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Noise problem when recording (macbook)

edited July 2021 in Other

I am recording music with a Macbook pro (from 2013 if I remember correctly). I sometimes record acoustic guitar and "singing" (if I can call it that). Now, the noise this computer makes is unreal (even when I am not doing much with it). Obviously my recording setup does not help, as I am sitting down and I place the microphone in front of the computer to record. I have it set like that so I can access the computer's keyboard and mouse quickly, in case I want to stop, go back, jump to a different section, etc. Needless to say I end up recording a ton of background noise. I have tried using noise reduction audio units, but I do not find them useful, as the recording itself ends up sounding muddy.

My two questions related to this are: 1) Any ideas as to how I can improve this? I am thinking on placing the microphone further away from the computer, though that would be a hassle when having to record something many times. Or perhaps there are better noise reduction plugins, or a way to shut down the fans (though I have read that is a bad idea)

2) Does anyone have experience with iMacs (in terms of how loud the noise is)? I have been thinking of getting one, though that would have to wait, as I may be moving abroad in the next few months.

Any tips appreciated

Comments

  • First thing for any older computer is to clean the fan vents carefully and as well as possible.

    They’re bound to be blocked with dust and muck and will make the fans spin much faster to try and get the temperatures down.

  • @klownshed said:
    First thing for any older computer is to clean the fan vents carefully and as well as possible.

    They’re bound to be blocked with dust and muck and will make the fans spin much faster to try and get the temperatures down.

    Thanks!, will try that

  • When you are at it you might renew the thermal paste as well.

  • @cfour said:
    I am recording music with a Macbook pro (from 2013 if I remember correctly). I sometimes record acoustic guitar and "singing" (if I can call it that). Now, the noise this computer makes is unreal (even when I am not doing much with it). Obviously my recording setup does not help, as I am sitting down and I place the microphone in front of the computer to record. I have it set like that so I can access the computer's keyboard and mouse quickly, in case I want to stop, go back, jump to a different section, etc. Needless to say I end up recording a ton of background noise. I have tried using noise reduction audio units, but I do not find them useful, as the recording itself ends up sounding muddy.

    My two questions related to this are: 1) Any ideas as to how I can improve this? I am thinking on placing the microphone further away from the computer, though that would be a hassle when having to record something many times. Or perhaps there are better noise reduction plugins, or a way to shut down the fans (though I have read that is a bad idea)

    2) Does anyone have experience with iMacs (in terms of how loud the noise is)? I have been thinking of getting one, though that would have to wait, as I may be moving abroad in the next few months.

    Any tips appreciated

    I've referred to the noise out of my Intel based iMac as leaf blower mode. It is much louder than my ancient MacBook Pro. If you really want to do silent recording with a Mac, then the new M1 based MacBook Air is going to be hard to beat.

  • @Alfred said:
    When you are at it you might renew the thermal paste as well.

    Never would have thought of this... thanks!

  • @NeonSilicon said:

    @cfour said:
    I am recording music with a Macbook pro (from 2013 if I remember correctly). I sometimes record acoustic guitar and "singing" (if I can call it that). Now, the noise this computer makes is unreal (even when I am not doing much with it). Obviously my recording setup does not help, as I am sitting down and I place the microphone in front of the computer to record. I have it set like that so I can access the computer's keyboard and mouse quickly, in case I want to stop, go back, jump to a different section, etc. Needless to say I end up recording a ton of background noise. I have tried using noise reduction audio units, but I do not find them useful, as the recording itself ends up sounding muddy.

    My two questions related to this are: 1) Any ideas as to how I can improve this? I am thinking on placing the microphone further away from the computer, though that would be a hassle when having to record something many times. Or perhaps there are better noise reduction plugins, or a way to shut down the fans (though I have read that is a bad idea)

    2) Does anyone have experience with iMacs (in terms of how loud the noise is)? I have been thinking of getting one, though that would have to wait, as I may be moving abroad in the next few months.

    Any tips appreciated

    I've referred to the noise out of my Intel based iMac as leaf blower mode. It is much louder than my ancient MacBook Pro. If you really want to do silent recording with a Mac, then the new M1 based MacBook Air is going to be hard to beat.

    I am a bit worried (not sure if this is justified) of a MacBook Air having less power than a macbook pro or iMac. Do you think they function as well as these ones when it comes to number of tracks, plugins, etc?

