Chapter 18

Improving Audio Input

In This Chapter

Diagnosing an audio input problem

Running the microphone check to test input

Getting your microphone working well

Getting a USB microphone

Choosing a better sound card

Keeping things quiet

The old expression “garbage in, garbage out” takes on a different twist when you talk about speech recognition. If garbage goes in, NaturallySpeaking reconstructs it into perfectly good words. It acts like a trash compactor: It makes garbage look better.

Of course, you aren’t talking trash. Nonetheless, your words may be trashed on their way to the laptop. The microphone or audio hardware may not be quite right. Or the microphone may have moved when you chugged your coffee. Or your office mates, appliances, or kids may be contributing background garbage of their own to your audio. The result may sound okay to your ears if you play it back, but NaturallySpeaking assistants have very sensitive ears.

It isn’t likely that you’ll encounter a hardware problem when using NaturallySpeaking, but I include some ideas here in case you do.

Figuring Out Whether You Have an Audio Input Problem

If NaturallySpeaking misinterprets lots of words, your second thought is probably, “Something’s wrong with my microphone or sound card.” (Your first thought is probably uncharitable toward your new assistant. Shame on you.)

NaturallySpeaking may be messing up for lots of reasons, however. As with a puppy that messes up, one reason may be inadequate training. Before you go looking for an audio input problem, make sure you have done some additional training. One symptom of a need for additional training or vocabulary building is that NaturallySpeaking makes the same error repeatedly: “cheese” for “trees,” for instance. See Chapter 17 for help with that.

If, however, NaturallySpeaking gives you different text each time you say the same thing (“wheeze,” “sneeze,” and “breeze” for “trees”), you may have an audio input problem. One dead-simple way to test for serious audio input problems is to listen to your PC play back your voice (not available in the Home edition). You can use a Nuance-approved sound recorder, if you have one, or you can use the Windows Sound Recorder:

• For Windows 7, access the Sound Recorder by choosing Start⇒Control Panel⇒Sound⇒Recorder tab. Click the red-dot button in Sound Recorder and speak into the microphone to record. Click the red-dot button to stop and save the recording to a location of your choice.
• For Windows 8, access the Sound Recorder by going to Search on the Charms bar and typing Sound Recorder. The recorder appears on the left side. Click it to show the recorder. To record, click the red-dot button in Sound Recorder and speak into the microphone to record. Click the red button to stop and save the recording to a location of your choice.

The most common cause of recognition errors is muttering through your coffee cup, or otherwise not speaking clearly. See Chapter 16 for tips on speaking clearly. Does your diction qualify you for the British Broadcasting Company? Then read on.

Running the microphone check

If NaturallySpeaking has been working okay to date and only now has begun making errors, your microphone may have moved a bit, or you may be speaking more or less loudly than before. If you were using the internal microphone and changed locations, the echo and background noise may have changed drastically, too. In that case, you only need to adjust the way Dragon interprets your microphone. A microphone check can be very helpful at this point. Access it by choosing Audio⇒Check Microphone. Doing so adjusts the volume and checks the quality of the audio. Whether you pass, the audio is acceptable, or the quality check fails, you can click the Play button to listen to a playback of the audio that Dragon heard.

Some PCs have more than one sound system installed. For instance, you may have installed a better sound card than the one your PC came with, but the original is still present. If you’re using a USB microphone, you almost certainly have two sound systems. If you have more than one sound system, choose Profile⇒Manage Dictation Sources and make sure the correct source is selected. You must choose the system your microphone is connected to: USB Audio Device if you’re using a USB microphone, for instance.

Checking your microphone

Many a slip happens between the PC and the lip. Following are some of the problems you may be having on the microphone end of things, and what to do about them:

• Your microphone needs adjustment. Make sure the microphone is positioned to the side of your mouth, about a half-inch away from one corner of your mouth. You may have to bend the plastic tube that holds the microphone into an S-shape to get this right.
• You have chosen the wrong sound system in Manage Dictation Sources. You can make the correction by choosing Profile⇒Manage Dictation Sources.
• You’re trying to use the cheap microphone that came with your PC. Give it up! Use the one that came with NaturallySpeaking, or buy a serious microphone from the list of Nuance-certified devices on its website in the Support area. You are likely better off using the built-in microphone on your PC, as long as your computer is not very old.
• The microphone connection is loose. Look at where the plug fits the jack in your PC; make sure it isn’t wiggly. If you have NaturallySpeaking Premium or higher, try playing back some of your dictation. (Select text and say, “Play That.”) If it has loud, scratchy noises, you may need to replace the microphone or get someone to test and fix its cable. Some background noise also comes from the PC (not exactly a high-end sound system) and is unavoidable.
• The microphone cable is plugged into the wrong jack in the PC. If the microphone is plugged into a really wrong jack, like the speaker output, it won’t work at all. If you have no alternative but to plug it into the IN or LINE-IN jack on your PC (you have no microphone jack), it may work, but the volume may be low.
• A battery is failing in the microphone or adapter. The microphones that come with NaturallySpeaking don’t have batteries, but some microphones do. I’m willing to bet that battery-powered adapters do, too.

