Sounds Loud but Little Waveform

[caseyc44382634]

I'm just getting set up in Audition. I can record and the waveform shows very little except when I play it back it is very loud. I am opening up a new file, using the defaults, and am curious as to what I'm doing wrong. If I increase the system microphone volume enough to see the waveform then I get terrible distortion and clipping (yet the waveformn doesn't seem to show clipping). My setup is fairly basic, a Rode mic coupled to a soundblaster input card. I also run through Krisp but I have the same issue if I am using Krisp or not. I don't have any dedicated audio input setup (yet).

If I can back away from the mic a bit I can get pretty decent sound but I still get virtually no waveform as below. 

What am I missing here that is making this sound so ugly?

[caseyc44382634]

I'll add a bit more info here. My recording volume in Device properties was set to about 40%. At that level I had zero waveform. If I crank it up to 100% I get a waveform but have to stay back from the mic about 18 inches otherwise I pick up the distortion. I'm seeing most people with the mic almost in there mouth, yet I have to keep my distance. I feel like I'm missing something here.

Is this just the type of mic I'm using? 

[SteveG_AudioMasters_ · Accepted solution]

What you are missing is that your replay volume is probably set to maximum, and it should be way, way lower. The record level you got in the second post is more like it, but you should be about 9" from the mic and getting that, not 18". There's nothing wrong with the way you're recording - just the way you are listening to it!

There's nothing wrong with the Rode mic, but Soundblaster cards are a different ballgame, and we've never recommended them. Their software could more accurately be called bloatware, and they lie about their specifications - to the extent that a few years ago there was a class action taken against them.

[caseyc44382634]

Thanks Steve!

Is there a list of recomended soundcards beyond just the on-board motherboard unit? I've had poor luck with background noise on the integrated sound port. The SB card took care of that issue, but it would be nice to find something a bit more professional.

[SteveG_AudioMasters_]

No, there isn't a list I'm afraid. Aside from it going out of date at an alarming rate, Adobe wouldn't want to be seen to be taking sides, which is what a list would imply. What we can say about interfaces though is that ideally, you should find one that has an ASIO driver, because that's what Audition's audio engine is based on. Needless to say, ASIO-based sound devices tend to be at the slightly 'better' (= costs more) end of the market.

Even if they have difficulty to start with, most people in the end appear to get Focusrite products to work, and they must be quite popular, based on the number of questions we get about them. You could do a lot worse than look at those, I'd say. In the interests of full disclosure, I should also say at this point that I don't own a single Focusrite product, and never have done, so this is purely based on other peoples' experiences.