can you hear me?

As regular readers will know, I bombard you with requests to watch my latest YouTube offering.

Yes, I also have a YouTube channel!

Now, this channel is absolutely tiny, with around 1700 subscribers.  And to be honest, I much prefer it that way.  I didn't set out for online "influencer" stardom status, but instead did it just to keep me busy.  The fact that I've made genuine friends without actually meeting them in person is a wonderful bonus.

Despite its size, I do try to ensure that the content I put out is technically of a high quality, even if the same can't be said for the entertainment factor.  So, when I noticed a buzzing sound on my audio tracks I got really quite frustrated.

I had to replace the cable that connects my microphone to my camera as it just stopped working after years of flawless service.  And it was after introducing a new but identical cable into the set-up that the buzz began.

First thing I thought was the cable.  Obviously.  And I was right.  I bought a new, "balanced" cable which immediately fixed the issue.  But it introduced a new one - I was now only getting audio out of one (the left) channel.

Even more frustrated I did what only men do in such situations.  I spent an enormous amount of money!

Here's a list of my purchases:

- Marantz condenser microphone and XLR cable

- Focusrite Scarlett USB audio interface

- PreSonus studio monitor speakers

- some rather pricey cables to connect the above to the interface.

And the result is spectacular.  My audio now sounds exactly the same as it did before the cheap cable broke in the first place!

No, actually, it does sound a whole load better.  The only issue I now have is that because I record the audio and video separately, I now have to synchronise them at the editing stage. This is quite simple, as I just make a number of clapping sounds and then line everything up.  Then, as long as the video and audio tracks are recorded at exactly the same speed, all is good.

And I'm now a happy man.  My audio is perfect and I got to spend a whole load of money on new toys!