External Microphone headset use to work... but no longer works....

When i got my MBP last year I was a heavy gamer and from November 2007 until I think like August 2008 give or take a few months I always used my headset and mic while playing online multiplayer games with no issue.
Been a few months since I tried, but today I plugged in my headphones again and my mac doesn't pick up any sound from the mic. However my headset works perfectly on my windows dell laptop.
Alot of people say it's best to just use USB headsets but since mine use to work flawlessly before, I don't understand why my MBP won't pick it up now.
My guess is one or more of the apple updates changed something that won't allow my mic to work anymore.
The mic i'm using is:
- http://cyberacoustics.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Home.ProductDetail&content_id=321
Does anyone have any idea how i can fix this without needing to buy new hardware?
Thank you in advance.
Message was edited by: Damainman

Hi, have the same problem with a Plantronics headset - it worked flawless in Yahoo Messenger, Skype, whatever.. both mic & headphones (plugged in sound in / sound out ports).
Maybe after installing some Leopard updates, I don't know - the mic just stopped working, not on a G4, neither on an Intel Macbook. It works though on a HP laptop!
I have tried the Rogue Amoeba freebies.. no result

Similar Messages

External Microphone headset used to work... but no longer works...

Hi, I have this problem with a Plantronics headset - it works flawless in Yahoo Messenger, Skype, whatever.. both mic & headphones (plugged in sound in / sound out ports) - ON A WIN LAPTOP.
But on the macs - the mic just doesn't works, not on a G4, neither on an Intel Macbook.
I have tried the Rogue Amoeba freebies.. no result

Macs require line level audio in their audio input port. A microphone does not supply a line level signal unless it has an amplifier following it.

My External Hard Drive used to work on my Macbook Pro but it has now stopped working?

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but lately the hard drive will start humming once I connect it to the mac and then but it wont show up under devices and the blue light on the hard drive wont light up.
I have checked my USB ports, and they are all working fine.
If somebody knows the answer to this question would you please help
Thanks

One can't read the other.
Just to be clear Mac's can read/write FAT32 but windows cannot use OS X Extended. So to use a drive on both systems it needs to be formatted FAT32
FAT32 does have limitations and possibly the best solution is to use NTFS, a more modern, robust filesystem. The drawback here is that OS X does not natively read NTFS so a third party kernel extension is needed.

External Microphone when using (external) iSight

I recently got an external iSight for my MacPro. I bought the iSight so I could record videos through iMovie directly on my computer. I usually do covers of music, or related to music videos, so I use an external microphone. It's a M-Audio Producer USB. It's plugged in into the side of my Apple Keyboard, and in every application, the external microphone works. Except for iMovie.
When I try to record a video directly from iMovie using my external iSight, iMove decides to use the iSight's built-in microphone to record the audio, even though I have an external microphone plugged in. In System Preferences, the Producer USB is chosen as the main input for audio coming in. And in iMovie, the Producer USB is also chosen as the microphone in the VoiceOver section. Even with these two options pointin to the Producer USB for audio, iMovie still records audio using the built-in microphone on the external iSight.
Does anyone know why this is happening? And how I may be able to fix it? My music covers have come to a halt because of this D:
Thanks!

Hi Appleman & David B.
Thanks for your answers. I think David has a point... - that the program could be secured against feedback - consequently! Since it's not made for music recording. (even though using headphones normally solves that problem, right?).
Not a word about this issue in the support menu, and I've checked the system preferences>sound several times.
I'll see if I can find a small mixer somewhere. That sounds like the right solution.
Yes, I ran into the same problem in GarageBand, but changing the feedback-settings at the right side, solved that problem
Kind regards
Kenneth Hermansen/Copenhagen NV.

