Get the best quality from your Q2U - Samson Q2U USB OBS Setup! 

did you hook it up via xlr?

Yes, Tech Raccoon...

Audacity is actually pretty terrible these days and I wouldn't recommend it. If you want to do some simple audio recording you can actually use OBS to capture and edit in something like Resolve or olive. I would recommend not using audacity these days. If you don't need to edit, then just record in OBS and convert the file to audio only using shutter encode. If you want a simple editor use olive, and use the old unsupported version instead of the beta.

This is highly dependant on your use case. For music production, yes. For streaming no. The only reasonable upgrade to xlr would be a soundboard with compression and EQ. Otherwise you won't notice any quality difference at all on the signal for any kind of recording in obs.

@@infinitequality dear, I just bought both the mic and the interface... will I return it? I want to use it for streams/video and thought it would help to "up" my voice...

@@infinitequality What mic stand are you using in this video with the Q2U?

Everything you need to get a great sound can be done inside OBS with plugins. If you want the highest quality audio possible, invest in a great microphone (sm7b) and a behringer soundboard with compression. Nothing beats good equipment for audio quality.

Either your Q2U is defective, or your headphones. Try a different pair of headphones or ear buds to see if the problem persists. If it does you can try a small amount of rubbing alcohol to clean out the port. Also try your headphones on something else and see if they work normally on something else.

Thanks! Guitar would be extremely subjective for what filters and settings you would use. Clean tone vs dirty, etc... I would at a minimum use the limited filter just to keep from blowing out a live audience's ears, but probably drop the compression entirely, but again this is entirely subjective and case dependent.

@@infinitequality Ah sorry, I wrote quite confusingly. I just wanted if the OBS filter settings (limiter etc) would remain the same if using an XLR connection to an audio interface. I am talking solely about streaming games.

In that case, yes the filters in this video would work well for any microphone interface that doesn't already have compression via hardware or software elsewhere.

Some programs will take over the microphone entirely if it's enabled not allowing it to connect to Discord, OBS, etc... I suggest you disable this so that in those really edge cases where someone opens that one piece of software that then causes their mic to stop working in other programs, you aren't stuck for hours trying to figure out why OBS or Discord can't see your mic anymore.

Did you check the volume in the windows recording section? It needs to be at 100 like I suggest in the video.

The USB on the Q2U is amazingly clean and loud. Getting just any interface wouldn't be any kind of upgrade. You would want something that has hardware compression and EQ like a soundboard if it's for broadcasting. Outside of this, I see no reason to not just use the USB built into the mic.

There will always be a slight white noise on any input, this can be room noise and the noise floor. Streaming with speakers is a huge risk and I only suggest this for those that know exactly what they are doing. Speaker setups are very troublesome to make work well and you are going to get some kind of bleed on your mic no matter what you do. Balancing the audio mix is SUPER important. Record your setup, listen, record, listen. Try every situation... Music, Alerts, RU-vid Videos, Movie trailers, no music, game sound, etc... Record and listen. Figure out what is and isn't too loud. the easy way is to just use headphones and adjust the stream audio live though.

In theory it shouldn't effect the recording. But in the past is has. This is why I suggest full volume in Windows and controlling the monitor volume with the external adapter. To be 100% sure the recording is right.

I haven't personally used the AM8 so I cannot comment. From what I have seen it looks like a great mic. They both seem like they are gonna get the job done. Personally I find the Q2U to be the naturally flat sounding between the samples I have heard. But if you have either mic, you will sound great on your stream.

you using usb or xlr??

@@SuccessFitness usb

@@myappealinglife thanks for replying

@@SuccessFitness Of course no problem. I just realized who you are. I watched your journey a few years ago when you did the water and juice fast. Glad to see you're still making content, and are still maintaining your health.

@@myappealinglife i appreciate that! bro that means a lot right now straight up

Go to our website, join our discord, upload the recording so I can listen to it.

