and the one I'm using, at least in my estimation, is pretty nice, it's borrowed from a friend who's a music teacher)>>>

What can you tell us about that microphone and how is it connected? Do you have a mixer between the microphone and the computer? Straight in? How is everything connected? Be compulsive. Pretend I'm going to buy your system.

Give us the Windows list, too. Windows XP on a Lenovo Deskstar Laptop....etc. etc

Koz

[Diogenes]

The micis a CAD U3 USB Studio Recording Microphone. It's connected only by a USB cable to the computer, no mixer or anything.

Also, I'm running Vista on a Compaq Presario CQ60 notebook, which is kind of cheap, but overall not terrible.

It's got:

- 2 GB RAM
- AMD Athlon Dual-Core 2 GhZ processor
- Conextant High Definition SmartAudio 221 sound driver
- NVidia HDMI Audio sound card

I hope this is all the relevant info?

[kozikowski]

It's difficult for that combination to produce that error. So this is my puzzled puppy look [tilting head sideways].

The microphone has been working for months, or this is the first voyage out of the shipping package?

<<<Compaq Presario CQ60 notebook>>>

Does that computer have a built-in microphone? What happens if you record some seconds of performance into that instead of the CAD U3. I know it's not going to win any Grammys, but the built-in microphone will have known, stable errors.

Can you try the CAD U3 on a different computer? Use the Windows Sound Recorder or download Audacity again. The price is right.

In an effort to avoid instrumental overkill, do you get the distortion by just speaking into the CAD U3?

Koz

[Diogenes]

The CAD is new, but I tried playing/speaking into it beforehand and it seemed fine. The computer doesn't have a built-in microphone.

[whomper]

You may be recording Mix-Out in addition to the microphone or sound channel you were expecting. On a newer machine, that can cause some pitches and notes to cancel out. On older machines, it can cause a clear echo, so those are easy to spot

Mix-Out is the setting you need to record internet audio.

There is an assist page for getting into Mix-Out, but I don't of one that can get you out.

You need to get into the Windows Control panel for sound.

http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Recor ... e_computer

And yes, if that's the case, your recording is trash. You need to make sure your machine is working perfectly before your next recording session.

Koz

if he has realtek it may undo/override the pc settings
use the realtek panel to make changes to mixout
you need to mute it under record half of the mixer panel

does not hurt to change all the pc locations first though
but end up with realtek as they indicate they are the master control