  • They seem to be very powerfull those new m1 processors. And running very cool and power efficient.
    They are basicly the same kind of processor as used by iphones and ipads.
    Apple has toasted Intel with those new processors.

  • @cfour said:

    I am a bit worried (not sure if this is justified) of a MacBook Air having less power than a macbook pro or iMac. Do you think they function as well as these ones when it comes to number of tracks, plugins, etc?

    A new M1 powered MacBook air is more powerful than pretty much any Intel powered MacBook, air or pro.

    But in the meantime after you’ve given the vents a good clear, make sure you disable as many plugins as possible (or record into a new project with nothing unnecessary running). Logic has a low latency mode if you’re using another daw check to see if it has something similar (it bypasses heavy plugins).

    Also check the buffer and audio drivers of you have them, for your interface. Make sure they’re current. For core audio drivers experiment with the buffer — setting it as high as possible without you hearing any latency. As soon as you can hear a delay, set the buffer back to the next setting down.

    I’ve recorded with lots of MacBooks (including the first ever intel Mac, the original white MacBook) and they’ve all been capable of recording audio without the fans spinning up too much as long as you’re not overdoing the plugins.

  • @Alfred good to know!
    @klownshed Good idea! I will try recording in a new project with no plugins.

  • @cfour said:

    @NeonSilicon said:

    @cfour said:
    I am recording music with a Macbook pro (from 2013 if I remember correctly). I sometimes record acoustic guitar and "singing" (if I can call it that). Now, the noise this computer makes is unreal (even when I am not doing much with it). Obviously my recording setup does not help, as I am sitting down and I place the microphone in front of the computer to record. I have it set like that so I can access the computer's keyboard and mouse quickly, in case I want to stop, go back, jump to a different section, etc. Needless to say I end up recording a ton of background noise. I have tried using noise reduction audio units, but I do not find them useful, as the recording itself ends up sounding muddy.

    My two questions related to this are: 1) Any ideas as to how I can improve this? I am thinking on placing the microphone further away from the computer, though that would be a hassle when having to record something many times. Or perhaps there are better noise reduction plugins, or a way to shut down the fans (though I have read that is a bad idea)

    2) Does anyone have experience with iMacs (in terms of how loud the noise is)? I have been thinking of getting one, though that would have to wait, as I may be moving abroad in the next few months.

    Any tips appreciated

    I've referred to the noise out of my Intel based iMac as leaf blower mode. It is much louder than my ancient MacBook Pro. If you really want to do silent recording with a Mac, then the new M1 based MacBook Air is going to be hard to beat.

    I am a bit worried (not sure if this is justified) of a MacBook Air having less power than a macbook pro or iMac. Do you think they function as well as these ones when it comes to number of tracks, plugins, etc?

    We don't know what the next set of MacBook Pro's and iMacs may bring, but for the currently released new Macs, the Air is only slightly slower than any of the other M1 equipped machines. As @Alfred mentioned, the new Air is faster than pretty much any Intel based Mac that has ever been released with the exception of the current Mac Pro for highly parallel tasks.

    If you do end up thinking you need a new Mac to do the recording with, the Air is certainly a viable option. If you wanted to try this but spend less money (and give up some mobility), the new M1 Mini is an option to consider. I have the base model and it is very fast. I've never actually heard the fans come on no matter what I do to it. So, in practice, it's as quiet as the new Air.

    We should be pretty close to the release of the next set of Apple Silicon based machines too. No firm release times are known but it's got to be coming fairly soon.

  • @NeonSilicon said:

    @cfour said:

    @NeonSilicon said:

    @cfour said:
    I am recording music with a Macbook pro (from 2013 if I remember correctly). I sometimes record acoustic guitar and "singing" (if I can call it that). Now, the noise this computer makes is unreal (even when I am not doing much with it). Obviously my recording setup does not help, as I am sitting down and I place the microphone in front of the computer to record. I have it set like that so I can access the computer's keyboard and mouse quickly, in case I want to stop, go back, jump to a different section, etc. Needless to say I end up recording a ton of background noise. I have tried using noise reduction audio units, but I do not find them useful, as the recording itself ends up sounding muddy.

