USB Microphone - Blue Snowball Ice - a lot of noise

[azn]

Hello, I decided to finally ask for help as I have no idea what is going on. I've been using this microphone for quite a while and suddenly I've noticed there is a lot, and I mean a lot of noise when recording - so much i barely can hear the words i say. A bit less in OBS with noise cancellation filters on but still it stopped me from recording as it is unbearable. Funny thing recently things started to happen on it's own - kind of. First monitor of soundcard output got muted (maybe i did it but i doubt it as i do not play with settings if they work), now this noise.

Microphone is Blue Snowball Ice, and my motherboard with integrated sound module is A68HM-PLUS.

I will provide popular outputs people ask for in such cases:

lsusb | grep Snowball

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Bus 007 Device 003: ID 0d8c:0005 C-Media Electronics, Inc. Blue Snowball

inxi -Fxxxrz

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System:
  Kernel: 5.15.0-101-generic x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 11.4.0
    Desktop: CWM info: xmobar, trayer vt: 7 dm: LightDM 1.30.0
    Distro: Linux Mint 21.3 Virginia base: Ubuntu 22.04 jammy
Machine:
  Type: Desktop Mobo: ASUSTeK model: A68HM-PLUS v: Rev X.0x
    serial: <superuser required> UEFI-[Legacy]: American Megatrends v: 2011
    date: 10/17/2018
CPU:
  Info: quad core model: AMD Athlon X4 845 bits: 64 type: MT MCP smt: enabled
    arch: Excavator rev: 1 cache: L1: 320 KiB L2: 2 MiB
  Speed (MHz): avg: 1793 high: 1795 min/max: 1800/3500 boost: enabled
    cores: 1: 1795 2: 1791 3: 1793 4: 1795 bogomips: 27929
  Flags: avx avx2 ht lm nx pae sse sse2 sse3 sse4_1 sse4_2 sse4a ssse3 svm
Graphics:
  Device-1: AMD Pitcairn PRO [Radeon HD 7850 / R7 265 R9 270 1024SP]
    vendor: Hightech Information System driver: amdgpu v: kernel pcie:
    speed: 8 GT/s lanes: 8 ports: active: HDMI-A-1 empty: DP-1,DP-2,DVI-I-1
    bus-ID: 01:00.0 chip-ID: 1002:6819 class-ID: 0300
  Display: x11 server: X.Org v: 1.21.1.4 driver: X: loaded: amdgpu
    gpu: amdgpu display-ID: :0 screens: 1
  Screen-1: 0 s-res: 1920x1080 s-dpi: 96 s-size: 508x285mm (20.0x11.2")
    s-diag: 582mm (22.9")
  Monitor-1: HDMI-A-0 mapped: HDMI-A-1 model: Idek Iiyama PL2488H
    res: 1920x1080 hz: 60 dpi: 92 size: 531x299mm (20.9x11.8")
    diag: 609mm (24") modes: max: 1920x1080 min: 720x400
  OpenGL: renderer: AMD Radeon HD 7800 Series (pitcairn LLVM 15.0.7 DRM
    3.42 5.15.0-101-generic)
    v: 4.6 Mesa 23.2.1-1ubuntu3.1~22.04.2 direct render: Yes
Audio:
  Device-1: AMD FCH Azalia vendor: ASUSTeK AM1I-A driver: snd_hda_intel
    v: kernel bus-ID: 00:14.2 chip-ID: 1022:780d class-ID: 0403
  Device-2: AMD Oland/Hainan/Cape Verde/Pitcairn HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 7000
  Series]
    vendor: Hightech Information System driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel pcie:
    speed: 8 GT/s lanes: 8 bus-ID: 01:00.1 chip-ID: 1002:aab0 class-ID: 0403
  Device-3: C-Media Blue Snowball type: USB
    driver: hid-generic,snd-usb-audio,usbhid bus-ID: 7-1.1:3 chip-ID: 0d8c:0005
    class-ID: 0300 serial: <filter>
  Sound Server-1: ALSA v: k5.15.0-101-generic running: yes
  Sound Server-2: PulseAudio v: 15.99.1 running: yes
  Sound Server-3: PipeWire v: 0.3.48 running: yes
Network:
  Device-1: Realtek RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet
    vendor: ASUSTeK AM1I-A driver: r8169 v: kernel pcie: speed: 2.5 GT/s
    lanes: 1 port: d000 bus-ID: 05:00.0 chip-ID: 10ec:8168 class-ID: 0200
  IF: enp5s0 state: up speed: 100 Mbps duplex: full mac: <filter>
  IF-ID-1: ham0 state: unknown speed: 10 Mbps duplex: full mac: <filter>
Drives:
  Local Storage: total: 2.27 TiB used: 573.14 GiB (24.6%)
  ID-1: /dev/sda vendor: Crucial model: CT500MX500SSD1 size: 465.76 GiB
    speed: 6.0 Gb/s type: SSD serial: <filter> rev: 023 scheme: MBR
  ID-2: /dev/sdb vendor: Western Digital model: WD20EZRZ-00Z5HB0
    size: 1.82 TiB speed: 6.0 Gb/s type: HDD rpm: 5400 serial: <filter>
    rev: 0A80 scheme: GPT
Partition:
  ID-1: / size: 72.78 GiB used: 29.62 GiB (40.7%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda6
  ID-2: /home size: 152.86 GiB used: 35.24 GiB (23.1%) fs: ext4
    dev: /dev/sda7
Swap:
  ID-1: swap-1 type: partition size: 29.8 GiB used: 0 KiB (0.0%) priority: -2
    dev: /dev/sda5
Sensors:
  System Temperatures: cpu: 34.0 C mobo: 32.0 C gpu: amdgpu temp: 34.0 C
  Fan Speeds (RPM): cpu: 1285 fan-1: 2051
  Power: 12v: N/A 5v: N/A 3.3v: 3.34 vbat: 2.74
Repos:
  Packages: 4049 note: see --pkg apt: 4042 flatpak: 7
  No active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list
  Active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/google-chrome.list
    1: deb [arch=amd64] https://dl.google.com/linux/chrome/deb/ stable main
  No active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/linuxuprising-libpng12-focal.list
  Active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/obsproject-obs-studio-jammy.list
    1: deb [arch=amd64 signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/obsproject-obs-studio-jammy.gpg] https://ppa.launchpadcontent.net/obsproject/obs-studio/ubuntu jammy main
  Active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/official-package-repositories.list
    1: deb http://packages.linuxmint.com virginia main upstream import backport
    2: deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu jammy main restricted universe multiverse
    3: deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu jammy-updates main restricted universe multiverse
    4: deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu jammy-backports main restricted universe multiverse
    5: deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ jammy-security main restricted universe multiverse
  No active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-xenial.list
  Active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/xanmod-release.list
    1: deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/xanmod-archive-keyring.gpg] http://deb.xanmod.org releases main
  Active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/winehq-jammy.sources
    1: deb [arch=amd64 i386] https://dl.winehq.org/wine-builds/ubuntu jammy main
Info:
  Processes: 199 Uptime: 4m wakeups: 0 Memory: 7.69 GiB
  used: 1.32 GiB (17.2%) Init: systemd v: 249 runlevel: 5 Compilers:
  gcc: 11.4.0 alt: 11/12/9 clang: 14.0.0-1ubuntu1.1 Shell: Bash v: 5.1.16
  running-in: urxvt inxi: 3.3.13

