WEBVTT NOTE Transcript 2024-03-31 from FLAC by https://elvery.net/prototypes/transcribe/ on my MacBook Air M1 on maximum quality setting. NOTE Body edited. 00:00.000 --> 00:07.520 Hi, I'm Damon Hart-Davis and this is an Earth Notes metacast for 10th April 2020. 00:07.520 --> 00:12.960 I've been happy recording this podcast with my MacBook Air's built-in mic, 00:12.960 --> 00:18.560 but as I accidentally discovered for my sign-off for 2019 with my cheap mobile headset, 00:18.560 --> 00:24.160 I can do significantly worse. Given repeated prompts from some musician friends, I'm trying 00:24.160 --> 00:31.440 to up my game. I hummed and hoored and then lashed out on a Logitech Blue Yeti USB microphone, 00:31.440 --> 00:36.080 which seemed widely recommended if maybe more money than I necessarily wanted to spend 00:36.080 --> 00:41.680 - £88 including that and P+P - on a podcast with maybe less than one listener. 00:41.680 --> 00:47.840 Separately, to help deal with the inflated number of Skype and other calls provoked by lockdown, 00:47.840 --> 00:52.000 on the same day I bought a Jabra headset. Quite spendy for me. 00:52.720 --> 00:57.040 I'm quickly testing all four microphones available to me and that are candidates for 00:57.040 --> 01:01.920 recording future episodes, though if I'm not at home I'm quite likely to revert to the zero 01:01.920 --> 01:07.440 equipment, zero hassle, MBA built-in mic for simplicity. We'll see. 01:07.440 --> 01:13.760 For a test recording snippet, I want something that exercises the gamut of my spoken language, 01:13.760 --> 01:19.120 i.e. English RP, received pronunciation. I was sorely tempted to use one of the 01:19.120 --> 01:24.320 diction exercises from the film My Fair Lady, based on George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, 01:24.320 --> 01:29.680 such as "In Hartford, Hereford and Hampshire hurricanes hardly happen, 01:29.680 --> 01:34.880 but a phonetic pangram should be better." Also, because people have complained about my 01:34.880 --> 01:41.759 sibilance and harshly suggested a de-essing filter, I can use a famous soundcheck test phrase too. 01:43.000 --> 01:49.000 My two-part test phrase is thus: Testing: 1, 2, 3. Are those shy Eurasian footwear, 01:49.920 --> 01:56.560 cowboy chaps or jolly earth-moving headgear? Listen to the soundtext captured with each of the mics. 01:56.560 --> 02:01.680 The mobile headset. Testing 123 02:01.680 --> 02:08.240 Are those shy Eurasian footwear, cowboy chaps or jolly earth-moving headgear? 02:15.360 --> 02:21.440 Are those shy Eurasian footwear, cowboy chaps or jolly earth-moving headgear? 02:36.400 --> 02:40.400 The Blue Yeti. Testing 123 02:40.400 --> 02:47.440 Are those shy Eurasian footwear, cowboy chaps or jolly earth-moving headgear? 02:47.440 --> 02:56.960 All are sampled at 44.1kHz and captured and normalised in Audacity. All are stereo, 02:56.960 --> 03:03.360 except the Jabra. I'd say that the cheapo mobile headset mic is clearly the least good. 03:03.360 --> 03:08.080 I didn't even know that the headset had a mic when I bought it, so the mic was effectively a free 03:08.080 --> 03:15.840 bonus. Next best is the new Mono Jabra. I may not be doing it justice since the sound level seemed 03:15.840 --> 03:21.920 a bit low, making the normalisation work hard. The MacBook Air's built-in stereo mic is clearly 03:26.880 --> 03:33.120 The Yeti sound has taken a bit of getting used to and is less bright to my ear than the Max, 03:33.120 --> 03:38.960 but is richer and warmer and better overall I think. The sample is probably a bit harsh and 03:38.960 --> 03:44.480 even clipped. This brief episode has brought to you courtesy of the Blue Yeti. I think that it'll 03:44.480 --> 03:49.280 take a bit of effort to use well, e.g. getting gain and positioning right for my desk and finding 03:49.280 --> 03:55.200 space to store it when not in use. But so far, I'm happy with it. Look in the show notes on this 03:55.200 --> 04:00.880 episode's page for the earlier samples and a bonus sample or two when I get the opportunity to put the 04:00.880 --> 04:09.920 Yeti through its paces. There's more on my Earth Notes Web site at Earth.Org.UK.