I’ve lost count of the number of recordings I’ve had to pause or abandon because a lawnmower, siren, or enthusiastic dog has fancied getting in on the act.
Back when we ran our podcast production service, clients regularly sent over audio that was full of distracting background noises. Not the ongoing hum of an AC unit or the gentle ambience of a cafe, but things like door slams, annoying desk tapping, or phones ringing.
Then came the inevitable question, “Can you just edit that out?” followed by a patient explanation from our end that the noise was happening underneath the vocals, so if one was cut out, the other would be, too.
Sure, spectral view tools and earlier iterations of iZotope RX were still exceptionally powerful. But I could never truly strip out a noise from underneath a conversation without it sounding like it was recorded underwater.
And this isn’t just about noise. Reverb has always been notoriously hard to remove from voice recordings. On top of that, if one person sounded very obviously off-mic, it was impossible to bring them “on-mic” in post.
But in 2024, audio software has suddenly evolved to the point where almost anything is possible. Reverb is no longer a huge issue, it can correct poor mic technique, and most background noise – even the intermittent stuff – can be removed without many folks being able to tell it was ever there in the first place.
The beauty of this, too, is that the software often does it automatically. There’s no need to tweak any settings or go through the trial and error of more traditional Noise Reduction tools. Experienced audio pros might consider this lack of control, but remember – most podcasters are not audio pros.
A great real-world example of this sorcery in action was our recent Podcraft episode on Podcasting 2.0 with Sam Sethi. I recorded the conversation outside The Podcast Show event in London, and several fire engines hurried past as we talked. I’m not sure what was going on, but maybe they took the LIT tag a bit too literally…
Anyway, this wasn’t a deal breaker for the audio – the conversation was still audible. It could have been briefly distracting, but this is often the nature of on-location audio in urban areas. In a moment of curiosity rather than expectation, I ran it through Alitu, and was amazed to hear that the software had completely stripped out all the background noise. On top of that, you definitely couldn’t tell we were sharing a mic or even recording outdoors at all!
Sam commented on this in episode 81 of the Podnews Weekly Review and was kind to credit me for my production skills. But in truth, all I did was upload the source file. It’s incredible to hear how far audio software has come. So many recordings that would once have been considered unfixable now have the capability to be transformed into studio-quality conversations.
So, does that mean we can finally drop the ‘silk purse sow’s ear’ metaphor? Is “you can’t fix it in the post” obsolete advice? Is striving to record good, clean source material just an unnecessary barrier to content creation?
You can probably make convincing arguments about the above, but before folks throw out their foam tiles, shock mounts, and general audio standards, here’s a countercase.
Why You Should Still Record Good Clean Source Material (When Possible)
If software can probably fix it, why worry about it in the first place?
Good Enough Audio, or Great Audio?
Whilst modern audio software can remove, repair, and rebuild bad audio, it can also enhance, polish, and optimise good audio. Taking some care to feed in the best source material possible can help your show become one of the best-sounding in your niche.
Check out this case study from Lindsay’s piece on What Podcasts Do for Your Brain:
Study participants listened to two-to-three-minute interviews from NPR’s Science Friday with altered sound quality. Co-author Eryn Newman said, “As soon as we reduced the audio quality, all of a sudden, the scientists and their research lost credibility.” Newman and Schwarz found that as soon as material required extra effort on the part of the participants, they trusted it less. Respondents rated clear information as more reliable.
Software Isn’t Foolproof
Audio software can do increasingly amazing things, but don’t rely on it to fix everything. Just because you have a smoke alarm in your house doesn’t mean you’ll rely on it to tell you if the toast is burning (though, if you do, at least you know you can probably edit the noise out of your recordings!).
Recording Clean Source Material Isn’t Difficult
…says the guy who recorded a podcast interview on the set of Backdraft. But this isn’t about perfectionism, and you definitely have a lot more grace when recording in the great unpredictable outdoors.
Good practices are as simple as choosing a room with a decent amount of soft furnishings, getting close enough to your mic, and logging out of Slack or Discord. Don’t be that podcaster recording in their bathroom, six feet away from their Omnidirection-set Blue Yeti. Software might make it sound a little better, but that’s nothing to be proud of.
The Danger of Slipping Standards
If you no longer care about the quality of your source material, what message does that send to the part of your brain that insists, “I take podcasting seriously”? What other corners might you then start to cut in the planning and content side of things? One day you’re dropping a crisp packet in the street; the next day, you’re fly-tipping a mattress. Beware the slippery slope, is all I’m saying.
Summary: Software as a Safety Net
It’s brilliant that audio software can fix so many issues for us now. It makes podcasting so much more accessible. There’s no getting around it that you’ll make mistakes with your audio in the early days. Ten years ago, some of these mistakes would’ve warranted complete re-records, but not now.
Even more experienced creators aren’t immune to the odd suboptimal recording. Sometimes, I’m not as diligent as I could be. Other times, I’m at the mercy of an outdoor environment and all the sounds that come along with it. It’s great to know that, with one click, I can fix it in post. I’ll never rely on it to do my job for me, but I’m glad to know it has my back.
If you’d like to check out Alitu, which was the software used in this case study, you can sign up for a free trial and begin using it right away. Of course, other great podcast editing tools are available, too, so check out our roundup if you’d like to do some shopping around.
