Buzz from mic

Matt1701 · Post by **Matt1701** » Tue May 19, 2015 6:21 pm

Hi,
I've just taken delivery of my new korg kross 88!! The first thing I tried was to plug in a cheap mic (it only cost about £5 new). However there is a terrible buzzing coming from the speakers when I press the audio in button. My question is, is this because I have a cheap mic or is there a problem with my keyboard?
Anyone have any advice?

Asleep By Dawn · Post by **Asleep By Dawn** » Wed May 20, 2015 12:46 am

have you fiddled with the gain and such and still get the buzz no matter what?

Matt1701 · Post by **Matt1701** » Wed May 20, 2015 6:04 am

Asleep By Dawn wrote:have you fiddled with the gain and such and still get the buzz no matter what?

Hi,
Yes, turning the gain down reduces it a bit but it's still there and then the mic doesn't pick up the voice clearly. Do better quality mics have better pickup and need less gain?

Asleep By Dawn · Post by **Asleep By Dawn** » Wed May 20, 2015 1:13 pm

mine is fine i use a ev 767

are you jus plugging up and hitting audio in or are you trying to use one of the vocal presets in the drum section?

Matt1701 · Post by **Matt1701** » Thu May 21, 2015 5:09 am

Hi,
I'm just hitting the Audio in button and the buzzing starts. The curious thing is that when I use the vocoder preset the buzzing stops which implies maybe the mic itself is ok? I looked up the ev767 which is quite an expensive mic compared to mine (which is a simple one that cost £5.99 off eBay!)
This is really annoying me as the only reason I bought the Kross over the Krome was for the audio in recording and the fact that the Kross is a newer model but looks like they have gone backwards in terms of functionality

Asleep By Dawn · Post by **Asleep By Dawn** » Fri May 22, 2015 3:50 pm

i wish i could offer more help dude.

i am gonna see if my band mate has a mic ( if he does it will be crappy for sure lol)

and see what my kross does

Matt1701 · Post by **Matt1701** » Sat May 23, 2015 7:11 am

Hey, thanks mate-really appreciate you checking this out for me.

studio99 · Post by **studio99** » Sat May 23, 2015 1:09 pm

I use a cheap mic with my Kross and it works just fine on the Mic setting with a gain of about 40.
I'm not in front of the Kross right now but there are 2 inputs, one for Mic and one for Line,
There is also a setting in the audio setup menu that allows you to choose which one you're using.
Also check the Mic chord/connector on your mic.

It will definitely work with an inexpensive mic and the proper settings
Good luck

Matt1701 · Post by **Matt1701** » Mon May 25, 2015 6:18 am

studio99 wrote:I use a cheap mic with my Kross and it works just fine on the Mic setting with a gain of about 40.

It will definitely work with an inexpensive mic and the proper settings
Good luck

hi studio99, that's good to know! I have to turn my gain all the way to practically nothing to eliminate the buzz and then I can hardly hear the mic!
looks like I might need to contact the warranty department

tommymandel · Post by **tommymandel** » Tue May 26, 2015 12:22 pm

Could you try (any) other microphone? Just because the vocoder setting makes the buzz go away, that doesn't (in my opinion) prove that your mic is ok. The vocoder could have a gating circuit in it, or it could be filtering out the eq where the buzz in the mic is. Or the mic could be putting out a way-too-low-level signal, due to a malfunction. Or maybe it needs phantom power. Probably not phantom power, but I would certainly try borrowing a mic, or using another one of yours if you have one, before dragging the Kross back to the store.
Good luck either way!

Greg_S · Post by **Greg_S** » Wed May 27, 2015 3:51 am

It could easily be the cable - if it's not hard-wired into the mic, then see if you can swap cables or mics to check if that's the problem.