User:BillWharrie/OSX and USB input devices

1) Connect the USB device directly to a free USB port on your Mac. Do not connect through a USB hub. Turn the device on. If it is a USB turntable or cassette deck, begin playing an LP or cassette. For other USB interfaces, input some sound to the device.

2) Choose then select the Sound preferences panel, then click on the Input tab. In 10.5.8 you will see something like this (it will look slightly different in 10.7.x):


 * [[image:MacSoundInputUSB.png]]


 * Select USB Audio CODEC from the Input list.

Note that:
 * "The selected device has no input controls" - this means that whatever level the device sends to your Mac is what you get.
 * The blue "Input level" meter is showing that sound is being input.

Assuming you have sound coming into your Mac through the USB device, continue as follows.

3) Start Audacity and choose then the Devices section. In 10.5.8 you will see something like this but in 10.7.x the Mac's internal speakers will appear in "Playback Device" as "Built-in Output":


 * [[image:MacDevicesPrefsUSB.png]]


 * Under "Recording" make the choices shown.


 * Note that you do not want to set the Playback Device to your USB device in the case of a USB turntable or cassette deck. In most cases you will want the Playback Device set to "Built-in Audio" or "Built-in Output". This will cause playback to occur through your Mac's built-in speakers.


 * Click to accept the settings.

4) Click on the menu and make sure that "Software Playthrough" is checked.

5) Note that the Input volume slider is greyed out and cannot be used. Remember that "The selected device has no input controls".


 * [[image:MacDisabledInputSlider.png]]

6) With the LP or cassette playing, or with sound being input to the USB interface, click on the recording meter to begin monitoring.


 * [[image:MacMetersActive.png]]


 * Make sure that the levels are below 0 dB, and that the red clip lights do not come on.
 * Some USB turntables have a volume control somewhere on the chassis. If the levels are too high in Audacity, look on the turntable or in your manual to see if you have a volume control. For external USB audio interfaces, simply turn down the volume of the device that is feeding the USB interface.

7) If you have got this far and are getting a good indication on the recording level meters, you are ready to begin recording!

Using Audio MIDI Setup
1) Quit Audacity if necessary.

2) In the Finder, choose then open "Audio MIDI Setup". 2a) In 10.5.8 you will see something like this (See section 2b for the 10.7 version).


 * [[image:MacAudioMidiSetupUSB.png‎]]


 * Make the selections as shown above.
 * The Format settings of "44100 Hz" and "2ch-16bit" are standard for most interfaces, and correspond to the audio CD standard.
 * Note that the "Volume" sliders are disabled - as expected, since the selected device has no input controls.

Continue with step 3.

 2b) In 10.7.2 the Audio Devices window of Audio MIDI Setup will look something like this.
 * [[image:AMS 10 7 01.png]]
 * What the symbols mean
 * The input device with the microphone symbol is the chosen input device.
 * The output device with the speaker symbol is the chosen output device.
 * The output device with the Mac "face" symbol is the device that will play "alert" sounds.


 * Make the selections as shown above
 * Click on "USB Audio CODEC 2 in/ 0 out" to select it.
 * Click on the Action menu ("gear" icon) and select "Use this device for sound input".

Note that the microphone symbol has moved to the "USB Audio CODEC 2 in/ 0 out" device.
 * [[image:AMS 10 7 02.png]]
 * Make the selections as shown above.
 * The Format settings of "44100.0 Hz" and "2ch-16bit Integer" are standard for most interfaces, and correspond to the audio CD standard.
 * Note that the "Volume" sliders are disabled - as expected, since the selected device has no input controls.

3) Quit Audio MIDI Setup, start Audacity and click on then the Quality section:


 * [[image:MacQualityPrefsUSB.png‎]]


 * Under "Sampling", set "Default Sample Rate" and "Default Sample Format" to match the settings you made in Audio MIDI Setup.