Sound cards and Bluetooth

songsj

Member
I'm wondering if I have a aftermarket sound card installed in a PCI slot and the onboard sound chip set disabled if that will effect the computers ability to communicate with Bluetooth? Dell XPS tower bluetooth capable from the factory.
 
I can't try that with my Asus/AMD 6core home build because (afaik) the MOBO does not have BTh though it does have a 2496 PCI* card in it.

But! Even if the card screwed the OB BTh no matter! Just get a dongle as I did for my wife's really old laptop. BTW, you do know Blue tooth is SHIT sound quality?

*Why? Most folks have gone USB now.

Dave.
 
Yes I know the quality is not there, but I was going to get a middle of the road Bluetooth earbud set just to check my mixes on. So many people listen to music on their smart phones, laptops, or with ear buds so I wanted to see how my mixes transfer as compared to commercial recordings. Yes I am having trouble getting my mixes to sound as professional as I would like and transfer properly. I am looking at many things, this is just one.
 
Yes I know the quality is not there, but I was going to get a middle of the road Bluetooth earbud set just to check my mixes on. So many people listen to music on their smart phones, laptops, or with ear buds so I wanted to see how my mixes transfer as compared to commercial recordings. Yes I am having trouble getting my mixes to sound as professional as I would like and transfer properly. I am looking at many things, this is just one.

So, which PCI card were you thinking of getting? Pretty rare beasts these days.

Dave.
 
Jusfort. If push comes to shovit you could dump the files as MP3 to a phone via USB then transmit that as BT to a bud?
As you say, that is the way 99% of the kids are listening anyway.

At least I could do that with my "not smart" ***** 210.

Dave. What the **** is wrong with N.O.K.I.A?
 
I can't imagine how it would impact the BT radio in the system. But, practically, folks aren't just using BT earbuds (or even decent phones), but many are listening to streaming services that are compressed even beyond the original content's 256k-ish levels. I'd just put my mixes in SoundCloud and stream/listen from there. Folks listening at home probably are listening to CD quality mixes or at least 256k, but I'd guess many of those are using decent headphones or perhaps a soundbar or set of smaller BT speakers. (I confess most of my casual listening is of my collection as 256k stuff on my iPad via an inexpensive Samsung soundbar/sub.)
 
Dave, I bought a Creative soundblaster card and installed it in the computer when it was new and disabled the onboard sound in device manager. Not sure it was an improvement, the thought was just that it will use less system resources than the onboard. Don't use it for recording have a Tascam 16x08 USB interface for that. My computer is a Dell XPS tower, 6th Generation i7, 16GB, 2 - 1TB, Drives. One drive is dedicated strictly for my music project files. I replaced my whole system at once, Computer, Monitors, Microphones, DAW, Plugins, the works AND installed them in a different room in my house. I have had real headaches the past year. Learning everything and getting used to all of the new gear is not my idea of having fun with music. Frankly I think I got better recordings on my old 32 bit Gateway Pentium 4, XP, 1GB, ram. and Alesis MOdel1 MKII monitors. I have 2 sets of Yamaha HS8's and am having a real hard time getting used to them even though they get rave reviews for the price. It does not help when your trying to mix for smartphones, tablets, earbuds, car stereos, boom boxes etc. Everything is critical.
 
Yes, what I'm shooting for is my recordings to sound professional, regardless of what they are played on. I am finding that a daunting task. Especially since most home studios like mine were set up on a budget. All my equipment probably cost 5k not 5 million. So at times I guess I have to learn to settle for the best I can do. Right now I am having a sibilance problem. The s's on my vocals will rip your head off at times. I have deesser's, used two different mics, messed with mic placement, split the wave forms manually and brought the volume down in the problem areas. Driving me crazy. You really hear it on computer and smart phone speakers because those things are reproducing the frequency ranges where most of this happens. If I was a more consistent singer I would cut my vocal tracks in a pro studio and mix the projects in mine but my best vocals are like capturing lighting in a bottle. I get them when I get them and am thankful that at 62 I can still do fairly well on a good day. We all know that when voices get older they do not get better. I'm trying to cut as many songs as I can while I still can. In 5 or 10 years I may need a bushel basket to carry a tune.
 
What's your mixing space like? Is it treated?

I mean, it's know it's hard to get mixes to translate, but it shouldn't really be hair-pulling hard all the time with good monitors, and it sounds like you've been at this for a while.

I figure you're not gonna please all the people all the time, and I'm not recording for all possible devices either, so my monitors, a set of cans and occasionally earbuds (I have never changed a mix based on earbuds) and the car and done.

I have also learned that getting other ears involved can help control the endless tree circling, or at least stop me from going around the wrong tree.
 
I found a couple of reviews of the HS8s and both were fairly complimentary, no suggestion of "splashy" highs so your sibilance problem is you or/and the microphone (which is?) .
You might consider a really "pro" pop shield from say Rycote? At the risk of teaching granny about eggs, sing ACCROSS the diaphragm not AT it or have the mic above you.

Yes, room treatment is important but is mainly to do with LF matters and good stereo imaging, it is unlikely to exacerbate sibilance unless it is highly reflective. I would urge you to calibrate the monitors and when you have found a suitable level, 75-80 dB C in a "domestic" setting, stick to it no matter how ***t you feel on a particular day!

You don't say what DAW software you are running (or this old fool missed it!)? If the bargain bundle of Samplitude Pro X 3 is still on, worth a look. The DAW itself is superb but the bundle also includes Sound Forge with lots of treatment tools.

Dave.
 
My mixing space is a painted drywall finished room, untreated, Rugs on the floor. And you are right it SHOULDN'T be this hard. But I am having a heck of a time. The earbuds were just one more thing for reference. I record my vocals with an AKG C214, or an AKG C3000B. I cut them clean with no processing at all so I have clean tracks to work with. I know the C3000B is touted as one of the worst vocal mics around but I have cut some of my best vocals with it. The C214 seems to be even hotter in that canny 2K to 5K range. I've cut 3 songs with the 3000B and 2 with the C214 and I like the C3000B better. But what do I know I can't even get my mixes right. I am going to try singing about a foot away from the mic and see if the sibilant problem improves.
 
Oops I forgot to mention For DAW I'm mainly running Reaper and also have Magix Edit pro 14. Don't get me going I used to love sony's Vegas for DAW but magix has gone high end video and pretty much left the audio DAW world behind at least with the Vegas products. A lot of audio studder, no VST3 support and many VST plugin problems. I gave up on them a year ago and went with Reaper.
 
"TRY singing a foot away..."!? Begger me! If you are closer than that as a rule AND no pop shield I am not surprised you get sibilance.

The "classic" studio picture is of the singer a good 300mm back from a U87 AND a decent pop screen in between. But-butty-butbut..You have an untreated recording space so I guess you need to suck the AKGs to keep room reverb out? Get some duvets or other absorbent materials around you, back and front at least and back off that mic!

Not sure what you mean about MAGIX? I have bought the Pro X suite with the Sound Forge you loved and many, many others have as well. Would not hurt to download the free go and see?

Dave.
 
Sound forge is different than Vegas I believe. 10 years ago Vegas was a very good powerful DAW as well as video editor. It just has not kept up with Audio over the years. I wonder if the work flow and commands in sound forge are much the same as Vegas Edit pro? I have read many many times that the standard mic distance to start with is about 8 inches, 4 inches from the mic to pop filter and 4 inches from the pop filter. And yes you are right about the closer to the mic the less room characteristics become a factor, Also I pick up less backround noise if the mic is turned up less. I don't know if another 4 inches is going to make a difference in the sibilance but if it does I would be a really happy camper with such an easy fix. I will give it a try. I do have one of those cheesy foam vocal booth things that attach to the mic stand. Not sure it does much good but it looks nice LOL.
 
Sound forge is different than Vegas I believe. 10 years ago Vegas was a very good powerful DAW as well as video editor. It just has not kept up with Audio over the years. I wonder if the work flow and commands in sound forge are much the same as Vegas Edit pro? I have read many many times that the standard mic distance to start with is about 8 inches, 4 inches from the mic to pop filter and 4 inches from the pop filter. And yes you are right about the closer to the mic the less room characteristics become a factor, Also I pick up less backround noise if the mic is turned up less. I don't know if another 4 inches is going to make a difference in the sibilance but if it does I would be a really happy camper with such an easy fix. I will give it a try. I do have one of those cheesy foam vocal booth things that attach to the mic stand. Not sure it does much good but it looks nice LOL.

SONY sounforge was an editor (like Audacity and Adobe Audition) but has been expanded for many more tracks* Vegas is for video. The main DAW in the bundle is Samplitude. That does all the VTSi stuff AFAIK (see *) SF is essentially a very powerful sound modifying tool, noise reduction, click suppression and I am sure a de-esser.

"Also I pickup less background noise if the mic is turned up less" Yes, you will but WHAT noise? I doubt if it is mic self noise. Both mics have a very healthy sensitivity of 20mV/Pa and a self noise figure of 14dB, easily way good enough for vox pop speech leave alone singists! The Tascam pres are not state of but I have never read a bad word about them? Certainly not excess noise.

So, that just leave general room 'hub-bub'? Record in the wee smalls as my son had to, until the pigeons awoke that is, about 4am this time of year!

*I am NOT a "studio person" and do little actual recording these days (mostly tests for HR peeps!) but I have been around sound and the associated electronics all my adult life (72) Just a valve amp jockey trying to help.

Dave.

So
 
yes the noise I'm talking about is backround home noise, furnace fan I can shut off, if someone flushes the toilet upstairs, footsteps, I swear these mics pic up shit I don't even hear. Yes wee hours of the morning are best and I will have to be careful.
 
yes the noise I'm talking about is backround home noise, furnace fan I can shut off, if someone flushes the toilet upstairs, footsteps, I swear these mics pic up shit I don't even hear. Yes wee hours of the morning are best and I will have to be careful.

Mics can certainly hear stuff 'I' can't! In practice they pickup sounds you have ceased to be aware of. Clocks are the favourite. Always worth doing a noise "audit" from time to time? Setup mics and levels as you normally do then unplug them, (ideally plugging in screened 150 Ohm terminations but I have found it makes only a few dB diff'). Make a 60 second, 24 bit recording and see where your noise floor is. My KA6 ref a 57 is around -85dBFS iirc.

BTW, I am sure you have been around long enough to know that sound PROOFING is an expensive non-starter for most people?

Dave.
 
I have always found AKG mics to be sensitive in the sibilance range for the most part(414 b the exception). For mics like this I have to second Daves advice to sing across the mic instead of straight on. Doesn't have to be a 90 deg angle, 45 ish works fine. As for the translation of your mixes, I would suggest trying to find what frequency areas you are having the most trouble getting to sit right and using known commercial mixes to help get your new set up tuned so that what you are hearing out of your monitors is what you expect. And of course use reference tracks when mixing . It's easy to lose objectivity when mixing your own work so best to reference.
 
Back
Top