aplay -l && arecord -l

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**** List of PLAYBACK Hardware Devices ****
card 0: Generic [HD-Audio Generic], device 0: ALC887-VD Analog [ALC887-VD Analog]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 0: Generic [HD-Audio Generic], device 1: ALC887-VD Digital [ALC887-VD Digital]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 1: HDMI [HDA ATI HDMI], device 3: HDMI 0 [HDMI 0]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 1: HDMI [HDA ATI HDMI], device 7: HDMI 1 [HDMI 1]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 1: HDMI [HDA ATI HDMI], device 8: HDMI 2 [HDMI 2]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 1: HDMI [HDA ATI HDMI], device 9: HDMI 3 [HDMI 3]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 1: HDMI [HDA ATI HDMI], device 10: HDMI 4 [HDMI 4]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 1: HDMI [HDA ATI HDMI], device 11: HDMI 5 [HDMI 5]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
**** List of CAPTURE Hardware Devices ****
card 0: Generic [HD-Audio Generic], device 0: ALC887-VD Analog [ALC887-VD Analog]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 0: Generic [HD-Audio Generic], device 2: ALC887-VD Alt Analog [ALC887-VD Alt Analog]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
card 2: Snowball [Blue Snowball], device 0: USB Audio [USB Audio]
  Subdevices: 1/1
  Subdevice #0: subdevice #0

