What is the noise floor on your Delta?
- Thread starter canada-paul
- Start date
canada-paul
New member
I installed the Creative Mixer last night and that cleared up the confusion about not being able to activate '4 speaker' mode. So I ran the RMAA test again and the results are linked below. Its really suprising how much more stable the rear outs are instead of the front outs.
http://www.eng.uwaterloo.ca/~pjhollow/PaulsSBLive(RearLineOut).htm
I then tried some comparison tests by playing a riff, setting it up to loop in CoolEdit, listening to it through the front line out, then quickly pulling it out and plugging it in the rear line out to see if I could hear a difference. No such luck, they both sounded exactly the same. Funny thing is that they both sounded pretty good. So I did another test where I'd record a riff, then leave a 5 second blank spot. In this manner, I could play back the recorded riff, then during the blank spot, play the exact same riff again and try to pick out any noticeable differences between the actual and recorded versions back to back. Again, I couldn't spot the difference. Very strange, since the other night it was extremely clear to me that the recorded versions sounded like all the low and high end had been lopped off.
In any case, the SBLive is still noisy, and will have to be replaced at some point, although despite the high noise floor it seems to be preserving a pretty fair amount of the original signals character, good enough to fool me anyways.
http://www.eng.uwaterloo.ca/~pjhollow/PaulsSBLive(RearLineOut).htm
I then tried some comparison tests by playing a riff, setting it up to loop in CoolEdit, listening to it through the front line out, then quickly pulling it out and plugging it in the rear line out to see if I could hear a difference. No such luck, they both sounded exactly the same. Funny thing is that they both sounded pretty good. So I did another test where I'd record a riff, then leave a 5 second blank spot. In this manner, I could play back the recorded riff, then during the blank spot, play the exact same riff again and try to pick out any noticeable differences between the actual and recorded versions back to back. Again, I couldn't spot the difference. Very strange, since the other night it was extremely clear to me that the recorded versions sounded like all the low and high end had been lopped off.
In any case, the SBLive is still noisy, and will have to be replaced at some point, although despite the high noise floor it seems to be preserving a pretty fair amount of the original signals character, good enough to fool me anyways.
I am surprised you cant hear any difference. When I plug my headphones (typical 32ohm impedance headphones) into the front outputs I can immediately hear hiss even at very low volumes (try muting and unmuting the outputs with nothing playing). When I plug them into the rear outputs there is no hiss no matter what the volume.
Last edited:
canada-paul
New member
I looked at the noise floor (zoomed in on blank recordings in CoolEdit like shackrock did) on both the front and rear line outs and they looked almost exactly the same. Centered at around -78dB (weird... should have been centered at -infinity), peaking around -63dB. Although there must have been some other difference not immediately noticeable as the rears were SO much more stable than the fronts in setting up the RMAA test (no warnings about crosstalk at all)
TexRoadkill
Audio Bum
You guys have a lot of DC offset issues. That is why the waveform isn't exactly centered around 0. That causes premature distortion and robs you of headroom and dynamic range.
The noise floor will also be different in 16 or 24bit if the card is up to snuff and actually has a better SNR (signal to noise ratio) than 16bits allows. The maximum SNR for 16bit is 96db and for 24bit it is 144db.
The noise floor will also be different in 16 or 24bit if the card is up to snuff and actually has a better SNR (signal to noise ratio) than 16bits allows. The maximum SNR for 16bit is 96db and for 24bit it is 144db.
canada-paul
New member
Some more test results
I was fooling around the other day, still messing with this SBLive card, and noticed that in CoolEdit Pro 2.0, I'm able to record at 16-bits, 96kHz. Yet in Sonar XL 2.0, the max it will let me do is 16/48. In any case, I know that recording in CoolEdit at 16/96 does make a difference, as I tested the noise floor with blank tracks at both 16/44 and 16/96 and it was slightly lower at 16/96. This led me to a barrage of various test setups this morning trying to isolate exactly what was causing the noise floor.
Here's the setup...
