Buzzing or Humming Microphone, Earphone With Mic, Headset/Headphone Fix (Solved)

generic headset


I got a nice looking generic headphone with a microphone to use for Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams meetings. I was quite disappointed to find out the microphone had a buzz or loud humming sound in the background when I listen to the microphone.

Listen to your microphone


I ordered another headset as a result of this but encountered the same buzzing humming problem. Now the challenge is that I had two other microphones (an older damaged headset and a webcam with mic) that did not exhibit this humming buzzing behaviour.

To address this, I went about it in three ways, the hard way and the easy way. Let's start with the easy solution first.

1. MICROPHONE VOLUME AND BOOST

A hum or buzz should not exist in the microphone to begin with but if it does, you can tone it down using the microphone settings on your device. First check if microphone volume is not excessive or set too high. On a PC, the levels tab on the microphone setting may be used.

Microphone Levels

A reduction in microphone volume should help reduce the buzz or hum as a quick fix.


2. GROUND YOUR GADGET

So it turned out after some research that the gadget e.g. pc to which the microphone was connected needed to be grounded properly. This can be confirmed with a laptop by disconnecting the power adapter/cable from the mains or the laptop. If the humming or buzzing stops, you have found the culprit: a bad ground on your power outlet, power adapter or home circuit. 

plug pins


In my case, the extension board I was using had a bad or no ground which resulted in the buzzing or humming. By connecting the device directly to the mains using the 3 pronged pin (with a ground) the humming was gone. You can achieve the same if you replace the extension board with one that has a working ground connection


3. REPLACE MICROPHONE IN DEVICE

Yeah this is the crazy path I took first. I took the microphone in an old headphone/headset that did not have to buzz, disassembled the housing and unsoldered the wires connecting the microphone (often called electret microphone).

electret microphone

 

I did the same disassembly to the new headset and then replaced the old microphone in the headset with the one taken from the headset that did not buzz or hum. This would require a soldering iron and a bit of a technical inclination. 

CONCLUSION

I identified three ways to resolve the issue of a buzzing or humming earphone, headset or microphone from the easiest temporary solution to the hardest. You may adjust the microphone volume, ground your gadget or replace the microphone in the gadget. I would recommend the first and second solutions as with the third solution, you risk permanently damaging the headphone or voiding the warranty. Let me know how it worked out in the comments.


USEFUL SOURCES

https://www.instructables.com/Quick-Fix-Get-Rid-of-BuzzingHumming-Noise-When-U/

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