16 and 24 bit refer to a “word length” of that many bits. Each word contains one sample of audio. The sample is a set of bits that represents a voltage obtained by sampling, say, a microphone. (Later, those samples can be turned back into voltages and sent to an amplifier/loudspeaker.) 32-bit Float means instead of a simple set of bits the representation of the voltage in each sample is expressed in 32-bit Floating Point format. Floating point is a computer technique needed for doing arithmetic on very small numbers to very large numbers, and positive and negative if needed. There are videos explaining the details and since I am an Electrical Engineer I can follow those videos but it isn’t easy. Forces me back to 1971 when I knew this stuff in some detail. Simple 32 bit can encode an excellent range of voltage samples. 32-bit Float can encode a mind-boggling range. Still, this is an excellent example of how technology is improving our lives. And, excellent video by the way. Useful to me.
This is an excellent exploration of digital audio recording. Whether you're new to audio and even video recording or you've been doing recording work for years, you're going to learn - or be reminded of - knowledge that will make your recordings noticeably better.
Great video. I liked the analogy of the cup for bit. I tried to explain it on the weekend but a audio/visual demonstration was needed. This will help me in the future. I'd love to see a video of you in the field doing some field recording for sound effects and natural sounds. Always great to see in field workflows too. Thanks for the videos!
Hey thanks, Armand! I sure hope it’ll help you and anyone else! It’s hard to know what others know already and when I watch it back I’m thinking, “ho hum… boring stuff”. But I’m glad to see so many are getting some good nuggets from it! Yes. I will be doing a series of field recording how-to videos in the spring/summer. It’s been just insane weather up here in the North Pole 😉. Thanks for watching!
@TheRecordist Looking forward to it. I'm fairly new to recording and learn new tricks when I watch videos but they are too far and between. Do you use field recordings in music at all or is it all for work and collecting?
@@armandhammer2223 hey Armand. Yes. I have used field recording in music but generally I’m a private collector of sounds. I’ll be making a public library one day. But for now I’m just enjoying collecting them. Cheers!
I was frightened when you stated that this video would be with less than normal humor. But then you picked up you tape measure and all was right with the world. By the way, excellent video. Everything that audio lovers who are not professionals were embarrassed to ask. Thank you!
What you said I discover by myself along the years by instinct and experimenting. It's good to listen that I am right from another specialized people like you.
Excellent!!! I already knew you are a perfect teacher, but this video even surpassed that. I loved watching it; even when you are teaching us the nerdy stuff you are able to keep it amusing. Perfect.
Excellent stuff. Entertaining and informative. This is the educational breath of fresh air I've been looking for. You enjoy something and you remember the details and like every great teacher, you inspire.
I really can’t emphasize enough how great your videos are. You’re making them better than most of you RU-vidrs. I’d say better than 95% of them. at least in my opinion. You’re one of the coolest guys ever. thank you.
Thank you for this. I just picked up a Portacapture X8 for work, and I'm considering if field recording is something I'd like to explore. Maybe a weird comment, but you have such a radio voice and your clear breakdown of complex subject matter in an entertaining way reminds me of Alan Cross.
Oh thanks so much! That’s quite a compliment! I appreciate that! Field recording is the coolest! And unless you’ve managed to create libraries to sell, it’s a very personal hobby. Most people won’t care about what you capture. But YOU will. And listening back to your recordings brings much joy - at least, it does for me! I wish you much luck with your new X8! Cheers!
@@TheRecordist Your welcome and great news. I've been field recording as a hobby for several years now and I never knew about the levels thing 😂 Makes complete sense though.
Great great content and thank you for sharing! Professional cinematographer for years and been dabbling in audio now for some time. Well done on every aspect of your video and super helpful.
How do I say this, awesome tutorial. Explaining a subject that is not always the most exciting yet you found a way to make it interesting and easily understood. Many other videos focus on the tech and settings and don't really explain the why? How can anyone learn to master a subject without learning the fundamental reasons something is done the way it is. Thank you!
