Getting your USB Microphone to work in Audacity for Mac OS-X.
The purpose of this list is to get your USB microphone working at all.
You can change the settings or get fancy later.
-----Set Up the Microphone-----
Close all applications.
Plug your USB Microphone into USB port number 2. The USB keyboard, if you have one, always goes into 1.
If your microphone has an on/off switch, make sure it's switched on.
Wait about ten seconds for the machines to sniff each other out.
Open Apple > System Preferences > Hardware > Sound > Input. Your microphone should be in the Device List. It may not say "Logitech" or "Samson." Mine says "AK5370" which is the chip set number. Select it.
Make sure the input level slider is advanced--probably most of the way up--and the Input Level Sound Meter flashes when you talk into the mic.
Quit System Preferences.
-----Set Up Audacity-----
Launch Audacity.
Open Audacity > Preferences > Audio I/O > Recording and select the same device that you selected in the Apple Preferences panel, or select Default Input. You may also discover the selector grayed out.
Audacity > Preferences > Audio I/O > Recording > Channels > 1 (Mono).
Audacity > Preferences > Audio > Quality > 44100 and 16-bit. OK the panel. Quit Audacity completely and relaunch it. Open Audacity preferences again to make sure that the settings are still there. OK the Preference Panel.
-----First Recording-----
Click once inside the upper right-hand (Red, Incoming) "L" sound meter. Speak into the microphone. Your voice should register on the meter.
Press the big red Audacity Record button and you should start to get a live, mono recording of your USB microphone.
If you have troubles, you can ask a question on the Audacity User Forum. Posting requires registration.