Recorded sermons and podcasts are a powerful way to spread God’s Word.  Use these effect settings for a clear and enjoyable listening experience.

Have you ever tried to listen to a recorded sermon and found that its poor quality distracted you from the message?  In our digital age, people expect a quality listening experience.  The tools available to us today make it simple for us to reproduce great sound consistently.  Learn how to prepare and upload your sermons to the internet here.

Several factors affect the way your voice sounds in a recording.  The mixer settings, the microphones used, ambient noise, etc.  This article teaches you some simple effects to enhance your voice creating and a consistent sound across your sermons and podcasts.

These are the effects I currently apply to audio sermons:

1. Noise Removal

Background noise can distract the listener from your message.  Humming and hissing are common in church recordings.  Work with your sound equipment to remove these annoying factors from the recording at the source.  A clean source file is always best.  However, sometimes you have problems in your PA system that takes some time to find.  No worries.  You can use the Noise Removal setting of your processing software.  This process is simple.  Usually, you will select a portion of your file in which you are not talking.  This selection allows the software to learn what noises you want to remove.  Then you can easily eliminate those noises from the entire file.  In addition, some software has specific De-hissing and De-hummer processes.

2. Equalizer

Choose equalizer settings that enhance the loudness of the file and your voice.  In Audition, select the Parametric Equalizer – Loudness Maximizer.

3. Normalize

Normalization changes the volume without altering the sound as compression does. It balances the volume across the file while leaving the high and lows of your speaking volume.

 

4. Compression

Audio compression reducing the dynamic range to make the sound over time closer to the same volume.  It makes the sound smooth and punchy.  This effect is found under Dynamics Processing in Audition.

5. Normalize Again.

 

6.  Amplify if needed.

Sometimes after your files effects are complete, you still need to bring up the volume 3 – 6 decibels.  The file should be loud enough to hear clearly (without clipping) with your volume turned up 75%.

 

 

Listen to the difference before and after these effects.  Which one sounds better?

 

I am not an audio expert.  The effects I use are recommendations from different sources.  What settings do you use?  Do you have any suggestions?

Have a blessed day!