Looking to get the best podcast audio quality? Want to improve your podcast recordings?
You have definitely come to the right place! We have gathered a ton of great tips over our years in the podcast industry. And we’re sharing all our best ones with you today.
Put these into practice, and you’ll seriously increase your podcast’s audio quality.
So, if you’re looking to make your podcast sound the best that it possibly can, check these tips out!
Tips for Increasing Your Podcast Audio Quality
The Basics
1. Invest in a good microphone
First things first. If you want a great sounding podcast, start with a good microphone. There’s not much you can do in terms of quality if your recording equipment isn’t capable of capturing quality raw recordings.
So, invest in that quality mic! It doesn’t have to be expensive, but it should be of good quality. Check out this post for some top options.
2. Control your recording environment
If you want quality audio, pay attention to your recording environment. Make sure you’re recording in a quiet environment with minimal background noise. I know this is probably a given. But it is that important that it warrants a mention on this list.
Because you’d be surprised at how much your environment can effect your recording. It’s all good and well to have a recording spot that looks good, but it might not be helping you capture rich recordings.
Our advice? Assess your recording environment with a fresh pair of eyes ears. And see if it truly is giving you the best raw recording possible.
If it’s echo-y or makes you sound hollow. Change it. Relocate to a smaller space or your closet, and you’ll get those rich recordings and seriously improve your podcast’s audio quality.
3. Use soundproofing materials
You can also eliminate echoes and other sound distortions by using soundproofing materials. Adding curtains and carpets to your recording space is a good start. But you could also think about investing in some acoustic sound foam panels.
These can make a serious difference to your recordings! And will also make your recording spot look super professional!
But if those aren’t an option for your budget, egg cartons have also been known to be effective sound proofing material. You can also use these to build a mic box, that you can place around your mic to help improve your audio quality.
4. Invest in a pop filter
Next tip for improving your podcast quality is to invest in a pop filter. A pop filter is a device that sits between you and your microphone, designed to reduce the sound of plosives (hard consonant sounds such as “p”, “t”, and “b”).
They are an effective tool for achieving professional sounding audio recordings. With a pop filter in place, you can reduce the popping sounds that can occur when pronouncing certain letters and words. Adding a pop filter to your podcasting set-up can help you consistently capture high-quality audio.
5. Use the right audio file format
When it comes to your podcast’s audio files, there are 3 file formats you can use. The most common format is MP3 (MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3), due to its small size. This will be the desired format for your completed episodes as it is widely supported by most streaming services such, as Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
However, Mp3 files have a lot more compression than WAV (Waveform Audio File Format) and AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format).
It is advisable to record in WAV or AIFF and complete all post-production processes before exporting your final draft as MP3 and uploading to your preferred streaming service.
6. Hone your voice
As much as a good quality microphone will up the ante and go a long way to producing high-qualtiy audio recordings, your voice, in reality, has a large role to play in this, too.
If you can exercise your voice to be able to deliver a full, rich sound, your podcast episodes will be elevated. When it comes to podcasting, your voice is the first interaction, really, that your views have of you. Many will base their assumptions about you as a podcast host based on your voice alone.
A well-trained voice does wonders for a podcast! And not only does it help improve your podcast audio quality, but it can also keep people hooked on your content!
Related read: Your Voice is Your Secret Weapon! 4 Ways to Improve Your Voice for a Better Podcast
7. Be practiced and prepared
Practice makes perfect, right? Or so the saying goes at least. But it definitely applies to our tips for improving your podcast audio quality! And so tip number 7 is to be practiced and prepared.
Practicing your episode script or outline before hitting that red “record” button can help you deliver your content with more confidence. This means you’ll be more relaxed, and speak slower and clearer. And the result is better-sounding audio.
Being prepared before recording can not only give you a better raw recording, but it can also prove to be a time-saver for the editing process. As you get ready to record, check all your equipment. Check your audio levels, and listen carefully to what’s going on around your recording space. These simple preparations can all yield much better sounding recordings.
Podcast Audio Quality Tips for the Post-Production Process
Everything you’ve done up to now has been to prevent any unnecessary recording issues. The next set of tips are focused on improving your audio quality in the post-production part of podcast creation.
These post-production tips are just as important to improving your podcast’s audio quality as capturing great raw recordings. And that’s because editing after recording can be the difference between a great podcast and a mediocre one.
8. Always use editing software
Yes, there may be the desire to have your podcast episodes sound casual and unscripted. But this definitely does not translate to “unedited”. You should always be editing your raw recordings to help you get the best sounding podcast episodes possible.