sudo cat /etc/pulse/default.pa

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#!/usr/bin/pulseaudio -nF
#
# This file is part of PulseAudio.
#
# PulseAudio is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
# under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License as published by
# the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
# (at your option) any later version.
#
# PulseAudio is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
# WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
# MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU
# General Public License for more details.
#
# You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public License
# along with PulseAudio; if not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.

# This startup script is used only if PulseAudio is started per-user
# (i.e. not in system mode)

.fail

### Automatically restore the volume of streams and devices
load-module module-device-restore
load-module module-stream-restore
load-module module-card-restore

### Automatically augment property information from .desktop files
### stored in /usr/share/application
load-module module-augment-properties

### Should be after module-*-restore but before module-*-detect
load-module module-switch-on-port-available

### Use hot-plugged devices like Bluetooth or USB automatically (LP: #1702794)
.ifexists module-switch-on-connect.so
load-module module-switch-on-connect
.endif

### Load audio drivers statically
### (it's probably better to not load these drivers manually, but instead
### use module-udev-detect -- see below -- for doing this automatically)
#load-module module-alsa-sink
#load-module module-alsa-source device=hw:1,0
#load-module module-oss device="/dev/dsp" sink_name=output source_name=input
#load-module module-oss-mmap device="/dev/dsp" sink_name=output source_name=input
#load-module module-null-sink
#load-module module-pipe-sink

### Automatically load driver modules depending on the hardware available
.ifexists module-udev-detect.so
load-module module-udev-detect tsched=0
.else
### Use the static hardware detection module (for systems that lack udev support)
load-module module-detect
.endif

### Automatically connect sink and source if JACK server is present
.ifexists module-jackdbus-detect.so
.nofail
load-module module-jackdbus-detect channels=2
.fail
.endif

### Automatically load driver modules for Bluetooth hardware
.ifexists module-bluetooth-policy.so
load-module module-bluetooth-policy
.endif

.ifexists module-bluetooth-discover.so
load-module module-bluetooth-discover
.endif

### Load several protocols
.ifexists module-esound-protocol-unix.so
load-module module-esound-protocol-unix
.endif
load-module module-native-protocol-unix

### Network access (may be configured with paprefs, so leave this commented
### here if you plan to use paprefs)
#load-module module-esound-protocol-tcp
#load-module module-native-protocol-tcp
#load-module module-zeroconf-publish

### Load the RTP receiver module (also configured via paprefs, see above)
#load-module module-rtp-recv

### Load the RTP sender module (also configured via paprefs, see above)
#load-module module-null-sink sink_name=rtp format=s16be channels=2 rate=44100 sink_properties="device.description='RTP Multicast Sink'"
#load-module module-rtp-send source=rtp.monitor

### Load additional modules from GSettings. This can be configured with the paprefs tool.
### Please keep in mind that the modules configured by paprefs might conflict with manually
### loaded modules.
.ifexists module-gsettings.so
.nofail
load-module module-gsettings
.fail
.endif


### Automatically restore the default sink/source when changed by the user
### during runtime
### NOTE: This should be loaded as early as possible so that subsequent modules
### that look up the default sink/source get the right value
load-module module-default-device-restore

### Make sure we always have a sink around, even if it is a null sink.
load-module module-always-sink

### Honour intended role device property
load-module module-intended-roles

### Automatically suspend sinks/sources that become idle for too long
load-module module-suspend-on-idle

### If autoexit on idle is enabled we want to make sure we only quit
### when no local session needs us anymore.
.ifexists module-console-kit.so
load-module module-console-kit
.endif
.ifexists module-systemd-login.so
load-module module-systemd-login
.endif

### Enable positioned event sounds
load-module module-position-event-sounds

### Cork music/video streams when a phone stream is active
load-module module-role-cork

### Block audio recording for snap confined packages unless they have
### the "pulseaudio" or "audio-record" interfaces plugged.
.ifexists module-snap-policy.so
load-module module-snap-policy
.endif