Hi, it might be random but...could you please make a video about "Lufs" ? I'm so confused!!! By the way, thank you for doing all this. I'm learning so much!
@@nellomaxim but just so you know. LUFS means Loudness Units Full Scale. Just perceived loudness measured in units. -14 is what RU-vid likes. Just to get you started. Haha.
Hello, and thank you for sharing your time with us. I have been trying to do some recording for my wife as she plays singing bowls. Partly based on some of your videos, I chose to use line audio mics for this. I am powering them with a rode pro caster. The problem I have is an occasional clicking sound. I am thinking that for some reason, despite me keeping my recording levels low at the acceptable DB range that the resonance from the singing bowls is causing a clip having listened to your video and it’s entirety I wonder if 32 bit float might fix this but I was curious to know if you had any thoughts on my problem I have listen to others play singing Bowls on TikTok and I hear them have the same issue if not worse than me even though it is a small and brief click, it is extremely jarring to me. Thank you for taking the time to read and perhaps answer my question.
@@Grumpe3games hey. Ok. That’s not clipping. 32 bit will not fix this. So let eliminate a possible issue. Are you recording in 48KHz? If not, you should be, because 44.1kHz doesn’t always play nice with videos. That’s definitely not clipping. That’s a digital glitch. Like a sync issue or an encoding issue. It may be the RodeCaster. Honestly lately I’ve heard nothing but problems with those units. Is it a RodeCaster 2? It’s not a resonance issue. In fact, the glitch aside, it sounds great. You’re miking properly and it has great separation and a full and robust sound. It’s not the mics. It’s not resonance. It’s a literal digital glitch. Do you have any other recorders or an audio interface with two XLR ins that you can compare with? Can you zoom in on the wav and see the glitch? How about playing that wav file NOT in davinci? I don’t mean to export it from davinci and play it elsewhere. I mean take the original file and use a different player. Or even play it back on the RodeCaster itself. I’d bet money that it’s not clipping. Let me know. You can also take a sample of the original wav file and send it to my email so I can really zoom in on it. Let me know about these things. I’d like to help you.
What do I apply for to learn this in school? Any good school recommendations for this? I tried to explain before and got placed in classes learning about becoming a newscaster not what I wanted a waste of time and money for me.
I am trying to record audio with my newly purchased XM8500 and mackie producer 2*2 audio interface. Even with the gain level turn just shy from maximum , audio meter in audacity just go till -30/-24 Db. Is this expected ? do I have to boost that in post ?
Hi there. I apologize. I don’t have much experience with either pieces of gear, however, a cursory look at the gear tells me some stuff. Dynamic mics tend to need a lot of gain to run. And the Mackie Producer 2x2 is a very low gain interface. In fact, I just now read many reviews where it’s noted that the preamps inside it are very weak and won’t work well for a dynamic mic. Boosting in post is an option. You have some other choices if you don’t want to boost in post. Each will cost money. First choice is to go for a condenser mic which doesn’t need much gain to run, but will pick up everything around you - including cars outside. Second choice is to purchase an in-line preamp to go between the XM8500 and the 2x2 (sE Dynamite or FetHead or Cloudlifter). Third choice is to upgrade your interface to one with at least 60dB of clean gain. The cheapest (free) way would be to boost in post, and that could get noisy. So running a noise reduction plugin could help - depending on the types of stuff recorded. The second cheapest way is the in-line preamp. Sorry about that. Hope this helped in some way.
@@TheRecordist Thanks for all the information. I wish I knew this before spending so much. Interestingly I only saw positive review for both these product in insolation , never thought they don't play well together.
@@monarksinghyede hey there. So sorry. It sucks. Most cheap interfaces are perfectly fine for condenser mics. But dynamics struggle a bit. Way cheaper to get an sE Dynamite stick than a new interface, but if you wanted to go the interface route, Audient, Apogee, and Apollos all usually have 60dB of gain. Like an Audient ID44. But like I said, way cheaper to just buy a dynamite stick or a Triton FetHead.
