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Jaayne:
Okay, so have you ever like stumbled on a podcast and the topic is totally up

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Jaayne:
your alley, you know, and you're like, yes, this is what I've been waiting for in there, right?

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Jaayne:
But then you hit play and the audio, oh, it's just the worst,

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Jaayne:
like nails on a chalkboard makes you want to chuck your phone across the room.

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Jamie:
Instant turn off the worst.

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Jaayne:
And it turns out I'm not alone. We're doing a deep dive today on why good audio

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Jaayne:
is so crucial for podcasts. It's like even if the content is gold,

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Jaayne:
bad audio can completely tank it. It's true.

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Jaayne:
We've got some interesting data to pick apart today. We ran a poll on Twitter,

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Jaayne:
asked listeners what their biggest podcast pet peeves were.

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Jaayne:
And we also found this article from a podcasting expert really dug into the

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Jaayne:
psychology behind why bad audio is so off-putting.

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Jamie:
This is going to be good. I'm ready to break it down.

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Jaayne:
Let's do it. So first up, those poll results. We asked listeners what would

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Jaayne:
actually make them stop listening to a podcast they were otherwise enjoying.

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Jaayne:
Bad audio, too many inside jokes.

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Jamie:
Which, let's be honest, can be a slippery slope.

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Jaayne:
The worst. Or hosts going totally off topic or just like something else entirely.

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Jaayne:
So what do you think took the top spot?

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Jamie:
I think we both know where this is going. Had to be the bad audio.

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Jaayne:
Ding, ding, ding. You got it. A whopping 54% of our listeners said they'd peace

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Jaayne:
out of a podcast if the audio quality was rough.

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Jamie:
That's a majority for sure.

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Jaayne:
It's a landslide. Way more than I expected. It beat out all the other options combined.

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Jaayne:
Wow. It really goes to show how much even the smallest details matter when you're

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Jaayne:
creating content, right?

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Jamie:
It's huge. Yeah. Because it feeds into this whole debate in the podcasting world,

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Jamie:
right? You've got that raw authenticity on the one hand.

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Jaayne:
Turn it real.

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Jamie:
Exactly. Versus that super polished produced sound.

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Jaayne:
Right. Finding that balance is key.

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Jamie:
It is. Because listeners want to feel like they're part of the conversation.

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Jamie:
You know, they want that genuine connection.

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Jaayne:
Absolutely. But not if it sounds like you're recording from inside a washing machine. Huh.

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Jamie:
For real. Nobody wants to suffer through that to get to the good stuff.

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Jaayne:
So how do we find that sweet spot where it feels real and engaging,

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Jaayne:
but doesn't make people reach for the earplugs?

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Jamie:
That's what we're here to figure out. And don't worry, this isn't about needing

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Jamie:
some crazy expensive studio setup.

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Jaayne:
Because mine is, let's just say it's a work in progress.

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Jamie:
It's the thought that counts. But honestly, a little effort goes a long way.

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Jaayne:
I like the sound of that.

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Jamie:
We're going to give you some super actionable tips today that anyone can use.

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Jamie:
But first, I think it's important to understand why bad audio is so jarring for us on a deeper level.

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Jaayne:
Yeah, and you know what? Sometimes just hearing it straight from the source,

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Jaayne:
like what actual listeners are saying, really drives the point home.

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Jamie:
Oh yeah, for sure.

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Jaayne:
And in the article we found some of these listener comments were,

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Jaayne:
Brutal.

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Jamie:
No holding back.

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Jaayne:
No. Like one person said, if a podcast sounds like amateur hour,

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Jaayne:
and I'm quoting here, if everyone's talking over each other and the volume levels

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Jaayne:
are all messed up, I'm just turning it off.

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Jamie:
Ouch. Right.

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Jaayne:
Straight to the point.

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Jamie:
They're not messing around.

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Jaayne:
No. It's like they're giving you one chance.

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Jamie:
One chance.

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Jaayne:
And if the audio is rough, they're out.

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Jamie:
Yeah, it's like a barrier to entry, you know? It doesn't matter how good your

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Jamie:
content might be if people can't even get past those first few seconds.

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Jaayne:
Totally. If the audio is janky, they're already clicking away before you've even hooked them.

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Jamie:
Exactly. And it's not just about making a good first impression either, right?

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Jamie:
There's a lot going on behind the scenes when we listen to something with bad audio.

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Jaayne:
Okay, so get all science-y on me here. What's the psychology behind it?

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Jamie:
So think about it. When you're listening to a podcast, you're basically asking

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Jamie:
your brain to do a ton of work all at once.

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Jamie:
You've got to process the sounds, decode the language, and try to make sense of it all in real time.

