How to record very faint sound from the analogue input?

[Hakan Koseoglu]

Dotan,
On Fri, Mar 5, 2010 at 6:59 PM, Dotan Cohen <dotancohen at gmail.com> wrote:
> I need to record a phone conversation, but the sound from the analogue
> input is so weak that recording and playing back in Audacity I hear
> almost nothing. How can I either boost the playback or (even better)
> boost the input so that the file is recorded in a hearable way?

Your best chance is to boost the signal before it arrives to the
microphone input. You should be able to get one from your local Radio
Shack-clone or if you want to do it yourself
(http://www.epanorama.net/circuits/micamp.html)...  Also make sure
that the impedances are not way off. That would increase the loss even
further.

Software solutions will invariably end up with a LOT of noise since
you will be amplifying all of the internal noise from your PC/laptop.
I always found that making sure that the incoming voltage level is
good before recording at my home studio. Since your signal to noise
ration is so horrible, whatever modification you do after it gets
converted to digital (i.e., pulse audio mixer settings or Audacity
levelling), you will just amplify the noise along with the signal. Do
it before it arrives to the PC.

-- 
Hakan (m1fcj) - http://www.hititgunesi.org