How to Connect an Electric Condenser Microphone to a PC

You can improve sound in your computer-generated products by using a quality condenser microphone.

If you are looking for higher quality sound in recording to your computer for podcasting or other recording production purposes, a professional condenser microphone may be a wise choice. Condenser microphones, most frequently used in performance and broadcast, are high quality microphones that are much more advanced than the typical "computer microphone" available at a local retailer for under $15. Some adaptors and adjustments are necessary to use a condenser microphone with a PC, however.

Things You'll Need

• Condenser microphone
• Cable adapters

Instructions

1. Look at the bottom of the condenser microphone or the end of the microphone cable. Most professional models feature a XLR plug-in port.

2. Check the back of your computer where the sound card ports are located. Most microphone jack ports are color-coded pink to distinguish them from other types of ports like Speaker Out ports, which are usually colored green. Determine which type of port jack your computer needs--most sound cards accept only a "mini-phono" jack plug.

3. Purchase an adapter at a local electronics store or online that will change an XLR "out" port to the type of PC "in" port connection you need. Install the adapter onto the microphone or microphone cable.

4. Plug the other end of the cable into your PC sound card, which is usually colored pink.

5. Open your computer recording software program or the Windows application. All Windows-based computers have a simple program located at "Start," "All Programs," "Accessories," and "Entertainment," called "Sound Recorder." Double click on the "Sound Recorder" program to open it.

6. Turn the microphone on if it has an on/off switch. Click on the red "Record" button on the screen and speak into the condenser microphone. If the microphone is picking up your voice, you may hear yourself coming out of the speakers, or you will see the green sound oscillation line changing frequencies. Click "Stop" and then "Play" to hear what you recorded.

7. Troubleshoot if you hear no sound. Some condenser microphones require amplification through a stereo receiver before they will work with some PC sound cards. You may need to connect the microphone to a receiver and patch between "Output" on the receiver and the PC "Input" port on the sound card.

8. Tweak or troubleshoot if the sound is of poor quality. Check your "Sound" settings under "Control Panel" (located via the "Start" menu) to see if you can make the sound better by adjusting the bass and treble. Position your microphone in different respects to your mouth--some condenser microphones are omnidirectional (able to pick up sound from all directions) while others are unidirectional (only able to pick up sound directly from the top of the microphone).

Tips & Warnings

• Some PC sound cards are just not up to producing studio-quality sound with a high-end microphone. You may need to upgrade your sound card in order to achieve a better result. This is especially true for a laptop--most makes and models of laptops have poor sound. However, high-end sound cards are available in laptop card slot form, so upgrades are possible.

References

• "Repairing and Upgrading PCs"; Scott Mueller; 2008
• Et Cetera: How to Connect a Microphone to Your Computer
• Shure: Interfacing Professional Microphones to Computer Sound Cards