Should you get a better microphone than the one that came with NaturallySpeaking or just use your built-in microphone? Many voice-recognition professionals swear by getting a better microphone, which can run up to several hundred dollars. A better microphone will generally improve your results, but only up to the limits of your PC’s sound card. Both microphone and sound card are links in the chain that brings your voice to your PC, and whichever is the weakest link will limit your sound quality. Those professionals who recommend better microphones also tend to have very good sound cards. Your results will probably not improve in proportion to the money you spend. Check the list of Dragon-certified microphones on Dragon’s website for options. But before you go laying out big bucks for a new microphone and sound card, read the next section on USB microphones.

Getting a USB microphone

One great way to get better quality audio and bypass all this microphone/sound-card stuff entirely is to get a Universal Serial Bus (USB) microphone. It’s probably the best way to deal with a laptop that doesn’t have good audio.

A USB microphone plugs into a USB connector on your PC and delivers digital sound right to the PC. You no longer use the audio input features of your PC’s sound card. Because the USB mic removes all the variables that the regular microphone and sound-card system present, it’s one of the better solutions to audio input problems. Some users have even reported that their words are transcribed faster when they use the USB mic. (Your mileage may differ.)

If you want the very best, a USB solution may not be the answer. Some users report that the NaturallySpeaking USB microphone isn’t as good as the combination of a very good separate microphone and a very good sound card.

Playing your best card

Your microphone plugs into a chunk of your PC loosely called the “sound card” or the “audio card.” The sound card is responsible for converting what comes out of your microphone into computer bits. Are some sound cards sounder than other sound cards? The answer is a resounding “Yes!”

How do you know whether your sound card is your problem? It’s hard to be certain. Because replacing a sound card is a pain, most people try to improve other aspects of their audio first, like speaking more clearly or adjusting the microphone position. If those efforts don’t work, they get a new sound card (or buy a USB microphone).

Try all the preceding suggestions first, before buying anything new.

Finding out whether you have a Dragon-certified sound card is a good idea. If you have one, and audio input is poor anyway, you’ll know to look elsewhere for the cause.

The manufacturers of some of the sound cards that get good marks from Nuance include top-end cards from Plantronics, Jabra, and Sennheiser. Check out the list and see what suits you. The best way to see what you have is to check your PC’s or laptop’s sound card.

If you are using Windows 7, do the following:

1. On the Windows taskbar, choose Start⇒Control Panel.
2. In the Control Panel, double-click the Hardware and Sound icon.

   A screen with several icons pops up.

3. Click the Sound icon.

   You’ll see the following tabs at the top: Playback, Recording, and Sounds and Communications. See which Default Devices are listed for Recording and Playback. If the ones you want are not the defaults, click them to make them the defaults.

If you are using Windows 8, do the following:

1. On the Start Screen, use the keyboard shortcut Win+X to open the Start menu.
2. From the list, choose Control Panel.

   A screen with several icons pops up.

3. Click the Sound icon.

   A screen pops up showing the volume mixer for your Speakers and System Sounds.

4. Double-click the icon for System Sounds.

   You’ll see the following tabs at the top: Playback, Recording, and Sounds and Communications. See which Default Devices are listed for Recording and Playback. If the ones you want are not the defaults, click them to make them the defaults.

If you are using Windows 8.1, do the following:

1. On the Start Screen, use the keyboard shortcut Win+X to open the Start menu.
2. From the list, choose Control Panel.

   The Control Panel opens.

3. Click the Hardware and Sound icon.

   The Hardware and Sound window opens.

4. Click the Sound icon.

   The Sound window opens. You’ll see the following tabs at the top: Playback, Recording, Sounds, and Communications. See which default devices are listed for Playback and recording (they’ll have a green checkmark). If the devices you want are not the default, click on them to make them the defaults.

What about the rest of you who don’t have a Dragon-blessed sound card, or have no idea whether you do and aren’t about to spend the money to get one anyway? The best solution is to try to improve your speaking, run the microphone check regularly, do lots of training and vocabulary building, and make sure you work in a quiet environment.

Ensuring a Quiet Environment

In general, Dragon NaturallySpeaking, like the rest of us, works best in a quiet environment. Noise from an open window, kids, dogs, appliances, fans, air conditioners, ringing phones, shredders, coffee machines, or a loudly growling stomach can make NaturallySpeaking inaccurate. So this is a perfect excuse to shoo away the dog and kids, shut off the phone, and drink the last of the coffee (and spit out the gum). If you’re at work, it’s an excuse to close the door to your office. (Lucky you, if you have one.)

Nuance recommends that the best way to do all your training is in the environment in which you plan to use NaturallySpeaking. If it’s a loud, busy place, do it there. If you change environments, rerun your audio tests.

Dragon NaturallySpeaking also works best where the environment deadens sound, such as areas with carpets, heavy drapes, or blinds. Hard surfaces such as hard floors, glass windows, granite counters, and metal furniture cause echoes that you don’t notice but that Dragon NaturallySpeaking may.

If your environment has become noisier than it was when you trained NaturallySpeaking, you may do well to revisit some training. See the discussion in Chapter 17.

Besides acoustical noise — noise that you can hear — you may be surrounded by the hum of electrical noise. Electrical noise is the result of electricity and magnetic fields zinging around near your microphone or sound card. PCs, laptops, and monitors generate a lot of these fields, so try backing a bit farther away from your PC and monitor when you dictate.