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Jaayne:
Which is already like a lot of brain power, even with perfect audio. Let's be real.

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Jamie:
Exactly. It's a workout for those neurons. Yeah. Now imagine trying to do all

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Jamie:
of that when the audio is full of static, those weird hissy sounds or the volume

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Jamie:
is like up and down, up and down.

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Jaayne:
Oh, the worst.

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Jamie:
It's like trying to have a conversation at a super loud party where everyone's

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Jamie:
talking over each other.

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Jaayne:
The worst. My brain is already fried just thinking about it. Right.

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Jamie:
Your brain literally has to work over time just to try and filter out all that

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Jamie:
extra noise. Yeah. and actually understand what's being said.

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Jaayne:
No wonder I feel exhausted after listening to a podcast with crappy audio.

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Jaayne:
It's a mental workout for sure.

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Jamie:
It totally is. And that cognitive overload, as it's called, that can lead to

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Jamie:
something called listener fatigue.

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Jaayne:
Makes sense.

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Jamie:
Yeah. Where you're just mentally spent. Totally. You're not going to be able to focus as well.

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Jamie:
You're probably not understanding everything that's being said.

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Jamie:
Right. And honestly, you're just way more likely to tune out entirely.

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Jaayne:
And then there's that emotional piece of it too, right? Like it's not just about

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Jaayne:
understanding the words. It's about connecting with the content.

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Jamie:
Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. And that's where things get really interesting.

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Jaayne:
Okay. Tell me more. I'm intrigued.

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Jamie:
So there have been studies on this and they've actually found a direct link

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Jamie:
between how good or bad the audio quality is and how we emotionally respond

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Jamie:
to what we're listening to.

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Jaayne:
Really? So like, even if the content is positive or upbeat, bad audio can actually

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Jaayne:
make you feel negatively about it?

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Jamie:
Subconsciously. Yeah. It's kind of like, have you ever judged a book by its cover?

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Jaayne:
Guilty.

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Jamie:
We all have. But it's kind of like that for your ears. And on top of all that,

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Jamie:
there's another layer to this that we can't forget about, and that's accessibility.

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Jaayne:
Right. Because it's not a one size fits all experience for everyone. Exactly.

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Jaayne:
So for anyone who has, say, an auditory processing disorder or is hard of hearing

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Jaayne:
or even just sensitive to sounds, bad audio isn't just annoying. It's a huge barrier.

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Jamie:
Exactly. And we never want to be excluding any listeners just because it's something

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Jamie:
we can fix on our end. And, you know, totally.

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Jaayne:
It's a good reminder that even something we might see as like a minor inconvenience

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Jaayne:
could actually be a much bigger deal for somebody else.

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Jamie:
Absolutely. And it all comes back to just being mindful and putting in that

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Jamie:
little bit of extra effort.

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Jaayne:
It's true. And honestly, it just makes you appreciate the podcasts that really

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Jaayne:
nail the audio even more.

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Jaayne:
Like, you know, they care about putting out a quality product. 100 percent.

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Jamie:
And the good news is upping your audio game doesn't have to require like a ton

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Jamie:
of fancy gear or anything.

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Jaayne:
Okay, because my credit card is a little nervous after that last sound-dampening blanket purchase. Huh.

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Jamie:
I feel ya. But seriously, a lot of it comes down to some really simple tweaks

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Jamie:
and knowing a few key things.

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Jaayne:
Let's get into it. Lay those audio wisdom bombs on us. What are some of the

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Jaayne:
easiest wins for better audio?

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Jamie:
So, the podcasting expert we mentioned had a bunch of good advice.

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Jamie:
First up, your microphone choice.

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Jaayne:
Okay, now this is where I get lost. is it like condenser versus dynamic help me out here.

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Jamie:
Don't worry we'll keep it simple you've got the right categories though so dynamic

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Jamie:
microphones those are like your trusty sidekick we love a good side right they're

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Jamie:
super durable they're not too picky about where you use them and they're really

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Jamie:
good at just focusing on your voice even if your recording space isn't exactly a sound booth perfect

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Jaayne:
For those of us who haven't quite built that backyard studio.

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Jamie:
Yet exactly condenser mics Mike's, on the other hand, these guys are like the

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Jamie:
sensitive friend. We all have one. Right.

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Jamie:
They pick up on everything, which can be awesome for like a super rich detailed sound, but...

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Jaayne:
But they also pick up on like the dog barking three houses down.

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Jamie:
You got it. Every little sigh, every car alarm, it's all go in the recording.

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Jaayne:
Okay, so microphone choice check. But what about the actual recording space itself?

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Jaayne:
Like, even if you've got a decent

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Jaayne:
mic, there's always that weird echo or background hum that sneaks in.

