Why do most podcasts sound like they were recorded during a war?
If there is one question that crosses our mind when listening to badly recorded podcasts, it is this. Why do eight out of ten podcasts sound so awful? It could be because of poor quality equipment or not knowing how to make optimal use of sound recording instruments. From being a hobby like glass painting to becoming a powerful marketing medium podcasting has come a long way!
But sadly enough the sound quality of most podcasts leave a lot to be desired. Why does the voice that sounded crystal clear, sound terrible while listening to the recording? Even if you are not Joe Cipriano, voice modulation is just one tiny issue when compared to the bigger sound recording issues at hand.
Managing the waves and crests…
Most of our voices sound uneven and though it is barely noticeable while speaking in-person it can sound pretty shoddy in a podcast recording. Most microphones are tuned to eliminate background noise so if your voice drops during the recording, it sounds very obviously uneven. Usage of normalization, available even in the most bare boned of editing softwares.
Normalizing your audio will increase the audio volume of your podcast without a proportionate increase in noise. Compressing audios will result in more even sound and quality.
Place your microphone right…
Most podcasters make the mistake of placing the mike smack in front of their mouths and think that is the best possible position to pick up sound. The more the proximity of the mike is to the mouth, the more the chances of the podcast picking up irritating breath pops.
Place it away from the mouth, keep your hand in front of the mike and check if you can feel your breath, if you can, move the mike away!
Are the levels right?
Checking audio levels is not just checking if the lights are blinking. To know what the optimal level is, speak in varying volumes, to know what audio level settings work for you. A test run will before each podcast will ensure you are always on the safer side.
Use a wind deflector…
Using a good quality wind deflector can vastly improve the audio quality of recordings. Use a wind filter to avoid breathing noise. Try not to use a headset or computer mike. Most of them don’t have enough quality to record clean sounding podcasts. Use a professional mike to sound like a pro!
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