You can change the game audio as you suggested or you can adjust the game audio through the windows mixer. If you want to record the game audio through OBS at full volume I suggest you record your game and mic audio on separate channels to boost in editing. Or you can use this plugin to control monitoring levels in OBS and listen to the game from OBS directly obsproject.com/forum/resources/audio-monitor.1186/

If you add a mic as a source it will only show up in the scenes that source is connected to. If you add it in the settings, like I suggested in this video, it will be a global device and be connected to every scene.

Join the IQ discord - Linked on our website infinitequality.live People in there can help. You may also want to start by watching my videos on soundboards. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-wx9vWrVJdMY.html

It's just a mute switch.

right click on the audio meter in OBS and go into "advanced audio properties" make sure the Q2U or Mic/Aux input is set to 'monitor off'. Let me know if this fixes the issue or not. I suspect you have monitoring turned on in OBS. If you still hear the echo while OBS is not open, let me know... it could be a windows setting.

@@infinitequality I’m going to try your suggestion later tonight when I get back home, thank you so much for the tip. I’ll let you know. ☺️

This is highly subjective. I would need to know your budget and goals for the kind of headset to suggest.

You have to set the default device in Windows to the Q2U. You can also check the windows sound mixer and see if your browser is sent to a different audio device. Click the windows key and type the word mixer to get to the settings.

If you are hearing a lot of background noise, there's a few steps you can take to help. First, You want to reduce the background noise as naturally as possible. This usually starts from mic position. Getting the mic pointed away from the noise, if possible, and aiming it so your chin/body are blocking most of the noise if possible. Second, I suggest you do a raw recording (no filters) in OBS to double check that the noise you are hearing is as loud as the actual output being sent by the mic. You might hear more noise in the monitoring then is actually being sent to programs. This is one of the main points of the in line volume control, so you can bring the volume on the headphones down to match the more recorded state of the output. For Discord you can reduce noise through the Noise Reduction option. I am not sure if Zoom has that feature but I would image they also do. If the background noise is something loud like a TV or construction, there's not mic on the planet that will work if the Q2U isn't going to work. This is just a difficult situation. But please check your recorded volume against your monitored volume. Your headphones may be naturally boosting things that are much quieter on the recording.

@@TheGreatHorseradish You are gonna need to narrow down the cause a bit if you can. If you have a second computer or another PC you have access to you can test the Q2U and see if the issue is with the Q2U itself or your pc. If the issue disappears when you change systems you know the Q2U isn't the issue. I suspect it's something to do with your motherboard not being grounded well. The gpu and the case could be at fault too... it's hard to know. If you still have the issue with a different PC, your Q2U is faulty.

@@TheGreatHorseradish So it's probably that your keyboard isn't shielded properly or well and most dynamic mics are also not shielded well. There's no good way to fix this issue outside of a different keyboard/different mic. My monitors cause this issue with my other dynamic mics as well. I had to get an MXL BCD-1 (which is shielded properly, like the SM7B) to stop that buzzing sound. An XLR interface alone won't change this issue as it's has to do with how the mic is designed.

I would love to, but I don't have access to a Mac sadly. I'll see if anyone in the IQ community has one and can help me with this.

@@mattunwin That would be awesome. When you go Mac, you don’t go back 😂 I only run Windoze inside my MacOS using a virtual machine software (if I need to). Thanks

I have a MacBook from 2012. But i don't think that counts.

@@infinitequality I still have a 2010 Mac Mini, which I just replaced with the latest M1 Mac Mini fully loaded with 16GB RAM, and 1TB SSD. Hoping this new M1 Mac Mini will provide many years of service too. Now that I've had the Q2U for a few days, I notice the sibilance is pretty noticeable for the "s" sounds. I'm using the foam cover that came with the mic. Any suggestions to reduce the sibilance? To see what I mean, I uploaded a test recording at: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-_2DwfyFjbyM.html Thanks

@@SteveAtwal I can hear that. There's a few options. I think you should do them all. First, SM7B foam. Second, Mic direction, point the mic more toward your throat. Third, EQ - use a low pass EQ and start the lowpass near the 15khz range, adjust up or down as needed.

