My microphone gets a low volume when i turn my headphones (with poweramp) on.

R

ridexcy

New member
Hi all,
Im here because i googled so much and nothing was really helpfull, but im gonna explain my problem.

I've a sennheiser HD700 headphone with a soundblaster x7 amp, i also got a blue yeti microphone which works fine untill i turn on my headphones. Is it because there is a lack of power? If yes,should i buy some phantom power or what should i do? I hope someone can help me out because im stuck.
 
Can you maybe give us a clearer picture of what is plugged into what? Sounds a little like your headphones are causing an impedance issue.....maybe.....which could lead to a drop in volume. From what you've told us....it doesn't sound at all like phantom power is your issue. Does the blue yeti work fine basically without the HD700? I could easily be wrong........but we need a much clearer picture of your setup and how you use it.

UPDATE: I just checked and the HD700 impedance is 150 ohms. That's on the high side for a headphone. The Soundblaster is basically a headphone amp with other inputs as well....so in theory.....it shouldn't be terribly affected by the HD700's. I assume you're saying that when you plug in the headphones the overall volume drops and that you have everything running through the Soundblaster?
 
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My HD700 goes into the soundblaster x7,because its a jack size which my computer doesnt have. The soundblaster x7 is connected with USB into my PC. My Blue yeti is just in a usb port of my computer aswell , im not a expert in this so you can be right i did something wrong.. I use it for streaming games,but with this low microphone volume its impossible for me to go live.
 
Only my headphones are running through the soundblaster, but when the soundblaster is off my mic volume is perfect. When turning on the soundblaster, my microphone volume is terrible. With the headset volume i've no problems at all,its staying at the same level.
 
Ok....so if you don't plug in the mic......are the headphones working ok when plugged into the Soundblaster? You can hear music etc ok? Then when you plug in your mic to a USB port....the volume drops?

All in all.......and before you get too crazy........you might want to consider getting an Audio Interface. That will handle your streaming.....and your headphone output.......and your mic input as well. They're not too expensive either.
 
As I mentioned........REALLY consider getting an audio interface. Your PC doesn't seem to like either the mic or the Soundblaster or cannot handle the two USB inputs properly. That could be in your PC settings....etc....etc......but it's difficult to know.

Check out some audio interfaces.
 
No the volume of the headset is always good and doesnt drop or anything.. The problem is when i turn the soundblaster on,my blue yeti microphone will decrease massively in volume.

Do you know any good audio interfaces? Because i have zero experience with these things, and i just want to buy a good one.

Thanks for your help, i really appreciate it.
 
I read more about your Soundblaster.......and though it's got it's uses......it may not solve your issue. And.....I should have mentioned that you'll need a DAW to use it. You can get Reaper for free or Audacity. As well.......your mic is a USB mic and I'm not aware of any interfaces with USB inputs.

Let's put this conversation between you and I on hold and see what others here have to say.
 
Lets try to sort out this weird and wonderful setup. You are using the soundblaster to connect your computer to headphones and loudspeakers. You are plugging in the USB mic to another port on the computer.

When the sandblaster is off - where are you actually listening to the microphone? Surely this means you have speakers or headphones connected to the audio sockets on the computer? You say that when the soundblaster is off the mic audio is good. This means that whatever software you are using is using the driver it found for the microphone - especially when windows 10 does this nearly automatically. When you turn the soundblaster on, the computer loads the drivers it needs for the soundblaster. This probably replaces the driver that was being used, and works fine, with the soundblaster, and I bet this driver also has a record side that is probably not meant to be picking up the microphone, but is doing it - but doing it badly.

Phantom of course doesn't impact on you at all - your mic doesn't need it and the soundblaster doesn't provide it - so forget it.

Probably the best route for flexibility is to abandon the USB mic because while great for podcasting, virtually everyone who records eventually needs two mics at the same time and USB limits you to one. I suppose one of the scarlet interfaces will do pretty well, with a proper 48V mic input for a range of mics of all price ranges,

The soundblaster isn't really aimed at all at home recording - just not what it does well. You can probably sell the mic on Ebay, same with the soundblaster and recover something.
 