Can you please recommend an audio recorder for a motorcycle? No talking. Just motorcycle sounds. Looking to cancel the wind if possible and pick up just the engine and exhaust sounds. Using a GoPro to capture video. Not sure if external mics plugged into the GoPro would work well, or if I need an external recorder. Thank you.
Hey. You know who to ask about that? Watson Wu. He’s the world’s best vehicle sound recordist. He did all the cad and motorcycle sound recording for Baby Driver (the movie). Recording a motorcycle is tricky. And loud. I might recommend a Zoom H5 or a H4n Pro and use external mics. A couple of SM57 mics would be best. Because, it’ll get really loud and most condenser or electret mics would start distorting. I would also look into mini blimps to house the SM57s. Strap them to the sides of the bike facing the rear? I don’t know. I’m just spitballing here. I’ve never miked up a moving motorcycle. Only a stationary one. Hope this helps in some way!
@@TheRecordist Watson Wu recommended to me the Zoom F8n Pro. Gulp. Intimidating for a noob. Kinda pricey too. Where to find a mini blimp? Talk about a market that is being underserved. Dang
@@TheRecordist just fyi. i know you geek out on this stuff so decided to tell you what i'm going with (i['m in a hurry to get started right now). i'm going with the Zoom H4 and will just be using the built in XY speakers covered by a deadcat and maybe placed in a bag, possibly partly surrounded by foam. I asked ChatGPT 4..o about this and its response was: "Using the Zoom H4n Pro's built-in XY microphones with a deadcat and cushioning it from vibration can be a very effective setup for recording motorcycle sounds while riding, especially if your primary goal is to capture the engine, exhaust, and road noises rather than spoken commentary. The XY mics capture a broader soundscape, which can be more immersive but might also include more ambient noise than a shotgun mic would. For Most Viewers: The difference in sound quality between the H4n Pro’s built-in mics with a deadcat and a shotgun mic setup might not be very noticeable to the average viewer, particularly if you’re recording primarily engine and exhaust sounds. The stereo field from the XY mics could even enhance the experience by providing a fuller sound."
Unpopular question (yes noob again). For a talking head video, with well controlled levels, requiring no other post-production than level slight level adjustment. Would It make any difference to record 44kHz 24 bits or MP3 320 kbits/s ? When contents destination is RU-vid anyway ? (RU-vid sure crushes video, but same with sound?)
I'll answer it here. For a minute there I thought this question was on my ASK ME ANYTHING video. RU-vid does compress audio and video but it DOES make a difference if your original audio was recorded in MP3. It will squash already squashed audio. If you're going for quality, then I fully recommend recording your video's audio in 48kHz --- not even 44.1. If you're just ripping off quick videos to upload, and quality isn't your concern then it doesn't matter. But you can get around some of the bad compression that RU-vid does. Here is a trick: When editing regular 1080p HD video for RU-vid (whether in DaVinci, Premiere, Final Cut, or LumaFusion), edit on a 4K timeline and render it out at 4K resolution with restricted video bitrate at 80,000, and choose PCM audio. This will render a very high quality video and you then upload that as 4K to youtube and then RU-vid will treat the video and audio much better. Less bad compression, better video and audio. You also want to go for a -14 LUFS target so RU-vid doesn't automatically set the loudness. Hope this helps!
@@windpeoples then in that case, “As I learn more and more what it is to be human, I am more and more convinced that I would never make a good one.” And that’s the straight truth. Hahaha
@@TheRecordist "I understand what you've done here, Q, but I think the lesson could have been learned without the loss of eighteen members of my crew" - one of Picard's best replies to Q.
jesus christ man you keep turning up nuggets - you making RU-vid a better place 🫡 (you know this guy is not full of it when he uses Metric! - the unit of SCIENCE!)
Haha. Thanks, man! I really appreciate it! Ah yes, metric. It’s where it’s at! I use inches in my videos because USA is my largest demographic so I’m trying to cater to that. Same with US pricing. I’m a metric dude, though. I mean come on, it’s 0C outside right now. Not 32F. Haha. Thanks for the awesome comment and for watching my videos! Cheers! (PS - I made partner 🤓)
