Top 3 Audio Recording Mistakes

The three most common mistakes I hear in audio recordings - and how to address them before they occur.
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[@TooSimple]

1. *Perspective* of what you're trying to record is needed for natural sound. Understand what the human ear would hear from that distance and give some space. 2. *Gain* is how loud and quiet a sound is. Recording too loud can create clipping and distortion, but recording too quiet can also bring alot of noise. Have levels checked by trying to peak with the loudest sounds. 3. *Wind Protection* can help maintain little buffeting and prevent buildup of plosives. If your microphone is sensitive and you find yourself moving alot, you will need to have some wind protection. Alot of recorders have a high pass filter so if you don't have great wind protection, but have the filter, you can prevent alot of wind problems.

[@GarthDeBrunoAustin]

Amazing! Potato jet brought me here, but your incredible knowledge and great videos will keep me coming back for more!

[@TheINFJChannel]

Alex, I just found you on IMDB! You worked on a lot of great films and even got nominated for 3 awards. I am officially impressed 🤜🤛👍♥️

[@dag221]

Wasn't really expecting to see jets flying in Star Wars/Rainbow Canyon when I started this video but I liked it. Awesome channel.

[@MaxHuisman]

1 dislike from a guy who made all three mistakes

[@HackMyControlSystem]

When recording, I despise planes, folks mowing grass and even roosters losing their minds. Great video.

[@miguelvega2814]

awesome stuff, thank you so much!

[@jeffoffej]

Love your channel! Thanks so much for taking the time to share your experience here. I'm learning a ton.

[@followtheboat]

Another excellent video, thank you 👍

[@gregoryflatt]

I look forward to your posts. Audio is fascinating and often overlooked. You do a great job detailing your process and how audio works.

[@RWBTESH]

Thank you so much!

[@ralphbullis40]

Great discussion

[@orelanic4178]

Very good video, gave me a lot of pointers

[@chrisklugh]

I really enjoy your audio info. Its clear and simple and easy to understand. Not too technical, more practical. Thanks and keep up the good work!

[@andyphipps01]

As always, fantastic content man. This has to be one of the most informative, well presented and high production value channels for anything to do with audio engineering. 🙌🙌

[@rmpeete]

REALLY useful and smart content!! Thanks.

[@orangefrogphotography9019]

Perspective was new to me. Very helpful thanks.

[@TheSmileyVirus]

fantastic tips. Brand new to this field and will be sticking around for a while, nursing is getting old!!!

[@thnqolo9667]

Hi Sir. I didn't know that sound recording needs extra care and determination before. You really made aware of many issues I ignored before. This is a great video, ever.

[@williamdanielsphotography]

This is great!

[@GoodLuckChum]

Your entire channel has been crazy helpful. We started a youtube channel where we mostly record at Disneyland and we have SO MANY SOUND issues. You have music in the park, crowd sounds, and all of it can be heard when we try to record any audio. This channel has helped our post production SO MUCH. Disneyland won't let us bring in a shotgun mic, what LAV do you recommend for this kind of environment? We're currently using an H1 Zoom and a Giant Squid LAV.

[@taylorpearson6266]

Alex man these videos are great! Please keep em coming, I suck at audio and you’re one of the few people who actually explain it in ways I can understand 😂

[@axk]

Glad you’re finding some of this info useful!! Trying to make it accessible, this stuff can be complicated. But once you have the basic ideas it gets a lot easier to understand the details!

[@heidifranke2144]

Einfach nur sensationell 🔥🤟🏼 👍🏼

[@doftpunk101]

Great content. I’m more on the music side of things but these tips are going to help with sound effects and post productions.

[@axk]

There’s a lot of translation between music and post! Definitely different worlds, but hopefully I can bridge some of those gaps!

[@lorenzomorganjr.6585]

The Zoom F8 is a stud, because of the built-in limiters, solid preamps, dual recording features, etc. I found the Zoom F8 better than most things Tascam makes (in the field recorder space) and a great comparable to some of Sound Devices’ field-recorders.

[@axk]

The Zoom F8 is definitely a big setup up from their H-series stuff! Much quieter preamps, better ergonomics, etc. It’s in line with the MixPre’s from Sound Devices - just a matter of preference in my opinion. But the 8 series from sound devices is in another league!

[@RavikantRai21490]

Superb content, Alex. Also, if you ever make a course on any course platform like Lynda (LinkedIn Learning) or Skillshare or even do your own video series independent of those platforms, I am purchasing.

[@StudioBuster]

THANK YOU !

[@axk]

Thanks for watching!!

[@nathanksimpson]

The first tip is so key to ADR, and is one of the main ways I'm able to notice bad ADR in movies. It's also how I realized why my first attempt at ADR sounded so bad.

[@PatrickJaszewski]

Great tips. I'm not an audio professional, but I sure am glad you launched this channel.

[@axk]

Glad the info is useful! Trying to get some pro ideas into your hands!

[@PatrickJaszewski]

@@axk you're doing a great job of it!

