Image 1
This tutorial was created to answer a question that users of our software HypnoStudio have asked us often, but it's useful for any Windows user who wants to record their own voice quickly and easily. Sound Recorder is included in all versions of Windows, and this tutorial should apply to practically all versions of this audio tool.
It is assumed that:
Set up
You may need to set up your Microphone and Windows' Audio Mixer before you can record your voice. If your microphone is connected and you don't hear any sound, the microphone might be muted. Look on the Desktop's "Task Bar", which is normally located at the bottom-right (Image 1). There you should see an icon that looks like a yellow speaker. Click on it.
A window like the one in Image 2 (below) should pop.
Controls for the Microphone should be present in that window (like the ones in the right of the Image 2). If not, click on the text "Options" (highlighted in red in the image), and then "Properties". A second window will pop that looks like the image below (Image 3):
Check "Playback", and make sure "Microphone" is checked also (it is unchecked in Image 3). Click "Ok". In the still open "Play Control" window (Image 2) you should see now the controls for the Microphone. If the checkbox "Mute" (highlighted with red in Image2) is checked, un-check it. Make sure your computer speakers are on, but not too loud, and speak to your microphone. If the voice sounds distorted, turn the Volume fader down in the "Play Control" window (Image 2).
The above was a preliminary test to make sure your microphone is working properly. Now you have to tell the computer to record sound ONLY from the microphone input. To do this, select again the menu items "Options" and then "Properties" in the "Play Control" window.
This time check "Recording" instead of "Playback", and make sure "Microphone" is checked. Click "Ok". Now the "Play Control" window has become the "Record Control" window (Image 4).
Checking the box "Select" in the Microphone column will force your computer to record only those sounds that come through the microphone. Move the Volume fader down to about 1/4 of the total volume. Now you are ready to record.
Launching Sound Recorder
Click the Start button in your Desktop and move from menu to menu following the path below:
Programs > Accessories > Entertainment > Sound Recorder
Clicking on "Sound Recorder" launches the program, which looks like Image 5 (below):
Recording
Click on the button with the red circle to begin recording. The level of your voice is indicated by changes in the green line at the center of the screen. If you see too much green hitting the top and bottom of that screen, turn the microphone volume down in the "Record Control" window (Image 4), which you should leave open until you finish recording in case you need to make more adjustments. The portion of the sound highlighted in red in the image below (Image 6) is an example of volume set too high.
Once you think the recording volume is ok, press the "Stop" button (the one with the black square). Click on the menu item "File" and select "New". When prompted to save changes, click "No". Now you are truly set to record your voice.
Click the record button and speak to the microphone. You can pause and listen to what you have recorded at any time. If you want to pause, press the Stop button. To playback press Play (the button with the single arrow). This playback is always at the highest sound quality (more of that below). To continue recording, press Stop (if you are playing back) and Record. When you are really finished, just press Stop.
If you want to start from scratch, click the menu item "File" and select "New", like we explained before. Otherwise, proceed to save your recording.
Save your recording
Click on "File" and select "Save As". A window like Image 7 below will pop.
Before anything else, click the button "Change" (highlighted in red above) to set the quality of the sound to be saved. You may want to save the original recording with good quality first, and then make lower quality copies of it, if you need them for some reason (little hard drive space, low RAM memory, etc.) A window with the title "Sound Selection" will pop (Image 8)
Click on the arrow highlighted in red above, and form the list that you'll see, choose the setting shown in the image (44.100 Khz, 16 Bit, Mono). That is the one we recommend. If you want to save at a lower quality, select any of the following (in descending order of quality):
We don't recommend that you select any of the 8 Bit options, or anything below 11.025 Khz. After selecting the sound quality, click OK to return to the "Save As" window. Select the folder where you want your file to be stored, and give it a name (ie: mysound). Click "Save". Your file will be saved with the name you chose, plus the extension .WAV (i.e. mysound.wav).
Loading sounds
To listen the sound with the quality in which it was stored, click "File", and then "Open". A window pops that allows you to search and load any sound with the extension .WAV. Playback now truly reflects the quality of the saved sound.
Adding Effects
You can add a few effects to your sounds with Sound Recorder. To apply an effect to a loaded sound, or to a recording that has been stopped, click the menu item "Effects", and select any of the effects available. It is recommended that you save the modified sound as a separate file to preserve the original.
With the effects available in Sound Recorder you can: