Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter • Hacker News Board

Re: Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter

#161

Post by hiq » Thu, Apr 15, 2021, 1:23 PM UTC

ChrisMarshallNY wrote: post #128

mciancia wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tbh it's kind of strange that it's 2021 and we still can't have good quality bidirectional audio over bluetooth. WHY?

Mostly because of the need to keep BT a low-energy medium. Bluetooth was designed for embedded devices that need to conserve power. That said, I know that there's active work going on, to improve this exact thing. Might be a while before we see video over BT, though.

> Might be a while before we see video over BT, though.

In which case would that be useful?

There seems to be a range of broadcasting features, but if I'm not mistaken they mostly use WiFi.

Re: Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter

#162

Post by bserge » Thu, Apr 15, 2021, 1:24 PM UTC

criddell wrote: post #118

bserge wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe Bluetooth is still worse than even analog 2.4Ghz transceivers due to compression. Perhaps it's good enough for a lapel mic if it uses aptX or whatever there is now, but uncompressed audio (preferably through a balanced connection) would be best.

I'm not looking for the best audio, just better than the on-camera microphone without introducing more gear or post-processing steps.

Well, it should suffice. Not sure how the iPhone works, can you at least record while it's connected?

Re: Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter

#163

Post by viraptor » Thu, Apr 15, 2021, 1:26 PM UTC

paulpauper wrote: post #27

why are so many people so cost conscious about mics and other consumer goods but have no hesitation about putting tons of money in the stock market , which sometimes drops 30% or more, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars or more of losses. Psychologically, it seems people are much more unnerved about overpaying $100 on a mic or laptop, versus potentially much larger losses on investments such as stocks or real e…

That seems like a weird generalisation since there's many more people buying laptops than stock and there's only a few specific groups that overlap. Do you have some real data here, or just subjective feeling?

Re: Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter

#164

Post by scottious » Thu, Apr 15, 2021, 1:27 PM UTC

diarrhea wrote: post #2

People vastly undervalue good audio quality. It also often makes the difference (given equal visuals) between great amateur and pro in e.g. the YouTube scene. I didn't have data to back this up before, but I bought a good microphone specifically for this purpose. People will simply like the audio, and by extension what I am saying and also me as a person, better. Meanwhile, my ears will continue to bleed from the awf…

> It also often makes the difference (given equal visuals) between great amateur and pro in e.g. the YouTube scene.

Good audio and good lighting can really make all the difference. It pains me because it's actually a very cheap problem to solve. Lighting, an audio interface, and a decent mic could cost no more than a few hundred dollars for a starter pack.

I'm on conference calls all the time where people have overhead lighting that makes them look like a sith lord and their mic is trash and picks up way too much room sounds and echos. It makes them look and sound bad. People notice that stuff.

Re: Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter

#165

Post by elisaado » Thu, Apr 15, 2021, 1:28 PM UTC

baxuz wrote: post #137

benkuhn wrote: post #13

It's also really easy to have high quality audio! The author recommends a "podcasting" microphone, but a $35 standalone headset mic[1] is almost as good and much easier to use. If you want to hear a comparison, I got kind of obsessed with this problem at one point and took some comparison recordings here[2]. (You need a standalone mic since most headsets, even really nice ones, have really bad mics because most heads…

Not really easy to be honest. Depending on the day, I am getting horrible static in my desktop microphone(s). This might be caused by no grounding in the outlet. I'm living in a really old house with no ground for most rooms (yes, I know), with only a bootleg ground to prevent _really_ bad noise and occasional static zaps. Though I've read of many people having the same issues with properly grounded machines (as far…

I don't recommend the following but in our old house I used to tie my outlet ground (that was free floating) to the radiator which was grounded. It worked until my mother reported the shower water was feeling "very harsh".

