damn laptop and mics
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Posted on May 08, 2008 02:28 am
fortymile
Member Since: Jan 18, 2003
i can't get a mic to work with this laptop. i plug a sennheiser into the 1/8 jack (using a 1/4 to 1/8) and nothing. i choose 'line input' and use my POD as a preamp, and nothing.
it works with my mixer, though. why? i don't want to hook up my mixer to this thing. i want to use just a mic, or the pod as a preamp. because it's easier.
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May 08, 2008 02:41 am nevermind.
turns out this is a HUGE huge problem with dell and its totally friggin' stupid 'sigmatel' interface driver sound garbage.
now i see why people say windows sucks. there is no way to use my new laptop to record anything whatsoever unless i buy new soundcards or boost my signal manually with my mixer.
still no explanation for why the pod wouldn't work. literally no sound. the sigmatel 'interface' is one checkbox about an irrelevant thing.
i could throw bricks at heads right now.
screw dell, windows, vista, everything. google this and witness the frustrtation online. sigmatel mic problem.
May 08, 2008 04:45 am so since this won't work out, i gots another question.
i'm trying to use my POD (or my triton) tonight as an effects box for voice. everytime i do, there's hum. really bad hum, loud hum. i've been dealing with it for a long time actually. i had to stop using my pod for voice (not a fantastic idea anyway) but the hum is even there for guitar sometimes.
now, the mic cord is messed up: there's a short or something in there. but i can use it if i go straight into the mixer. the shattering, popping sounds of the short aren't a problem if i sit still (i'll get a new mic cord soon). and there is no hum. it is clear when it goes straight into the mixer.
but anytime i hook the mic up to my pod or my triton, there's BAD hum. this happens to SOME degree with guitar, too, no matter what guitar cord i use. it's always blatantly obvious with guitar when pod is set to distortion. not so much when clean. there, but very small.
there seems to be something happening between POD, mixer, and computer to cause the hum.
what the hell is going on and how can i fix this once and for all. this can't be all shielding stuff, can it?
May 08, 2008 06:08 am the thread is all me so far, i know.
but i searched out an old thread in which noize commented. he was talking about stereo plugs. i noticed my mic plug is stereo, so i inserted it just halfway.
the buzz is gone.
what does this mean/why does this happen
May 08, 2008 06:19 am the buzz is prolly a ground issue, are you using an XLR cable on the mic to an unbalance input on the pod?
as for the laptop, have you tried going into control panel > sounds > volume control, click on the recording tab and make sure the line input is selected and turned all the way up?
waaaaasssup mate!
May 08, 2008 07:30 am forget the laptop, i'll never figure it out judging by what i see online. there seems to be no way to really adjust anything, and people are enraged about the dell/sigmatel combo online.
i don't know about the mic. i forget what xlr is (please remind me). my equipment has always sucked. i didn't learn some terms early on. the mic has the three posts inside the connector, fat metal piece, three strong posts. the plug end is stereo: i can see the bands. pulling it halfway out of the POD input eliminated the buzz.
May 08, 2008 08:11 am ok this is prolly where your problem lies....aside from dell issues, and believe me, i've got some with my vista system from them myself, my audio card/driver (integrated) can't even play a stereo cd right, tell me wtf is up with that? mp3's no problem, audio cd, 'dropouts' on a very regular rate, i'm sure it's tryin' to run at 48khz, and the cd is 44.1, but i can't find ANYTHING to adjust this anywhere.
back to the XLR to unbalanced 1/4" connector issue.....i'm assuming your pod is designed for a guitar input (correct me if i'm wrong), this is an unbalanced signal it's "expecting"....that means only two of the three pins signals are being received by the pod.
first what are you using as an adapter to get from XLR to 1/4"? they do make cables with xlr on one end and 1/4" on the other, and are usually pretty reliable....i'm going to guess you've got some kind of "small" and hard, adapter that has a female xlr on one end and a male TRS (two black rings) on the 1/4" side.
if so, then pull it halfway out until/if you decide to get a different adapter, the only downside to keep doing this is it'll probably wear out your pod's input due quicker due to the pressure added to the top.
what's happening is your XLR cable is sending a positive (hot +) signal and a negative (cold -) and the ground pin isn't connecting to any thing, which will yield a buzz...
er no wait, it's recieving your ground pin and only half of the signal (either positive or negative) which will send a nice hum through the rest of your signal path...
May 08, 2008 08:29 am the cable has a 1/4 inch jack attached to the one end, natively. i'm going to buy a new one, because i think it has a short anyway. there are bumps and crumpled sounds whenever i move around while holding it. but yes, definitely a stereo 1/4 jack on the end, so i guess that's the problem. happens when i plug it into my triton, too.
dunno about my dell. it just registers no sound at all when a mic is in. or else it's very, very quiet, even when cranked up to max. the sigmatel interface is literally blank. there's one checkbox for something completely stupid. it's a huge joke.
May 08, 2008 08:30 am i forget what the checkbox says, but to give you an idea of how totally stupid it is, it might as well say "how are you doing today?" and then a checkbox. there's zero, zilch, no way to interact with it.
May 08, 2008 08:35 am yeah i totally understand what you mean....i can't wait to get a new interface!
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
May 08, 2008 09:43 pm OK, it looks as though you got it mostly sussed on the buzz issue. Luckily I didn't post my answer until I got through the thread or I may have been redundant.
