Search results

Looking at stats for the RODE NT-USB+, it says "Dynamic Range @10% THD - 97dB." It also says "Input SPL @10% THD - 118.0dB (as per IEC 60268)." What does that mean? I know THD is "total harmonic distortion." And in general that's not a good thing. But I don't really understand what "Dynamic...

I never thought too much about this before. But now I'm curious :-P. Audio recording interface units are always touting the quality of the preamplifiers. But when looking at the definition of "preamp," You usually see something like "microphones have low level signals that need to be boosted to...

First of all, I do use monitor speakers primarily. But sometimes I need headphones. And it seems most of them have bumps and dips at certain frequencies. If I am trying to correct some known frequency response issues in headphones, it would seem I'd need to insert an EQ before I hear the audio...

How do people typically apply limiting and/or compression while tracking? In this day and age where most folks record into an interface, I'm unsure how to do it. Would you have to have a separate preamp feeding a hardware compressor/limiter, which THEN feeds the recording interface? Thanks!

I believe I already know the answer to this, but I thought I'd get a sanity check. If I am stuck working with a venue's wound system that only has 2 "2-way" speakers (Peavey PV 112 speakers), is there any point in using an electronic crossover to help divide up the high frequencies and low...

I just noticed a new noise in my recordings. It's quite low-level but definitely audible in headphones It's a low frequency noise that sounds like a steady helicopter or propellor sound. Any idea if this is a "standard" type of noise? This is a brand new computer (as of Sep) - A Dell Inspiron...

Can I get a clarification on what the MIDI input and output are for on an interface such as the M-Audio M-Track 2x2M? If I have a MIDI keyboard, it seems obvious I'm plugging THAT into the MDI input on the interface. But if that gets MIDI into my computer, and the audio from the computer comes...

Trying to understand amplifiers for PA use. I have a power amp with 2 channels. Each output channel has a positive and negative. I have ben using a cable someone gave me many years ago that has a banana plug on one end and a quarter-inch plug on the other. I plug the banana plug into pos and neg...

I don't know why I can never remember this, but can someone clue me in on what this means. My QSC Power Amp (USA850) says in the manual in the specs table "under output power (bridged mono)" - next to “4 ohms” - 1100 watts, and next to 8 ohms, it says 850 watts. Earlier in the manual it says...

Can someone explain why this might be happening? I've got a desk boom stand whose base is close to an old cathode ray tube type computer monitor. the mic itself extends pretty far away from the monitor. Anyway, I noticed that there was an electrical buzz in the audio recording with the RE-20...

I just purchased the C4 Multiband Copmpressor and noticed right away that there were not Ratio settings. Instead they have a "Range" setting. I looked up what that means. They say Range sets the maximum gain change for a band. And that range sets both the ratio and the maximum gain change. You...

Adobe Audition CC has the ability to adjust dynamics of an audio file to a set target average loudness, which is pretty cool, even if it does make me a little nervous about what decisions the software is making about dynamics processing. But since you have to pay a subscription for Audition...

I'm hoping someone can tell me what kind of mixer I saw this past week as I was acting as "the sound guy" for a medieval festival. I had to leave before this band was done, so I couldn't ask them. Plus, they are from Belarus, so communicating tech stuff was hard. Anyway... A band called Stary...

I'm a bit embarrassed to admit how much I don't understand about live sound :-P. So I'm hoping someone can clue me in a bit. We're performing in a tavern in an upstairs (above the bar) performance space. The venue has two Peavey PV 112 speakers hanging in front of the loft from the ceiling (8...

There is a feature in Adobe Audition 3.0 called "on-clip" gain control that is very cool. When you highlight/select a section of audio, a little visual amplitude control appears at the top of the selection. You can drag the knob to raise or lower the amplitude of JUST that section and see the...

I'm looking for an audio editing program that has a couple of features. Mainly, I need to be able to create presets for certain EQ settings, or for fade-in, fade-out, etc. I used to use Adobe Audition (still have version 3 :-)), and I could do that. But AA can be pretty expensive. Audacity is...

Someone asked me if I knew and I didn't - is there a way to filter out the hiss (it's pretty quiet but definitely there) on a Samson C01U USB mic while doing VOIP stuff like Skype? With an XLR mic running through an interface, there would be options like inserting a noise gate. But I'm not...

I'm trying to record my wife singing, but she has a very wide dynamic range - very soft and low to very loud in pretty fast swings. I know that compression is the right tool but don't know how I can compress her vocals while she's recording. I only know how to do it after recording, in Reaper...

Hi. I just changed interfaces to an E-Mu 1820m and I'm getting (I think) DC offset, where the wave form seems to be off-center. Why does this happen? And is there an easy/obvious way to prevent it? Thanks. Ryan.

I was just looking at the specs for my on-board sound card on my computer, which is a RealTek. It says it uses 16-bit 44.1KHz conversion, which sounds like it should be fine for creating decent quality audio. So what makes it suck compared to, say, the converters on an interface like an...