Produce · Phase 2 of 5
Audio, Music & Licensing
Sound is the half of video most creators underrate. Microphones, levels, treatment, and the licensing rules that decide what music you are allowed to use.
Category 6 of 16 in the creator glossary · 83 terms
A
Acoustic Treatmentaka room treatment, acoustic panels, sound treatmentAbsorption placed in a room to stop sound bouncing off hard surfaces. It fixes how a room sounds and does nothing about noise coming in.AI Voice Cloneaka voice cloning, synthetic voice, voice modelA model trained on recordings of a real voice, used to generate new speech in that voice from typed text.AI-Generated Musicaka AI music, generative music, AI-composed musicTracks produced by generative models. Fast and cheap, sitting on ownership questions the law has not settled yet.Audio Interfaceaka USB interface, preamp interface, sound cardThe box between an XLR microphone and your computer, converting the analogue signal to digital and supplying clean gain and phantom power.Audio Mixeraka mixing desk, soundboard, mixerThe desk or software that combines multiple audio sources and sets their levels before recording or broadcast.Automated dialogue replacementaka ADR, pickup VO, re-recordRe-recording a line after the shoot and matching it to picture, used when the original production audio is unusable.
B
Bass Trapaka corner trap, low-end absorptionA thick absorber, usually placed in the corners of a room, soaking up the low frequencies thin foam panels cannot touch.Blanket Licenceaka blanket license, catalogue licenceOne agreement covering a whole catalogue of music, usually held by a platform or broadcaster and never by an individual creator.Boom Armaka mic arm, scissor arm, desk armAn articulated arm clamped to a desk that holds a microphone in position, so a stand and the desk stay out of shot.
C
Cardioidaka cardioid pattern, supercardioid, hypercardioidThe heart-shaped pickup pattern most spoken-word microphones use. Sensitive at the front, less so at the sides, nearly deaf at the rear.Channel Whitelistingaka whitelist, channel clearance, clear my channelRegistering your channel with a music library so its tracks stop triggering Content ID claims on the videos you use them in.Clippingaka clipping, digital clipping, redlining, peakingThe distortion you get when an audio signal pushes past the maximum level and the peaks of the waveform are squared off.Compressionaka compressor, dynamics compressionAutomatically holding down the loudest parts of audio so the whole track can sit at a higher, steadier level.Condenser Microphoneaka condenser mic, large-diaphragm condenserA sensitive powered microphone that captures fine detail, and captures the room it is sitting in along with it.Cover songaka cover versionA new performance of a song somebody else wrote, sitting on top of two separate layers of rights: the composition and your own recording of it.
D
De-Esseraka de-essing, sibilance controlA compressor that reacts only to a narrow band of high frequencies, used to pull down harsh S and T sounds in a voice.Decibelaka dB, dBFSThe logarithmic unit every level, gain and compression setting is expressed in, always describing a ratio rather than an absolute amount.Dereverbaka reverb removal, de-reverb, echo removalProcessing that reduces room echo already recorded into a track by separating the direct voice from its reflections.Double-enderaka double ender recording, local recordingA remote recording where each person captures their own audio locally and the tracks are combined afterwards, so call quality never touches the finished sound.Dual-System Soundaka double system sound, external audio, off-camera audioRecording audio to a device separate from the camera, then marrying the two back together in the edit.Duckingaka auto-ducking, music ducking, sidechain duckingAutomatically dipping the music whenever the voice comes in, then letting it rise again in the gaps.Dynamic Microphoneaka dynamic mic, moving-coil microphoneA microphone that converts sound with a moving coil. Sturdy, needs no phantom power, and hungry for clean gain from the preamp.
E
F
Field Recorderaka portable recorder, handheld recorder, external recorderA standalone audio recorder used away from the desk, capturing to its own card instead of into a camera or a computer.Foleyaka foley effects, performed sound effectsEveryday sounds performed live to picture and recorded in a studio, replacing or reinforcing what the camera microphone caught.
