Do you have audio that sounds like this?
Let us show you how to change it to sound more like this.
So you're working on a video and you need to record a voiceover.
However, you might not exactly be working with a top notch microphone.
Can you still record with whatever mic you have and make it sound good?
In this video, I'm going to show you a few tips and tricks that will allow you
to record on almost anything and make it sound professional quality
without having to spend that professional level money
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The first and arguably most important step in ensuring
a quality voice recording is to be mindful of the noise around you.
Can you turn off an air conditioner or a furnace?
Are there fans blowing?
Someone talking in the room next to you?
Dog barking nearby Find a quiet interior room.
For example, I use my clothes closet to get the best results.
Second, be aware of the distance between the microphone and your mouth.
A good measure to go by for this would be between six and eight inches.
If your microphone is further away from your face than eight inches
then your recording will turn out faint and low volume, not to mention there's
increased chance of room noise, and that's going to distract your audience.
In contrast, if you position your microphone too
close to your face, you increase the likelihood of your audio clipping
or in other words, becoming so loud
that your voice becomes distorted when you play the audio recording back.
Let's take a look at some examples from a couple of different mics.
Here's what it sounds like with my SE-2200 over two feet away from my face.
Here's what it sounds like with the SE-2200 at about three inches.
Now here is the SE-2200 at about eight inches away from my face.
Here's what it sounds like when I record on a blue yeti about two feet away
Here's what it sounds
like when I record on a blue Yeti about three inches away
And here's what it sounds like
when I keep the blue Yeti about eight inches from my face.
Earbuds are going to break the rule a little bit
because they're designed to hang right off your face.
And so that's where you're going to get the best sound
Here's my earbuds.
Two feet away from my face.
Here's my earbuds, eight inches from my face.
But here they are when they're about three inches right up against my face.
As you can see
The brand of microphone
doesn't make as much
of a difference in sound quality if it's too close or too far away.
You can make just about any microphone sound bad,
but you can also make any microphone sound just as good, too.
As long as you follow the proper techniques, these same rules also apply
to basic built in microphones that come standard on most computers these days.
Take a listen to the iMac. Here's what it sounds like when I record on
my built in iMac microphone two feet away from my face.
Here's what it sounds like
when I record three inches away from my iMac computer mic.
And here's what it sounds like,
about eight inches away. Way better already.
Keeping your mic too close to your face also increases the chances of popping
sounds from plosives coming through your recording.
If you aren't familiar with plosives
there the sounds created by hard consonants and speech such as P'S B'S K'S
and so forth, these sounds produce a little blast of air that will register
on your microphone as a loud pop, which never sounds good on playback.
If you have an external mic use a pop filter.
Pop filters attach directly to any microphone
stand and are literally designed to help prevent the occurrence of popping due
to plosives in your voice over.
Another great thing about pop filters.
They're cheap.
You can easily find them for sale online for less than $20
when attaching your pop filter.
It's important that you also set it to the correct distance.
Not only will this help prevent against Plosive sounds,
but it will help to keep you from getting too close to the mic.
One last pro tip for those of us with an external microphone
and a willingness to spend just a little more money,
get a boom stand or scissor arm for your microphone.
This allows you to mount your mike
in an elevated position, keeping it off your desk so it takes up less space
and won't accidentally pick up any unwanted noises
like knocking or sliding on your desk.
And if you're going to be on camera, the boom stand makes it easy
to keep the microphone out of your shot
while also at the right distance from maximum audio quality.
Or keep it in your shot for that cool podcast look.
As you can hear, even with nothing more than a basic built in microphone,
as long as you stay around eight inches,
you can vastly improve the sound quality of your recordings.
And there you have it with just a few simple guidelines.
You can take almost any microphone at your disposal and make it sound professional grade.
Tell us in the comments which microphone you're using and why.
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