Lawyers Get Expert Mic Tips

Sounding good online is a base requirement for anyone who wants to podcast, make a guest appearance, or even command the Zoom room in meetings. But most people don’t know what they’re doing with their microphones. These microphone tips for lawyers will help you sound better than 90% of people out there.

The Distance Rule is a good place to start. Keeping your microphone 4 to 8 inches away is the single fastest way to fix hollow, distant room audio.

During the height of pandemic isolation, many people hopped onto high-stakes Zoom calls, only to see a colleague wearing their teenager’s glowing gamer headset. Flashing RGB lights strapped to your head do not pair well with a critical meeting about quarterly revenues.

The pandemic created an immediate urgency to actually sound good online. After an initial scramble, most people bought something that technically qualified as a microphone but didn’t break the bank — flooding desks with unknown brands or the ubiquitous Blue Yeti.

Attorneys make several common mistakes when it comes to microphones. One of the most common is not knowing where the mic is actually listening. To fix your sound, you need to answer a couple of basic questions: Is it top-address or side-address? Many podcasters mistakenly talk directly into the top of a microphone when it was designed to be spoken into the side (or vice versa).

Another mistake is not checking the polar patterns. If your microphone has a pattern selector switch, make sure it is set to cardioid mode — usually indicated by an upside-down, rounded heart icon. This ensures the mic principally listens to you and ignores the sound behind it.

Lawyers may have a reputation for being terrible at math, but many are equally terrible at spatial reasoning. If your microphone is so far away that it can’t be seen on your wide-angle camera shot, it is not capturing clean audio. The sweet spot is 4 to 8 inches away from your mouth.

The closer you get to a mic, the more bass response it captures. Test your setup by recording short clips at varying distances until you find the sweet spot where your voice sounds rich but natural. However, don’t overdo it. Getting too close causes muddy distortion that makes you sound like a late-night AM radio host rather than an elite counselor.

Hold your hand in front of your face and say, “Peter picked a peck of pickled peppers.” You will feel distinct puffs of air on your palm. In the audio world, these are called plosives — and they cause massive, distorted pops on a recording. The fix is to position your microphone at a 20-degree angle to the side or slightly below your chin.

Your microphone hears everything. That overhead ceiling fan, the nearby office refrigerator, the snoring dog at your feet and airplanes overhead are all competing with your voice. You don’t need to build a professional isolation booth in your office, but you do need to be mindful of your environment: record in the quietest room available, and choose a room with “soft” features — bookshelves, a plush couch or rugs.

Most online recording platforms use automated “echo cancellation” software to stop audio from leaking out of your speakers back into your microphone. However, this real-time digital processing degrades your overall voice quality. By simply wearing headphones, you eliminate the loop. You can turn off the software’s aggressive audio processing and capture pristine sound.

Every time you plug in a new microphone, double-check your system settings to make sure your computer is actually routing audio through your new hardware and hasn’t silently reverted to your terrible, tinny built-in laptop mic. Microphones rely on amplification, known as gain. Set your gain too low, and you’re a whisper competing with what we call the “noise floor,” or the electrical noise your microphone’s components create; set it too high, and your audio will “clip” and distort.

Use an online volume tool or your recording software’s meter to test your levels before a session. When speaking at your normal speaking volume, aim to average around -12dB and never hit 0dB. If you follow these steps, you will immediately sound better than 90% of the people currently producing content.

By applying these practical microphone tips for lawyers and pairing your setup with a competent audio engineer to clean up the files in post-production, you instantly give your firm a distinct competitive advantage. For instance, a lawyer who sounds clear and professional on a podcast is more likely to attract potential clients and build trust with their audience by delivering a clear and elevator speech that leaves a lasting impression.

These tips are not just limited to podcasting, but can also be applied to other online appearances, such as video conferencing and webinars. By following these simple steps, lawyers can improve their online presence and communicate more effectively with their clients and audience.