Soundcard for a Laptop using Audacity

[Oerets]

Most of the units are over kill for my needs. Just need a analog audio in and a digital out to the computer. No headphones or mic volume needed. The software from Audacity does the rest.

Looked at this one but so far unable to get good info on quality and ease of operation. The ClearClick is just a box doing just what needed.

The 2i2 is more then needed yet still is where probably be ending up.

BTW it is a Behringer UCA222 coming sometime not a 202. The seller's not shipped, no info yet.

Still learning on the new improved changes since the last time setting up for this operation.

 

[Thorsten R.]

202 and 222 are identical. Differences: The 222 housing is red, ant a bit of software is added. Which you can download anyway.
The UFO 202 is a bit different. Same housing, but it has a phono preamp.

 

[Oerets]

202 and 222 are identical. Differences: The 222 housing is red, ant a bit of software is added. Which you can download anyway.
The UFO 202 is a bit different. Same housing, but it has a phono preamp.

Don't need a phono section on the adapter.

I think the current U22Mk3 version is Yamaha-branded, and thought it was Yamaha guts in the Steinberg-branded U22Mk2 as well.

Nice, checking it out.

 

[lini]

Most of the units are over kill for my needs. Just need a analog audio in and a digital out to the computer. No headphones or mic volume needed. (...)

The reason, why I nevertheless suggested to consider one of those prosumer USB audio interfaces, is proper gain/level control before the ADC, so you wouldn't need to worry about digital clipping with rather high line-level signals as well as about unnecessarily losing quality with rather low line-level signals.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

 

[Oerets]

The reason, why I nevertheless suggested to consider one of those prosumer USB audio interfaces, is proper gain/level control before the ADC, so you wouldn't need to worry about digital clipping with rather high line-level signals as well as about unnecessarily losing quality with rather low line-level signals.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

Makes sense.


I'm going to take my time at this. First will get a outfit up and running somewhat like before. Then using all this new info will investigate the direction to travel next.

 

[Thorsten R.]

Don't need a phone section on the adapter.








Nice, checking it out.

Phono. not phone.

 

[Oerets]

Phono. not phone.

Haa Haa
Missed that meant to write phono.
My mistake missed it.

Corrected it.

 

[Oerets]

A little update to my ongoing saga it now does seem.

Two interfaces two opti drives and many new cables later. Still not up and running.

Bought a UCA 222 and it was going to be awhile getting to me. On a whim picked up a used Wrugste for little money. Send the UCA back (Amazon) if need to.

The Wrugste sounded terrible choppy audio distorted plain bad. Tried changing a few settings to no avail. So today the UCA showed up. Guess what same issue so was not the Wrugste after all it now seems.

Also picked up an external opti drive to load CD’s into iTunes. Was a “nice” one not cheap lasted one CD then quit! So bought a wire kit for a old trusty IDE opti drive so that working.

Taking a break and investing this issue more. Have found the laptop HP Omnibook 16 is suppose to be a good one for audio.
Do have another that will try later.

Messing with computer can wear one out quickly.

 

[jazzmans]

A little update to my ongoing saga it now does seem.

Two interfaces two opti drives and many new cables later. Still not up and running.

Bought a UCA 222 and it was going to be awhile getting to me. On a whim picked up a used Wrugste for little money. Send the UCA back (Amazon) if need to.

The Wrugste sounded terrible choppy audio distorted plain bad. Tried changing a few settings to no avail. So today the UCA showed up. Guess what same issue so was not the Wrugste after all it now seems.

Also picked up an external opti drive to load CD’s into iTunes. Was a “nice” one not cheap lasted one CD then quit! So bought a wire kit for a old trusty IDE opti drive so that working.

Taking a break and investing this issue more. Have found the laptop HP Omnibook 16 is suppose to be a good one for audio.
Do have another that will try later.

Messing with computer can wear one out quickly.

latency issue?

try a linux distro on usb just for shits and giggles.
I like Mint, on laptops, but there's tons others

won't touch your hard drive unless you want it to, so you can troubleshoot latency/timing issues.

generally speaking mint runs much faster on the same hardware as win 10/11...

 

[Oerets]

latency issue?

try a linux distro on usb just for shits and giggles.
I like Mint, on laptops, but there's tons others

won't touch your hard drive unless you want it to, so you can troubleshoot latency/timing issues.

generally speaking mint runs much faster on the same hardware as win 10/11...

I messed with the latency and could make it worse not better. That is when I quit and to have supper, saving this fight for another day.

Adding another new issue like Mint right now will need to wait. Want to get it up and going first then improve performance. Already hate the clutter of wires and gear over the one box in one place as before.

 

[Oerets]

The Latency looks spot on to me.
Still sounds like someone down in a well. Spoken words are ok music cuts in and out.
Tried two laptops same issues. Two different interfaces again same results. Must be missing something.
The old desktop worked fine. The Laptops are less then two years old and got better specs…

 

[whoaru99]

Long shot here... is the laptop's internal microphone turned on by chance?

 

[Oerets]

Long shot here... is the laptop's internal microphone turned on by chance?

I don't believe so, it shows the USB as the input and microphone off in settings. I tried another W11 HP laptop a little over a year old and it does the same with it. Later today will try another input a USB C (lighting) with a adapter. Believe have before just not sure. It is acting like the laptops are to slow. Yet they are over ten years newer....

My plan now is to clone the old computers hard drive and move W10 to a new SS one. See if it will then boot up with just the W10 operating system. I thinking the laptops are missing a driver or a box needs checked somewhere that I have not found.
Did find a patch software ASIO4All that I'm investigating. https://www.sweetwater.com/sweetcar...rface-setup-guide/#Download-ASIO4ALL-PC-users

I'm at a point of taking a break for a while and think on it some more.

