software problem (getting clicks and pops while recording)

[Nick]

no it's not clipping. But it kind of sounds like it. My old setup was to go into my behringer mixer, then into the auxiliary inputs on my creative soundcard (audigy soundblaster 2 ZS) then record in cool edit pro. That was my old computer. My new one's basically triple the specs only instead of using Cool Edit Pro 2 I'm using the modern equivalent, Adobe Audition 3. I think I got everything working right, except whenever I record anything, at any input level, I get crackle, like an old record almost. It doesn't sound good. I'm not having any latency problems and the sound of what it does pick up is good. Any ideas?

[Sloan]

up your sample rate?

[vivadeluxxe]

It doesn't sound good. I'm not having any latency problems and the sound of what it does pick up is good. Any ideas?

I'm not familiar with Adobe Audition 3 but it sounds like your audio buffer size could be too low...
Having a very low latency means having a very small buffer size which can cause the distortion you're talking about because it places too much strain on your CPU... if your program has audio options, try increasing the buffer size slightly and it may get rid of it...

[Nick]

its set for like 24bit/96khz, which I thought was supposed to be better than CD quality. Maybe there's some other setting in there somewhere that has a low sample rate still, I'll check when I get back home from work

[Mike]

its set for like 24bit/96khz, which I thought was supposed to be better than CD quality. Maybe there's some other setting in there somewhere that has a low sample rate still, I'll check when I get back home from work

That's your sample rate and resolution, and it could also be the root of your problem. That is a lot of data, how quick is your Audio interface? And like Mike says, you need to ensure the buffering is adequate.

I would reduce to 16bit/44kHz.

[Nick]

It doesn't sound good. I'm not having any latency problems and the sound of what it does pick up is good. Any ideas?

I'm not familiar with Adobe Audition 3 but it sounds like your audio buffer size could be too low...
Having a very low latency means having a very small buffer size which can cause the distortion you're talking about because it places too much strain on your CPU... if your program has audio options, try increasing the buffer size slightly and it may get rid of it...

What's a good ms to set the buffer to then? Its default was 50 but that was noticable lag. I've tried setting it to 2 and 4 so far with the same problem of clicks/pops.

[Mike]

Also have you tried all the Driver options? LIke ASIO/MME etc.

[Nick]

its set for like 24bit/96khz, which I thought was supposed to be better than CD quality. Maybe there's some other setting in there somewhere that has a low sample rate still, I'll check when I get back home from work

That's your sample rate and resolution, and it could also be the root of your problem. That is a lot of data, how quick is your Audio interface? And like Mike says, you need to ensure the buffering is adequate.

I would reduce to 16bit/44kHz.

Those are the max specs for my soundcard. I initially tried to record with a lower sample rate but the software wasn't letting me because it wasn't "matched" to my soundcard. I never had a problem recording at a lower rate on my old machine with this same exact soundcard, but that was of course a 5+ year old version of the software I'm using now.

[Nick]

Also have you tried all the Driver options? LIke ASIO/MME etc.

nope, I'm kinda dumb about computer recording still, I'll have to look into that when I get home.

[vivadeluxxe]

It doesn't sound good. I'm not having any latency problems and the sound of what it does pick up is good. Any ideas?

I'm not familiar with Adobe Audition 3 but it sounds like your audio buffer size could be too low...
Having a very low latency means having a very small buffer size which can cause the distortion you're talking about because it places too much strain on your CPU... if your program has audio options, try increasing the buffer size slightly and it may get rid of it...

What's a good ms to set the buffer to then? Its default was 50 but that was noticable lag. I've tried setting it to 2 and 4 so far with the same problem of clicks/pops.

It's basically trial and error, you have to try to find a balance between getting rid of the the crackles but still having an acceptable latency... 128 samples is somewhere in the middle, but you could go lower if your CPU can handle it...

[Mike]

its set for like 24bit/96khz, which I thought was supposed to be better than CD quality. Maybe there's some other setting in there somewhere that has a low sample rate still, I'll check when I get back home from work

That's your sample rate and resolution, and it could also be the root of your problem. That is a lot of data, how quick is your Audio interface? And like Mike says, you need to ensure the buffering is adequate.

I would reduce to 16bit/44kHz.

Those are the max specs for my soundcard. I initially tried to record with a lower sample rate but the software wasn't letting me because it wasn't "matched" to my soundcard. I never had a problem recording at a lower rate on my old machine with this same exact soundcard, but that was of course a 5+ year old version of the software I'm using now.

That's weird. is the some program you can use to set up what rate the Soundcard is working at?

[Sloan]

you may be able to use ASIO4ALL to work with your soundcard.

http://www.asio4all.com/

[aen]

its set for like 24bit/96khz, which I thought was supposed to be better than CD quality. Maybe there's some other setting in there somewhere that has a low sample rate still, I'll check when I get back home from work

That's your sample rate and resolution, and it could also be the root of your problem. That is a lot of data, how quick is your Audio interface? And like Mike says, you need to ensure the buffering is adequate.

I would reduce to 16bit/44kHz.

yeah, unless you;re planning on releasing 5.1 dvds or something.

[serfx]

you may be able to use ASIO4ALL to work with your soundcard.

http://www.asio4all.com/

asio4all FTW

and i swap recording hardware like a bugger, and it has never failed me

[Ian]

are the clicks and pops IN the recordings? or just in random spots during playback?

If it is the latter then don't worry about it. If the clicks and pops are in the actual wave file that is an issue with your clocking. Try reducing it to 24bit 48K. Or get an external clock.