ykikuchi said:
Thank you for the reply.
My mic is plugged into Channel1, and I am monitoring the input with a headphone connected to the monitor output on the right side of the front panel. To light up the limiter(green light), I have to set the channel 1 volume dial at least to 7/8 of the maximum volume and sing loud with the mic close to my mouth.
Could you tell me how you are setting the channel 1 volume? Is it near maximum??
Thank you!
-Y
Ahhhhhhhhhhh.....
You have to give this preamp a BIG signal to light up the limiter, which is what you are doing when you sing loudly, with your mouth close to the mic. The limiter should only "blink" on occasionally, since it is used to limit large signal peaks and "spikes, which you want to do to avoid digital clipping (distortion).
The output voltage of most dynamic mics (like the SM-58) is much lower than most condenser mics. So, I don't need to turn the SENS (input volume control) as high with a condenser mic (only around half way).
But even with the SENS control turned up near maximum, I am surprised that you hear so much noise.
What does the noise sound like? Is it a hissing sound (sssssssss)? This could be EMI noise from a poorly shielded computor, or self-noise from a defective mic, or self-noise from a defective mic preamp, or from the headphone amp in
the UA-25.
Is it a humming sound (hummmmmm)? This could be caused by bad grounding from a defective mic, defective mic cable, defective USB cable, or defective headphone cable. Also, are there any light dimmers or room fans in the room or building where your equipment is connected? They can cause terrible humming noises in audio equipment.
The type of noise can help determine where the noise is coming from.
Is your UA-25 connected to a PC or Mac? If it is, is it very close to the CPU? If the CPU is not well shielded, it could be causing EMI noise.
I have not experienced any noise with my UA-25... it is very quiet. My UA-25 is connected to my Toshiba laptop with a 3 meter long USB cable, so it is 3 meters away from my laptop, and it does not pick up any noise from the CPU in the laptop. Also, I monitor the sound with high quality headphones (AKG-170M) and a high quality stereo power amp and monitors.