[Guide] Install and run Windows 7/8 from an external drive without using bootcamp (works for late 2012 iMacs with 3TB drive)

This is a copy of a post from my blog, you can also Read it on my blog...
Introduction
After I received my new iMac with a 3 TB Fusion Drive, I was disappointed when I realized that Bootcamp was not running on this model and prevented me from installing Windows on it. I wanted to take advantage of the powerful iMac hardware to play games but I couldn't.
There are a few ways of working around this limitation, but I found most of them quite complex and most of the time they required formatting the internal hard drive or repartitioning it and go for a brand new installation of Mac OS X. I was not comfortable with that.
But there is another way, and that is to install Windows on an external hard drive, using either USB or Thunderbolt. Personally I used a Lacie Rugged 1 TB drive that has both USB3 and Thunderbolt connectors. Both work very well.
This guide may interest you if:
You have an internal hard drive of more than 2TB and you can't run bootcamp at all (like late 2012 iMacs with a 3TB drive)
You have limited space or you don't want to dedicate disk space on your internal hard disk drive to a Windows installation
What this guide will make you do:
It will make you erase all your data from your external USB3/Thunderbolt hard drive
It will make you install Windows on your external USB3/Thunderbolt hard drive
It will make you install bootcamp drivers
What this will not make you do:
It will not make you modify anything on your internal Mac hard drive
It will not make you use or install the bootcamp assistant
It will not activate the Preference Pane for the default boot drive. You have to boot by pressing the ALT key to manually select your boot drive each tome you want to boot Windows.
What you'll need
An external hard drive with a USB3 and/or Thunderbolt connector. This drive will be formatted so ensure you saved your files before going further. You can use either an SSD drive or a classic hard drive.
A Windows 7 or 8 install DVD or ISO (check whether to install 32 or 64 bits versions based on your Bootcamp drivers) and the corresponding Windows serial number.
One of the following:
Mac OS X with a Windows 7 or 8 Virtual Machine (use VMWare Fusion or Parallels Desktop for example. Note: VMWare Fusion seems to have some issues with Thunderbolt and USB3. Plug your drive to a USB2 enclosure or hub to work around this -it worked for me-, or use another VM software) → Read the important note below
A PC running Windows 7 or 8 → Read the important note below
Windows AIK (free) running on your Virtual Machine or on your PC, or just the imagex.exe file (the rest of the Windows AIK package is not needed)
Download imagex.exe
Download Windows AIK (this download and installation is not required if you have already downloaded imagex.exe)
Bootcamp drivers for your Mac. You can get these either by running bootcamp from your Mac (Applications > Utilities > Bootcamp) or, if like me you have a 3TB drive and can't run bootcamp at all, use the direct download links here.
A USB stick to store your bootcamp drivers
IMPORTANT: If your Mac has a 64 bits processor, your Windows Virtual Machine on OSX, your Windows installation on your PC and your Windows DVD/ISO must also be in 64 bits!
Step by Step guide
Step 1: Get the install.wim file
If you have a Windows ISO file:
Mount the ISO
If you're on OS X: double click on the ISO file
If you're on on Windows 7: Use a software like Virtual Clone Drive (free)
If you're on Windows 8: double click on the ISO file
Open the mounted drive, then go to the "sources" folder and locate the "install.wim" file. Save this file to C:\wim\ on your Windows installation or virtual machine.
If you have a Windows DVD: open the "sources" folder on the DVD and locate the "install.wim" file. Save this file to C:\wim\ on your Windows installation or virtual machine.
IMPORTANT: If instead of a "install.wim" file, you have "install.esd", you can not continue this step by step guide. And an ESD file can not be converted into a WIM file. So you must get a version of the Windows installation DVD/ISO that has an install.wim file.
Step 2: Clean, partition and format your external hard drive
On your Windows installation or virtual machine, plug in your external hard drive (can be plugged using USB2, USB3 or Thunderbolt at this stage)
Open the command prompt in administrator mode (cmd.exe). To run it in administrator mode, right click on cmd.exe > Run as admin.
Type the following and hit enter to open the disk partitioner utility:
diskpartType the following and hit enter to list your drives:
list disk