[@Ultiyplayer]

I'd be super interested to watch a review of the new Zoom F6 by you! Anyways, great information as always 🙏

[@axk]

I’d love to test it out and see if they’ve improved it over their previous releases! I really want the F series to be good, but I haven’t enjoyed them so far...

[@bryanauer]

Brilliant analogy with noise floors and over peeking With camera settings being over or under exposed. What a great word picture brother

[@stevenvannoy444]

Great content and presentation, thanks. I'm just getting started with making content for youtube in a vlog context. Some dialogue and some music that I create. Do you know how youtube handles sound and what issues might be related to sound quality for youtube videos? E.G. do they compress the sound a lot and how might that affect what you upload?

[@fantastic_n0b]

About the first issue could be better recording near the sound source and adding reverb in post? If i have a dialog it's easier to me recording "dry" voices and adding the same room for every speaking person instead of recording different voices with the same mic placement in the same room. Especially if you don't have a good acoustic in your recording studio. Please correct me if i'm missing something, you do for sure have your points

[@mariaandwolfi]

I wonder what the best audio levels are for voice and music (plus background music). Just some guideline’s would be great. I try to keep the voice att minus 6db. Background music at minus 28db to minus 35db. And regular music at about -10db if i remember correctly 😅. I totally appreciate your advice.😀

[@keith-kalfas]

Genius

[@IdontNeedHandles]

Great wind simulation :)

[@axk]

Haha, I did what I could…

[@AKINGzhu]

Hi Alex, love your videos. I have a question, I do you do trailer voices?

[@Jacob_Roberts]

Alex, the biggest issue for me, as a viewer, which I hear on KZbin is a singer accompanied by musical instruments, and the instruments overpower the singer's performance. The next most common issue for me is when the volume on a KZbin video is so soft that I have to turn my computer's volume to the maximum volume. The third issue for me is when a KZbin video goes from too soft to too loud. I have to continually change the gain on my computer.

[@tollan23]

What would be your preferred wireless lav kit for documentary and interviews? Is there anything cheaper than the Sennheiser G4 that you'd recommend? Fantastic channel BTW!

[@petervr406]

Another awesome video thank you Alex! Question: I have an excessively sibilant voice apparently, I have two microphones: Sennheiser MKE600 & Audio Technica AT4040, the latter sounds better to my ears, more details but a bit more upper mid emphasis and definitely more prone to recording sibilance. I have tried sweeping with a De-esser but haven't arrived at a satisfactory result yet, what can I do on the production side to minimize sibilance? Are there any microphones < $500 that you can recommend in this case? Thank you!!

[@spielundzeug]

What mic do you recommend for talking head videos like this one. And what are the cheaper options 😀

[@suzithewitch]

This was a great video! Thank you. My question is: for whatever reason I just don't hear what other people hear in videos about sound. (I can barely tell the difference between two mic examples.) As I do more with sound, will this improve? Or do you need to have "ear talent" in order to hear these things? Right now, I figure I will have to rely on other people to give me feedback (no pun intended) about my sound quality.

[@CINENIMUS]

talking about limiters and input levels and such - have you ever blown a a shotgun or any condenser mic by being too close to something way too loud for the mic's spl?

[@axk]

I try to plan as thoroughly as possible with mic choices and placement, so I’ve never destroyed a mic specifically due to SPL. Have definitely lit some on fire, dropped some in water, and destroyed cables though!! Even recording shotguns, high caliber firearms, and performance car engines from less than a foot or two away, the mics I’ve used have worked great. But it definitely required planning!

[@tomasbaratomas]

New to you channel but I'll stick around! What's your take on the new zoom F6 in regards to this?

[@KarenLum]

Great video! Do you have any tips on recording with a smartphone? I've heard that an iRig preamp would help with SNR.

[@chrisbowpiloto]

Thanks Alex. After watching your info my audio should be a little less terrible!

[@axk]

Haha, that's the idea! Glad the stuff I'm sharing is coming in handy, there's lots more on the way!

[@bobbydbuze]

What are your thoughts on the Zoom F6? I love the idea of a 32-bit float workflow considering I usually just have a friend who knows absolutely nothing about sound boom the mic and press record after I set the levels, and removing clipping from that equation would be a game changer, however, I'm still skeptical, cos you know, it's Zoom...

[@radiozelaza]

I'm totally doing the mistake of keeping mic too close to mouth all the time, since forever. The mouth clicks galore later reminds me how forgetful I am.

[@Hkmmotologs]

You should review the new ZOOM F6 field recorder when it comes out.. would like to know your opinion on the pre amp quality and low noise floor levels and your recommendation on optimal db rage limitation and also the 32 bit floating mode option as well since other zoom models are not that great according to your tests :)

[@axk]

I would love to check the F6 out, I really want it to be better than their previous recorders!

[@Hkmmotologs]

@@axk awesome.. hope it's as good as they advertise.. then it's a great value for that prices and features 😊

[@Clive.Castro]

Hey Alex, when do you recommend a preamp for microphones like the shure SM7B? Some audio interfaces don't always have enough gain range to power some dynamic mics. Do you use preamps like cloudlifters or fetheads on movie sets ?

