Mac OS is a relatively closed system, which means you do not have access to do much about programming, not even the simplest self-troubleshooting in some cases. It's not very complex and difficult to fix USB microphones that don't work on your Mac. There's still something that we can do, and that's why we're meeting here. So, let's dive into this guide and check how to solve this problem.
Physical Connection Guide
A few tips on the physical connection are provided below for your reference.
If you still cannot use the mic, shut down the computer and unplug it from the power outlet. Wait about a minute, then plug it back into the power outlet and start up your computer.
If you have multiple devices connected to your Mac, disconnect all USB devices except the one you’re testing.
If the mic is connected to a USB hub that does not have a power cable, please plug the mic directly into your computer’s USB port.
If your computer has more than one USB port, switch the mic to another port.
Check the Mic Permissions
After all this hard work, chances are that the mic is still not seen by your Mac. Then you can go ahead and do something about the system settings.
Check the microphone permissions: Head to System Preferences > Security and Privacy > Privacy, and select “Microphone” from the sidebar. You should see a list of apps that have requested access to your microphone and make sure you tick a check mark next to all the apps that you need to use with your mic.
Hopefully, the USB microphone is recognized by the computer now. But if the situation did not improve, and you still do not hear any sound coming out of your Mac, then more troubleshooting should be done.
More System Setting Guide
First off, under the sound settings of the Mac OS system, make sure the microphone is the default input while the built-in speaker of the Mac is the default output. Next, turn up the input volume and talk to the mic, see if there is any response in the input level.
If not, you have to enable the dictation feature of your Mac. But it is a wild card, which does not necessarily work in your case, but is definitely worth a shot.
Head to System Preferences > Keyboard, and then click the “Dictation” tab. Click the “On” radio button and wait for any downloads to complete. Make sure the microphone you want to use is selected in the drop-down menu. Luckily, this time you should see the levels moving.
At last, click open the app QuickTime player on your Mac to hear the microphone sound coming out of the laptop’s internal speaker. You also have to choose the USB mic as the default device in the drop-down menu of the apps and drag the progress bar to the right side. And this is all, you should be able to hear the audio by now.
Even though macOS is a more closed system, most USB microphone issues can still be resolved with a few simple checks. Follow these steps in this guide, and your mic should be detected and working normally, letting you get back to recording or chatting without frustration. If you have more ideas, or these methods can't work for you? Just let us know!