How do you control audio levels--to get the desired
reading on the VU meter? Nearly every professional recording
device--including pro camcorders--has a knob of some
sort to increase or decrease the level of the audio
being recorded.
The
trick here is to NOT trust your ears. It's easy to listen
to an audio source and conclude it "sounds OK."
and then ignore the VU meters. This is a big mistake.
Below
are illustrations of what happens when you record the
audio too high or too low.
(These
animations HAVE SOUND!) The sound
is lousy on these two animations,
but that's ON PURPOSE! On the left
animation, listen to the distortion
caused by levels that are recorded
too high. On the right animation,
you'll hear the hiss that results
from levels that are recorded too
low. (Listen several times, it's
important you develop an ear for distorion
and hiss)
Again,
you won't notice these problems when
you first record a sound. The hiss
and distortion won't become evident
until later, when you play back the
sound. That's why it is important
to watch your levels when recording.
Also,
I should note that these illustrations
point out problems in analog recording.
Recording too high or too low is also
a big problem with digital media--although
the results will sound somewhat different.
