Noise from fan?

C

corpsee

New member
Hi all.
Sorry if this is an obvious question but-
Whenever I try to record any audio on my PC I get some noise which really shows up in any quiet parts of my songs,
I have heard that this might be the noise from the fan.
Is this true and is there any way to remedy this?
Any help would really be appreciated.
B.T.W I am currently using the AC `97soundchip that shipped with my computer.
Thanks in advance
Dan
 
What kind of noise? Noise picked up by your microphone or the internal noise of your soundcard?

Don't be suprised if the noise floor on your onboard soundcard is in the -40 to -30db range. Not a hell of a lot better than tape.

A soundblaster Live! or better will get you down in the -60 to -50db.

The noise floor on my Delta 1010 is right around -94db in 24bit mode.

If this is the kind of noise we're talking about, there's not a lot you can do to remedy it aside from getting a better soundcard. You can of course edit the quiet parts or throw a gate on the track.

Slackmaster 2000
 
thanks 4 quick reply Slack.
I think its internal noise (a constant whiring/buzzing noise) and it happens on both my electric guitar and my synth- which I dont think generate background noise themselves I`m not sure if the cable I use could be responsible either though.
Does it sound like the soundcard is the weakest link?
Its just that I do use softsynths a fair bit and at the moment I only get a latency of 11ms which is pretty satisfactory and I wouldn`t want to increase it. (but then again noise free recording would be pretty damn cool)

Whaddya think?
 
Just about any soundcard you upgrade to will be able to give you the same or better latency, so that shouldn't be too big of a concern. Besides, softsynths imply a MIDI keyboard which shouldn't be subject to this noise.

Try this: unplug everything from your soundcard and see what kind of noise level it's at in your recording software (e.g. look at the input VU meters). This will give allow you to determine the noise floor of your soundcard, and allow you to decide if it's the culprit.

Oh, you should also disable or mute the CD and microphone inputs via the soundcard's mixer/control panel. These are often big nasty noise makers even if you're not using them. In fact, disable all inputs that aren't in use.

Slackmaster 2000
 
Anytime you have the A/D conversion take place inside a computer case, you significantly raise the noise floor. With that said, I agree 100% with Slack2k.
 
Thanks a million guys.
I turned off the other things and thats helped A LOT.
Its much quieter now.
I also now have the signal going through an old Yamaha "digital multi effector rex 50" and even when the unit is bypassed it still sounds less noisy.
I was wondering because at the moment I have no money so I dont have a preamp but could it be that this yamaha unit is already doing this job for me?
Sorry if this a stupid question (I`ve been a musician for 10+ years but this recording game is still new to me)
thanks again
Dan
 
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