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The mode switch is located on the back of the mike, just above, the USB connection. The switch has three positions. Facing the back of the mike the far left position is the Cardioids setting. The center position is for recording musical instruments and substantially reduces the volume. The right position is the Omni Directional setting.
MacintoshMac OSXUSB 1.0 or 2.064 MB RAM (minimum)
WindowsVista, XP Home Edition or XP ProfessionalUSB 1.0 or 2.064 MB RAM (minimum)
In system OSX: in the Apple menu, open System Preferences.
Double-click the Sound preference file.
Click on the Input tab.
Double click Blue Usb Ball Mic under Choose A Device For Sound Input dialog box.
Set input volume to the appropriate level. The mic is sensitive and may require a very low volume setting.
Exit System Preferences.
Under Start Menu open Sounds And Audio Devices control panel.
Select Audio tab; insure Blue Ball Usb Mic is selected as Default Device.
Click on Volume; select appropriate volume level.
Exit control panel.
Click on Properties; select the Levels tab, set your input level, click Apply, then OK.
Exit control panel.
Go to Preferences->Audio and select the Blue mic as the input device (it will only show up when The Snowball is plugged in).
Create a vocal track and select the Blue mic as the input device for that track. • You may need to adjust the Snowball’s input level in the control panel if you experience any distortion (crackling).
Open the Audio and MIDI setup program in your Apps->Utilities folder.
Create an Aggregate Audio Source (Audio menu - open Aggregate device editor).
Add the devices you want to use to the aggregate device (Built in audio and Blue mic).
Change the audio device in Logic’s audio preferences from Default to Aggregate.
Select “USB Audio Device” ( 1, in, 0 out) from an audio track.
From within that subcategory, there are 3 selections: Left USB Audio Device, Right USB Audio Device, and Stereo USB Audio Device.
Select Left or Right for mono audio tracks.
Press “R” to arm the track for recording.
Roll disk.
If you should experience any problems getting the program to recognize the mic, Adobe recommends the following:
If the device does not allow you to record, then your microphone is
not being detected as a valid input device in Premiere Elements. You can use an open source program
called ASIO4ALL,
which is a device driver that essentially wraps existing WDM devices, like USB microphones,
as ASIO-
compatible sound devices. Use the following steps to utilize this tool:
Quit Premiere Elements.
Visit the following web page and download the latest available version of ASIO4ALL:
http://www.asio4all.com/
Install the software, and restart the system if asked to do so by the installer.
Make certain that your microphone is plugged in.
Launch Premiere Elements. Go to the ‘Edit->Preferences..>Audio Hardware’ menu option. For the Default Device, choose the ASIO4ALL option. Click the ASIO Settings button, then select your microphone from the list of devices, click Exit, and then click OK on the Preferences dialog. Close and then restart Premiere Elements.
Question: My Snowball sounds like it’s really far away from me. I’m hearing lots of room noise.
Answer: This sounds like your onboard mic is in use. Check both System and Software Preferences
to ensure that Snowball is the Default input device.
Question: Do I need any special software to use The Snowball? Do I need any drivers?
Answer: Technically, no. Depending on your application, your OS may have sufficient features
to utilize the capabilities of the Snowball. But, to get the most out of your Snowball, you’ll want
to have some kind of software that allows for digital signal processing and non-linear editing that
will accept audio from the USB port. Some examples of these programs are listed below. As long as you are
using Windows XP or Apple OSX, you will not need any drivers.
Question: Can I use the Blue Snowball with ProTools?
Answer: The Snowball is a USB device. At present, Protools software requires proprietary
hardware to input audio in real time. At the time this document was created, there is not a USB input
on Protools hardware. Important Note: You can import audio files previously recorded with the
Snowflake into a ProTools session. Please note that the Snowball has a fixed digital output of 16
bit /44.1 kHz.
Question: My Snowball is plugged in, but I’m not able to see or hear levels.
Answer: Things to double check:
1. Is the red LED on the front of the Snowball illuminated?
2. Is the Snowball connected to a native USB port? Hubs will not provide the appropriate
current to power the Snowball.
3. Is the Snowball selected as the default input device in both the System and software
Preferences?
Also, make certain you have an adequate amount of volume set.
4. . Does the recording software I am using support a USB input?
Question: Is the Snowball compatible with Windows Vista?
Answer: Snowballs manufactured after July, 2007 (with serial numbers higher than 76-065000)
are Vista compatible. Snowballs with serial numbers lower than this are not Vista compatible.
Question: Can I use The Snowball with a traditional analog audio mixer?
Answer: No. The Snowball features digital output only. It must be connected to a USB port
in order to function.
Question: What sample rate and word length does The Snowball use?
Answer: The Snowball’s digital output is set to 44.1 kHz / 16-bit, just like an audio CD.
But this is something that only audio geeks really need to worry about.
Question: How can I select a different sample rate?
Answer: Because The Snowball is designed for the greatest ease of operation and setup,
sample rate/word length are not user-definable. Sorry, geeks.
Question: Can I use more than one Snowball at a time?
Answer: Some audio editing software allows for multiple USB connections. Check with your
software vendor— they should have technical support staff who can answer all of your questions about
their product.
Question: What does cardioid and omnidirectional mean? Why should I care?
Answer: These are the two polar patterns The Snowball is capable of producing. If you think
of polar patterns as the shape of the area that a microphone “hears” omnidirectional hears everything
at equal volume from all angles (in a 360 degree sphere surrounding the mic), while cardioid only
hears what’s right in front of it at full volume and other sounds at increasingly diminished volume
as the sound source moves further away from the center of the mic (audio techs call this off-axis). You
should care because one of the most useful features of a microphone is the ability to control its pickup.
We like polar patterns so much, that some of our professional studio microphones have as many as
nine different patterns! With The Snowball, we’ve given you the two most likely to be useful to
you.
Question: What is The Snowball used for? Is it a vocal mic, an instrument mic or both?
Answer: The Snowball was designed to provide a wide range of applications where a high-quality
transducer (a fancy way to say microphone) is needed, but so is ease of use and setup. Though
most professional engineers prefer certain microphones for certain applications, we designed The Snowball
for use with a wide variety of sources. Here are some suggested applications we came up with when we
were locked in Blue’s patented anechoic think tank: instrument and voice for music
production/
pre-production/demos, DV-looping/dialog, podcasting, sound effects, audio sampling,
interactive programming, video sweetening/post, internet telephony, internet conferencing, recording
lectures, poetry slams, spoken word performances and speeches by your favorite politician—
generally anywhere where you need an easy-to-use microphone and you have access to a computer
with a USB port. Happy recording!
Created on ... August 03, 2011