Recording streams

Windows 10 laptop.

I’ve been using Audacity for years to digitize my vinyl albums and see no reason to look at any other program. I love it.

I recently installed 2.3.0 on my laptop and I’m experiencing some issues recording streaming audio.

I can’t get the levels high enough, they seem attenuated, and the playback sounds poor compared to the source. Sort of a “canned” sound.

I’ve gone through most of the settings, I believe, and can’t seem to find the correct ones. Any help is appreciated.

I’ve gotten to where it sounds good, but still no control over record volume. I have to set it at the source, a bit inconvenient.

Is there a fix so I can set it in the Audacity window?

Thank you.

If I can add one more thing; I’m getting pretty good results recording streams from the net. However, a while back I recorded some tracks from an LP and did a true A/B listening test. The recording was absolutely identical to the program to my ears. I could not tell the difference.

When I record a stream the quality is good but the source sounds just a little cleaner with just a bit more punch. I’ve tried many different settings and I can still diferentiate the source from the recording.

Again, any help is greatly appreciated.

And to any one else reading this, donate a few bucks. I’ve totally gotten my money’s worth.

That’s normal. You are recording the signal that is being sent to the audio playback, so only the playback volume affects the recorded signal level.

The “fix” (really just a “workaround”) is to plug headphones / speakers into the audio device / soundcard that you are using, and use the volume control on the headphones / speakers.

If you are using “WASAPI loopback” as the recording source, then it “should” sound identical. If you are using “Stereo Mix” or “What U Hear”, then the sound quality may be compromised by the quality of the sound card / audio device.