This will display a list of disks mounted on your computer or virtual machine. Make sure your drive is listed here before you continue.Identify the disk ID of your external hard drive. Replace # by your real external disk ID in the command below:
select disk #Clean all partitions by typing the following (warning: this will erase all data from your external drive!):
clean
Create the boot parition by typing the following followed by the enter key:
create partition primary size=350
This will create a 350MB partition on your external driveFormat the partition in FAT32 by typing the following:
format fs=fat32 quick
Set this partition to active by typing:
active
Assign a letter to mount this partition. We will use letter B in our example. If B is already used on your PC, replace B by any other available letter:
assign letter=b
Windows will detect a new drive and probably display a pop-up. Ignore that.Create the Windows installation partition using all the remaining space available on the external drive by typing the following:
create partition primary
Format the new partition in NTFS:
format fs=ntfs quick
Assign a letter to mount this partition. We will use letter O in our example. If O is already used on your PC, replace O by any other available letter:
assign letter=o
Windows will detect a new drive and probably display a pop-up. Ignore that.Exit the disk partitioner utility by typing:
exit
Step 3: Deploy the Windows installation image
Still using the command prompt in admin mode (you didn't close it, did you? ), locate the imagex.exe file mentioned in the "What you'll need" section and access its folder. In our example, we have put this file in C:\imagex\imagex.exe
Type the following and hit enter (remember to replace o: with the letter you have chosen in the previous step):
imagex.exe /apply C:\wim\install.wim 1 o:
This will take some time. The Windows installation image is being deployed to your external driveOnce done, type the following to create the boot section (remember to replace o: and b: with the letters you've chosen in the previous step):
o:\windows\system32\bcdboot o:\windows /f ALL /s b:
If you get an error message saying that you can't run this program on your PC, then most probably you are running on a 32 bits installation of windows and you're trying to deploy a 64 bits install. This means you did not read the important notes in the beginning of this guide
If you get an error message on the options that can be used with the BCDBOOT command, then it's because you're installing Windows 7, and the /f option is not supported. If that is the case, remove /f ALL from the command and retry.
Step 4: Boot from your external drive and install Windows
Plug in your external drive:
If you've done all the previous steps from a Windows PC, unplug your external drive from your PC and plug it to your Mac, either on a USB3 or a Thunderbolt port.
If you've done all the previous steps from your Mac using a Virtual Machine, ensure the external drive is plugged in to a USB3 or Thunderbolt port. Using USB2 should also work but you'll get very poor performance so I don't recommend doing that.
Reboot your Mac and once the bootup sound is over, immediately press the ALT (option) key and release it only when the boot drives selection screen appears. If you did not get the boot drives selection screen, reboot and try again. The timing to press the ALT (option) key is quite short. It must not be too early or too late.
On the boot selection screen, choose "Windows" using the arrow keys on your keyboard, then press enter.
The Windows installation starts. Follow the on-screen instructions as normal. The installation program will restart your computer one or 2 times. Don't forget to press ALT (option) right after the bootup sound, and boot on Windows again each time to continue the installation.
Step 5: Install bootcamp drivers
Once the Windows installation is complete, plug in the USB stick where you stored the bootcamp drivers (see "what you'll need" section), open it and right click on "setup.exe" and select "Run as admin". Follow the on-screen instructions.If you have an error saying that you can't run this program on this PC, obviously you have installed a 32 bits version of Windows and the bootcamp drivers for your Mac are made for a 64 bits version. You have to restart the whole guide and make sure to get a 64 bits version of Windows this time!
Once the bootcamp drivers are all installed, reboot and press ALT (option) after the bootup sound to boot on Windows again. And Voilà, you have Windows installed on your USB3/Thunderbolt drive running on your Mac.
Now each time you want to boot on Windows, press and hold the ALT (option) key after the startup sound and select "Windows", then press Enter.