The best way to do this is not over USB and instead use XLR with a Soundboard that has Compression, EQ, and a AUX or Clean FX send channel. Q1202USB - amzn.to/2YFbTR0 QX1202USB - amzn.to/31whSJS QX1222USB - amzn.to/3eFGwNH x1622USB - amzn.to/2YD4DoM x1832usb - amzn.to/3aWGZIY - (My Soundboard) These are the boards I can recommend that I know are good and will work. The other option is to install Voicemeter, but I cannot recommend this method as I have clients that have had major OS and install issues with VM. To the point where they needed to reinstall windows to fix their PC. Soundboard will also give you better monitoring and the ability to add soundcards to your mix for a better stream experience and WAY less alt tabbing.

Yes, look up Equalizer APO

You can do whatever you like, but standard pop filter is harder to use and looks a bit silly compared to the sm7b foam. The foam that comes with the Q2U isn't gonna do much to help with anything.

@@infinitequality thanks for the reply!

@@infinitequality yo bro i ordered the foam you have in the description, I just got it today and the fit is too big for the Q2U ?? It looks kind of goofy on it idk if it’s the same you used.

Did u just take the foam off the Sm7b mic u already owned ? Or did u order it from the link in ur description because mine came squished and even had a dent print left on one side, kind of bad packaging for Amazon prime.

The one in the description is the one I have ordered. It does cover most of the mic when you push it all the way in. How it sounds with the foam is more important than how it looks. It also doesn't look that bad on camera if you only show the foam. Make sure it's pushed all the way in. The dent should come out over time.

Try downloading the latest version of OBS studio from the website, don't use Streamlabs

Try moving the mic around the space and see if it's picking something up. Monitors, TV's, and other devices can cause some static like sounds on many mics. It will get louder or quicker depending on how close it is to the source. My drawing screen makes the most noise and I have to use an mxl-bcd 1 to get rid of the noise. The other reason could be the the XLR cable. Try and move it around, it may be laying on something that's putting out noise, power cables and devices can also cause this depending on the device and cable.

i'll try messing with those things. i have a very quiet pc, barely audible even when sitting right next to it. the cord only comes into contact with the desk and i really have no way around that without laying it on the pc which i imagine will make the sound worse. i did realize getting an aux cable and running an output from the mic reduced the buzzing greatly. not totally sure what the issue is, but it's about 90% resolved and i appreciate the suggestions. i'll see if they help

The current version of audacity is garbage and basically spyware. Use cakewalk. It's free. Copy my windows settings from this video and record at 48000 in cakewalk. Add similar filters.

I 100% would if I could get my hands on a MacBook. :)

Return it

This one... amzn.to/3qvsncH - (As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.) It's nice that it locks in place instead of using springs.

@@infinitequality Thanks for responding so quickly! I am from Europe I have subscribed to your video!

@@infinitequality OK. And what about the other stand that is attached to your Q2U mike? Because you have two different mike stands. Sorry to disturb so much.

A pop filter is ugly, harder to use properly, and will not be as effective as the foam in this use case. For youtube videos and live streamers, using a pop filter is a bad idea. Pop filters are used in recorded studio settings where you can properly control distances from the mic. Live streamers and people talking into a mic for a youtube video is nothing like recording in a controlled studio environment. It's close to a stage performance like a comedian or a band. Have you ever seen a comedian or a band use pop filters on stage? Have you ever seen them use foam?

Yes! As long as you have the USB ports available!

@@infinitequalityalso another question would these be good from a distance lets say 10-20 inches from the mic versus something like a snowball

@@IdKForDahWin they should sound MUCH better than the snowball. Though ideally you would want to be 6-9 inches away most of the time. But the snowball will sound worse overall without a fully controlled environment and a professional sound person dialing in the EQ.

