Continuous beep when using a microphone

Hi there, first off, Im running Windows xp OS. I recently got Rosetta stone software and I've installed it and everything. It has voice recognition capabilities and when I get to the point where I set up the mic, each time I try it says that it was unsuccessful. I am using the usb headset that came with the software. So, I pull up 'ol Windows sound recorder to see if the mic is picking anything up, and it is, except that when playing the recording back, along with whatever I said into the mic, there is a loud continuous beep. It is only present while playing back what has been recorded from the microphone. I am assuming that this is why I can't get the mic setup in Rosetta stone to complete successfully, because not only is it picking up my voice, but also the loud high pitched continuous beep.

I have speakers connected to a Sound Blaster Audigy card, but the beep is still present if I disconnect the speakers. I've also tried the usb headset in multiple different ports and the beep is still present whenever i record something and play it back.

Any ideas? Much appreciated

 

I wonder if the microphone volume is set too high. Have a look at:

Control Panel>Sounds and Audio Devices>Voice tab

and click on Test Hardware.

In there, the microphone volume will be set automatically (I'm pretty sure that's how it works), and it might be a good place to visit anyway, just to make sure everything is OK.