Audacity Forum

I've started creating a podcast with a colleague and so far have recorded three episodes using a single USB stick mike. Recording and editing on Audacity on my MacBook.

I'd like to be able to use two headphone mikes, so we can monitor the sound, but my understanding is that only one USB audio input device can be used at one time. I'd also like to be able to add remote "guests" through Skype.

So, ideally, I'm using at least three import sources.

I went to the Apple store and found audio mixers ranging from $120 to $600 but none of them seemed to have the capacity for two-mike inputs.

Plus, it seems to me that Audacity lets you choose only one audio input at a time.

So any suggestions here? It's just talking, so I'm not overly concerned about the best sound quality. Also, if these podcasts are any good, I'm going to pitch the idea to my employer and get them to pay for equipment, so I'm not looking to spend a ton of money at this point. If there's any way for me to use the USB headset microphones that I already have, I'd prefer that rather than going out and buying more microphones.

I'm not a Mac user, but apparently there is a feature in the OS X sound system called "Aggregate Device". What this does is to allow multiple "sound cards" (in your case, USB mics) to be combined as one virtual device. You can then set Audacity to record from that virtual device, which in turn will record from the physical devices that are connected to it.

It's in Go > Utilities > Audio MIDI Setup. Plug both of your identical headphones in to the Mac so it can find them. Follow the instructions for creating an "Aggregate Device" combining the two. From that point onward, you can select the combined device instead of each individual headset and use them as one.

This means you can't set different microphone and headphone levels, so production like this becomes pretty interesting.

Please note that we are carefully avoiding mentioning Skype.

Koz

Hmm, so there are two important things ....

1. Identical headphones (I've been using a mixture of different kinds)

2. No individual level setting

Okay, I'll give that a try.

As to the Skype question, is it just because you don't know the answer or is there some other sinister issue when it comes to Skype?

Acsenray wrote: Identical headphones

I don't think that is a prerequisite, though if the devices are wildly different it could be tricky to get a reasonable recording level match. There could also be difficulties with synchronisation if they are different, but if you have a couple of head sets then give it a go and let us know how you get on.

Skype has a reputation for not playing nicely with other audio software, but again, try it and see how it goes. This is all very doable on Linux and I'm interested to know how it works out on a Mac.

By the way, this is the Audacity 1.2.x part of the forum. If you're really using Audacity 1.2.x I'd highly recommend that you upgrade to Audacity 1.3.13 as the old 1.2.x series is really old and not too good on modern systems. You can get Audacity 1.3.13 from here: http://audacityteam.org/download/

Two questions we didn't touch earlier. Are you going to be streaming live, or create a show in post production and submit it later?

Describe how you want to integrate a Skype call into the show. Get specific. Do you set up, "dial" and connect during the show? If not, this is where post production comes in handy. You stop the show long enough to get the guest and then pick it up again when they come on line. Reverse when they "hang up." Delete the gaps in post and make it look polished, professional and seamless.

Post Production solves those long gaps where somebody hits the wrong button and has to recover -- in real time.

".........ere it is. Sorry about that. Where were we?"

Integrating music, stingers, themes and effects is a snap if you're not doing it live.

Straight recording Skype on a Mac can be very interesting. Doing it during a theatrical show is something of a nightmare.

Koz

steve wrote:Skype has a reputation for not playing nicely with other audio software, but again, try it and see how it goes. This is all very doable on Linux and I'm interested to know how it works out on a Mac.

Soundflower has been recommended to me as a way to get Skype to work as an input. I haven't been able to figure out how to make it work with Audacity yet. If the "Aggregate Device" can only be inputs of the same type, I'm not optimistic that both USB headphone/mikes and Skype can become a single input for Audacity.

By the way, this is the Audacity 1.2.x part of the forum. If you're really using Audacity 1.2.x I'd highly recommend that you upgrade to Audacity 1.3.13 as the old 1.2.x series is really old and not too good on modern systems. You can get Audacity 1.3.13 from here: http://audacityteam.org/download/

Oops. I am actually using 1.3.13 already. Should I ask for this discussion to be moved to a different section of the forum?

kozikowski wrote:Two questions we didn't touch earlier. Are you going to be streaming live, or create a show in post production and submit it later?

So far I've been recording and then adding music and removing mistakes and gaps in post production and then converting to MP3. I assume I'll be doing the same thing with the Skyped segments, especially since scheduling can make it difficult.[/quote]

Thanks for all the advice and patience!

Topic moved.

I look forward to hearing how you get on.

I've been recording and then adding music and removing mistakes and gaps in post production

Excellent. You have no idea how much easier that makes it when you want to produce a polished show.

There's quite a "discussion" about how to deal with Skype. The Right Way is to buy and use one of the software packages that "knows" how to use Skype. On Windows, there's Pamela Business and Professional and Total Recorder. I don't know how I would do that on a Mac.

Skype is an odd duck. It became the world-class communications tool that it is by refusing to Play Well With Others.

"I'm going to reconfigure your computer sound services for my uses and you can go jump down a well."

This makes it insanely difficult to record the conversations, given that most people want both sides. We've been known to recommend two different computers. One for the show and one for the Skype call.

Not easy this.

Koz

The reasons for the recommendation of two identical headsets has to do with the problems of marriage.

The Aggregate Device system is going to ask you which headset you want to use as a master. It's digital, right, and the bits come down the binary tube in a neat orderly progression like marching soldiers.

What happens when half the soldiers are out of step -- even a little bit? You could get to the end of a long show to discover your two voices are actually out of sync. That and the obvious problem of one headset is more sensitive or louder than the other. You're stuck, human, there's no way to adjust it -- even in post production.

Koz