PC microphone advice....plz

[leary]

Hi

I notice ingame that some players sound great as if they were sitting next to me....others (and mine like static jibberish). Is it the difference between console and PC? Thats my first question...my 2nd is ....on a PC could it be that I dont have a sound card and use my onboard Realtek which make it so terrible? Also for those who have that clear sounding audio igame can you tell me your settings.

My rig:

Abit AW9D-MAX (Intel i975-ICH7)
Intel Core 2 Duo CPU e6600 @ 2.4GHz Arctic Freezer pro 7
XFX GTX 260 896mb GDDR 3
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2gig) DDR2 6400 800 Mhz 4-4-3-5
Seagate NL35 Series 250 GB SATA Internal Hard Drive
ULTRA-QUIET PSU: SILENCER® 750 ATX


Thanks in advance

[Stuffinator]

Well I guess not everyone has a qualitative headset or mic and some may have this +20db boost activated which can reduce the quality of the sound!

how old is you pc? Because newer mainboards should have enjoyable onboard sound!

[leary]

Well I guess not everyone has a qualitative headset or mic and some may have this +20db boost activated which can reduce the quality of the sound!

how old is you pc? Because newer mainboards should have enjoyable onboard sound!

Thanks for the quick reply. Thought about that but Im not very techincal guy. The mb isnt very new but was top notch at the me I bought it. Here are the headset and mb...what do you think? Listening to music through the onboard sounds great so I thought I really never needed a sound card and this is my first attempt at online gaming with a mic. That headset below was new but only $13 on ebay...seemed ok from reviews I read. anything else you can add?

Headset:
http://www.excaliberpc.com/551624/logitech-980233-0403-headset-extreme-pc.html

Motherboard:
http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=6953&page=2

Audioabit AudioMAX HD 7.1
HD Audio, 8-channel, Realtek ALC882M

[Deadly]

Experiment with turning off your micboost in the sound settings

[leary]

Experiment with turning off your micboost in the sound settings

Thanks DeAdLy but I tried that. Im thinking my original post wasnt clear enough for you experience guys to help me so let try again.....

I have a Abit AW9D-MAX (Intel i975-ICH7)specs here http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=6953&page=2 (http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=6953&page=2) and recently purchased a headset with mic (not a usb one and is usb better) for my first attempt of online gaming. All other players say I'm inaudible with a lot of static. So I'm trying to eliminate the issues. I have checked the settings in windows XP (and the game) and I updated my mb drivers. So that leaves me with onboard audio or the need to get a sound card (or possiblely a better headset) btw music sounds great with the onboard. Any advice? Any gamers using onboard with their headsets with no issues? Appreciate any help and thanks in advance!

Abit AW9D-MAX (Intel i975-ICH7)
Intel Core 2 Duo CPU e6600 @ 2.4GHz Arctic Freezer pro 7
XFX GTX 260 896mb GDDR 3
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2gig) DDR2 6400 800 Mhz 4-4-3-5
Seagate NL35 Series 250 GB SATA Internal Hard Drive

[Jesus123]

Do you have Realtek HD? If you do, I can help you out with that problem.

[Stuffinator]

and is usb better
USB-Headsets may have more features and better sound quality, but they suck in adjusting!

I had three usb-headsets, all of them were broken after 3 month and one of my buddies has a usb-headset and we can't figure out how to adjust his mic, so I can actualy hear him while playing l4d2!

I prefer non-usb headsets and I'm pretty happy with that!

OT:
Logitech should be high quality, don't think it's the headset (unless it's broken)!

[leary]

Do you have Realtek HD? If you do, I can help you out with that problem.


Yes I do....how can you help? I was just about to buy another headset before I read your post cause somone suggested a usb model is what I needed without a sound card. Appreciate any help you can provide.

Btw if i was'nt clear before tghe headset mic works when i record on Windows Sound Recorder but in the ingame options (audio) mic test i get nothing and during play no one can hear me obviously.

[Jesus123]

Ok, go into your Realtek HD<Mixer and mute your Stereo Mix. This should solve your problem, if you have any further problems to pm me.

[leary]

Ok, go into your Realtek HD<Mixer and mute your Stereo Mix. This should solve your problem, if you have any further problems to pm me.

