How to set up my pre amp. Noob needs help

Omega-_-

New member
Hey guys, thanks for reading. I'm completely lost and don't know what else to do to be honest.

I'm trying to hook up my preamp with a mic to my laptop and record me singing / playing guitar. I'd like to think I have all the necessary wires and stuff but judging by my limited knowledge I really have no idea.

For some reason my laptop just isn't picking up my microphone. At first I thought it was a problem with my laptop since it has one jack for both mic and headphones but I bought a splitter and I'm still having the same problem. The mic isn't being registered for some reason and at this point I'm not sure if it's me not configuring things properly,missing necessary wires or my laptop being strange. Any help on this at all would be really appreciated. I've attached photos for you to see what I have and how it is hooked up.

Mic > Mic in

Line out> Laptop headphone/ mic splitter mic jack

I'm using audacity and I have already gone through the steps of checking to see if devices are disabled etc.

Sorry if the photos are a little hard to see.

IMG_2177.JPGIMG_2179.JPGIMG_2180.JPGIMG_2181.JPG


Thanks guys
 
Hi,
Set the metering on the front panel to 'input' then see if the LED meters register sound picked up by the microphone.
If not, the problem is earlier in the chain.
Is Phantom power enabled? It needs to be.
 
Hi,
Set the metering on the front panel to 'input' then see if the LED meters register sound picked up by the microphone.
If not, the problem is earlier in the chain.
Is Phantom power enabled? It needs to be.



Hey,the led meters aren't registering anything after I clicked in input and phantom power is enabled. Do you think my microphone is broken?
 
check the cable from mike to pre-amp first. can you try another one?

Make sure the line-in button is not pressed.
 
I think the wiring is messed up.

Pre out is MONO.
The MIC jack configured as line in should be 3.5mm stereo.

So the MONO out should go to either L, or, R of a 3.5mm stereo to dual MONO y-adapter
 
I think the wiring is messed up.

Pre out is MONO.
The MIC jack configured as line in should be 3.5mm stereo.

So the MONO out should go to either L, or, R of a 3.5mm stereo to dual MONO y-adapter



Thanks buddy, I'll give it a try
 
Forget the mic and pre amp for now. Plug a phone or pod into the input of the 'Y' lead and see if you can record that.

I assume you get audio FROM computer TO the headphones? YToob and other ***t? Pains me to say it but a Behringer UCA202 (AKA 222) would be a much better bet. Had you NOT bought the pre amp already, peeps here would have suggested an Audio Interface.

Dave.
 
What you need is an audio interface. You can plug the preamp and your headphones into that. Interface connects to the laptop by USB.
 
What you need is an audio interface. You can plug the preamp and your headphones into that. Interface connects to the laptop by USB.

TOTALLY agree but! This is the newb section, I have assumes OP has dropped most of his HECash on the mic and pre*. The UCA 202 I suggested is not ideal but WILL give much of the operational doings of an AI. The 202 is 16bit only and you have to watch input levels as it clips PDQ past -8dBFS or so but with care it can return a dynamic range better than 80dB. WAY better than any non NR tape system (and we coped with those!)

*The VTB-1 is an excellent product. Unfortunately, bolted to a computer's sound card it is never going to shine!

Dave.
 
Forgot, can't edit. The UCA 202 is only around $25-30 and is a handy get-out-of-jail card in this situation.

Dave.
 
Thanks so much guys for all the great feedback. I actually bought this stuff years ago and stopped recording completely and I'm only just getting back into it. Pretty sure I picked it all up for cheap so I hve no problem buying a completely different setup.

If you guys can recommend any easy to use and good for the money equipment for me to record guitar and vocals I'm all ears. I'll also look into some of the suggestions you mentioned already.

Thanks again guys.
 
"If you guys can recommend any easy to use and good for the money equipment for me to record guitar and vocals I'm all ears. I'll also look into some of the suggestions you mentioned already." Can't promise 'easy to use' ! All computer recording software (aka DAW) has a pretty steep learning curve but a weekend's solid application and you should have the basics cracked...Hardware.

I am told one of the best 2 in 2 out interfaces around atmo is the Zoom UAC-2. Very basic but of excellent quality. Now, since you already have a very decent pre amp. I make NO apology for once again suggesting the Native Instruments Komplete Audio 6. Why? Because in addition to having probably the best, most stable drivers on an AI sub $300 it has an additional two balanced line inputs so mixer can go into 3 or 4 and you still have the excellent two mic/line/instru ins on the front. Also has 4 outs so 'looping' in and out of the PC is possible. Very low latency and MIDI if you need it.

You WILL be told about Focusrite products! Very good but not such good value for money IMHO. If you DO go there make sure you get the latest, Gen 2 devices.

At some point you should seriously think about some decent monitor speakers* If your interest is just guitar and vocals the latest versions of my Tannoy 5As will be as good, or better than anything else at the price. If you want to 'dub' the windows out, think 8 inch cones and a grand each!

*Then there is Room Treatment. This differs slightly from the room you RECORD in to the room you LISTEN and mix in but most of us have to manage with the same box! Essentially for monitoring you need corner bass trapping and that won't hurt recording one jot.

Dave.
 
Well, for guitar and vocals, I can get by on one LDC MIC and a cassette. I use a cheap mixer to roll off the MIC hump a bit and to output L&R with some reverb. Basically, moving guitar and vocals in and out of the pattern as mixing
 
Hey,the led meters aren't registering anything after I clicked in input and phantom power is enabled. Do you think my microphone is broken?


With that being the case, you've narrowed the issue, or one of the issues, down to mic, cable or preamp (sorry..I think I said interface earlier).
Anything beyond that may or may not be correct, but it needs set aside for now.

Swap out the mic, swap out the cable, double check all physical switch settings.
Gecko mentioned line-in options being selected. Good catch. Check for line/mic/di switches and set to mic.

If that is all a no-go get a volt meter and test for DC voltage on pins 1+2 or 1+3 of your XLR cable.
Test the microphone end while the other end is plugged in. That's probably the easiest and safest.

If you can't do that for any reason, plug a guitar or bass into the hi-z input, crank the gain and strum.
Just trying anything you can to prove something conclusively, at the preamp.
That won't tell you anything about phantom power, but it'll tell you something about your preamp.

ECC is sending you down the opposite road of testing everything after the preamp. That's valid too. Just take the two as separate things for now.
Also Robus' advice about getting an interface is good although, at the same time, this should work.
 
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