recorded speech is garbled

[Flora]

audacity 2.4.2 windows 10 on 3 HP laptops. I've searched for an answer and I'm not techie at all. I've used Audacity for years on other computers, but now it isn't working right on 3 HPs. I fixed one problem on all of them (sound starting out ok then fading to nothing in a few seconds) by raising the volume slider to 100%. The new problem is the speech sounds garbled and unintelligible. I'm recording speech from online sources. Any help would be appreciated. If any one suggests accessing Settings, please tell me where it is. I couldn't find it. Thanks

[kozikowski]

Will Audacity record your built-in microphone?

Do you use Zoom or other on-line conferencing and communications?

Recording on-line performances is always a juggling act because it has to run both the playback and the recording systems at the same time—and not have them interfere with each other. That's on a plain computer. On a Windows computer, you also have to worry about Windows applying "enhancements" and processing to the work, whether you want it or not.

https://www.intowindows.com/turn-on-or- ... indows-10/

On top of all that we lay Zoom, Skype and other chat applications which take over a computer's sound services and settings. They're not being necessary evil. They have to do that in order to work at all.

So that's what you're up against.

https://manual.audacityteam.org/man/tut ... puter.html

Koz

[Flora]

Thanks for responding. I only record through the built-in computer mic.
I record webinars (live and replays) and zoom.
I never had trouble recording clearly in earlier versions of Audacity on Windows 10 although I don't which ones I used.
The garbled speech and some fade out of volume are occurring on 3 HP computers.
Audacity worked ok on my Lenovo desktop but I don't know which version it has and it is not booting up anymore.

[kozikowski]

Nothing leaps out at me. Recording work on Zoom meetings is notoriously difficult. It's the forum's recommendation that you get Zoom to record the meetings and not try to do it yourself. I think what you have right now is normal and what you had before was unusual and surprising.

Koz