 

[Bradbrews]

Your adventures are making me think that the WinXP box with the MAudio 24/96 card in it that works just fine is good enough for me!
It really doesn’t get much use anymore other than setting up tape decks…

 

[Oerets]

Your adventures are making me think that the WinXP box with the MAudio 24/96 card in it that works just fine is good enough for me!
It really doesn’t get much use anymore other than setting up tape decks…

The first one was XP that worked fine with its sound card. Even made DVD's out of old VCR tapes with it. May put it back into service again now I think of it.

 

[whoaru99]

Overlapping/multiple anti malware programs or whatever hogging up resources?

Don't recall if I already asked that along the way.

Also, about drivers, if there are Win drivers or is natively supported in Win I'd sure try to get it at least working normally that way before trying advanced setup/drivers e.g. ASIO type of thing. If that makes sense and I'm not behind the times in that thinking.

 

[Oerets]

I made Audacity an administrator and have everything else closed. Having the grandsons here right now so busy with them.

 

[whoaru99]

Apologies if you know all this stuff but a lot of things may still be running background processes even though you may have "closed" the program.

Might not be bad to look at task manager and see if anything stands out there.

 

[RickB]

I've been doing vinyl transfers for years...I started out doing computer recording with a PSAudio Vinyl Convertor that I had borrowed from work, it worked well..but, it was too expensive for me to keep.

I ended up with a Behringer UMC202HD. I have found that the recordings I have made compare favorably with what came from the PSAudio device.

I tried all kinds of freeware programs but all of them left me frustrated and sometimes confused...I finally settled on Vinyl Studio, which has been the greatest upgrade over the much more difficult to master Audacity, which I thought sucked...VS has many functions that make vinyl "ripping" easier, more convenient especially in noise reduction, track splitting, and tagging...

Your choppiness and distortion could be related to the input level into your interface, the UMC has level controls to prevent input overloading and Vinyl Studio has controls to adjust levels so that you have some actual dynamic range in your recordings vs. what you showed in your screenshot of the recorded signal, which looks like it is maxed out and clipping...

I have the UMC in the tape loop of my preamp and use the preamp's phono section to feed it...I mostly make 24/192 WAV files as you can always down-res files to fit on to portable devices, but you can't increase resolution for better playback quality on better systems....

I bought one of those book sized little computers from Amazon years ago for about $150 and have that connected to the 55" TV in the den as a display...I have a Topping E30Mk2 Lite DAC and the Behringer connected via USB to this computer...I can sit on the couch with a wireless keyboard/touchpad combo and control everything making vinyl transfers a much more enjoyable experience...I basically listen to an album while it is being recorded, after setting the input levels and recording levels, of course,

Then I go into VS and make all the noise corrections, track splitting, and tagging.

It did take me a while to get to that point as I started with a stand alone Pioneer CD reorder that eventually died and was limited to 16/44 recording, plus you had to insert track breaks as you were making the recordings, otherwise it was a lot like using a cassette deck...

 

[Oerets]

I've been doing vinyl transfers for years...I started out doing computer recording with a PSAudio Vinyl Convertor that I had borrowed from work, it worked well..but, it was too expensive for me to keep.

I ended up with a Behringer UMC202HD. I have found that the recordings I have made compare favorably with what came from the PSAudio device.

I tried all kinds of freeware programs but all of them left me frustrated and sometimes confused...I finally settled on Vinyl Studio, which has been the greatest upgrade over the much more difficult to master Audacity, which I thought sucked...VS has many functions that make vinyl "ripping" easier, more convenient especially in noise reduction, track splitting, and tagging...

Your choppiness and distortion could be related to the input level into your interface, the UMC has level controls to prevent input overloading and Vinyl Studio has controls to adjust levels so that you have some actual dynamic range in your recordings vs. what you showed in your screenshot of the recorded signal, which looks like it is maxed out and clipping...

I have the UMC in the tape loop of my preamp and use the preamp's phono section to feed it...I mostly make 24/192 WAV files as you can always down-res files to fit on to portable devices, but you can't increase resolution for better playback quality on better systems....

I bought one of those book sized little computers from Amazon years ago for about $150 and have that connected to the 55" TV in the den as a display...I have a Topping E30Mk2 Lite DAC and the Behringer connected via USB to this computer...I can sit on the couch with a wireless keyboard/touchpad combo and control everything making vinyl transfers a much more enjoyable experience...I basically listen to an album while it is being recorded, after setting the input levels and recording levels, of course,

Then I go into VS and make all the noise corrections, track splitting, and tagging.

It did take me a while to get to that point as I started with a stand alone Pioneer CD reorder that eventually died and was limited to 16/44 recording, plus you had to insert track breaks as you were making the recordings, otherwise it was a lot like using a cassette deck...

The picture of the signal test was from the Generate testing settings supplied in Audacity.
The volume has been played around with, now at a loss how many times reset to defaults so far. Same with Buffering Sample Rates Dither Latency... Keeping a note book of the testing.

I have been using Audacity for many years on other computers. Always using the onboard sound cards. The new laptops only having a microphone/headphone input needing a USB audio interface. I have two units one the UMC 222 the other a Wrugste. The Wrugste has volume adjustments for the input sensitivity with flashing LED's when going into clipping. Acts the same on the two W11 HP laptops I own. Hate to think it is them.....

Used a CD player out and also Rec out from Preamplifier to feed signal to interfaces. Spoken words sound great music seems to overwhelm the computer. Causing the issues experiencing. Giving it a break today Grandsons were here and spent time with them.