G
Gainaka input gain, mic gainHow much a preamp amplifies a microphone signal on the way in, set before recording and separate from playback volume.Gain Stagingaka setting levels, level stagingSetting a sensible level at every point in the chain so the signal stays clear of the noise floor and never hits the ceiling.
H
Headroomaka audio headroom, safety marginThe spare level between the loudest part of your audio and the point where it clips, kept as insurance against peaks.High-Pass Filteraka low cut, HPF, rumble filterA filter that removes everything below a set frequency and lets the highs pass. The standard first move on a voice track.
L
Lavalier Microphoneaka lav mic, lapel mic, clip-on micA small microphone clipped to clothing near the chest, which keeps the audio close and consistent while staying nearly invisible on camera.Level Meteraka VU meter, loudness meter, LUFS meter, audio meterThe readout showing how loud a signal is while you record or mix, in peak decibels, averaged level, or LUFS loudness.Limiteraka brickwall limiter, peak limiterA hard ceiling on level. Anything that would push past the threshold you set gets held at it instead.Lip Syncaka A/V sync, audio-video sync, sync drift, out of syncAudio lining up with the mouth movement on screen, and the drift you get when it slowly stops lining up.Loudness Normalisationaka loudness normalization, volume normalisation, -14 LUFSYouTube playing everything back at a common loudness. Louder videos get turned down, so viewers stop adjusting the volume between them.Loudness Units Full Scaleaka LUFS, integrated loudness, LKFSThe unit for measuring how loud a video actually sounds over its full length, and what streaming platforms normalise against.
M
Mains Humaka ground loop, 50Hz hum, 60Hz hum, electrical buzzThe steady low buzz that leaks into audio from mains power, poor earthing or nearby equipment, at 50Hz in the UK and 60Hz in the US.Master rightsaka master recording rights, sound recording rights, mastersThe copyright in one specific recording of a song, normally owned by the label, and separate from the rights in the song as written.Masteringaka master the audio, final loudness passThe final loudness and tonal pass over a finished mix, done once everything else is settled.Mechanical licenceaka mechanical license, cover song licencePermission to reproduce someone else's composition as a recording. It covers audio, which is why a cover video needs more.Microphone bleedaka mic bleed, spillOne person's voice landing on another person's microphone. The reason multi-mic podcast recordings never edit as cleanly as they should.Microphone Placementaka mic placement, mic technique, mic distanceWhere the microphone sits relative to the mouth. The cheapest and largest improvement available to almost any creator's audio.Mix-minusaka mix minus feedA feed sent to a remote guest carrying everything except their own voice, which is what stops the echo.Mixingaka mixdown, audio mix, balancing levelsBalancing voice, music and effects against each other so the result sits at a consistent, comfortable level.Monitor Headphonesaka closed-back headphones, studio headphones, monitoring cansFlat-response headphones used to hear problems while recording and mixing, chosen for accuracy over pleasant sound.Monoaka mono, single channel, mono downmixOne channel of audio, played identically in both ears. The correct format for a single voice, and the fix for a one-sided recording.Mouth clicksaka mouth noise, clicks and breathsThe small saliva and lip noises picked up between words on close-miked voiceover, and a named cleanup step in most edits.Music Bedaka background music, underscore, bed trackInstrumental music running under narration at low level, carrying energy and pace without competing with the voice.Music distributoraka aggregator, distribution serviceThe service that delivers a track to streaming platforms and YouTube, and the route to Content ID and an Official Artist Channel.Music Libraryaka stock music library, production music library, royalty-free libraryA catalogue of tracks written to be licensed into other people's work, sold either as a subscription or one track at a time.
N
Noise Flooraka background noise level, room noiseThe constant hiss and hum sitting under everything you record. What you are left with when nobody is speaking.Noise Gateaka gate, expander, downward expanderA processor that mutes or turns down a signal whenever it falls below a set threshold, silencing the room between phrases.Noise Reductionaka denoise, noise removal, background noise removalProcessing that strips steady background noise, hiss, hum or air conditioning, out of a recording without wrecking the voice.
