Noise while transferring via USB

[rdezell]

I have my ION TT connected to my computer via USB and am getting lots of noise. If I have Input Volume at 1.0, the recording meter stays topped out, and the recording tracks (on screen) fill up 100%. After reading another post, I've made sure the RCA plugs are not touching, and I've also tried different USB ports on my computer, both to no effect. Also tried a different AC outlet (probably the same circuit, however). I've used the turntable successfully many times, but it's been a while, and I'm wondering whether I'm doing something wrong. Does this sound like a bad cartridge or arm wiring, as mentioned in another post? If so, what's the solution? Thanks.

[waxcylinder]

Does the ION TT have a gain control (volume control)? When I had one a while back mine did but it was in a non-obvious position and awkward to use - located under the deck at the back, where the cables exit the deck.

Or maybe has Microsoft updated the USB device drivers for you in an auto update?

WC

[rdezell]

Yes, there is a gain control. It's all the way up, so I can try changing that (although it's probably in the same position as it was when I last used the TT). Thanks. As for the USB drivers, they definitely have been updated, because what's available doesn't quite agree with my notes that I made for myself the last time. I went through all that yesterday. But I do wonder whether one of the codecs or other drivers isn't right.

Thanks,
Richard

[steve]

Yes, there is a gain control. It's all the way up, so I can try changing that

Try that first and let us know the result.

[rdezell]

Just got back to this. Turning the gain down certainly helps, but there's still a lot of noise. Here's what I've discovered since my last post; hopefully, it will help someone point me in the right direction. I'm not sure what some of these controls at the top of the screen are called, so I'll have to describe them. When I'm not recording -- and then I noticed this is true even when I have no record on the turntable -- the meters beside the speaker and the mike (the ones that show L and R channels) show a lot of activity, although I don't hear anything through the speakers if I'm not playing an LP. (Nothing shows on the other meters except when recording. Maybe someone can tell me what these different meters are for.) Now, here's probably the important part: The L/R channel meters show activity (about halfway) even when the TT is turned off. However, if I disconnect the USB cable between the TT, then the meters to go zero. This seems to implicate the cable, so I can try another one. But I don't have another one at the moment so thought I'd go ahead and post this and see what someone might have to say about it.

Thanks.

[waxcylinder]

Yes it does point to the cable or a faulty on-board soundcard/USB services in the ION TT. I hope you kept the receipt as it may be a "return to vendor" for a replacement.

WC

[waxcylinder]

I'm not sure what some of these controls at the top of the screen are called, so I'll have to describe them. When I'm not recording -- and then I noticed this is true even when I have no record on the turntable -- the meters beside the speaker and the mike (the ones that show L and R channels) show a lot of activity...

That's called the Meter Toolbar: the red one with the Mic icon is your input meter and the green one with the speaker icon is your output meter.

Tip: Clicking in the red recording meter will turn monitoring on or off.

WC

[rdezell]

Got a new USB cable. Didn't seem to make any difference. However, I downloaded the latest version of Audacity, 1.3 Beta (I guess I've upgraded to Windows 7 since I last used it), and the noise problem seems to have gone away. However, I have two new problems/questions:

(1) I can't hear anything while recording, even though Preferences/Playback/Software Playthrough is checked.

(2) The traces of both tracks look exactly the same, even though 'Input Channels' is set to '2 (stereo)'. I've looked at quite a bit of recording time and cannot see any difference at all between the channels. I remember being able to see differences before.

Also, (third question, I guess), I used to use USB audio codecs as the input driver, but that's not available in Control Panel, and I can't seem to find it online anywhere. Does this matter anymore (under Windows 7)?

Thanks again for your help!

[rdezell]

Never mind about the first question in my previous post -- the one about not having any playthrough sound. It was a Control Panel setting that I had been playing with. That's OK now.

Thanks!

[steve]

2) The visual difference between left and right channels of a stereo recording can be extremely subtle. Try recording a record that has very clear and obvious stereo, then play back the recording to check that it is recording in stereo.

3) What settings are you using? The only connection between the turntable and the computer should be the USB connection - the analogue outputs from the turntable can be connected to an amplifier, but should not normally be connected to the computer. Ensure that you connect and power up the turntable before you launch Audacity.