Audacity Forum

I have a USB turntable that I have been recording LPs from with my old computer using XP. I recently purchased a Dell Inspiron 546 running Windows 7 64-bit Home Premium. The first time I tried to record with this I got real bad distortion. I then downloaded the 1.3.X version. I still get bad distortion when recording. I also have Bose Companion 2 speakers that work fine with all other music.

that machine should be fine. usb and win7 can cause odd problems.
have you tried another usb port?

See this sticky thread: http://forum.audacityteam.org/viewtopic ... 16&t=16111

and this page from the Audacity Wiki: http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Windows_7_OS

WC

Whomper, I tried that and it didn't work. Thanks.

As mentioned in the sticky thread that Waxcylinder pointed to, have you checked that your sound-card drivers are 64-bit?
If in doubt, you should download the latest drivers.

PO'L

Waxcylinder, I tried that and no change.

Irish wrote:As mentioned in the sticky thread that Waxcylinder pointed to, have you checked that your sound-card drivers are 64-bit?
If in doubt, you should download the latest drivers.

PO'L

Irish, the sound card came with the system. Wouldn't it be a 64-bit sound card? Also, every other music file plays fine.

One would expect that a sound card installed as part of the original system would have the correct drivers and be fully functional. Unfortunately this is frequently not so. When Windows 7 was released, many manufacturers were struggling to produce working drivers for their hardware and in many cases the provided drivers have only basic functionality. Since the release (and real-world field testing) of Windows 7, many hardware manufacturers have updated their drivers to resolve problems that have become evident since the initial release.

stevethefiddle wrote:One would expect that a sound card installed as part of the original system would have the correct drivers and be fully functional. Unfortunately this is frequently not so. When Windows 7 was released, many manufacturers were struggling to produce working drivers for their hardware and in many cases the provided drivers have only basic functionality. Since the release (and real-world field testing) of Windows 7, many hardware manufacturers have updated their drivers to resolve problems that have become evident since the initial release.

When I go into Device Manager and check for updates, it tells me that my drivers are up to date.

It is uncommon for a USB device to produce a signal that is too strong; most of them err on the side of caution and produce a signal that is on the weak side, hence the questions about the soundcard drivers.

Going back to the wiki page, the drivers should be the latest available (which you've confirmed), must be 64-bit, and preferably should be made by the hardware manufacturer rather than Microsoft.
Have you got all those things?

If you have, then does your turntable have a level control that you can use to reduce the input signal?
Some do, and others don't, and those that do sometimes hide them on the underside of the turntable.
What is the make and model of the turntable?

PO'L