08-07-2011, 10:09 PM

Hello! I have a question about a problem I've been having with my MacbookPro. I'm a musician, and have been using the computer to record myself for various auditions. I've been connecting a microphone to the computer, because I found that the sound quality I got using the internal microphone wasn't very good. However, I have found that when I record myself using an external microphone, the volume on the recordings is always extremely quiet – when I play it back on my computer, I need to turn up the volume to its maximum setting to be able to hear the recording, and even then the recording is extremely quiet. When I record, I have the input volume set to its maximum (though I've tried different levels), and I have also tried using and not using ambient noise reduction.
At first, I thought the problem might be the microphone I was using, so I changed the batteries in mine, and also borrowed microphones from a couple of friends (and tried different batteries on theirs, as well). The problem persisted, although it was slightly better with one of the microphones. I have also tried using different programs to record (e.g. Quicktime, iMovie), and the problem doesn't seem related to the program I use to record, either.
Does anyone have an idea of what might be causing the problem, and how I might be able to fix it?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

Many thanks for your help,

clueless musician


p.s. When I was recording, I had the microphone right next to my instrument, pointing directly at it, so I don't think the microphone distance or direction is part of the problem either.

08-08-2011, 12:04 AM

I tend to think it's the microphones you're using. We do quite a bit of recording and play back where I currently work at, and we have a variety of different microphones. I notice that on some of the lesser expensive models the sound volume is very low. However, we have several high quality microphones we purchased from the Guitar Center that work well providing plenty of volume.

08-08-2011, 12:07 AM

If you're using the line in and a microphone directly into your computer, then you need a preamp. Also, you can adjust the input volume level in the sounds preference pane.