Question / Help How to Remove/Lessen Keyboard and Mouse Noise?

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ThatSourMelon

New Member
So, I have a blue yeti, and when I record my keyboard strokes and mouse clicks are very audible. I have it set to Cardioid mode, and the front is facing me. But the only way my arm allows my mic to be is slightly below my mouth, between me and my mouse and keyboard. I have tried a noise gate, but the only thing that does is mute me, and when I talk you get a wave of noise from my keyboard and mouse clicks. I don't have a problem with background noise, just this. I have a membrane keyboard (Apex 150), so the noise shouldn't be too bad compared to a full-mechanical keyboard, right? I've never had a mechanical keyboard, but membrane is still a little too loud. (I'm thinking of getting a cherry switch in the future...) I have also tried the noise suppression filter, but no matter how I set it doesn't even mitigate my noise, I think it was meant for background noise and not my mouse and keyboard. Is there a way to fix this noise problem? Or is there a way to record it and have separate audio tracks from the recording and my mic, maybe I can do something in audacity, but I doubt it would be better than the filters in obs.
 
FerretBomb

FerretBomb

Active Member
Condenser mics like the Yeti are meant to be used in audio-controlled environments like recording booths. They're designed to pick up every subtle aspect of a vocal performance, are an absolutely godawful choice for the noisy environments of livestreaming, but the 'HEY LOOK AT MY HUGE MIC ON CAMERA' fad has amped up their popularity. They're also meant to be used at ranges under 12 inches from your mouth at most, preferably half that.

That said, you can get a mic arm to get the microphone up and off your desk, closer to your face and further from the other sound sources, along with a shockmount to minimize transmission noise through the desk from your typing. You can also try putting a fluffy towel under your keyboard to help control the typing noise and transmission, as well as apply a downward expander filter to the mic. It's like a noise gate but not as harsh... it just makes quiet things quieter by a given ratio, when under a given threshold. It's less jarring.
The best choice would be to get a mic suited to streaming though; a dynamic mic (as opposed to a condenser) will generally do a MUCH better job of excluding ambient audio in a noisy environment.
 
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ThatSourMelon

New Member
FerretBomb said:
Condenser mics like the Yeti are meant to be used in audio-controlled environments like recording booths. They're designed to pick up every subtle aspect of a vocal performance, are an absolutely godawful choice for the noisy environments of livestreaming, but the 'HEY LOOK AT MY HUGE MIC ON CAMERA' fad has amped up their popularity. They're also meant to be used at ranges under 12 inches from your mouth at most, preferably half that.

That said, you can get a mic arm to get the microphone up and off your desk, closer to your face and further from the other sound sources, along with a shockmount to minimize transmission noise through the desk from your typing. You can also try putting a fluffy towel under your keyboard to help control the typing noise and transmission, as well as apply a downward expander filter to the mic. It's like a noise gate but not as harsh... it just makes quiet things quieter by a given ratio, when under a given threshold. It's less jarring.
The best choice would be to get a mic suited to streaming though; a dynamic mic (as opposed to a condenser) will generally do a MUCH better job of excluding ambient audio in a noisy environment.
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Thanks a ton! That helps a lot! I was expecting to use some sort os software to help, but this is good too. I do have a mic arm, as I said, and have it between my mouth and keyboard, I tried other positions, like having the mic slightly above me to my left, but my arm isn't that long and it just gets in the way. Anyway, I'll see what I can do and thanks again!
 
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