10 Tips for Better Sounding Vocal Recordings for Beginners (FAQ Series)

In today’s video I provide 10 tips to help you improve your spoken word recordings, whether it be for a Podcast, YouTube, Skype Call, Remote Teaching, or Telework. These tips may seem basic, but if you’re a beginner they can help you improve your sound quality significantly.

00:00 - Intro
00:23 - Preface
00:53 - Tip 1: Shut Off Noisy Devices
01:35 - Tip 2: Use The Polar Pattern to Your Advantage
02:30 - Tip 3: Get The Mic Closer To Your Mouth
03:25 - Tip 4: Get The Mic Off Your Desk
04:13 - Tip 5: Avoid Plosives for Free
05:17 - Tip 6: Record In Your Closet
05:50 - Tip 7: Set Your Gain Correctly
06:37 - Tip 8: Don’t Move Around!
07:13 - Tip 9: Speak Into the Correct Side of the Microphone
08:08 - Tip 10: Verify You’re Recording the Correct Mic
09:08 - Tip 11: Practice, Practice, Practice
10:06 - Outro

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Check Out This Stuff TOO:

[TheWorldsstTBar]

Why oh why can't all tutorials be as clear and concise as this. So much was made clear. Most tutorials seem to forget what it was like to be a beginner. Thank you so much Podcastage.

[siangmingalexlau]

The audio in this video says it all: well balanced, smooth, and simply a pleasure to listen to!

[_JohnnySav]

How to I turn off the trains passing my windows lmao

[jsasa]

I edit podcasts for several clients and I can't tell you how many times I have gone over this with them. Excellent video.

[kroketkitu]

to be honest, he is the most legit guy when it comes to explain such things on youtube. I learnt so much from him

[Saroph]

i feel so stupid but the polar tip actually made me realize why my voice varied so much. Thanks a ton!

[Themaremonstrum]

Excellent video, excellent communication skills! Excellent video quality! For those who haven't done it, you need to use headphones to get the most of this video. You could hear all the differences in sound. Thanks so much!

[BrendaEM]

I had a cheap tip. An new, small cotton black anklet sock can be used as a microphone dust cover/cozy. It likely will cut plosives a bit, as well help a mic stay clean and fresh during the trilled-lip vocal exercises. Who knows--placing a sock over a mic might even keep a mic from rolling off the edge of table.

BTW, you have a great microphone channel. Thanks for all the videos!

[myke.p]

AMAZING TIPS! You never disappoint me, man. Thanks a lot. I've always blamed my room for reverb but now I have some ideas what to do to get rid of that nasty reverb.

[dt]

A buddy of mine and I are starting a channel soon and it's all going to be spoken word. This is the first time I've ever done any kind of recording for my voice so these tips are super helpful. Thanks so much.

[kevinstuart]

It's nice that you do so many thoughtful little things for your viewers, like the segmented video bar, links to pertinent information, etc. Then on top of all of that, you actually know what you're talking about too! Bravo good sir, bravo.

[YHRS]

This should be required viewing for anybody getting into using a microphone. Great job! I'll be linking to this video any chance I get for the foreseeable future 😊

[JusttheWatch]

This was awesome. Thanks! Now I'm heading straight over to the video about how to set my gain, because I'm doing it wrong. A lot.

[chellewill]

Oh my goodness!!! I'm one of the people! I'm talking into the wrong side of the microphone. lol Thank you so much!!! That's exactly what I needed to know. Sounds so much better.

[HanselOchoaMontero]

Hey Bandrew, I’ve been using Voicemeeter Banana for a couple of months during my online meetings to give my audio some compression and EQ. However, I always trouble to know what are the most appropriate settings for the EQ. So, it would be nice a video where you explain how a nice set eq for the voice should sound.

[lorrayasky]

One of the best walk-throughs on Youtube with Microphone. Great Job!

[kege]

Hi Bandrew, just wanted to say that I absolutely love your content and am happy for you with all the success that you have had from all the grinding and hard work! I've been a long time lurker but you have now won my sub (and maybe a channel member in the near future?)!

I found some minor typos on your website and thought I'd bring it to your attention here, since I can't find a way to DM you. On your "My Favorite XLR Microphones" page, some of your Sweetwater links read as "Sweetater" instead - might wanna fix that.

All the best and looking forward to 200k subs, and eventually, your first million!

[Heyitdave]

I love how your giving the example real time while explaining it and also using various mics for a visual on which one sounds like which

[Guitarmickey]

Some might say this is all very basic but, I had to learn all these things from experience over the last 50+ years. Thumbs up!

[TheCanadianPepper]

With how things are today with Covid-19, I decided to invest in a basic interface and mic (nothing fancy, just a scarlet and a sm78) to get into some streaming. I've gone through most of your videos regarding gear reviews and wanted to express my thanks for doing great work!