Equipment:
SBLive
Behringer UB1204Pro mixer
Hosa double mono 1/4" to single stereo 1/8" phono cable
Hosa double RCA to single stereo 1/8" phono cable
Signal chain:
Mixer -> cable -> SBLive Line-in
Warning: if you're not interested in alot of numbers, simply read the executive summary below and stop.
Executive Summary
------------------------
Sample screen shot of test 1a/1b showing noise floor drop when unplugging cable from line in of sound card:
http://www.eng.uwaterloo.ca/~pjhollow/run1-pic.jpg
-Hosa RCA to 1/8" cable raised noise floor by 4dB (compare test 2b to 2a)
-Mixer "control room out" combined with 1/4" to 1/8" Hosa cable had a noise floor 4dB lower than "tape out" with Hosa RCA to 1/8" cable (compare tests 1a/2a to 3a/4a)
-Recording at 16/96 as opposed to 16/44 lowered the noise floor by about 6.5dB (compare test 6b to 1b)
-Mixer is poorly isolated, adding 60Hz noise whether ON or OFF (notice that 60Hz noise disappears in 1b and 6b), and by plugging it in when powered off adds 11.6dB (see 4a and 4b)
-Hosa cables act as antennae, adding 60Hz signal even when not connected to mixer (see 2b and 3b)
-Noise floor on the SBLive, without any connections, is around -80dB (see 1b, 4b, 6b)
Now, since the mixer/cables are new to me (all within the last month), and therefore never having used anything but a Behringer mixer and Hosa cables (although I do have a Planet Waves XLR from my mic), I can't make any comparitive statements to say that Behringer or Hosa make noisy, poor quality components, although many of you will probably say that for me
. But I can say that, since these are the results that I got, its beginning to make sense that there are far more expensive mixers and cables available. The fact that an equivalently equipped Mackie is 3 times the price of the Behringer, and Planet Waves or Monster cable is 3-10 times the price, while maybe not justified, can at least be explained. I would like to think that the cables I use, in short enough lengths (most of mine are 15' or less), won't pick up 60Hz noise when not plugged into anything. I would also like to think that my mixer wouldn't add as much as 10-12 dB of noise floor when plugged in but not powered on.
Am I wrong? I realize that every single connection and component will add noise, thats a given. But are these sorts of numbers typical? I'm afraid about going out and buying an expensive replacement sound card for my Sound Blaster only to find out it doesn't make a lick of difference because the quality of my other components is the bottleneck.
Comments are welcome!
(Stop here if numbers make you sleepy)
Test runs (mixer is powered ON only in run 5):
1a. Mixer tape out -> RCA cable -> SBLive line in (16/44)
1b. (pulled out cable at "line in" of SBLive)
Note: testing for noise induced by cable and mixer combined
2a. Mixer tape out -> RCA to 1/8" cable -> SBLive line in (16/44)
2b. (pulled out cable at "tape out" of mixer)
Note: testing for noise induced only by mixer
3a. Mixer control room out -> 1/4" to 1/8" cable -> SBLive line in (16/44)
3b. (pulled out cable at "control room out" of mixer)
Note: testing for difference between "tape out" and "control room" outputs by comparing to results of Test 2
4a. Mixer control room out -> 1/4" to 1/8" cable -> SBLive line in (16/44)
4b. (pulled out power plug from mixer)
Note: testing for noise induced by mixer when plugged into wall (poor isolation)
5a. Mixer (powered ON) control room out -> 1/4" to 1/8" cable -> SBLive line in (16/44)
5b. (turned mixer power OFF)
Note: testing for difference in noise induced by mixer when powered ON compared to OFF
6a. Mixer tape out -> RCA cable -> SBLive line in (16/96)
6b. (pulled out cable at "line in" of SBLive)
Note: testing for difference between 96kHz sampling rate and 44kHz)
Results using Analysis/Statistics in CoolEdit:
-------------------------------------------------------
Run 1a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -83 -80
Max Sample Value: 76 70
Peak Amplitude: -51.44 dB -51.74 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.015 -.015
Minimum RMS Power: -60.47 dB -60.82 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -59.26 dB -59.79 dB
Average RMS Power: -60.19 dB -60.59 dB
Total RMS Power: -60.18 dB -60.58 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 1b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -32 -29
Max Sample Value: 21 16
Peak Amplitude: -59.05 dB -59.8 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -76 dB -78.03 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -73.94 dB -75.48 dB
Average RMS Power: -75.46 dB -77.34 dB
