How to improve sound of accompanying guitar when I sing on Zoom?
November 14, 2024 9:42 AM Subscribe
Here's an example of me singing and accompanying myself on acoustic guitar (it's a YT video - I know I can just give the YT link to someone, but that's not what I'm asking about -- I'm asking about when I sing and play like this LIVE, on a Zoom call -- even though this is video, it's exactly how I sound when I do this LIVE on Zoom) --
Are there any "advanced techniques" in improving the sound of my guitar on Zoom when I am singing and playing along? My voice sounds fine but most of the guitar is silent or plunky. I have that "Original sound...etc." setting On.
Are there any "advanced techniques" in improving the sound of my guitar on Zoom when I am singing and playing along? My voice sounds fine but most of the guitar is silent or plunky. I have that "Original sound...etc." setting On.
Best answer: A few thoughts.
1. Your voice does sound nice! But yest the guitar is disappointing.
2. This appears to be a phone video of a YT vid. It is likely that the direct YT vid listened to with headphones (and also a zoom call) would sound better than what we hear here.
3. Zoom (and for that matter cell phone calls) use audio compression optimized for human voice, and even "original audio" setting isn't going to make that go away (I think).
4. Mic'ing your guitar with a decent mic and sending that audio into your computer will help but you still have the compression issue above. Also you'll need some sort of audio interface and that can get fiddly and expensive.
5. Try not using zoom, and instead software designed for music. I use Source Elements when I want to play online with friends. It has a nice free tier (for now?), and music sounds good. It will also work fine if you want to just talk and have them listen. I can play using my macbook built-in mic for my voice and uke and it sounds better than your example, but it will always be ideal to have two mics and and an interface/mixer for this scenario, as described above.
posted by SaltySalticid at 10:10 AM on November 14, 2024
1. Your voice does sound nice! But yest the guitar is disappointing.
2. This appears to be a phone video of a YT vid. It is likely that the direct YT vid listened to with headphones (and also a zoom call) would sound better than what we hear here.
3. Zoom (and for that matter cell phone calls) use audio compression optimized for human voice, and even "original audio" setting isn't going to make that go away (I think).
4. Mic'ing your guitar with a decent mic and sending that audio into your computer will help but you still have the compression issue above. Also you'll need some sort of audio interface and that can get fiddly and expensive.
5. Try not using zoom, and instead software designed for music. I use Source Elements when I want to play online with friends. It has a nice free tier (for now?), and music sounds good. It will also work fine if you want to just talk and have them listen. I can play using my macbook built-in mic for my voice and uke and it sounds better than your example, but it will always be ideal to have two mics and and an interface/mixer for this scenario, as described above.
posted by SaltySalticid at 10:10 AM on November 14, 2024
Zoom has a background noise reduction algorithm that fucks with instruments when people are playing music. You can change this in settings. Zoom says:
Under the Audio Profile section, select Zoom optimized audio.
Different levels of Background noise suppression are displayed below.
Select the level of suppression you wish to use:
Auto: This is the default setting, and will apply moderate background noise reduction when needed. It will auto adjust the aggressiveness for blocking background noise based on what it detects in the background. This option is recommended for most users and situations.
Low: Noise reduction will be minimal. It will block low levels of persistent background noise.
Note: This setting is best for casually playing music, as it will preserve as much of the original sound as possible. For highest fidelity when playing music, consider using the Enable Original Audio setting in your advanced audio settings or share device audio (with or without sharing your screen).
posted by Well I never at 10:32 AM on November 14, 2024 [4 favorites]
Under the Audio Profile section, select Zoom optimized audio.
Different levels of Background noise suppression are displayed below.
Select the level of suppression you wish to use:
Auto: This is the default setting, and will apply moderate background noise reduction when needed. It will auto adjust the aggressiveness for blocking background noise based on what it detects in the background. This option is recommended for most users and situations.
Low: Noise reduction will be minimal. It will block low levels of persistent background noise.
Note: This setting is best for casually playing music, as it will preserve as much of the original sound as possible. For highest fidelity when playing music, consider using the Enable Original Audio setting in your advanced audio settings or share device audio (with or without sharing your screen).
posted by Well I never at 10:32 AM on November 14, 2024 [4 favorites]
From what I can tell from briefly listening to this, you still didn't have original sound on while recording that video. It's a super common issue in song circles I'm in via Zoom. Just to add a clarifying note to what others have detailed: You have to do two things to actually use Zoom with original sound for musicians.
1. Under Settings > Audio > Audio profile, select "Original sound for musicians" and check "High-fidelity music mode" and "Stereo audio." Uncheck "Echo cancellation."
2. In the actual Zoom meeting, you have to select "Original Sound for Musicians" to toggle it to "On." You should see a notice pop up briefly when you've correctly done so: "Original sound for musicians is on. Noise suppression is disabled." I think the location of this setting differs, depending on whether you're on a tablet or laptop/desktop, but you have to find it either way and make sure original sound really is on before playing.
Also, make sure you've muted your audio output (like speakers) or are using headphones while recording yourself, since you've disabled echo cancellation. Otherwise that can cause feedback issues as well.
posted by limeonaire at 12:10 PM on November 14, 2024 [3 favorites]
1. Under Settings > Audio > Audio profile, select "Original sound for musicians" and check "High-fidelity music mode" and "Stereo audio." Uncheck "Echo cancellation."
2. In the actual Zoom meeting, you have to select "Original Sound for Musicians" to toggle it to "On." You should see a notice pop up briefly when you've correctly done so: "Original sound for musicians is on. Noise suppression is disabled." I think the location of this setting differs, depending on whether you're on a tablet or laptop/desktop, but you have to find it either way and make sure original sound really is on before playing.
Also, make sure you've muted your audio output (like speakers) or are using headphones while recording yourself, since you've disabled echo cancellation. Otherwise that can cause feedback issues as well.
posted by limeonaire at 12:10 PM on November 14, 2024 [3 favorites]
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posted by okayokayigive at 10:05 AM on November 14, 2024 [1 favorite]