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I am trying to record some audio for a game and I get a lot of noise in my mic. It's not background, it's a crappy mic. I was wondering if anyone has suggestions for a cheap way to get good quality recordings....

not quite sure I follow you...

Perhaps buy a new mic? theyre so cheap perhaps even get a headset... or get a simple £9.99 one from somewhere like maplin

or one of these

Just look around...

but if your looking for specifics... I dunno... just make sure you get a good filter and also what's the usage for?

Yea. I decided to get a new mic, and it works much better than the old one I had. I didn't hear from anyone on the subject, so I got one a few days ago. I didn't want to spend money I didn't have to, but it worked out. Thanks.

YaY

Good quality recordings and cheap don't usually go together. But there are lots of ways to get by with decent sound if you are serious and want to put in the time and effort.

If your recording software has a spectral analyzer, you can see and hear (with some practice) where there may be some unfavorable "color" in your recording. You can use a de-noiser of some sort or crackle eliminator, or you can edit the samples by hand.

Avoid laptops for recording (if possible). They have generally poor electronics (to keep them small and light) and you're likely to pick up all kinds of low level noise from the electronics themselves.

Use shielded cables whenever possible.

Avoid long chains of processing units. The more connections, the longer the cords, the greater the distance from the source to the destination - you're inviting resistance, radio interference, shorts in cords or bad transmissions somewhere along the line.

Make sure all your equipment is grounded - including your computer and monitor.

Keep your main tracks clean. Any effects processing, do later, on separate tracks where you have control over the clean sound and the effected sound.

Low quality effects - hardware or software - can make your recordings sound like garbage. If everything is done from your computer, spend some time to hunt down some well programmed effects. You can usually ask around and see what is generally considered quality or popular.

Master your recording when done. Don't do just a final mix down and call it a day. Master that mix down. This basically means run it through some EQ and compression.

And a real biggy - Don't make a commitment to a final production by having listened to it only in headphones. You need to run your recording through some speakers. You've got to hear how the sound moves the air. You don't need anything too elaborate: a decent set of stereo speakers and a subwoofer (controllable) should give you an idea. Get familiar with real time frequency views (FFT displays) and what frequencies the various bars represent while you are listening to your production. It can help you to understand if your speakers or headphones are playing back the sound differently than what you'd expect by looking at the frequency meters and allow you to make any adjustments that may seem necessary.

Thanks for the tips. I'll keep them in mind.

I use THIS http://www.zoom.co.jp/english/products/h4n/ to record my sounds, it has a great pair of mics nuilt in but it also has 2 input for 2 external mics you like. And it is also quite cheap. Obviously, after recording the sounds have to be edited.

To get really high quality audio recordings you do need to spend money. That means having good mics, good preamps, good converters, and a good sounding room or space to record them in. Then it takes experience to use these tools properly in order to get top notch results.
However, if you are not wanting to spend lots on equipment, or time spent learning to record like a professional, and just want to record audio of adequate quality, then I suggest you look at buying a small portable recording device with built-in microphones. Look at models from Zoom, Tascam, Sony, Marantz to name but a few.

To minimize noise when recording here's a few tips I picked up from a movie school a few weeks ago:

1. Put your microphone in a tube sock. It drastically helps you get rid of wind noises.

2. Got no access to a studio? Want to get rid of your room ambience do this way: Open up your wardrobes. Put your laptop on the clothes, and make a small mic booth by opening up the neighbouring wardrobe and stand between the two doors.