Hi i'm trying to follow your guide, I installed windows 8 on bootcamp to do it planning to remove it after the operation is done, but i get stuck at part 3: every command i give to imagex i get a pop-up ftom windws asking how do I want to open this kind of file install.wim and imagex does nothing, what do i have to do to stop those pop-ups?

What external microphone to use with imac

I want to add audio, there seems to be an in-line audio input ( 3.5mm) but i dont know exaclty.
I have a dual core 2.16ghz imac 20 inch screen.
or do i use usb microphone?
thanks

what king of quality are you wanting from the Mic, is it for podcast etc or narrating over iMovie or just talking over skype etc or other low quality apps. I use Shure SM57 its the best about, for preamp i use a line6 UX2 Toneport also i use this for guitar.
nice, i do have a shure SM58, i also have DPA 4022 condensor mics, i have a sonosax sx m2 pre amp for field recording, but i dont know if i can connect to the imac.
I generally just want quality audio to dub in or narrate parts of imovie. So basically i will be adding commentary to the imovie. I thought i could just have the imovie upu and going, then attach the mic and do voice overs and narrations?
but i dont know how to connect these things.
any advice

GarageBand won't record. Built-in microphone used to work, but not anymore-

I have an iBook G4, Mac OS X 10.4.10. My GarageBand is Version 2.0.2
I have built-in microphone that used to work great in GarageBand, but now is showing no input. When I try to record it isn't hearing anything.
Under GarageBand Preferences it says 0 MIDI input(s) detected.
Under System Preferences > Sound > Input "Internal Microphone; Built-In" is selected; but next to "Input Level:" none of the ovals are filled. Hope this makes sense.
Please help if you can. Thanks!

Interesting, this could be an issue with the firewall on the router blocking the scanning ports from being accessed. I do wan to start by performing a complete uninstallation and reinstallation though my method, so we can establish a clear baseline on troubleshooting.
First if you use a USB cord, make sure to remove it. Do not plug it back in until the software directs you to. Then go through the Devices and Printers, Programs and Features and Device Manager folders and insure that all copies, files, and programs related to the printer are removed. Then as directed, restart the computer.
In the START menu and click Run type "%temp%" and press ENTER. Here I want you to press Ctrl+A and hit DELETE. Some of the files will not allow you to delete them, skip those files and delete the majority that allows it.
Then follow this link to download the full feature software and drivers for the printer:
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareDownloadIndex?softwareitem=al-109010-2&cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en...
Install that and let me know the result!
Additionally, if you can connect the printer directly though the router with an Ethernet cord and install the printer through that method, I might be easily able to determine if there is or isn't a firewall on the router.
Have a great day!

Using External Mic/Headset

I just bought an external microphone/headset for my iMac G5, because the fans are so loud, people talking to me, can't hear me over my fans.
Well, they didn't work.
Now, the first thing I thought wasn't a flaw in the head set, but my first assumption was a flaw in the iMac. Why? Because I've noticed in the past that apple doesn't do things that are obvious and that would make sence.
Sure enough, the iMac G5 doesn't work with external mics.
Now. My question: Has anyone been able to get a regular external mic to work with decent audio with the iMac G5 without spending any more money that a regular headset from walmart would cost? Or should I return this perfectly working headset because of Apple?

