Recording while simultaneously playing the 1st track?

[Zarumaan]

Why is audacity always and only recording what my computer is currently playing? It doesn't matter what input i select, my computer will record whatever is playing on my computer. I can record my voice normally using my mic only when nothing else is playing. In preferences, I already ticked the "play other tracks while recording new one" box. But when I want to do a voiceover over my first track, my computer will not only record my voice but also record the upper track. Ultimately, I want to be able to play the first track while recording ONLY my voice in the second track! I already read the wiki page on toolbar mixer. It didn't help! For details on this question, please go to this question I posted earlier but no one has yet answered http://audacityteam.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=4007

[kozikowski]

Your machine is recording "Mix Out" or "What You Hear" in addition to the desired show. Sound In and Sound Out are two different sound devices on Windows (and Linux) machines. Each device can play and record with any other device, so normal people will never ever figure out what's going on.

Most people getting stuck in Windows Contral Panel Hell get echoes because the same sound shows up more than once, once through each device.

Have you been to the Windows info page?

http://audacityteam.org/wiki/index.php? ... trol_Panel

Koz

[kozikowski]

OK, so you have been there already.

I would go to all the control panels they will let you access and turn everything off. Forget the speakers for a minute and go with the bouncing light sound meters.

In earlier Windows versions, they would let you into the RECORD and the PLAY panels independently because they really are two different things. I know how this works and I still get burned with sound showing up in the wrong place or wrong time--or both.

If you do figure this out, you can write it up as a wiki page and we'll post it for everybody else. It's freeware. There is no "they."

Koz

[Zarumaan]

Thanks for your reply. I haven't figured it out yet but there's one thing I noticed with my computer that is not the same as the one at work. In the "Sound and Audio Devices Properties->Audio->Sound Recording->Volume section, the Microphone and Line-in are shown but are not controllable. Likewise, in the Realtek control panel, in the Sound recording section, the microphone and line-in can't be moved around despite not being muted I don't know if this has anything to do with my problem or not?

Basically what I do now is I record the backing track first and then I have to record my vocals isolately without listening to my prerecorded backing track. It's very difficult to keep the tempo and stuff of my vocals on time without hearing the backing track simultaneously

I'm using a HP Pavilion 6850l by the way.