Help with REW set up

[shad82]

Hi,

This is my first time using REW, and I'm attempting to take some measurements of my room.

I'm using the Behringer ECM8000 mic and the PYLE PAD30MXUBT Mixer/Phantom Power: https://www.pyleaudio.com/sku/PAD30MXUBT

When I click "measure" I'm getting a flat response, so I must be doing something wrong. (screen shot of measurement below)

Here are the steps I'm taking before clicking "measure".

First, I downloaded REW and the Behringer ECM8000 calibration file.

I plug the usb cable from the PYLE mixer into my computer.

I run a RCA cable from the "main mix" of the PYLE into my preamp inputs and connect the ECM8000 into the "XLR mic line in".

I place the mic on a stand at listening position.

Next, I open REW, click "preferences", then select my input and output devices, and click the "browse" button to select the ECM 8000 calibration file:

Then I click "calibrate" and adjust the levels on the PYLE mixer until everything is close to even:

After that I click finish and it begins to measure:

This is the result:

Then I click on the "SPL Meter" button and using an app on my iPhone I calibrate by changing the db level to match the level on my app:

Then I click "finished" and this pops up:

I go back to the main page and click "measure" and this is what I get:

One strange thing I should note is that when I tap on my mic I'm able to hear it through the speakers. Shouldn't the mic be reading into the sound card and not playing back through the speakers?

Thanks for looking! Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[John Mulcahy]

One strange thing I should note is that when I tap on my mic I'm able to hear it through the speakers.

This is a problem. It is a little difficult to follow the manual for that mixer, but the mic input appears to always route to the main mix output. It would be better to connect whatever built-in audio output your computer has (a headphone socket, for example) directly to your preamp and select the computer's audio output as the output device and output. You should still be able to use the Pyle as a mic preamp, but I would have expected the input on the PC side to be labelled something other than Line In, are there no other input options from the Pyle?

 

[shad82]

Thanks for the reply John!

Yes, the manual for the Pyle mixer is a bit hard to follow.

As you suggested I ran the RCA cable from my computer's headphone output directly into my preamp.

Here are the output/input options I'm given:

Any idea which I should be selecting?

 

[John Mulcahy]

Output Device/Output should be the Conexant Audio and SPEAKERS. For the input looks like the 'LINE IN' may be the overall mixer output from the Pyle, so with nothing connected to other inputs you should get just the mic signal on that.

 

[shad82]

Changed the output device/output as advised.

Now, when I click "check levels", the pink noise plays through my computer speakers, then after a couple of seconds this error message pops up:

 

[John Mulcahy]

Seems odd that any sound should come from your computer if you have a cable in the headphone output.

If you open the Levels window in REW do you get any level from the Pyle when you tap the mic? On either channel?

 

[shad82]

Yes, that is strange. Other sounds, (such as youtube videos) are playing out of the speakers.

When I go to the levels window and tap on the mic there is no response in REW, but the lights on the PYLE do light up.

Should I consider using a different phantom power? If so, are there any that you recommend?

 

[John Mulcahy]

Strange that it doesn't work, feels like it should be possible to configure the Pyle to work given it is supposed to be possible to record from it. A more straightforward option would be a soundcard with mic preamps, the UR22 MkII works well.

 

[shad82]

Thanks for the recommendation.

Before I scrap the PYLE I thought I should look at my computers sound card settings.

Here is how everything is set. Should I try and make any changes here?

 

[John Mulcahy]

I see Headphones is listed as an output, didn't see that in the REW list before - might not show up until something is plugged into it. If it is in the REW list you should select that as the output.

For the Pyle you could connect the main mix output to the line in of your computer ans then select the Conexant Line In as the input in REW - that also likely won't appear in the REW list until you plug something into it.