Skype calls - background humming or buzz sound

[Michelle]

Hi folks,

Question 2 of 2 regarding Skype calls:

With or without my headset with mic, I am told there is an audible background hum or buzz, loud enough that it is distracting.

I suspect I don't have all the sound settings for internal and external devices set correctly. These technical settings are new to me, so I'm hoping these questions are a cinch to the wizards here.

Help is greatly appreciated!

Many thanks,
Michelle Romanica

[Leif]

I can't answer the question directly, but you can make a test call to Skype and it is played back to you.

If I remember correctly, enter "echo123" into the dialling window and click on the connect button. You are asked to say a few words, then a recording of what you said - equivalent to what the 'other party' would hear - is played back. It can be very useful for checking levels, etc.

[ChrisGreaves]

... audible background hum or buzz, loud enough that it is distracting....

I (still) don't have Win7, so can't verify the information in these links, they may get you deep enough into the controls to make a change that works ...
Link1
Link2
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Link5

[Michelle]

Thank you to all, especially my friend Chris, who has patiently had to bear watching me click when he didn't say click. (We used screen share on Skype...very cool!). So not only did he have audio to bear, he actually had to see me clicking when he didn't want me doing that and he couldn't do a darn thing about it. Oooops. Sorry Chris..that was my bad inside voice that escaped..

I ended up having to disable my internal mic and then everything became crystal clear. Until I find a way to have both the internal mic and the external headset and mic enabled, I at least have an excellent work around.

Thank you!

Michelle

[ChrisGreaves]

... he actually had to see me clicking when he didn't want me doing that ...

It's OK Michelle; pretty well everyone on this board knows that I can't stand women who won't do as they're told (grin!).
I'm glad that it appears to be working now (That should read "It sounds as if it's working"), and thanks for introducing me to Skype, Windows 7, screen-sharing and Customer Management Experience.