Audio

Ever fallen in love with someone’s voice while you’re interviewing and wished everyone else could hear it?

The internet offers an opportunity to give a literal voice to our subjects. Using digital audio recorders and simple editing software, we can combine interviews, natural sound and voiceovers to produce downloadable content for the site.

A live interview with a victorious congressman on election night, apples tumbling into the grinder for apple cider or the excitement of waiting in line for days for a PlayStaion3 are all opportunities for audio recordings.

Recording can be done in the field or in the studio (an empty office in the newsroom).

Any story has the potential for audio content, although it usually is not clear until we are well into the interview. If we record audio as a normal practice of reporting, the workflow becomes natural and streamlined.

Glossary

  • Podcast - term used for a sound recording that is exported as an mp3 file and made available for download from a Web site to be played by the end user’s computer or mp3 player, such as an iPod.
  • Digital Audio Recorder - Marantz PMD660 or Edirol R1 or Edirol R09 are the brands/models we use. They are all digital audio recorders that use a memory card instead of tape.
  • Non-linear editing - using computer software (Audacity) to edit media instead of tape decks.
  • Lavaliere microphone - small microphone that is clipped onto the clothing of the subject.
  • Handheld interview microphone - held by interviewer to record the subject’s0 voice or other audio source. ElectroVoice 635N/D-B is the model we use
  • Stereo microphone - records audio to both the right and left channel.
  • Headphones - allow us to hear what we are actually recording and block out other noise.
  • XLR cable - industry standard, three-prong connecting cord for attaching microphones to audio equipment.
  • Dual-mono connection - A cord that allows a mono microphone’s signal to be recorded to both stereo tracks.
  • Wind Screen - foam covering for the microphone element that protects it from noise created by air movement.
  • Compression - Removing data from a digital file (audio, photo or video) using an algorithm that maintains the perceptible quality. This produces a smaller file that downloads from the Web site faster.
  • SoundSlides - Computer software that is used to create Flash slideshows that contain photographs, title slides and audio for the Web site.
  • Audio level - The strength or “loudness” of the audio signal. This can be seen and monitored on the audio level meter and with headphones. If the signal is too loud or “hot,” the audio is unusable.

At the Herald News, we use digital audio recorders that record sound to digital media, instead of using traditional tape. This has two advantages. First, the audio is recorded digitally, which means it does not have to be converted from analog to digital for non-linear editing on the computer. Second, it can be transferred to the computer much faster than real time. Using traditional tape, one hour of recording would take one hour to transfer. With digital one hour of audio may take five minutes or less to transfer, depending on computer speed and USB connection.

We also use high quality microphones, either lavaliere or handheld mics, when recording audio. Since we use severe file compression on the clips for our Web site, it is critical for the source audio to be as high quality as possible. Techniques for actual field or studio recording can be learned in one-to-one sessions Dave will conduct with interested staff members.

Our end product for the Web site can be podcasts, SoundSlides slide shows or video. The digital audio files recorded in the field can be used for any or all of these.

Recording

  • Check the batteries and carry a set of spares!
  • Plug the microphone into the Mic-in jack or the Mono XLR connection
  • Plug you headphones into the headphone jack and adjust the level to your standard
  • Hold the microphone at a 90-degree angle to the subject’s mouth, approximately two to four inches away and below.
  • Push record to record, stop to stop and play to make sure you have recorded a good sounding clip. Periodically check your recordings during the interview to make sure all is going well.
  • If you are at a press conference, you may be able to plug the recorder into the “press box,” which allows you to record the signal from the podium microphone. They use the standard XLR connection (may be male or female).

Editing

The following is the basic workflow for the editing process in the audio editing program Audacity.

  • Connect the recorder to your computer using the proper USB cable.
  • Transfer (drag and drop) your files to a new folder for the current project. You are responsible for saving and archiving your original audio files. The recorders are periodically reformatted and there is no other backup.
  • iTunes can be used to listen to your recordings, catalog your clips and make notes on timecode for editing. You can add notes to your audio clips and create playlists for organizing interviews by subject.
  • Open Audacity and save a new project in your project folder.
  • Import your audio clips to a new track. (mono for the Marantz, stereo for the Edirol)
  • Select the entire track and “Normalize”
  • Edit audio by copying segments of your original interview and pasting each to a new track. Use the time shift tool to reorder your clips to produce the story.
  • Use the envelope tool to create fades and adjust the levels of the individual clips. In extreme cases, use amplify to increase the level of audio clips that are too soft.
  • Select all of the clips you are using and “export selection to WAV”
  • Use iTunes to compress your final sound project file to an mp3 that can be published to the Web.

Here are some other great tutorials for reporters on how to use Audacity to edit audio, by an instructor at the University of Florida.

- David Bergeland, Herald News, Jan. 2007