[@keuntaspan]

Any advice for setting gain levels recording interview audio in a noisey area? (Ie air conditioning and stuff I can't turn off). Keep peaks normal for recorder? Using a tascam Dr 40 but in general I'd like to know!

[@ScottyLuu]

Great video! Question: If you have multiple microphones and people (say 2 people with lavalier mics and 1 person with a boom mic on them), is it bad practice to let the three different audio files layer on top of each other in post, (synchronized of course) or should you only ever be playing one voice clip at a time. It seems to sound okay both ways, but I wanna know what you think.

[@geraldrosenau]

Really appreciate your content. Just had a question. Would you suggest using the low end roll off/HPF while using a lav mic recording dialog? Or do you think the low frequencies could be useful for that situation?

[@axk]

I’d definitely be okay using a HPF on dialog, especially one around 60Hz or 75Hz. I’d be careful if it starts around 120 or 150, but that can absolutely work too!

[@RandySidberry]

Did you ever think about selling a sound preset for adobe. Maybe you could sell sound effects

[@RomanoSoprano]

Could you please share your setting for sound devices mix-pre for sound effects recording. Especially the SD mix-pre ii has now adjustable limiters or 32 bit and 192khz

[@BeckersReviews]

And I made all of them =)

[@axk]

Hahaha, well hopefully this video helps to address that and get your audio sounding better!!

[@saravanap8261]

Please recommend mic & recorder for short film dialogues. Cheap and best Please. please, please

[@cornerliston]

Every recorder should have the option to record at 32 bit. That would make clipping very easy to solve since you got a huge headroom printed in the recording. Are the preamps actually noisy in those recorders? Or is it poor microphones with high self noise?

[@axk]

Low quality mics can certainly contaminate recordings, but the preamps are definitely the issue in the Zoom H series.

[@cornerliston]

@@axk No Zoom H then : ) Maybe you could do a comparison video about preamps on recorders? Or every other recorder is so much better it really dosen't need to compare...?

[@Mionwang]

Great video! also, please do a video on those sexy looking genelecs as well. I'm just really fascinated by those and i can't even afford to see them in person at this point in my life. :P

[@axk]

Can do! Are you interested in maybe some monitor comparisons?

[@Mionwang]

@@axk Yes! Definitely.

[@TheKingofSpades444]

Alex I’m thinking of picking up a pcmd 100 but also considering pcmd 10. Do you know much about the 10?

[@albertorosas7395]

Hi Alex! I record foley with my TLM103.. Do you think is a good mic for that? Which mic do you prefer for foley?

[@giulioraimondo9359]

Hi Alex, Thanks for this great video! my new shotgun mic has two low cut filters: 75 Hz and 150Hz. I'm trying to understand what type of noise live at those frequencies. I believe static and electrical noises (air con, fridge) sits at 75 Hz - is that correct? and what about 150 Hz? thanks for your time

[@axk]

A lot of the AC and electrical noise sits around 60Hz, so 75 should take care of the fundamental frequency. Try 150 to catch the first harmonic too (120Hz) but I’d be cautious about it if you’re recording a deep voice!

[@giulioraimondo9359]

@@axk thank you legend!

[@Vertackle]

Do you have tips for using a large diaphragm condenser microphone?

[@axk]

Absolutely! What are you interested in recording? Anything I recommend will depend on your sound source.

[@Vertackle]

Right now I just record my voice for voice overs. I'm just looking to up my audio game and improve my quality.

[@daenodae8089]

*sir i want to improve my audio in vegas pro I want it to be a little bassy. is it possible?*

[@1.1review82]

Hello! Greetings from Russia! Is there any issues if I'll plug XLR condenser mic (rode ntg-2) into trs slot (using internal battery power of course)? Sorry for my English

[@axk]

That shouldn’t be a problem as long as the device you’re plugging into is looking for a mic-level signal and not a line-level signal!

[@mrbones102]

What speakers/headphones are you using in your workflow?

[@danielkaranja7978]

Some people make a lip smacking sound. How can thay be reduced?

[@Sherlok88]

You can use Izotop rx - Mouth De-click, or De-crackle. It's really works.

[@the_black_douglas9041]

Alex, re: your comments on ZOOM pre-amps - have you used the F6? If so, what do you think of the pre-amps on them?

[@axk]

I have! The F6 is better. Much more useable audio than the H series. But no built in mics of course, so cost is higher overall for better quality. I really love Sound Devices, they make the best recorders in my book. But the Zoom F series is a good budget option.

[@the_black_douglas9041]

@@axk thanks so much Alex! I charge for work and have an F6 now and sometimes wonder if I’m better off with the undoubtedly finer result of a Sound Devices Mix-Pre. As a solo shooter, soundie and the rest, I like the backstop that 32-bit float brings. Your channel is bloody brilliant!! The generosity with which you freely share genuine experience in the field is absolutely priceless. Thanks mate!!

[@radiozelaza]

put "WARNING" signs next time before you blow wind into mic! some people do listen with headphones, y'know...

[@Joshua-iz1go]

Never take off wind protection. Got it.

[@orangefrogphotography9019]

I felt compelled to like this video just to get the count off 666. 🤓

[@axk]

😈