The default source of audio is from your sound card microphone. If your computer has a built-in microphone (typical for laptops) the program will record automatically from it. Otherwise, plug a computer-compatible microphone into the mic-in jack of the sound card.

The best sound quality will be from running the line-level output from the sound system into the line-in jack of the computer. This is more complex than can be covered in this set of instructions. If you are using the line-in source (or some other sound source, such as a USB microphone) you will need to review the documentation instructions (see Help/SoniClear Help in the program, or the SoniClear Online Documentation).

Before the service starts, create a new file for recording. Click the New button, enter a file name, select Meeting as the recording type, and click OK.

This will display "Ready to Record" in the status window, along with the length of time that you can record (based on the amount of free space on your disk drive). The program is now ready to record.

When the service starts, click the red Record button. The first time using the program you will probably need to adjust the record volume. If you are using the standard sound card microphone or line-in source, you simply adjust the "level" slider. The best level is when the record meter registers generally in the middle of the range. Too low or too high of a meter reading will result in poor audio quality. Try to find a record volume setting that prevents people speaking close to the microphone from being too loud, while still picking up more distant speakers. This is a general setting to get the overall range of pickup for the recording. SoniClear will adjust the volume automatically for louder and softer voices when recording the audio to disk.

While recording with SoniClear, you can use your computer to do other things, such as run PowerPoint presentations. SoniClear will continue to run in the background.

When the service is over, click the Stop button. You will be prompted to confirm that you want to stop recording. Recording will actually stop when you click Yes.

You can review the audio by clicking the Play button. If you do not hear anything be sure the audio to your speakers is on. This can be adjusted by clicking on the speaker icon in the lower right corner of the computer screen.

The audio is recorded into a standard format "WAV" file. SoniClear automatically enhances the WAV file with VoiceBoost processing, while recording. There are no additional processing steps to do or commands that you need to make. SoniClear will produce the best quality sound possible, given the original quality of the audio that is being sent into the computer. A number of factors can affect the sound. The quality of the microphone is the most important point. In addition, sound cards vary widely in their quality, in terms of noise level and distortion. Refer to our notes about microphones on the Microphone Notes Page. Suggestions on how to get the best quality sound are also included in the program documentation (SoniClear Online Documentation), and on the Troubleshooting Support Page.