When my soundblaster is off, i hear nothing.
But i see with audacity its working well.
Any suggestions of what setup you should get? My HD700 headphones have a jack size which only fits in my soundblaster,so probably it needs a amp to work well. And believe me the sound of it is fantastic. Im not thinking about removing the soundblaster, but im thinking about another microphone. With a 48V microphone is a phantom power required right? Im a streamer,not a recorder so i dont agree with the 2 microphone thing you are saying. Atleast i've never seen a streamer with 2 microphones. I appreciate your reply,it let me look to things in a different way
 
What is a streamer? USB mics can be real pains in the rear because many popular DAWs have issues using one device for recording and one or playback? I guess you only ever have your voice then, never a guest in the room. Jack plug size wise - you could always just buy and adaptor?
 
If your computer has an 1/8" (3.5mm) headphone output..... (laptop may have a combo headphone/mic TRRS jack and may or may not work for this)
Amazon.com: MillSO 1/4 to 3.5mm Headphone Adapter, TRS 6.35mm Female to 3.5mm Male 1/8 to 1/4 Stereo Audio Adapter for Amplifiers, Guitar, Piano, Home Theater Devices, Phone, Laptop, Headphones - 12inch/30cm: Home Audio & Theater

Is the computer a desktop or laptop?

Does the Yeti mic have a headphone out for monitoring and possibly conflicting with the Soundblaster?

In whatever software you're using see if the input and outputs of the USB audio can be configured/assigned that the MIC is an input and the the Soundblaster is solely an output. If the computer and/or software is trying to use two audio devices it may not work well.

USB interface with an XLR mic probably the best solution. Give us an idea what you're doing for suggestions for interface and mic.
 
The computer is a desktop.

Thats a good one which i just checked,but my blue yeti is the input and my soundblaster the output.

That other option i will check tomorrow.

I just purchased a audio technica AT2020 with a focusrite solo 3rd gen,i hope this is gonna fix all the issues so i can connect my mic headphone and the headphone amp in 1 device ,if it wont work i just can send those things back so sounds like a good deal.

I'll keep you guys up to date
 
Sounds a great combo to get going on. Nice bright mic, and plenty of facilities.

Don't forget the streamer thing - I genuinely have no idea what a streamer does? I guess you do stuff live and out it goes? Does that constitute a 'streamer'?
 
I hope when i connect everything to the audio interface (my soundblaster and my at2020) it will finally work as it has to be.
Yeah something like that,a streamer is showing his gameplay of video games
 
Ok....so let's think about this so you get it right. The Focusrite Solo will connect to your PC via USB and will work with your DAW (Audacity). Set that up first to make sure your DAW and the Solo are working right. You'll need to be sure you have the correct drivers for your PC.

Then......your AT2020 will connect to your Solo via an XLR input on the Solo. Make sure that works. Then...........and only then......your Soundblaster will have to connect to the headphone out of your Solo. Your Soundblaster is basically only a headphone amplifier so that's how it will work for you. All of that should work very nicely. I STRONGLY advise you to go one step at a time.....making sure each step is working properly first.

You're on the right track.....and there will be a bit of a learning curve.......but we're here for that...and you!!
 
Thanks for the great advice,probably i will get everything tomorrow and i will go for it step by step.. But since i dont use speakers on my PC, doesnt it give me trouble when i have no cables in the back of the solo?
 
No....your solo will work whether or not you use speakers on your PC....or indeed....any speakers at all. You will be able to use just the headphones if you want to.......no problem. Essentially......when you connect your solo to your PC the solo will then become your sound card. All the sound will go in and out of the solo. Remember.......in your case.....your Soundblaster should be connected to the solo's headphone out only and then your headphones should be plugged into the Soundblaster. The solo will have a volume control for headphones.....as will your Soundblaster. I'd set the solo headphone volume to say....mid point.....and then set your Soundblaster volume to where you like it. You may need to experiment a bit.

Remember........you'll need to get your solo working with the proper drivers before you do anything else........or you might think that nothing is working. As well.......don't underestimate how your headphones will sound straight out of the solo. Don't be 100% convinced that you MUST use your Soundblaster.
 
Ill start tomorrow with registering my product and downloading all the drivers which i need for the solo. Then i just go for it step by step,at the last i will try to connect the soundblaster. If it will give me trouble,im just gonna connect the headphones straight to the solo and will sell my soundblaster. To connect my solo to the soundblaster im gonna need 2 TRS to RCA adapters (one for each channel) and then another rca cable to connect them with the outputs.
 
ridexcy said:
If it will give me trouble,im just gonna connect the headphones straight to the solo
Click to expand...

I'd be inclined to do that first.
With the solo, or any reasonable all-in-one interface it should be as simple as mic->cable->interface + interface->headphones.
If your headphones are 3.5mm grab a 1/"4 to 3.5mm adapter from amazon or whatever.
 
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