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Jamie:
Ugh, the worst. But you've hit on another super important point,

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Jamie:
which is treating your space for sound.

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Jaayne:
Okay, spill the secrets. What are we doing here? Because let me tell you,

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Jaayne:
my apartment has more echo than a cave right now.

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Jamie:
More blankets. More pillows.

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Jaayne:
Hey, I'm ahead of you on that one.

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Jamie:
You get it. But for real, you can do a lot without spending a fortune.

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Jamie:
The goal is to reduce those sound reflections that bounce off hard surfaces.

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Jaayne:
Got it. So like walls, floors, windows, all that jazz.

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Jamie:
Exactly. And those reflections create that echoey sound that makes your audio sound kind of muddy.

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Jaayne:
Okay, that makes sense. So what are we doing? Covering everything in pillows like a pillow fort?

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Jamie:
Close. The blankets, rugs, even like strategically placed bookshelves can help.

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Jamie:
Basically anything to break up those hard surfaces and absorb some of those sound waves.

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Jaayne:
It's like interior design for your ears.

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Jamie:
Right. And you can get creative with it. One of my favorite tips is to use one

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Jamie:
of those clothing racks, like the freestanding ones, and drape a thick blanket over it.

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Jaayne:
Like a DIY vocal booth. I love that.

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Jamie:
It totally works. Okay, so we've got our microphone sorted. Our recording space

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Jamie:
is looking good. What's the final piece of the audio puzzle?

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Jaayne:
Hit me with it.

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Jamie:
Editing, my friend. That's where the magic really happens.

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Jaayne:
See, now this is where I get intimidated. Editing always feels so technical.

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Jamie:
I hear you. But it doesn't have to be scary. Think of it as like adding the

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Jamie:
finishing touches to your masterpiece.

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Jamie:
And just like with everything else we've talked about, even those little tweaks

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Jamie:
can make a world of difference.

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Jaayne:
So where do we even start? art.

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Jamie:
First things first, trim the fat.

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Jaayne:
Oh, you're talking about my rambling tangents.

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Jamie:
Maybe.

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Jamie:
But seriously, listen back to your raw audio and be ruthless.

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Jamie:
Cut out any unnecessary stuff, like any dead air, any repetition,

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Jamie:
those parts where you got totally sidetracked.

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Jaayne:
So basically channel my inner editor and be brutal.

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Jamie:
Exactly. Next up, tackle those distracting noises, like any mouth clicks,

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Jamie:
background hums, traffic sounds, whatever's going to take your listener out of the moment.

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Jaayne:
I'm so guilty of the mouth clicks.

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Jamie:
It happens to the best of us. But luckily, most editing software actually has

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Jamie:
some pretty decent built-in tools for that.

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Jamie:
Like, noise reduction features can work wonders. Or you can just manually cut

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Jamie:
out the offending sounds if you need to.

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Jaayne:
It's like you're a sound surgeon removing all the imperfections.

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Jamie:
I love that. Okay, and then last but not least, make sure your volume is consistent

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Jamie:
throughout the whole episode.

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Jamie:
Like, you don't want people constantly fiddling with their volume knob.

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Jamie:
Because one host is super loud and the other one sounds like they're whispering

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Jamie:
from a mile away. Ugh, yes.

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Jaayne:
Yes. The worst. That drives me crazy as a listener. The worst.

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Jamie:
But again, easy fix. Most editing software has volume leveling tools that can

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Jamie:
help even everything out.

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Jaayne:
Music to my ears. So much easier than trying to yell at my co-host to scoot

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Jaayne:
closer to the mic. Right.

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Jamie:
Much less awkward. And honestly, the more you do it, the easier it gets.

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Jamie:
You start to develop your own little editing style and find those tricks that work for you.

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Jaayne:
So to wrap it all up, we've learned that if you want to make a killer podcast, podcast.

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Jaayne:
It's not just about what you say, it's about how you say it.

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Jaayne:
Picking the right microphone, treating your recording space,

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Jaayne:
and becoming best friends with your editing software.

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Jamie:
And most importantly, remember that those little details, they might seem small,

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Jamie:
but they can have a huge difference for your listeners.

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Jaayne:
It's like anything else, right? Quality over quantity. So tell us,

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Jaayne:
what are your biggest audio pit peeves?

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Jaayne:
Have you ever completely bailed on a podcast because the audio was just too painful to get through?

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Jamie:
Let's hear those audio horror stories.

199
00:11:00,250 --> 00:11:05,330
Jaayne:
Share your pain with us hit us up on social media you know we love a good audio rant until next.

200
00:11:05,330 --> 00:11:06,390
Jamie:
Time happy listening

201
00:11:06,640 --> 00:11:18,360
Music:
Music