Heal the World, Love Yourself - Fix Audio?

[The Freedom Train]

Apologies for cross-posting, but I am hoping to find somebody who might have knowledge with digital audio/video - I just made my first youtube video, below, and after I listened to it I found that the audio quality is really horrid. does anybody know how to fix this?

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=ia7JwiSS2Xk

[The Freedom Train]

Okay never mind - I just spent the past hour downloading audacity and trying to fix the audio myself to no avail - from what I have found on the forums I have looked into, I may be hoping for the impossible. So it looks like no more youtube videos for me until I can come up with a better way of recording my voice. I have no idea why the built-in computer microphone records so poorly, but I'm sure I'll firgure something out. It's not like I plan on making a career our of youtube videos, I just felt inspired to share this message. Perhaps I will re-do this one when I figure out how!

[norman]

It sounds like an over driven mic level input, but if it was the computer's own microphone it shouldn't have done that. If by any chance you were using an external mic plugged into the mic input, you should try either putting it into a LINE input or as most computers these days use the same socket for both, find the control panel for audio and switch it to LINE input ( from mic ).

Over modulation distortion is impossible to tweak back to health, as the forums might have already told you. I downloaded it to have a look at it in my editor but I can't do much. I made a version of the audio that's easier to hear what you are saying but it still sounds weird. I don't have software set up to replace the original audio with my version so unless you can do that there's no point me trying to get it to you.

It's usually a problem trying to get enough level from a computer mic but in your case it's too much 'level'. You could try finding the windows mixer and sliding the mic level down a bit.

[ better ignore the first paragraph of this post - highly unlikely scenario - just find the mic level control in either the application you used to record the video or the operating system's mixer control and slide it down about half way and try again ]

[The Freedom Train]

Thanks for your amazing efforts Norman! I really appreciate it so much!!!

After reading your post, I thought to try fiddling with the setting in my computer - gee, never thought of that! I went to input in the master volume section, and turned it down as low as possible. Then I made a brief test clip, and discovered that, a) there was not any loud noise (guessing maybe the loud noise is the sound of computer running?), but that b) then the problem is that it was very very quiet. If I try to make it any louder then there is crackling and the loud sound from the computer is again present in the sound recording.

It seems clear to me that the built-in microphone for my computer is not very good. And so I will clearly not be making any videos this way again!

Chalking it up to good experience. Who knew making a video from home could be so complicated?

[RunningDeer]

It’s not an area I know much about, but I’ve seen where some use headphones or ear buds to improve on the sound quality. I’d run a short two minute test, upload to YouTube and keep the video private to check the sound quality.

[norman]

If there was a tick/check box in the control panel for extra mic boost, UNCHECK it. then push the fader up to get enough level. It's possible that a booster would distort the signal before it even gets to the recording level adjustment stage.

What a pity, it was a nice video and doing it again won't be the same.

[The Freedom Train]

Posted by norman (here)
What a pity, it was a nice video and doing it again won't be the same.

Thanks Norman! I feel a bit the same, but am going to keep the ball rolling here. I feel like I am on to something, and I am not going to let this stop me. It reminds me of when I made this fabulous sculptural hexagonal box covered in bubbles and etched spirals and stripes in a ceramics class in college. It was fabulous. Then it blew up in the kiln. I was devastated for a little while, but then decided, well now I know how I made it, this time I'l make it even better! And I did.

PS - I don't see any checkbox for extra mic boost - the settings are very limited actually. Here is a screenshot so you can see what I mean. The setting is at the level where there is no loud noise or crackling, but is barely audible.

[The Freedom Train]

Posted by RunningDeer (here)
It’s not an area I know much about, but I’ve seen where some use headphones or ear buds to improve on the sound quality. I’d run a short two minute test, upload to YouTube and keep the video private to check the sound quality.

Thanks RunningDeer! I have, since starting this thread, realized I can use my daughter's iPad, and after a quick bit of coding was able to mount the device with my Linux-run computer to transfer the file. So looks like I have a way to make decent videos after all! Of course in the future I could theoretically invest in an external webcam and a microphone, lighting, whathaveyou. But like I said before, I am not looking to make this into a career, it's just a format I have decided to embrace in expressing this latest personal epiphany and awakening for me.

[Dennis Leahy]

It's amazing how the human ear (and brain) attenuates the volume of background noise. Microphones don't do that - they "hear" the background noise just fine, and process it as part of the audio signal.

You are probably 3 to 4 feet away from the mic. Notice on TED talks, the presenters/speakers wear mic/headsets that keep the mic within a few inches of their mouth.

I'd recommend a lavalier/clip-on microphone. You can get away with a pretty cheap one (maybe $15 - $25) since it is spoken word being recorded, not singing. Clipped on, it will always be the same distance from your mouth, to keep the audio level even throughout the presentation. Closer to your mouth is further from the background noises (computer fans, etc.) and so the background noise will be much lower volume. Since you probably don't have a mic preamp (with or without "phantom power" to the mic), you wouldn't want a mic with an "XLR" connector, but rather a USB connector or a "phone" plug.

Practice recording something - with passion - using a bunch of P and S sounds to ascertain the "hottest" (loudest) recording volume possible without the disturbing pops or hisses. That will also drop the background noise down to as low as possible. [In case your application has any sort of recording volume meter: In the "old days" of analog recording, you would try to record at a volume level (needle/indicator) maxing out at at the 0dB mark; with modern digital, you can go hotter, at least 3dB over the "zero" mark - "in the red."]

Hope this helps.

[The Freedom Train]

Cool the lavalier mic looks like fun and not too hard to use (although for me who knows I am sure I could find a way to bungle it!) Maybe down the line when I have the extra cash I will give it a shot - seems like it would be a worthy investment if I continue to make videos. I really have no idea how many I will make before I feel like I have covered all I want to express in that format. Time will tell

Thanks so much for your help and advice Dennis :0)

[The Freedom Train]

And here's take 2

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=FNkI0kN9s64