Acoustic treatment is essential for any podcaster who wants to deliver a clear, crisp, and professional sound to their audience. When recording a podcast, unwanted reverb can easily become an issue, creating an unprofessional and distracting listening experience.
As great as your podcast content might be, listeners will not have the best time listening to it if there are issues with the recording. One such issue that can affect podcast audio is reverb.
What is a reverb?
A reverb is the reflection of a soundwave on a surface. It differentiates from an echo in reflection time, i.e., a reverb produces a shorter reflection time than an echo. When a reverb happens, it conflates with the sound that is not finished, leading to poor audio quality.
How can you get rid of reverb in your podcast audio?
One of the most effective methods for eliminating a reverb is through an acoustic instrument. An acoustic instrument allows sound to be absorbed in a room and prevents an echo or reverb. The essential principles of acoustic treatment are absorption, diffusion, and soundproofing.
When used the right way, an acoustic treatment cannot only eliminate reverb in your podcast but can also help achieve good sound quality.
Use any of these acoustic treatment tips to eliminate reverb in your podcasts.
- Fill your room with stuff: Not just any random stuff. Ensure your podcast room has materials like soft furnishings, rugs, bookshelves, etc. Instead of a wooden or tiled floor, you can use a rug.
- Use blankets on hard surfaces: Sound is not easily absorbed when there are hard surfaces in a room, like counters or wide desks. Thus, you can lay blankets on these open spaces to eliminate a reverb.
- Install sound panels: You can install sound treatment panels that allow sound to absorb easily. The installation can be done on ceilings and floors; the thicker the sound panel, the better.
- Create a soundproof closet: Unlike your typical closet, you can create a closet optimized with the equipment for a podcast. Creating a soundproof closet with the necessary panels and absorptive materials will ensure no reverb in your podcast. If you listen to the Matrix Green Pill Podcast whether on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts or Stitcher, you would notice the lack of reverb and soundproof background.
- Setup a “gobo”: A gobo is short for a go-between, which is a sound absorption material that surrounds your mic. Using a gobo acts as a reflection shield to prevent reverberation and is a way to soundproof your mic.
- Block out external noise: Although you might think your podcast room is quiet, external noise can lead to a reverb. Ensure all windows, air vents, and doors are closed tight to filter out unwanted noise.
- Choose a dynamic microphone: Your mic can also affect your sound quality. A dynamic mic helps pick up less noise as it can withstand high sound pressure levels and are less sensitive to the environment.
Eliminate reverb by learning how to soundproof a mic
Setting up your mic can also determine if a reverb happens in your podcast. You can soundproof your mic for the best audio output in the following ways
- Place your mic 1-2 centimetres away from your mouth
- Use a reflection shield (gobo)
- Try a dynamic mic
- Place your mic closer to the sound source
- Let many acoustic treatments surround your mic
Although podcasts are one of the most dynamic ways to express your creativity and ideas, your content creation may not shine through with low-quality audio. In Matrix Green Pill podcast, the hosts interview exceptional persons across entrepreneurship, business, health and other themes regarding their professional life and career. To do this, they have to eliminate reverb to achieve good sound output for the podcast. You can also achieve this by incorporating any of the abovementioned tips.
