Input Level Meter Good, Waveform Bad?

[TXShicks]

I'm on MacOS 10.5.7 with a Behringer C-1U. Mic is beautifully sensitive, as shown on the constantly bouncing Input Level Meter, but decibel waves while recording hover around 0.0, and resulting mp3 is low. I've increased output level and all the hard drive settings are correct. I've tried going to Audacity Preferences - Interface and changing the Minimum of dB mode display range, but nothing works.

Any ideas?

[kozikowski]

<<<resulting mp3 is low.>>>

How do you know that? If you create a known, good, working MP3 file, restart Audacity and open up that file. Do you get the same readings, levels, and meters as when it was made?

There is one other trick, Some MP3 players and services hate MP3 files made from 32-bit floating Projects. Reset the Audacity preferences to 16-bit and see if that doesn't help.

Music Players have to interpret compressed files and it's up to the designer how they do it. Does it do that on multiple players?

Koz

[kozikowski]

Wait. I'm just reading this again. The complaint is that the actual show/project is low, not just the output file?

So your show doesn't look anything like this, right?

http://kozco.com/tech/audacity/Audacity1_playback.jpg

Note where the green bars are.

So the job is one of two. Fix the existing Project and record louder.

Edit > Select All
Effect > Amplify > and allow the default values.

That should boost your show up much louder, but it may get noisier and more distorted. Much better to record it right to begin with.

Set up for recording and launch Audacity, but don't do anything else. Click once inside the red recording meters and they will wake up and tell you the sound level arriving. This is the diagnostic mode. Now you get to mess with everything else to see if you can bring the level up. Does it go up if you just yell into the microphone?

Koz