Cakewalk newbie here! Why does sound change upon exporting?

[Diana Chahine]

So, I'm pretty sure it's a setting thing, but the reason I downloaded Cakewalk in the first place was to be able to remove a background noise/hissing that's caused by my USB mic. I'm now recording using Cakewalk and there's no background noise when listening to the track back on Cakewalk, (I've used the Sonitus Gate for this specific track) however when I export it, it brings that background noise back again.

How do I export it exactly as it sounds in Cakewalk?? What should I set these settings to? https://ibb.co/680V5Nz 

[John Vere]

I use the Master mix default originally but changed the bit depth to 16 for CD burning.  If you go to FILE / Export it will open a dialog box. The default works perfectly for me ( other than bit depth)  as far as duplicating what I was hearing in Cakewalk.  Notice it says "entire mix" and all mix enables are checked. 

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[Diana Chahine]

13 minutes ago, John Vere said:

I use the Master mix default originally but changed the bit depth to 16 for CD burning.  If you go to FILE / Export it will open a dialog box. The default works perfectly for me ( other than bit depth)  as far as duplicating what I was hearing in Cakewalk.  Notice it says "entire mix" and all mix enables are checked...

Just tried that and that didn't work... Is there somewhere I need to enable presets or the Gate or something?

[John Vere]

Is the gate in the effect bin of the track or the master bus?  Normally you would use a EQ with a narrow Q to get rid of hiss. That or melodynes d esser

Edited December 1, 2020 by John Vere

[Diana Chahine]

12 minutes ago, John Vere said:

Is the gate in the effect bin of the track or the master bus?  Normally you would use a EQ with a narrow Q to get rid of hiss. That or melodynes d esser

Sorry, I don't know all the proper terminology yet... but this is what the track looks like: https://ibb.co/DgHppcJ 

[Diana Chahine]

12 minutes ago, John Vere said:

Is the gate in the effect bin of the track or the master bus?  Normally you would use a EQ with a narrow Q to get rid of hiss. That or melodynes d esser

Sorry, I don't know all the proper terminology yet... but this is what the track looks like: https://ibb.co/DgHppcJ 

[John Vere]

Ok that look like the effects bin of the track. But I see you track is going to your on board sound card speakers. 
this might cause the issue if you’re export is not using the same output 

this is one reason why I would recommend a dedicated audio interface and a proper mike and cable. It would be dead quiet and the system is designed for professional results. USB mikes are meant for podcasts and as you are finding out pour quality audio.  
 

try this.  Change to WASAPI audio mode.  Send the track to the master bus and make sure the master bus is the source in the export dialogue 

[Diana Chahine]

7 hours ago, John Vere said:

this is one reason why I would recommend a dedicated audio interface and a proper mike and cable. It would be dead quiet and the system is designed for professional results. USB mikes are meant for podcasts and as you are finding out pour quality audio.  

I am definitely looking into getting an XLR mic with an audio interface! Do you have any recommendations? I'm not wanting to break the bank, but I do want good quality equipment...

Also, I heard that getting an external sound card might help with the background noise issues? Do you think it would?

[Gswitz]

usually when someone says the sound changes on exporting they are either exporting more than they intend to or they are bouncing internally through the master bus then the bounced track is routed through the master bus again, doubling the fx on the master bus.

If you select your song and do bounce to tracks, make sure the new track is routed directly to your interface and not to your master bus. Then select that new track and choose export.

[scook]

Another possibility is the playback software is "enhancing" the signal.

To see if the exported audio sounds like the original Cakewalk project, import the audio into a new project and play it.

If it sounds like the original project, the problem is the playback software setup.

If it sounds different than the original project, it may be a routing or export issue.

[57Gregy]

1 hour ago, Diana Chahine said:

I am definitely looking into getting an XLR mic with an audio interface! Do you have any recommendations? I'm not wanting to break the bank, but I do want good quality equipment...

Also, I heard that getting an external sound card might help with the background noise issues? Do you think it would?

Pretty much the same thing using different words. Focusrite is a good company and not too expensive. RME, MOTU, Presonus are some other well-regarded brands.
Welcome to the forum.

[John Vere]

https://www.scribd.com/document/425712754/Johns-Audio-Interface-Blurb

I made a list of things to think about when shopping for an interface. Funny I couldn't find the document on my computer but I've posted it so many times it shows up in a Google search now, cool.  

As far as mikles go, everybody's voice will record differently to different mikes. I use a Shure Beta 58 because of over 20 mikes I own( owned) it works the best for me. So buying a mike is a crap shoot. When people recommend a mike they are most likely recommending the mike that works well for them and there's a high probability it won't work the best for you. That's why recording studios have mike lockers with dozens of different mikes. If you show up to sing they will try a buch. We don't have much choice in a home studio so we take a chance and order what we hope will be the right mike. Over time you end up with a lot of mikes!! 

And cost means nothing these days. You are smart to shop the entry level stuff as it is mostly very good quality these days. Sites like Sweetwater have reviews and they tend to only list products that are popular for good reasons.