lip-smacking good

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Permalink Reply by Scribe on January 23, 2010 at 5:58pm

Hmmm, I'm not an expert, but my though is that you're speaking too directly into your microphone. Maybe if you talk slightly above or slightly below your mic, you can avoid it picking up some of those more embarrassing noises.

I'm sure someone else who knows way better than me will comment, though. ^_^ At least your voice comes in very loud and clear!

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Permalink Reply by Craig Robertson on January 24, 2010 at 8:03am

A good general discussion is: http://community.podiobooks.com/group/mentorshipprogram/forum/topic.... At the end Murdo mentions a pop filter. This is more for the popping 'p' and other hard consonants, but easy to fabricate. Bryan Lincoln gave me this link: http://www.jakeludington.com/project_studio/20050321_build_your_own..., if you're interested. I have a big problem with the same issues. I'm trying to control my breathing, kind of a zen thing, and I'm resigned to doing a lot of editing. When I hear Nathan Lowell or JP Moore or Chris Snelgrove read, so fluidly and cleanly, I am consumed with animal rage, but get over it quickly (I'm better looking than any of them after all, so why be jealous). Hope this helps as a start.

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Permalink Reply by Bryan Lincoln on January 24, 2010 at 10:47am

In addition to a pop filter, I tend to have my mic not straight in front of my mouth, but swung about 45 degrees so my breath generated wind is unlikely to interact with the mic. I also tend to try to use the following distance trick I've pick up from the audio drama folks - spread your thumb and pinky fingers as far apart as you can....that should be the distance from your chin to your mic. Obviously the optimal setup can change a bit from mic to mic. Mine works well for the Blue Snowball mic.

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Permalink Reply by Brenda Wamsley on January 24, 2010 at 9:55am

I actually had this problem and asked about it several months ago. Here is what I got: 1. Make sure you are drinking something non-caffeine and non-carbonated. I've found that peppermint tea works great for me. I pause about every page and swish and swallow. 2. change the placement of your mic in relation to your mouth. I moved my mic a bit further down from my mouth so it's almost pointing at my chin. 3. try using a blimp, i think it's called. you can do a search and find several diy for making one. 4. if your breathing is to heavy then try slowing down. you may be talking to fast. I, for one, don't really mind the breathing.
Hope this helps.

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Permalink Reply by Diana Orgain on January 24, 2010 at 8:35pm

Eugene,

It sounds like your mouth is dry - try drinking water (lots).

Best of luck!
Diana
www.dianaorgain.com

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Permalink Reply by Eugene Fairfield on January 25, 2010 at 7:10am

Thank you all and sundry. Lots of suggestions to try, and the nice feeling of knowing that others struggle with it, too.

Just one follow up: I have a "wind screen," which is to say a foam layer over the microphone. Does a "pop filter," panty-hose on a wire hoop, provide better or additional or a different kind of protection? Or are they very similar in purpose?

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Permalink Reply by Dan Rabarts on January 25, 2010 at 12:32pm

Eugene, a baffle is designed to muffle the sound of wind on a mic when used outdoors.

Accordingly it will also muffle your voice when recording, and I haven't found that the baffle on my Zoom H2 removes popping effectively.

Go for a pop filter if you can, and try to avoid the baffle. It's another piece of gear to rig when you do your recording, but it's possibly the cheapest and most effective piece of hardware you'll use to improve the quality of your recordings.

Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by Casey Simpson on February 22, 2010 at 10:27am

pop filter is different from a wind screen, One job of a pop filter is just to keep you from getting to close to the mic! A good mic should pick you up just fine from a foot to 16 inches. So play with the pad or gain. Its an art to get the right balance, but then, with a pop filter you should be able to eliminate most mouth sounds. Also if you have an EQ, it can be helpful to take a little off the top end where the clicky stuff is

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