Hello,
That is a Line-in port.
The operative word here is "Line"
A "Line" in port expects "Line-Level" audio.
Line-level audio is the level of audio you would find on the RCA jacks on your component stereo system's CD-Player, Tape Deck, etc.
Two devices commonly need pre-amplification. Those are Microphones and Record Players / Turn-Tables.
Neither of those devices provides a line-level audio signal. They both need to be pre-amplified first.
Pre-Amplified computer microphones are getting harder to find. But, they are available.
A pre-amplified microphone will have it's own power source (such as a set of AAA batteries). And, it will amplify the signal prior to sending it to the computer.
Don't make the mistake of purchasing a microphone that claims to be "amplified" and does not contain it's own power source. That is not the same thing. Rather it is a rather loose use of the term Amplified. I've seen lots of so-called "Amplified" Mic's that did not contain any form of booster at all.
Make sure you purchase one that has it's own power source (such as batteries).
Here is one example:
http://www.jr.com/JRProductPage.process?Product=24501
Or, if you use a regular Microphone like the one you have, you can purchase a "pre-amplifier". This is simply a small powered signal booster that plugs-in between your computer and the microphone. It will amplify the signal to "line-level" before sending it to the computer.
Unfortunately, pre-amplifiers can be rather expensive for small ones, and rather large for the cheaper ones.
If you are handy with electronics, here's a document on how to build your own pre-amp circuit:
http://www.epanorama.net/circuits/micamp.html
One external solution around $120 is this simple and compact pre-amp:
http://www.microphones.com/microphonegroup.cfm?URLID=Preamp-Series
There are several USB and FireWire solutions that are much cheaper.
Such as:
http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/imic/
But, they sometimes cause a bit of "latency" in your recording. Simply put, if you were singing along with something or needed your speech to be synchronized, then the USB or FireWire audio method might cause a noticeable delay in your recording.
If the only thing you are recording is your speech, then a bit of a delay in your recording probably would not be as noticeable.
The reason you can use a cheaper Microphone with a PC, is that it actually has both a Line-Level jack and a Microphone specific jack. Older Mac's such as the G3's had both as well. But, the newer Mac's just have the Line-Level jack.
Now, if you just want to use your existing Microphone, you could try using the Griffin iMic to make your current microphone work:
http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/imic/
It's about $40.
But, if you are wanting a simple and self-contained solution, then you might just go with a USB microphone.
Just keep in mind that you may have a bit of delay with a USB solution (either USB Mic or USB PreAmp) when you are speaking.
I have not used these, but here is a couple of USB Microphone solutions:
Microphone:
http://www.samsontech.com/products/productpage.cfm?prodID=1810
Head-set and Microphone:
http://www.macnn.com/reviews/review.php?id=199
Let me know if you have other questions.
I hope this helps.

External microphone stopped working

Product Name and Number
HP Pavillion g6 Notebook PC, LS303EA#AB9
Operating System installed
Windows 7 SP1 x64
The external microphone line suddenly stopped working, had been working perfect untill after the update of last major application instalations.
Checked sound devices, external line shows as installed butrecognizes no sounds, attempted updating drivers but no new drivers.
Audio specifications (according to HP support application):
- IDT high defenition audio CODEC (stwrt64.sys), version 6.10.6324.0
-Intel(R) Display Audio (IntcDAud.sys), version 6.14.0.3074
PS.: internal microphone still works, also the plugged in microphone still works on other computer
This question was solved.
View Solution.

Hey coolasc,
If you had a lot of updates come through, you'll want to make sure that BIOS was one of them.
BIOS stands for Basic Input/Output System/Service. It is the language that all of the hardware components in your computer use to communicate with each other. There are updates which come out periodically for it so it would be best to have the latest version. The following steps were taken from here.
Windows 8: From the Start screen, type "msinfo32". Click msinfo32 from the list of results.
Windows 7&Vista: Click the Start button, type "msinfo32". Click msinfo32.exe from the list of results.
About halfway down on the right, look for BIOS Version/Date.
3. Copy and paste the information to the right of BIOS Version/Date in the value column, into your reply.
The latest version on the HP Drive Page for your particular notebook is F.66. It could be that a lot of updates other than BIOS came through and BIOS just hasn't come through quite yet (if this is the case, it would be fine to manually install the latest version). If you have a version higher than F.66 by some chance, go back to F.66 by just downloading and installing it.
The BIOS being out-of-date or just out of sync with the other updates that came through, could definitely cause an issue like this.
Please let me know if you have any questions or if these suggestions helped (this could help others with the same issue). I'll keep an eye out for your reply!

External hard drive doesn't work on any other machine but my Mac since I connected it to the Mac

My external hard drive used to work on any machine. I watched movies on my tv, putted the movies on the hard drive using my pc. Since I connected it to my new MacBook Air, it doesn't connect to anything else anymore! I hope it's something in settings witch I accedentely clicked on (something with privacy so it can only connect to my Mac or something like that). Does anyone know how this happend/how to fix it?
PS. Maybe its important, I use it for Time Machine as well. Before I used that, it deleted my whole hard drive whitch really ****** me off. Now I got new stuff on it. Maybe my Mac is just claiming it to keep the hard disk for itself?

