Windows 8.1 USB microphone volume is extremely low

Anonymous
2014-03-14T02:41:12+00:00

I have a Samson C01U USB mic. It is a plug-and-play microphone. There are no drivers for it. There is no firmware for it. You just plug it in, and it works.

This mic has always worked perfectly. When I used Windows 7, I set the volume level of it to about 40-50% and everything sounded crisp, clear, and loud. On Windows 8, it is inaudible unless I set the volume to 90% but even at that point it is not loud enough. Setting it to 100% results in a lot of noise in the background.

This is not the first time someone has brought this issue up as it is extremely common to everyone owning a USB plug-and-play mic:

http://www.overclock.net/t/1323451/windows-8-mic-issue

http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windows/en-US/2da97f80-f58b-4635-acbf-9dd7292ed752/microphone-very-low-volume?forum=w8itprohardware

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows\_8-hardware/low-usb-microphone-recording-volume-at2020/9528f797-65c8-4033-a4d6-39995cd0d074

Has there ever been a fix for this issue?

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Devices and drivers

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Anonymous
2014-07-31T00:46:56+00:00

Hi,

Thank you for the reply.

As you have mentioned that you have checked the issue with other microphone but you still face this issue. We have already tried to uninstall and reinstall the drivers. I suspect this issue to be a hardware issue. Check the issue with a local technician.

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  1. Anonymous
    2014-09-01T01:41:32+00:00

    The question you should be asking is, why haven't Microsoft fixed this issue after several months of this problem being known to everyone owning win8 and a usb mic?

    When I buy expensive software I expect one of the most commonly used accessories in todays world of youtube videos and twitch streaming to function properly, and if it doesn't (which is the case, ask anyone owning a usb mic and win8 why they reverted back to win7) I expect it to be fixed within a reasonable amount of time. Several months, possibly even a year is frankly terrible.

    So.. Microsoft when can we expect a fix for this issue?

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  2. Anonymous
    2014-08-08T05:36:37+00:00

    Hello Marc,

    Thank you for the reply.

    If exclusive-mode use of the device is enabled, you can specify whether a request for exclusive control of the device will succeed if the device is currently playing or recording shared-mode streams.

    To deny exclusive-mode applications priority over shared-mode applications, we clear the check box.

    If the steps in the previous post did not help you, I would suggest you to check audio services. Please follow these steps:

    a. Press Windows + R keys, type services.msc in run window and press Enter.

    b. Scroll down the list of services, right-click "Windows Audio" and select "Start", if it is not started.

    c. Again, right click the service and select "Properties". Set the "Startup Type" to "Automatic".

    If the Windows Audio service does not start and you may get error 1068.

    The dependency service or group fails to start. Make sure that the following services are started and their startup type is set to automatic.

     a. Plug and Play

     b. Multimedia Class Scheduler

     c. Windows Audio Endpoint Builder

    I hope this helps.

    Thank you

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  3. Anonymous
    2014-08-07T21:04:36+00:00

    I don't see any 'boost' option.  Also, what does unchecking the 'Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device' do?

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  4. Anonymous
    2014-08-07T12:27:16+00:00

    Hello Gigi,

    Thank you for your response.

    I understand your frustration. However, I would suggest you to try configuring microphone levels and check if it helps. Please follow these steps to set the microphone levels:

    a. From the Start screen, type sound to open the "Search" charm, and then select "Sound" from the search results. The "Sound" window opens.

    b. Click the "Recording" tab.

    c. Select the microphone, and then click "Properties".

    d. Click the "Advanced" tab.

    e. Remove the check from the box next to "Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device".

    f. Click the "Levels" tab.

    g. Change the microphone level to 100 and the "Microphone Boost" to +10.0dB. Click apply and ok.

    h. Disconnect and reconnect the microphone. Then, check the microphone.

    I hope this information helps.

    Please do let us know if you need any further assistance.

    Thank you

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