Microphone Test

SWMBO's iMac has a USB headphone/microphone. I have the same setup on my PC. We have to have separate computers because of our religious differences: She's Macintosh, I'm Windows.

She has several ongoing Zoom training sessions, and so far nobody has been able to hear her. We swapped headphone/microphones, still the same.

What's a simple way on her iMac to test and see if her microphone works? I have no idea how to troubleshoot anything on an Apple system, so if the microphone does work (I have no reason to suspect it is broken) what should I do to make it connect with Zoom?

tanstaafl.

This might help but it it late and I don't know where my USB mic is to connect to my Mac Mini to be sure of the info.

I use Zoom on Linux. My notebook computer has a built-in Mic, which is the "Same as System" default for Zoom. But my external USB webcam has another, better Mic.

So I first had to start up a Zoom "New Meeting" with only myself. This then bought up the main Zoom video window, with a microphone sub-menu now accessible at bottom left as part of the "Mute" icon. Accessing _that_ menu then permitted selecting _which_ microphone to use. I wanted "Camera Analog Mono" here.

I can test all of this by then "Recording" my solo Zoom session, and later playing back the recording to guarantee it all works.

Any luck trying that?

EDIT: Speaking of which, I found/use this excellent USB webcam/Mic combo for CAD$43 in July:
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B088HG6XQ5/

I think that your explanation is going to solve SWMBO's problem. We'll let you know.

Our office is quite small with two large desktop systems and computer hutches, two scanners (one flatbed, one doc feed), a color laser printer, various USB external backup drives, filing cabinet, eight-camera security system, two telephone systems (one local, one VOIP), two UPS systems, and assorted speakers, modems, routers, and switches. We have two Holsem 12-outlet 4,000 Joule surge protectors on the wall, both nearly fully populated... What I'm saying is that it is crowded and the headset/mics https://www.amazon.com/s?k=sentry+headset&ref=nb_sb_noss_1 are essential when we are both working at the same time.

And... do you realize that today is your 20th anniversary? It is 20 years to the day that you signed up on the empeg bbs. I have read every post you have made, and even understood some of them! Thank you for your incredibly valuable contributions.

Who would have thought that a high-tech at the time piece of electronics would still be somewhat state of the art 20+ years later!

tanstaafl.

Wow! Thank-you for noticing. It feels like we've all been here forever, actually.

Cheers!

Heck, the last few months feel like forever...

Most video conferencing apps (including web based ones) have some sort of VU-type-meter in their audio/video setup sections. Can't help specifically on Mac or Zoom, but would look in Audio Settings in the screenshot above.

I have a set of USB headphones similar to these. Same brand, but different model. There is a physical mute button on the "remote", which is separate from the software mute in Zoom. Any chance you have something similar?

Yes. But that was the first thing I checked.

tanstaafl.

If you haven't already solved the problem, here are the things to check on Mac:

MacOS > Apple Icon > System Preferences > Sound > Input:

This should show you a list of the available microphones. Select the one that you want to get the mic sound. Speak into it. There should be a meter on the screen that says "input level:" and it should show your speech occurring on the meter. Adjust its "Input Volume" to the desired level. (You might have to readjust this after being in an actual Zoom conversation and the participants complain that it's too loud or too quiet.)

MacOS > Menu bar > Input/Output selector:

At the top of the screen at the right-end of the menu bar, near the clock, should be the "speaker" icon. Click on it. It should drop down a list of objects named "Output Device". Select USB headset so that it has a check mark next to it. (Even though it says "Output Device" I've found that sometimes this affects which mic I'm using as well.)

Zoom application > User icon > Settings > Audio

Within the Zoom application's own settings is also a separate screen for selecting the speaker and microphone, with their own adjustments. One of the options for them is "Same As System", you can select that and it will use whatever you've set up in the earlier steps. Or you can pick other objects and settings which are deliberately different from the system.

After that, as Mark said, test it by "recording" a zoom session with just yourself. I've never done this but I believe Mark when he says that it works.

I finally got her to sit down at her iMac and try doing what you suggested. You nailed it.

Apparently Macintosh doesn't follow the common tradition of clicking the little triangle next to the icon to bring up the sub-menu. That was unfamiliar to her. She just clicked the mute icon which, of course, did nothing useful. Once I showed her how to bring up the sub-menu, then it was a simple matter to choose the correct microphone.

All is right with the world now. Thank you, Mark.

tanstaafl.

That worked exactly as you said it would. Between you and Mark the problem is now solved.

tanstaafl.

Good to hear it's working for her now!

At some point, perhaps we should have a virtual empeg meet amongst those of us still on the site!

Cheers

We need new phrases...


I love that idea!