How to Reduce Echo and Background Noise in Your Recordings
Echo and background noise are the two most common problems in voice recordings. The best fix is simple: prevent them while you record, because they are very hard to remove afterwards.
Why is there echo?
Sound bounces off hard surfaces such as bare walls, glass, tiles and empty floors, then returns to the microphone a moment later. Large empty rooms make it worse.
Where does noise come from?
- Fans and air conditioners
- Traffic and street sounds
- Hum from computers and other devices
- A phone held too far from your mouth, which makes the recording pick up the room
How to reduce echo
- Record in a small room.
- Add soft things: curtains, carpets, blankets, cushions.
- Sit close to the microphone.
- Record near clothes or a sofa. A small closet full of clothes works well.
How to reduce noise
- Turn off the fan and the air conditioner.
- Close windows and doors.
- Keep the phone about 15 to 20 cm from your mouth.
- Record at a quiet time of day.
Test before you record
Record 10 seconds of silence and listen with headphones. If you hear hum, hiss or room sound, fix it first, then start the real session. For the numbers behind this, read noise floor and SNR.
Check your files afterwards
The Sayvoi quality checker finds clipping, noise, silence and duplicates in many recordings at once, in your browser, without uploading anything. See also how to record clean audio with a phone.
Check your recordings for clipping, noise, silence and duplicates, free in your browser.
Open the quality checker