Total RMS Power: -75.45 dB -77.32 dB
Note: white noise visible only
Run 2a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -85 -83
Max Sample Value: 74 67
Peak Amplitude: -51.25 dB -51.44 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.015 -.015
Minimum RMS Power: -60.52 dB -60.91 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -59.8 dB -60.26 dB
Average RMS Power: -60.22 dB -60.67 dB
Total RMS Power: -60.22 dB -60.68 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 2b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -29 -38
Max Sample Value: 36 24
Peak Amplitude: -58.15 dB -57.67 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.015
Minimum RMS Power: -76.25 dB -70.21 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -74.48 dB -69.31 dB
Average RMS Power: -75.53 dB -69.85 dB
Total RMS Power: -75.52 dB -69.84 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on right channel, white noise on left
Run 3a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -70 -60
Max Sample Value: 55 46
Peak Amplitude: -52.84 dB -54.08 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -63.75 dB -65.72 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -62.79 dB -64.64 dB
Average RMS Power: -63.45 dB -65.36 dB
Total RMS Power: -63.43 dB -65.34 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 3b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -33 -29
Max Sample Value: 23 18
Peak Amplitude: -58.79 dB -59.78 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -74.75 dB -76.95 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -72 dB -74.88 dB
Average RMS Power: -73.75 dB -76.2 dB
Total RMS Power: -73.75 dB -76.2 dB
Note: 60Hz noise and white noise on both channels
Run 4a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -73 -57
Max Sample Value: 54 43
Peak Amplitude: -52.5 dB -54.5 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -64.24 dB -66.18 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -62.94 dB -64.89 dB
Average RMS Power: -63.68 dB -65.59 dB
Total RMS Power: -63.67 dB -65.58 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 4b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -27 -25
Max Sample Value: 17 14
Peak Amplitude: -60.33 dB -60.9 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -75.79 dB -77.81 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -73.98 dB -75.85 dB
Average RMS Power: -75.3 dB -77.24 dB
Total RMS Power: -75.3 dB -77.24 dB
Note: 60Hz noise and white noise on both channels
Run 5a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -125 -102
Max Sample Value: 111 94
Peak Amplitude: -48.04 dB -49.73 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.015 -.015
Minimum RMS Power: -56.6 dB -58.56 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -56.16 dB -58.04 dB
Average RMS Power: -56.39 dB -58.31 dB
Total RMS Power: -56.39 dB -58.31 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 5b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -67 -52
Max Sample Value: 51 40
Peak Amplitude: -53.22 dB -55.25 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -64.1 dB -66.06 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -63.66 dB -65.53 dB
Average RMS Power: -63.85 dB -65.76 dB
Total RMS Power: -63.85 dB -65.75 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 6a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -66 -67
Max Sample Value: 61 60
Peak Amplitude: -53.68 dB -53.55 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.006 -.006
Minimum RMS Power: -61.84 dB -62.17 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -60.69 dB -61.11 dB
Average RMS Power: -61.35 dB -61.66 dB
Total RMS Power: -61.35 dB -61.66 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 6b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -16 -15
Max Sample Value: 7 5
Peak Amplitude: -65.26 dB -65.76 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.006 -.006
Minimum RMS Power: -84.24 dB -85.38 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -77.86 dB -78.92 dB
Average RMS Power: -82.47 dB -83.67 dB
Total RMS Power: -82.24 dB -83.44 dB
Note: white noise visible only
I was fooling around the other day, still messing with this SBLive card, and noticed that in CoolEdit Pro 2.0, I'm able to record at 16-bits, 96kHz. Yet in Sonar XL 2.0, the max it will let me do is 16/48. In any case, I know that recording in CoolEdit at 16/96 does make a difference, as I tested the noise floor with blank tracks at both 16/44 and 16/96 and it was slightly lower at 16/96. This led me to a barrage of various test setups this morning trying to isolate exactly what was causing the noise floor.
