The sound of our voice on a recording may sound different due to the way microphones record sound frequencies, the acoustics of the recording environment, as well as possible alterations during sound compression or reproduction.
When you speak, your skull transmits part of the sound directly into your ears through bone conduction. This enriches your voice with low frequencies, giving it a warmer and deeper tone. When you hear yourself on a recording, this bone conduction disappears, leaving only the sounds transmitted through the air reaching your ears. The result? A higher-pitched, less rounded voice that sounds strange, even foreign. Essentially, it's like discovering your voice without the bonus provided by the internal resonance of your head.
Every device used to record your voice can directly influence the sound result. For example, the type of microphone greatly changes how your voice is captured: low-end mics tend to boost certain midrange frequencies, often making your voice sound nasal or metallic. In contrast, high-quality mics generally provide a more natural sound by better capturing the lows and subtle details. The same goes for the device or computer used: poor audio conversion quality (when analog sound transforms into digital) often results in strange distortions or a sense of loss of richness in timbre. A smartphone often compresses recordings significantly, which further impoverishes the sound by eliminating quite a few frequencies. In short, the recorded sound result of your voice heavily depends on the equipment you use: the higher the quality, the more natural your voice will seem.
If your voice sounds different when recorded, it is often due to the sound environment. In an empty room, you will hear reverberation, the subtle echo caused by walls, the ceiling, or reflective surfaces. In contrast, a room full of furniture, carpets, or curtains will absorb sounds and make your voice sound more muffled, less resonant. Outside, the wind, background noises, or even the location where you are standing also change how your sound is captured. Microphones pick up everything, from the soft breath of the wind to ambient whispers, thus influencing the tone of your voice and making it sound less familiar to your ears.
When you speak, your voice largely reaches you through the bones of your skull. This so-called "bone conduction amplifies low sounds, giving your voice a deeper and warmer tone to your ears. But when you listen to a recording, this bone conduction disappears, allowing only air-conducted sounds to pass through. As a result, your recorded voice seems higher, less rich, and simply strange to listen to! This discrepancy arises from the fact that the people around you never hear your internal voice, but only this external version transmitted through the air. That's why the voice you hear in a recording sounds so different from the one you are used to.
When you listen to your recorded voice, your brain experiences a kind of cognitive dissonance, a disturbance called dissonance. It is used to hearing your voice differently due to the internal resonance of your skull, and as a result, it almost automatically rejects this new "version" that it does not recognize. Your brain is conditioned to identify what is familiar to you: suddenly hearing a voice that is supposed to be yours but that you perceive as "foreign" can create a sort of instinctive rejection or unsettling surprise. This phenomenon is reinforced by a concept called the mere exposure effect, which explains that we generally prefer sounds and voices that we hear regularly. Since your recorded voice is relatively rare to your ears, it sounds strange or unnatural, which amplifies this feeling of disconnect.
The acoustic environment significantly changes the characteristics of a recording. Did you know that even a small object placed near the microphone can substantially alter the tone of the recorded voice?
Our brain recognizes and processes our own voice better when it is heard through bone conduction. This is why hearing it recorded, solely transmitted through air, often sounds strange or surprising to us!
The singer or professional speaker often practices with audio recordings, specifically to better understand how their voice is perceived by external listeners and to improve their diction or interpretation.
Did you know that most people don’t like the sound of their recorded voice because it is very different from the voice they are familiar with, leading to a phenomenon called 'vocal discordance'?
The best way is to regularly practice listening to your voice through various recordings. You will gradually become familiar with the specific characteristics of your recorded voice and will feel less strange or uncomfortable hearing it over time.
The microphone is undoubtedly the element that most directly affects the recorded vocal quality. A quality microphone, paired with an appropriate preamplifier and good audio converters, will reproduce your voice with greater fidelity and tonal richness.
Your voice generally sounds deeper to you when you speak because of the vibrations transmitted through your bones, which primarily enhance the lower frequencies. When you hear a recording, these internal bass tones disappear, making your voice sound higher in pitch.
Yes, it is possible to improve the quality of your recorded voice by using good quality audio equipment (appropriate microphone, sound insulation) and a quiet environment without echoes. Audio post-production software can also be helpful in achieving a recorded voice that is as close as possible to your actual perception.
Because when we speak, we hear our voice not only through the vibrations of the air (external sound) but also through the internal vibrations within the bones of our skull, which alters its tone and depth. A recording only captures the external sound that others hear, hence the noticeable difference.
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