Re: Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter

#166

Post by baxuz » Thu, Apr 15, 2021, 1:29 PM UTC

elisaado wrote: post #165

baxuz wrote: post #137

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not really easy to be honest. Depending on the day, I am getting horrible static in my desktop microphone(s). This might be caused by no grounding in the outlet. I'm living in a really old house with no ground for most rooms (yes, I know), with only a bootleg ground to prevent _really_ bad noise and occasional static zaps. Though I've read of many people having the same issues with properly grounded machines (as far…

I don't recommend the following but in our old house I used to tie my outlet ground (that was free floating) to the radiator which was grounded. It worked until my mother reported the shower water was feeling "very harsh".

Yeah, I could theoretically tie my outlet ground to the gas pipe. Doesn't sound like a good idea.

Re: Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter

#167

Post by bserge » Thu, Apr 15, 2021, 1:29 PM UTC

jmkr wrote: post #105

bserge wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The SM58 is still great for a dynamic mic (condensers are good but often pick up too much ). Will need a good preamp, though.

Here's a 20$ clone with a switch. Switch is definitely worth it. Despite it not being a Shure itself, it seems like the clones are fine up to high frequency singing. https://www.amazon.com/GLS-Audio-Vocal-Microphone-ES-58-S/dp...

I don't know about the clones tbh. I compared a genuine SM58 to a clone once and it had a lower noise floor, as well as better quality in the low range than the clone.

Re: Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter

#168

Post by kube-system » Thu, Apr 15, 2021, 1:31 PM UTC

acqq wrote: post #93

ruph123 wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am not a native english speaker, to me "pimp up" means to "upgrade" something. Sorry if that came off wrong.

I even know where your environment got that belief. Blame MTV, since 2004: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pimp_My_Ride A lot of non-natives then miss that the meaning of the word is not about an "upgrade" but about: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procuring_(prostitution) which was on MTV glorified as the part of the "Afro-American" "pop culture" which is also... not a really nicest approach. But... it was supposed to b…

It’s slang. English dictionaries are descriptive, not prescriptive. It is valid and common for English words to take on multiple meanings regardless of their origin, and for slang to be recognized use. Given that everyone here understands what was being said, I find it hard to say the usage was improper English.

Informal, yes. Unprofessional, yes. Offensive, potentially. Incorrect English, no.

Re: Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter

#169

Post by elisaado » Thu, Apr 15, 2021, 1:32 PM UTC

XorNot wrote: post #139

baxuz wrote: post #137

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not really easy to be honest. Depending on the day, I am getting horrible static in my desktop microphone(s). This might be caused by no grounding in the outlet. I'm living in a really old house with no ground for most rooms (yes, I know), with only a bootleg ground to prevent _really_ bad noise and occasional static zaps. Though I've read of many people having the same issues with properly grounded machines (as far…

This shouldn't be a problem from what I understand: "real" ground is just tied off to a rod buried in your backyard, but it's also bonded to neutral at the switchboard anyway.

Yes, but with a certain resistance meaning there will always be a voltage difference between neutral and ground.

Re: Higher quality audio makes people sound smarter

#170

Post by MaxBarraclough » Thu, Apr 15, 2021, 1:33 PM UTC

BeFlatXIII wrote: post #41

diarrhea wrote: post #2

People vastly undervalue good audio quality. It also often makes the difference (given equal visuals) between great amateur and pro in e.g. the YouTube scene. I didn't have data to back this up before, but I bought a good microphone specifically for this purpose. People will simply like the audio, and by extension what I am saying and also me as a person, better. Meanwhile, my ears will continue to bleed from the awf…

To add to the audio quality discussion, well-meaning people who want to improve their quality often make the mistake of buying the mic with the best spec sheet. That ultra-sensitive microphone will make you sound more natural than your built-in mic, but it will also pick up dogs barking down the street and your neighbor mowing her lawn. If you’re not in a studio-like office, a less-sensitive dynamic microphone is oft…

As someone who knows nothing about audio: wouldn't it make more sense to get a top quality microphone and apply post-processing, rather than deliberately getting inferior hardware?