Plugging In and Testing a Microphone

Let’s flesh out our song by recording some audio into it. For this exercise, the audio can be of anything you like; you could record snapping your fingers, counting along into a microphone, playing some notes on a guitar or bass, or even trying out your singing voice. All you need is some kind of audio signal to be plugged into your Mac’s audio input (usually marked with a microphone symbol) or your dedicated sound card. Let’s start out by plugging a microphone into your Mac sound card. If you have a sound card from a separate company, follow the directions that came with that sound card.

To plug in and test a microphone:

  1. Locate the microphone input on the back of your computer. It has a microphone icon above it or next to it.

  2. Look at the connection jack on the end of your microphone:

    • If it came with your computer, it should have a one-eighth inch jack that will plug right into the microphone input.

    • If you have a larger, one-quarter inch jack or guitar cord, plug the one-quarter inch microphone jack or guitar cord into a one-eighth inch adapter.

  1. Plug in the microphone, if you haven’t done so.

OS X Users

  1. From the Apple menu, choose System Preferences...

    • The System Preferences window opens.

  2. Click on the sound icon.

    • The Sound panel appears.

  3. Make sure the correct device is selected in the input tab.

You should see input in the VU meters toward the bottom of the window.

OS 9 Users

  1. From the Apple menu, choose Simple Sound > File > New.

    • The Simple Sound recording dialog box appears.

  2. Click the Record button and speak into the microphone or play your guitar.
  3. Click Stop and click Play.
You should hear your recording coming from the Mac’s speakers (make sure they are on and turned up).

If you don’t hear anything, check your connections and repeat steps 1-3. You may need to adjust Volumes, Sound Out, or Sound In in the Control Panels. Open the Sound window by choosing Apple menu > Control Panels > Sound (not Monitors and Sound). Also, make sure no Mute buttons are checked in the Sound window.

Now that your microphone is on and working, proceed to Setting Up Audio Outputs.

Plugging In and Testing a Microphone