@@infinitequality right now im using a snowball ice to record 2 people and its sound decent and I was thinking of getting a yeti x but this one seems good too especially if I would get two possibil

This question doesn't make sense. Don't use headphones, if you don't want to use headphones.

In theory it should be the same. Set everything to 100. 48000hz. Add filters to obs and use the same foam and volume control cable. I don't have a Mac to test but it shouldn't be that hard to find these settings and match. Most of my advice has to do with things that are computer agnostic.

Is the mic USB plugged in? Is the switch on the mic turned to "ON" Are you plugging into a PC? Did you try any other headphones?

You have to turn up the volume on the mic itself

@@jaeshotz This just controls the windows main output volume. So as long as they have audio from windows they should also hear the mic... unless they are plugged into a phone or different device like the xbox... the monitoring doesn't seem to get enough power from those devices to stay on.

@InfiniteQualityLive 🤷🏿

So you can plug your headphones into the microphone*** (not microwave). The Q2U has a headphone jack for live monitoring.

@@infinitequality microphone not microwave . What are disadvantages of putting compression ratio at 4:1, instead of 21:1. Help please.

@@shakeb1562 lol, this is what I get for using my phone to reply to comments... mb

@@infinitequality 🙃 . Please tell brother. I watched other videos they are telling to used 4:1 ratio you are telling 21:1 ratio. I trust you more than them. May God bless you with bests of both the worlds and forgive all our sins. Help na.

@@shakeb1562 compression used on 'vocals' is commonly applied in stages in music and video production. In editing you can easily end up with 3 or 4 stages of compression on the final sound. A compression ratio of 4:1 is good as an early stage compressor because it keeps most of the dynamic range intact. For live vocals where the sound isn't as predictable and you may be moving around a lot, and you won't have different kinds of compression stages applied it can sound better to apply a higher compression ratio to keep a more consistent audio experience. You will lose some dynamic range, BUT speech isn't musical in nature. Viewers care that they can understand you more than they can hear semi-tones in your voice. On top of that most viewers are not watching/listening on highend sound systems. You have a mix of random outputs from phones, computer monitor speakers, to any other random output. Higher compression on a single source microphone in OBS can make the final sound output more consistent. Plus if you record the mic at 4:1 and 21:1 ... And just compare them.... Pick the one that you think sounds better. You tell me. :-p

Can you clarify your issue for me? Do you see the audio in the meter in OBS? What audio isn't working in OBS? Do you have the q2u set as the mic/aux 1 in the audio settings in obs?

InfiniteQualityLive I figured out I have to have it plugged in to headphones or it won’t work lol. I just got a headphone cable and plugged it in now it works. There aren’t even headphones attached to the cable but it’s still the only way it works.

InfiniteQualityLive specifically though, the issue was the mic input would like go up everytime I said something into the mic, but there would be no sound coming out. It was very strange, lol.

@@calukatastrophe oh that's strange. Are you on windows 10?

M Unwin (TheSunnyMachine) yes I heard it could be a windows ten issue when I was looking it up, very annoyed about that considering how much this mic cost lol

usb or xlr

Have you tried a different USB port? This is not normal behavior. If a different USB port doesn't work you could have a defective mic. Is your PC pretty modern?

​@@infinitequality i think he means your video haha

@@tenyomo Ahhh yes, it's not that the audio is lagging, it's that my camera is lagging slightly because back when I recorded this I was using the Avermedia software to drive the camera which seems to introduce a few frames of lag. This makes it off with the audio. Going direct to OBS doesn't have this issue. This is something that can happen with any mic camera setup and has nothing to do with thte Q2U itself.

@@infinitequalityyea its frame rates and how it streams into the computer so im trying the xlr hookup any answers on why this isnt turning power on?

​@@SuccessFitnessthe Q2U doesn't get power from XLR. It doesn't need power. If you want the other features of the mic to work, you need to plug in the USB.