One can't read the other.
Just to be clear Mac's can read/write FAT32 but windows cannot use OS X Extended. So to use a drive on both systems it needs to be formatted FAT32
FAT32 does have limitations and possibly the best solution is to use NTFS, a more modern, robust filesystem. The drawback here is that OS X does not natively read NTFS so a third party kernel extension is needed.

My external microphone isn't working, how do I fix that?

I have a new HP Pavilion g series notebook, and I also have an external microphone I use for singing, I had Best buys geek squad fix the settings so tha it would work, now a few updates have gone by and now it doesn't work again. I did some tweaking in the setting and still it isn't working. HOW do I fix it, I'm not a computer geek.

To whom are you trying to send an iMessage? If the receiver does not have iMessage it won't send it. Is the message bubble blue or green? Did you activate iMessage in your Settings (Settings -> Messages -> iMessage)?

New mac system external microphone bug (irig)

Hi,
my new mac (late 2013) is not able to recognize external microphones / headset.
My irig (a guitar jack connected as an external mic) is working with a 2011 mac pro and the iphone
Did apple notice this? Are they going to fix it? Any special tricks?
Regards,
Elio

If you need to restore everything to a new Mac, you simply have your TM drive connected when you start up the new Mac and during the Welcome routine that runs when you start up a new Mac for the first time you will be presented with the option of migrating your user info, settings, files, applications, etc., from a Time Machine backup. You just click "Yes" and all your backed-up info will be transferred to your new Mac.
Time Machine continuous "cleans up" backups so you do not need to worry about TM pushing a drive to its capacity limits, or even close to that.

I'm using the note taking view of Word 2011 for Mac so I can record a meeting as well as take notes. The audio of the internal microphone is so low - can I attach an external mic and have it work with note taking view?

Can I attach an external mic to my Macbook Air to enhance sound input for the note taking view of Word 2011 for Mac? I've tried preferences to up the volume of my sound, but I still cannot hear the recording. Any suggestions? I need to record a meeting as well as take notes so I'd like to use this tool, but the audio is not good enough.

A USB microphone can work with the Air, and I've used them before with my 11" Air. Griffin also made a product (the iMic) that will add a standard computer microphone port, connecting to your USB port. It's heyday was the time of the old iBook laptops (which also lacked a microphone in jack) but I think it's still around.
The single sound port on the 2011 models, as I recall, supports iPhone style headphone/microphone but I don't believe it will support a standard microphone input.
The built in microphone sits on the left side of the computer and I suspect wouldn't work well for picking up a lecture unless you were sitting just right in position vs. the speaker (preferably having the speaker positioned to the left and sitting really close). By design most laptop microphones presume they are going to be mainly used to record a sound coming from the person sitting at the keyboard, while for a lecture you normally would prefer it concentrate on sound coming from behind the screen.

I have a PowerBook G4 with a non-functioning monitor. It used to work with an external monitor, but I reinstalled the OS, which cleared the display preferences and now when I restart it won't detect the external monitor. How do I fix?

I have a PowerBook G4 with a non-functioning monitor. It used to work with an external monitor, but I reinstalled the OS, which cleared the display preferences and now when I restart it won't detect the external monitor. This means I can't use the computer anymore. How do I fix? I tried using the Command+F2 keyboard shortcut, but it doesnt' work. It's possible that since I reinstalled the OS, it still needs to be set up, so there's only a welcome screen (but since I can't see it I'm not sure).

There is no limit to the number of times you can re-install Office on the same computer.
You can activate by telephone:
The last paragraph is the relevant bit

I have 10.5.8 installed and can't find an external hard drive. It used to work...but hasn't in a while. any suggestions?

I have an older Mac, prob 2007/early 2008. I've got OS 10.5.8 installed. For the last couple months, I haven't been able to recognize my iomega HD. It used to work with time machine, had it set to run on a weekly basis if there were changes, and then I started getting messages that Time Machine hadn't run in a while. Googled it, and there are a lot of suggestions out there. I've tried a few, but to no avail. Any suggestions?

It could be the cable or the drive may have failed. Plug in another external HD and see if that works OK, if it does then that points the finger at the EHD.
Roger

External Microphone headset use to work... but no longer works....

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