Factors Affecting Transcription Quality:
Heavy Background Noise
Background noise is the biggest obstacle to high-quality transcription. Whenever possible, record indoors or in a studio setting, as removing noise from recordings can be challenging. If your recording has background noise, reduce it first using audio tools like Audacity, Adobe Audition, or AVID. While these tools help, they don’t guarantee perfect results.
Noise Reduction in Audacity:
Download Audacity at audacityteam.org/download.
Open your file: click “File” > “Open” and select your audio file.
Select a “Room Tone” section (a quiet part of the recording) by highlighting it.
Go to “Effect” > “Noise Reduction,” then click “Get Noise Profile.”
Return to the timeline to clear the selection.
Again, go to “Effect” > “Noise Reduction” and click “Preview” to hear the noise removal results. If needed, adjust the sliders and preview until satisfied.
Keep the Microphone Close to the Speaker
Positioning the microphone close to the speaker and clear enunciation improve sound quality and transcription accuracy.
Skype and Phone Interviews
Audio from Skype and phone interviews often has lower quality due to compression, which may reduce transcription accuracy.