And for that, you need editing software. Editing software such as Adobe Audition and Audacity give you the ability to enhance your audio by reducing noise, removing clicks, and improving the overall volume levels. And all of these tweaks will get your podcast sounding top-notch.
You might also consider hiring a professional editing service to produce your podcast.
And while you’re editing, here are some other easy improvements to help you improve your podcast’s audio quality.
Removal of filler words
We’re talking about those um’s and ah’s. One or two here or there is okay. But overall, if you want a podcast that is a pleasure to listen to, remove those filler words.
Using too many filler words can take away from what you’re trying to say. Removing filler words can help make your message clearer and provide direct, to-the-point content to your audience.
Removal of dead space
Similar to filler words, dead space can also detract from your audio quality. These can also make a podcast pretty awkward to listen to. So edit out any dead spaces, and allow your content to shine.
Cut out irrelevant content
In an ideal world, all content should be valuable. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. Most content is mixed with a lot of “fluff” sections that can once again take attention away from what it is that you’re trying to offer. Clear and concise messages have been shown to have the greatest impact on the listener. Therefore it is always important to review the overall message to ensure that you are communicating it clearly, and excluding irrelevant tangents.
9. Master your software
And while we’re still on the topic of software, if you want it to help you improve your podcast’s audio quality, then tip Number 7 is to master said software.
Learn all the features and functions your editing software offers. That way, you can use it to the best of it’s ability and it will deliver high-quality audio as the end product. Can it help you level your recording? Which function removes unwanted echos? Just knowing how to do those two small-ish edits can seriously improve your podcast’s audio quality!
And the best news is that most of the software available for audio editing there will be tons of YouTube videos and other types of tutorials to help you understand all that your editing software can do. Learn it all! And then apply these to your next editing session. And we’re sure you and, most importantly, your listeners will hear the difference.
Tips for Increasing Your Podcast Audio Quality — Interviews
10. When doing interviews, use separate mics
If you’re looking to get great audio quality for your interview episodes, you’re going to need to have separate mics. Sharing a mic is a big no-no as it will give you an inferior-quality recording for a number of reasons.
Firstly, you’ll both be constantly leaning in and out as you talk. This is a whole lot of movement which can get picked up by the mic.
Secondly, all that leaning in and out is going to wreck havoc with your volume levels! They’re going to be all over the place! And if you leaning far enough in every time you go in to speak, some parts of the conversation may end up being inaudible. A far cry from high-quality audio!
And if the above situation describes how you and your co-host are currently recording, it’s time to get that second mic if you want to improve your podcast’s audio quality.
11. Pick the right software
If you host an interview podcast, in order to ensure you get the best audio possible whenever you record remotely will need some specific software. This is also the case if you and your co-host are live in different cities. FYI, Zoom just ain’t going to cut it for that high quality audio!
Two top options to record great audio during your interviews is Zencastr and Ringer. Use these to record locally on each end of your interviews. Not to mention, they are super user-friendly!
12. Prepare Your Guests
To help improve your audio quality when it comes to interviews, always prep your guests.
There are plenty of things you can’t control during interviews. Dogs barking or children shouting on their end of the interview, buzzing appliances, or just loud ambient noises. Obviously, you can pause and recalibrate, but you can’t control it. And this can effect your audio quality.
Also, some of your interviewees might be first-time podcast guests. If you’ve never been in front of a mic before, it’s easy to get the little things wrong. Talking to far away from the mic, or too close, can all decrease the quality of your audio.
But the good news is that these are things you can control. You just need to prep your guest. Before the interview, send your guests a helpful cheatsheet of podcast etiquette. This can go a really long way to making sure that all your interviews, no matter who you’re interviewing, sound top-notch.
13. Check Your Guest’s Set-up
And finally, to get great audio whenever you interview guests, always check their set-up pre-interview. There is a good chance your guests won’t have the proper recording equipment.
If you know what they will be working with well in advance, you can make the necessary preparations. Either, you can talk them through the best way to work with what they have to capture high-quality audio, or, you could consider shipping a quality mic to them.
In Conclusion
At the end of the day, all podcasters are basically after the same thing. You want episodes fully loaded with high-quality content. And you want episodes with audio that sounds amazing.
A successful podcast is one that consistently sounds amazing, but capturing high-quality audio is not easy.
But, we can make it that much easier with these tips. Follow them and we guarantee that your audio quality will consistently sound top-notch!