O
P
Phantom Poweraka 48V, +48VThe 48 volts a mixer or audio interface sends up an XLR cable to run a condenser microphone.Phase Cancellationaka out of phase, phasing, comb filteringTwo microphones picking up one source from different distances, thinning or hollowing the sound once you mix them together.Plosiveaka p-pops, popping, b-popsThe burst of air on P and B sounds that hits a microphone diaphragm and lands as a low thump in the recording.Polar Patternaka pickup pattern, directionality, figure-of-eight, off-axis rejectionThe directions a microphone picks sound up from, and just as usefully the directions it rejects.Pop Filteraka pop shield, pop screenA mesh screen in front of a microphone that breaks up the blast of air from p and b sounds.Proximity Effectaka bass proximity, close-mic bass boostThe bass boost you get when a directional microphone sits very close to the source. Move in and the low end swells.Publishing rightsaka composition rights, songwriting rightsThe copyright in the song itself, its melody and lyrics, held by the writers and their publisher. The second right in every track.
R
Reverbaka reverberation, room echo, roominessReflected sound arriving after the direct sound, either added on purpose as an effect or captured by accident from the room.Room Toneaka ambience, atmos, presence trackA recording of a room with nobody speaking, used to patch gaps and hide edits so cuts never fall into dead silence.
S
Safety Trackaka backup audio track, dual-channel safety, -12dB safetyA second copy of the same audio recorded quieter, kept as insurance in case the main track distorts.Sample Rateaka 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, sampling rateHow many times per second audio is measured while recording. 48 kHz is the standard for anything going into video.Scratch Trackaka reference audio, guide track, camera audioA rough recording kept only as a reference, most often the camera's own microphone used to line up the proper audio.Shock Mountaka suspension mount, spider mountAn elastic cradle that suspends a microphone so knocks through the desk or stand never reach the capsule.Shotgun Microphoneaka shotgun mic, boom mic, interference tube micA highly directional microphone aimed at the speaker from just out of frame. The standard tool for recording dialogue on a set.Sibilanceaka harsh S sounds, essingThe piercing, hissing quality of S, T and SH sounds in a recording, which turns fatiguing once it gets exaggerated.Single-Use Licenceaka per-use licence, needle drop, per-track licenceA music licence covering one track in one project, bought per use, as opposed to a subscription giving you a whole library.Sound Designaka audio designThe deliberate construction of everything a viewer hears: music, effects, ambience, silence, and how all of it sits against the voice.Sound Effectsaka SFX, sound FXNon-musical audio added in the edit: whooshes, clicks, impacts, room tone and the sounds the camera never caught.Soundproofingaka sound isolation, noise blockingStopping sound getting into or out of a room, which takes mass and airtight seals and is really a building job.Speech Enhancementaka AI audio enhancement, enhance speech, voice enhancementAI processing that separates a voice from the room and the noise around it, then rebuilds it closer to a studio recording.Stem Separationaka source separation, vocal isolation, music removalSoftware that splits a finished mix back into separate tracks for vocals, drums, bass and everything else.Stereoaka stereo, two-channel, stereo imageTwo audio channels, left and right, carrying slightly different signals so sounds can be placed across a width.
T
Text-to-Speechaka TTS, synthetic narrationSoftware that turns a written script into spoken narration, now good enough that most listeners will not spot it inside a sentence or two.True Peakaka dBTP, inter-sample peakThe real maximum level of an audio signal, including the peaks that fall between samples. Measured in dBTP.
U
V
W
Windscreenaka dead cat, windjammer, wind muff, foam coverThe foam or fur cover over a microphone that stops moving air hitting the capsule and turning into low-frequency roar.Wireless Microphone Systemaka wireless lav, radio mic, wireless micA transmitter and receiver pair that sends audio from a moving subject to the camera without a cable.