white noise

[xuthal]

Hey guys,ive been recording with a boss br900cd and an unknown vocal mic.When i switched mics trying to get rid of the white noise it was still there.When im recording all is quiet and there are no noises in the house.What can be the cause of the white noise im hearing?I would like to get cd quality music with this recorder,and i know that would require a better mic,but for now i would like to track down the white noise im hearing on my tracks.

[alotawatts]

Originally Posted by xuthal

an unknown vocal mic.

Try using a different cable then different inputs/channels too.

[Melodic Dreamer]

Whatever preamp your using might not have enough headroom.

[drbob1]

If you just plug the mic into the recorder and listen on your headphones, are you hearing the noise? When you record something, does it drown out the noise? There're a couple of possible culprits:
1. Bad mic: the "self-noise" is high enough to hear.
2. Bad cable
3. Bad connections (corrosion either on the mic or recorder end)
4. Incorrect gain staging: if any particular part of the signal chain is pushed too loud it'll develop hiss. Try and set preamp gain, effects gain, headphone output, main output all at "0" and see if you still hear the noise.

If none of those help, you may have a bad BR900...

[xuthal]

So i would need a preamp?I'm new to recording in general,i didn't know i needed a preamp.

[drbob1]

Nope, don't need a separate preamp with the BR900, it has two built in. What have you checked so far?