Registering and logging in removes this ad.
Registering and logging in removes this ad.
Mic + USB sound pod- anything better, in a headset?
Submitted by Kato1701 on Thu, 09/27/2007 - 05:50.
I want to get a new high-quality headset mic and I'd love some advice; recognition accuracy is very important to me and it's worth it to me to spend considerably more money if I can get better recognition-- , I'm wondering if there's a better approach than USB microphones.
I just had a lousy experience with a Sennheiser ME3 with a new Andrea sound pod-- after extensive testing accuracy was rarely much over 90% and was often not even 85%. So, before trying another equivalent microphone, I want to ask confirm that USB sound pods are really the very best way to go in terms of accuracy? Is there a higher-end approach that will work better?
For example I currently use a Sennheiser 431II with about $400 worth of amplifier / converter gear in place of sound pod. It does a good job, but I'd love to move to a headset mic instead. Thanks-- Robert
My current equipment: Sennheiser 431II, DNS 9.51, Windows XP service pack two, Pentium CPU at 2.8 GHz, one gig of RAM
From an accuracy point of
From an accuracy point of view, there is no advantage or disadvantage to a good PCI sound card, such as a Sound Blaster, over a USB Pod but USB Pods can be a little more convenient from a portability point of view. Unless you're USB Pod is defective, it's not the problem.
The Sennheiser ME3 and Senneheiser 431 II should be very close in accuracy. Did you run the Audio Setup Wizard when you installed your Senneheiser ME3 and if so, did you press the "Play" button in the stage of the wizard to listen for possible interference? If not, we recommend trying this procedure. Although we consider theBoom line of wired microphones to be superior and the Revolabs xTag wireless lapel microphone to be the best, the Sennheiser ME3 should perform quite well. If you would like to see how different speech recognition microphones stack up when compared to each other on pricing, comfort, accuracy and noise cancellation you might want to check out our Microphone Comparison Matrix for the latest test results.
Having said all that... we suspect that you're ME3 might simply be a lemon and you should probably contact your vendor or the manufacturer for a replacement. USB Pods rarely go bad but you should also check it to make absolutely certain and NEVER insert a USB Pod into a front USB port on a desktop computer or a USB hub. With a little luck, you won't have to purchase a new microphone.
Additional responses to this question are available on the KnowBrainer Technical Support Forum
Lunis Orcutt - Developer of KnowBrainer (DNS Command Software)
Now Providing FREE (1st 5 min.) Tech Support 615-884-4558
A Nuance Gold Certified Endorsed Vendor
Robert wrote: I just had a
I just had a lousy experience with a Sennheiser ME3 with a new Andrea sound pod-- after extensive testing accuracy was rarely much over 90% and was often not even 85%.
Did you get a Modified for Speech Recognition Sennheiser ME3? There can be other reason for poor accuracy if it was a modified for speech recognition unit. For example, were you using it on a notebook computer? If so, a common problem is reversed polarity of the charging unit can cause the introduction of electronic noise.
So, before trying another equivalent microphone, I want to ask confirm that USB sound pods are really the very best way to go in terms of accuracy? Is there a higher-end approach that will work better?
A USB pod design for speech recognition for sure shoe of the best audio input. It does not mean you may not already have a good sound card or sound chip. You can test this by running a Windows sound recorder recording test and listening for unwanted electronic noise.
For example I currently use a Sennheiser 431II with about $400 worth of amplifier / converter gear in place of sound pod. It does a good job, but I'd love to move to a headset mic instead.
This sounds like total overkill. We ourselves have never used or seen the need for anything but an Andrea USB sound pod with a Sennheiser MD431II. Are you using the correct cable, impedance matched and with the correct connector?
As an aside note, I noticed you said you have 1 GB of RAM in your computer. Dragon version 9 runs much better with 2 GB RAM.
--
Martin Markoe, eMicrophones, Inc.
The best microphones for Speech Recognition
Martin -- let me zero in on
Martin -- let me zero in on the comment about RAM. Would adding more RAM increase recognition accuracy? If so I'll do it tomorrow -- heck, I'll do it today -- though if it's just speed or performance that's not really an issue for me.
Generally in response to the questions: Martin -- I should have made this clear but I'm the Robert you were working with just a day or so ago. As you recall, when I first got the Sennheiser you and I went through trouble checking very carefully and covered the points above. I have no idea why the Sennheiser was so bad for me -- I can believe you guys when you say it's been good in your experience -- but I've given up on it for my purposes.
Thanks for the quick response, everybody.
Kato1701 wrote: Martin --
Martin -- let me zero in on the comment about RAM. Would adding more RAM increase recognition accuracy?
No.
Generally in response to the questions: Martin -- I should have made this clear but I'm the Robert you were working with just a day or so ago. As you recall, when I first got the Sennheiser you and I went through trouble checking very carefully and covered the points above. I have no idea why the Sennheiser was so bad for me -- I can believe you guys when you say it's been good in your experience -- but I've given up on it for my purposes.
Sorry, I speak to and E-mail many people a day. Which Robert are you? Did you purchase the microphone from eMicrophones? Did we not offer to have you return it and have us test it out?
--
Martin Markoe, eMicrophones, Inc.
The best microphones for Speech Recognition