### Modules to allow autoloading of filters (such as echo cancellation)
### on demand. module-filter-heuristics tries to determine what filters
### make sense, and module-filter-apply does the heavy-lifting of
### loading modules and rerouting streams.
#load-module module-echo-cancel
load-module module-filter-heuristics
load-module module-filter-apply

### Make some devices default
#set-default-sink output
#set-default-source input

I also attach screenshots of my alsamixer Capture section, both for integrated audio and Blue microphone. Hope that helps, please understand if I do not reply instantly as very busy with work for next few days but will update you and keep providing information if asked for as soon as i can.

[1000]

Try test microphone in the new user account.
If it works there, it's a problem with the settings on the old account.

TIP: Try not to set the sensitivity too high for sound inside settings.
if the voice is too quiet only in the recording,
then you can enlarge it with the editor.
When the sensitivity is too high, more noise and crackling may occur.
And in the sound editor, be careful not to set the sound too high.
If the sound is too high, the upper range will be cut off.

[azn]

Hello and sorry for late reply. I've tried to create new user and record something - same. A lot of noise and no idea how to get rid of it.

EDIT:
Also tried a few different USB ports, both USB 2.0 and 3.0. Same results. Another thing I did was to disable fast boot both in Windows(I have dual boot) and in BIOS.

I tried as well to add such lined at the end of /etc/pulse/default.pa:

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load-module module-echo-cancel use_master_format=1 aec_method=webrtc aec_args="noise_suppression=1" source_name=echoCancel_source sink_name=echoCancel_sink
set-default-source echoCancel_source
set-default-sink echoCancel_sink

Seemed pretty logical but did not change anything.

[1000]

1. You use USB,
So the device probably has a built-in sound card.
So the sound should automatically be clear.
( At least in theory if this device has built-in noise cancellation in the sound card. )
Sometimes if the device consists of two parts, the sound card can be replaced with another one.
Not always, but sometimes it is possible to use a microphone with a jack plug / analog input.

2. I mentioned that sensitivity is important.
At least in the analog version / option.
This may not work in the digital option.
Have you tried reducing the microphone sensitivity in pavucontrol .
https://i.stack.imgur.com/hS6w7.png

3. Sometimes it's there ( pavucontrol --> input tab )
also change option " digital input / analog input "
Try check.

4. In USB / digital mode, I do not see the bar showing the sound level from the microphone
inside pavucontrol like on the picture above.
You can try use Audacity or other better tool to test sound.

5. I don't know of any free real-mode noise reduction program on Linux.
But you can create cleaner recordings with Audacity.
Example video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdFsOUxUh0I

6. Check which driver you use.

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lsusb -t

I can not find info about driver for " Blue Snowball Ice " in linux kernel.
Missing the correct driver or configuration file may be the problem.
But depending on your driver, you might try asking
https://bugzilla.kernel.org/describecom ... ct=Drivers

But some people suggest that this microphone works straight out of the box.
You can test different live-USB distributions.

Also I cannot rule out problems with PulseAudio
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/PulseA ... leshooting

7. You can also compare the sound quality with other users.
Example
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cst8G2BCZJI

8. You can also check the microphone on another device to see if the problem exists there.

Edited
9. You can also try debug with system log.
Open terminal and run command to check system logs in real time

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journalctl -f

Then connect the USB device and check if there are any errors.

[azn]

Thank you for reply, yet had totally no time to focus on recording so i will provide some feedback when i get into it. Yet to be honest a little demotivated because of such hassle to work on that mic problem.

[1000]

I'll just write in general.
Microphones with a jack input are still popular.
( It has only analog output without noise reduction )
They do not provide perfect sound purity.

So there will still be demand for
USB<-->Jack sound cards
or applications that reduce microphone noise.
This gives hope that one day such applications
will also be available by default in Linux.

I've already found one application
https://github.com/noisetorch/NoiseTorch
But for security reasons, let the distribution developers check the code first
and then add it to the repository themselves.
For example on https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu
after login on right you can click " Ask a question "
and you can ask if they can check and add this application to the repository.
( Other way is check on snap / flatpak or other )

However, in your case I don't know if the sound is natural or caused by PulseAudio failure.