Here's the setup...
Equipment:
SBLive
Behringer UB1204Pro mixer
Hosa double mono 1/4" to single stereo 1/8" phono cable
Hosa double RCA to single stereo 1/8" phono cable
Signal chain:
Mixer -> cable -> SBLive Line-in
Warning: if you're not interested in alot of numbers, simply read the executive summary below and stop.
Executive Summary
------------------------
Sample screen shot of test 1a/1b showing noise floor drop when unplugging cable from line in of sound card:
http://www.eng.uwaterloo.ca/~pjhollow/run1-pic.jpg
-Hosa RCA to 1/8" cable raised noise floor by 4dB (compare test 2b to 2a)
-Mixer "control room out" combined with 1/4" to 1/8" Hosa cable had a noise floor 4dB lower than "tape out" with Hosa RCA to 1/8" cable (compare tests 1a/2a to 3a/4a)
-Recording at 16/96 as opposed to 16/44 lowered the noise floor by about 6.5dB (compare test 6b to 1b)
-Mixer is poorly isolated, adding 60Hz noise whether ON or OFF (notice that 60Hz noise disappears in 1b and 6b), and by plugging it in when powered off adds 11.6dB (see 4a and 4b)
-Hosa cables act as antennae, adding 60Hz signal even when not connected to mixer (see 2b and 3b)
-Noise floor on the SBLive, without any connections, is around -80dB (see 1b, 4b, 6b)
Now, since the mixer/cables are new to me (all within the last month), and therefore never having used anything but a Behringer mixer and Hosa cables (although I do have a Planet Waves XLR from my mic), I can't make any comparitive statements to say that Behringer or Hosa make noisy, poor quality components, although many of you will probably say that for me
. But I can say that, since these are the results that I got, its beginning to make sense that there are far more expensive mixers and cables available. The fact that an equivalently equipped Mackie is 3 times the price of the Behringer, and Planet Waves or Monster cable is 3-10 times the price, while maybe not justified, can at least be explained. I would like to think that the cables I use, in short enough lengths (most of mine are 15' or less), won't pick up 60Hz noise when not plugged into anything. I would also like to think that my mixer wouldn't add as much as 10-12 dB of noise floor when plugged in but not powered on.Am I wrong? I realize that every single connection and component will add noise, thats a given. But are these sorts of numbers typical? I'm afraid about going out and buying an expensive replacement sound card for my Sound Blaster only to find out it doesn't make a lick of difference because the quality of my other components is the bottleneck.
Comments are welcome!
(Stop here if numbers make you sleepy)
Test runs (mixer is powered ON only in run 5):
1a. Mixer tape out -> RCA cable -> SBLive line in (16/44)
1b. (pulled out cable at "line in" of SBLive)
Note: testing for noise induced by cable and mixer combined
2a. Mixer tape out -> RCA to 1/8" cable -> SBLive line in (16/44)
2b. (pulled out cable at "tape out" of mixer)
Note: testing for noise induced only by mixer
3a. Mixer control room out -> 1/4" to 1/8" cable -> SBLive line in (16/44)
3b. (pulled out cable at "control room out" of mixer)
Note: testing for difference between "tape out" and "control room" outputs by comparing to results of Test 2
4a. Mixer control room out -> 1/4" to 1/8" cable -> SBLive line in (16/44)
4b. (pulled out power plug from mixer)
Note: testing for noise induced by mixer when plugged into wall (poor isolation)
5a. Mixer (powered ON) control room out -> 1/4" to 1/8" cable -> SBLive line in (16/44)
5b. (turned mixer power OFF)
Note: testing for difference in noise induced by mixer when powered ON compared to OFF
6a. Mixer tape out -> RCA cable -> SBLive line in (16/96)
6b. (pulled out cable at "line in" of SBLive)
Note: testing for difference between 96kHz sampling rate and 44kHz)
Results using Analysis/Statistics in CoolEdit:
-------------------------------------------------------
Run 1a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -83 -80
Max Sample Value: 76 70
Peak Amplitude: -51.44 dB -51.74 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.015 -.015
Minimum RMS Power: -60.47 dB -60.82 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -59.26 dB -59.79 dB
Average RMS Power: -60.19 dB -60.59 dB
Total RMS Power: -60.18 dB -60.58 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 1b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -32 -29
Max Sample Value: 21 16
Peak Amplitude: -59.05 dB -59.8 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -76 dB -78.03 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -73.94 dB -75.48 dB
Average RMS Power: -75.46 dB -77.34 dB
Total RMS Power: -75.45 dB -77.32 dB
Note: white noise visible only
Run 2a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -85 -83
Max Sample Value: 74 67
Peak Amplitude: -51.25 dB -51.44 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.015 -.015
Minimum RMS Power: -60.52 dB -60.91 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -59.8 dB -60.26 dB
Average RMS Power: -60.22 dB -60.67 dB
Total RMS Power: -60.22 dB -60.68 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 2b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -29 -38
Max Sample Value: 36 24
Peak Amplitude: -58.15 dB -57.67 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.015
Minimum RMS Power: -76.25 dB -70.21 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -74.48 dB -69.31 dB
Average RMS Power: -75.53 dB -69.85 dB
Total RMS Power: -75.52 dB -69.84 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on right channel, white noise on left
Run 3a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -70 -60
Max Sample Value: 55 46
Peak Amplitude: -52.84 dB -54.08 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -63.75 dB -65.72 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -62.79 dB -64.64 dB
Average RMS Power: -63.45 dB -65.36 dB
Total RMS Power: -63.43 dB -65.34 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 3b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -33 -29
Max Sample Value: 23 18
Peak Amplitude: -58.79 dB -59.78 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -74.75 dB -76.95 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -72 dB -74.88 dB
Average RMS Power: -73.75 dB -76.2 dB
Total RMS Power: -73.75 dB -76.2 dB
Note: 60Hz noise and white noise on both channels
Run 4a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -73 -57
Max Sample Value: 54 43
Peak Amplitude: -52.5 dB -54.5 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -64.24 dB -66.18 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -62.94 dB -64.89 dB
Average RMS Power: -63.68 dB -65.59 dB
Total RMS Power: -63.67 dB -65.58 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 4b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -27 -25
Max Sample Value: 17 14
Peak Amplitude: -60.33 dB -60.9 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -75.79 dB -77.81 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -73.98 dB -75.85 dB
Average RMS Power: -75.3 dB -77.24 dB
Total RMS Power: -75.3 dB -77.24 dB
Note: 60Hz noise and white noise on both channels
Run 5a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -125 -102
Max Sample Value: 111 94
Peak Amplitude: -48.04 dB -49.73 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.015 -.015
Minimum RMS Power: -56.6 dB -58.56 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -56.16 dB -58.04 dB
Average RMS Power: -56.39 dB -58.31 dB
Total RMS Power: -56.39 dB -58.31 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 5b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -67 -52
Max Sample Value: 51 40
Peak Amplitude: -53.22 dB -55.25 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.014 -.014
Minimum RMS Power: -64.1 dB -66.06 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -63.66 dB -65.53 dB
Average RMS Power: -63.85 dB -65.76 dB
Total RMS Power: -63.85 dB -65.75 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 6a:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -66 -67
Max Sample Value: 61 60
Peak Amplitude: -53.68 dB -53.55 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.006 -.006
Minimum RMS Power: -61.84 dB -62.17 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -60.69 dB -61.11 dB
Average RMS Power: -61.35 dB -61.66 dB
Total RMS Power: -61.35 dB -61.66 dB
Note: 60Hz noise on both channels
Run 6b:
Left Right
Min Sample Value: -16 -15
Max Sample Value: 7 5
Peak Amplitude: -65.26 dB -65.76 dB
Possibly Clipped: 0 0
DC Offset: -.006 -.006
Minimum RMS Power: -84.24 dB -85.38 dB
Maximum RMS Power: -77.86 dB -78.92 dB
Average RMS Power: -82.47 dB -83.67 dB
Total RMS Power: -82.24 dB -83.44 dB
Note: white noise visible only
TexRoadkill
Audio Bum
Paul, The SB Live does not have 96khz convertors. The sample rate does not affect the noise floor, only word length (bits).