I dont see STEREO MUTE just palyback and record as seen below!


http://www.angelfire.com/folk/memorial/zmixer.JPG

[one of them]

1. Right Click the little sound icon on the Start Taskbar (the muted one in your screenshot) and go to Adjust Audio Properties
2. Then under the Audio Tab, go to Volume under Sound Recording (has a little Microphone next to it)
3. Click Options, then click Properties.
4. Click the Recording Dot and then Uncheck Stereo Mix.

Forget using Realtek HD Software to disable Stereo Mix, it's better if you do it from the actual system audio settings.

[leary]

1. Right Click the little sound icon on the Start Taskbar (the muted one in your screenshot) and go to Adjust Audio Properties
2. Then under the Audio Tab, go to Volume under Sound Recording (has a little Microphone next to it)
3. Click Options, then click Properties.
4. Click the Recording Dot and then Uncheck Stereo Mix.

Forget using Realtek HD Software to disable Stereo Mix, it's better if you do it from the actual system audio settings.

Well you can see from the screenie below I did what you suggested but when I get to (4. Click the Recording Dot and then Uncheck Stereo Mix) I dont see the option to Uncheck Stereo Mix just the Microphone check box.?.? Am I missing the obvious? Also not sure what You mean by "Forget using Realtek HD Software to disable Stereo Mix, it's better if you do it from the actual system audio settings."

I dont have a sound card onboard audio only..
Abit AW9D-MAX (Intel i975-ICH7)
Intel Core 2 Duo CPU e6600 @ 2.4GHz Arctic Freezer pro 7
XFX GTX 260 896mb GDDR 3
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2gig) DDR2 6400 800 Mhz 4-4-3-5
Seagate NL35 Series 250 GB SATA Internal Hard Drive
ULTRA-QUIET PSU: SILENCER® 750 ATX
NEC NR-7900A CD-RW IDE Internal 24x10x40
Samsung 56X DVD Combo
Antec Nine Hundred Mid-tower



http://www.angelfire.com/folk/memorial/xz.JPG

[one of them]

Well you can see from the screenie below I did what you suggested but when I get to (4. Click the Recording Dot and then Uncheck Stereo Mix) I dont see the option to Uncheck Stereo Mix just the Microphone check box.?.? Am I missing the obvious? Also not sure what You mean by "Forget using Realtek HD Software to disable Stereo Mix, it's better if you do it from the actual system audio settings."

I dont have a sound card onboard audio only..
Abit AW9D-MAX (Intel i975-ICH7)
Intel Core 2 Duo CPU e6600 @ 2.4GHz Arctic Freezer pro 7
XFX GTX 260 896mb GDDR 3
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2gig) DDR2 6400 800 Mhz 4-4-3-5
Seagate NL35 Series 250 GB SATA Internal Hard Drive
ULTRA-QUIET PSU: SILENCER® 750 ATX
NEC NR-7900A CD-RW IDE Internal 24x10x40
Samsung 56X DVD Combo
Antec Nine Hundred Mid-tower

You're in the right place, hmmm...
I'm going to guess either you don't have a very good headset or you don't have the drivers installed? It says Logitech USB Headset, so your onboard sound should have nothing to do with it. It should have come with a CD or something that lets you install it's features. If you play with a Headset but no sound driver, it will use the system's default USB Sound Driver, which won't allow you to get the best sound.
Usually USB devices have more than one option in that menu.
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i299/Darksagejl/screencap2.png


EDIT: Oh, just saw your Headset Link
I'm going to guess your microphone quality is degraded because of a shotty mic. I would suggest buying a new one, I can help you pick out a quality one for a low price if you'd like. A $12 Logitech Headset isn't very trustworthy when it comes to quality, especially those type. I've seen and used that before (unfortunately).

Here is a very nice headset that I used to have, it has Bass, is very comfortable, and has a detachable Microphone. $30 is a great price too, I bought it for $70 about two years ago.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826158082

[leary]

Dang...I can see the Stereo Mix in your box which doesnt appear in mine. The next day after my original post I did get a better headset thinking that one was too cheap also and bought this one....Logitech USB 300 Headset
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2003/12/09/logitech_usb_300/1 which was a USB one this time and cost $41. Still the wrong/cheap kind?

[one of them]

Those aren't bad, but as you can see from the link above... you can get MUCH better for a lower price.

[leary]

First thanks for the help. I think since it works on Windows sound recorder perfectly that its not the headset and its SOME configeration between my PC and Left4Dead. Im glad to know its NOT cause I dont have a sound card and others without one are using their onboard audio with no problem....that gives me a little hope.:(