    My two questions related to this are: 1) Any ideas as to how I can improve this? I am thinking on placing the microphone further away from the computer, though that would be a hassle when having to record something many times. Or perhaps there are better noise reduction plugins, or a way to shut down the fans (though I have read that is a bad idea)

    2) Does anyone have experience with iMacs (in terms of how loud the noise is)? I have been thinking of getting one, though that would have to wait, as I may be moving abroad in the next few months.

    Any tips appreciated

    I've referred to the noise out of my Intel based iMac as leaf blower mode. It is much louder than my ancient MacBook Pro. If you really want to do silent recording with a Mac, then the new M1 based MacBook Air is going to be hard to beat.

    I am a bit worried (not sure if this is justified) of a MacBook Air having less power than a macbook pro or iMac. Do you think they function as well as these ones when it comes to number of tracks, plugins, etc?

    We don't know what the next set of MacBook Pro's and iMacs may bring, but for the currently released new Macs, the Air is only slightly slower than any of the other M1 equipped machines. As @Alfred mentioned, the new Air is faster than pretty much any Intel based Mac that has ever been released with the exception of the current Mac Pro for highly parallel tasks.

    If you do end up thinking you need a new Mac to do the recording with, the Air is certainly a viable option. If you wanted to try this but spend less money (and give up some mobility), the new M1 Mini is an option to consider. I have the base model and it is very fast. I've never actually heard the fans come on no matter what I do to it. So, in practice, it's as quiet as the new Air.

    We should be pretty close to the release of the next set of Apple Silicon based machines too. No firm release times are known but it's got to be coming fairly soon.

    Thanks! I will wait to see what is released. I had never thought of the Air or iMac Mini as recording options, but will consider those :smile:

  • wimwim
    edited July 2021

    This is why I always record to the iPad, not to a computer. If I need power to the CCK then I do it with a battery bank rather than a plug-in charger. With air-drop, the amount of time to transfer that audio clip to the computer is negligible, and I get absolutely no added noise in the recording. Nothing. Dead silence. Hallelujah!

    I'll never forget the first time I plugged in to my iPad 2 to do a recording. The only background noise I could hear was the sound of angels joyously celebrating the end of 20 years of foul cursing from me trying to fight PC based recording noise.

  • @wim said:
    This is why I always record to the iPad, not to a computer. If I need power to the CCK then I do it with a battery bank rather than a plug-in charger. With air-drop, the amount of time to transfer that audio clip to the computer is negligible, and I get absolutely no added noise in the recording. Nothing. Dead silence. Hallelujah!

    I'll never forget the first time I plugged in to my iPad 2 to do a recording. The only background noise I could hear was the sound of angels joyously celebrating the end of 20 years of foul cursing from me trying to fight PC based recording noise.

    " I could hear was the sound of angels joyously celebrating the end of 20 years of foul cursing from me trying to fight PC based recording noise" aahahahah, I do agree with you, it is hard to argue against that. I remember you saying something similar in another post. But let me ask you; how do you record audio? Do you use Cubasis? I have AUM (not great for recording audio) and BM3, and have not got Cubasis (people seem to complaint a lot when it comes to Cubasis, but maybe I am selectively remembering the criticisms). In those rare instances when I do record into my iPAD I use a converter to hook up my focusrite 2i2. Do you use a similar type of connection? Do you use a DAW that allows locators?

    I have wondered whether to try recording on my iPAD, but funny enough for a different reason, namely distractions. I am pretty bad with getting easily distracted, and I feel the iPAD would be a better environment to avoid that.

  • wimwim
    edited July 2021

    @cfour said:
    But let me ask you; how do you record audio? Do you use Cubasis? I have AUM (not great for recording audio)

    Eh? AUM works fine for me. I have a couple of older interfaces like an iRig Pro and a Lexicon Lambda that I still use. I've never felt the need to update as they both work fine.

    Multitrack DAW is an excellent multi-track audio recorder that minimizes distractions.

    I don't tend to record in Cubasis. I end up using Zenbeats mostly because that's where I can put up a quick backing track of some kind then jam until I feel like hitting record. But as a focused purpose-built tool, Multitrack DAW is hard to beat. Plus you have lots of choices for audio format.

    I have wondered whether to try recording on my iPAD, but funny enough for a different reason, namely distractions. I am pretty bad with getting easily distracted, and I feel the iPAD would be a better environment to avoid that.

    I have more distractions on the iPad than on the desktop, but I get you.

  • @wim Tha is for the info! Will take a look at Multitrack Daw :smile:

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