canada-paul
New member
yeah thats what I thought... but then when I requested 96kHz it didn't seem to mind, and it did make a difference in the noise floor.
Perhaps something else is going on inside the sound card when 96kHz is requested that cleans up the input?
Perhaps something else is going on inside the sound card when 96kHz is requested that cleans up the input?
canada-paul
New member
To follow up on my previous note: yes, requesting a sample rate of 96kHz is apparently 'allowed' in CoolEdit, although the SBLive isn't capable of such a rate, and it does apparently lower the noise floor, but the recording quality is atrocious (sounds like 8-bit). So I'll leave it at 48kHz and be done with it.
Now onto the noise issue, mainly by lowering the Line In recording level slider in the Windows Mixer to just below half, I was able to significantly lower my noise floor. And now, for some strange reason, the 60Hz hum is completely gone. I'm using the Tape Outs from the mixer, the Rear Line Outs on the soundcard are fired back into channels 7/8 on the mixer, then muted and sent to Alt 3/4, which is sent to the headphones instead of the main mix.
I honestly cannot say what got rid of the 60 cycle hum. Tonight I think I'm going to take a bunch of digital photos of all the wires and hookups and such, just so that if it comes back I'll have something to reference.
Below is a composite screen shot showing the waveform in CoolEdit. I recorded a signal from my keyboard that peaked around -3dB (first pic) then zoomed in to make the noise floor visible and ran the Statistics function to show the Total RMS Power at a mere -85dB.
(sorry about the crap pic quality... had to lower the jpg compression to get it under 100k)
This sounds and looks really good to me. The only reason I'm posting this is to maybe help point out some of the abilities of my set up (SBLive, Behringer 1204Pro mixer, Hosa cables), which is pretty low-end, to some other users out there who might be thinking of upgrading some of their components. I'll be moving to a better sound card, mostly for frequency response. The SBLive seems to strip alot of the life out of the sound. I don't imagine it would make much of a difference on my noise floor though, as its already pretty good. As long as that mystery 60 cycle hum doesn't return, I'm perfectly happy, at the moment, with this mixer and these cables.
Now onto the noise issue, mainly by lowering the Line In recording level slider in the Windows Mixer to just below half, I was able to significantly lower my noise floor. And now, for some strange reason, the 60Hz hum is completely gone. I'm using the Tape Outs from the mixer, the Rear Line Outs on the soundcard are fired back into channels 7/8 on the mixer, then muted and sent to Alt 3/4, which is sent to the headphones instead of the main mix.
I honestly cannot say what got rid of the 60 cycle hum. Tonight I think I'm going to take a bunch of digital photos of all the wires and hookups and such, just so that if it comes back I'll have something to reference.
Below is a composite screen shot showing the waveform in CoolEdit. I recorded a signal from my keyboard that peaked around -3dB (first pic) then zoomed in to make the noise floor visible and ran the Statistics function to show the Total RMS Power at a mere -85dB.
(sorry about the crap pic quality... had to lower the jpg compression to get it under 100k)
This sounds and looks really good to me. The only reason I'm posting this is to maybe help point out some of the abilities of my set up (SBLive, Behringer 1204Pro mixer, Hosa cables), which is pretty low-end, to some other users out there who might be thinking of upgrading some of their components. I'll be moving to a better sound card, mostly for frequency response. The SBLive seems to strip alot of the life out of the sound. I don't imagine it would make much of a difference on my noise floor though, as its already pretty good. As long as that mystery 60 cycle hum doesn't return, I'm perfectly happy, at the moment, with this mixer and these cables.
