1.2

11 MacSpeech DictateChapter 3 — Getting Started
If the volume meter remains empty, or the text doesn’t
disappear after you read it four times, you probably have a
sound input problem. See the Troubleshooting Sound Input
section at the end of this chapter for more information.
Clicking the Manual Gain Setting check box will allow you
to bypass automatic volume adjustment and set the gain
manually.
Figure 3-8
The Recording Quality panel (Figure 3-9) plays back some
of what was recorded so you can check the sound quality.
Figure 3-9
Chances are, you will think your voice sounds funny. That’s
normal; when we speak, we hear our voices with additional
resonances from the bones in our head. Recordings lack
these extra resonances, so they sound different than we
expect. (If you don’t hear anything during the playback, check
to make sure your volume is not muted.)
Listen for static, excess noise, a hum, or any other odd sound.
If you hear any these of things, check your microphone’s
connections. If they seem OK, the microphone may be
faulty. To hear the voice sample again, click the Play button.
MacSpeech Dictate is very good at determining the quality of
the sound input, but if you hear anything unusual, consider
re-sampling your voice. If you decide to record your sample
again, click the left arrow to go to the previous panel.
When you are satisfied with your voice sample, press the
Voice Training button to proceed to Voice Training. We will
cover training in the next chapter.
TIP:
Microphone Setup can be used at any time. Run
this procedure by selecting Set Up My Microphone
from the Speech menu in MacSpeech Dictate to
compensate for any changes in room noise or the
way the microphone is positioned.