Improving audio quality for a better transcript

The best way to receive a great transcript of your audio is to make sure you have a good recording. Transcriptionists are great at what they do but can only make a transcript that matches the quality of the audio or video they are working with. There are many things that you can do to increase the quality of your audio or video to ensure you get a good quality transcript out of it.

Get a good microphone

The quality of your microphone will greatly impact the quality of your audio or video. When choosing which microphone to use you should think about what type of audio you want to capture. Usually, the microphone on your smartphone will be okay for a single speaker or two speaker interview as long as it's not obstructed. If you're recording multiple speakers then you should consider getting an external microphone to be sure it picks up every speaker clearly.

Minimize background noise

In order to have a good quality audio recording, you should try to minimize background noise and interference.

If you are recording in an outdoor environment try to do so away from noisy traffic and other people, also try to keep the microphone shielded from any wind.

If you are recording indoors make sure you are not near any TVs, radios, fans, air conditioners, or anything else that may make too much noise on your recording. With a lot of people working from home right now it can be hard to keep other family members from interrupting you while you're recording, but try to make sure they know you're recording and need a quiet environment.

Have your speakers speak clearly

One of the best ways to ensure you receive a quality transcription is to make sure all of your speakers are speaking slowly, clearly, and not interrupting each other. If you are recording multiple people it is also a good idea to have them state their name before they speak so that the transcriptionist can keep track of who is who easier.

Another great way to make sure your audio is being recorded well is to record for a couple of minutes and then go back and listen to it to see how hard it is to make out what is being said.

These are just a few simple tips to help make sure your audio quality is good so that you receive a quality transcript that you can use. As transcriptionist, we can only type what we hear, so if your audio isn't very clear it could lead to some parts of your transcript not being as accurate as you would like.