Best Practices for Name Recordings
- Be sure to speak clearly, at a comfortable pace, and a consistent volume. While StageClip can account for some volume inconsistencies, we have limited control when audio is submitted at a very low volume, and higher volumes can cause distortion
- Record in a quiet location free from background and ambient noise, such as air conditioning or outside traffic
- Choose a smaller room, and consider covering surfaces with a duvet or soft furnishings to dampen any echo
- Avoid using your computer’s built-in microphone. A low-cost USB microphone will give you much better results than a built-in mic, and can be purchased for less than $100. If you do not have a decent external microphone available, even your smartphone earbuds will work
- Consider investing in a pop filter, which will minimize distracting sounds caused by hard consonants such as “p” and “b.” Pop filters can be purchased for less than $20
- Trim the start and end of the recordings to eliminate any mouse clicks or other background noises
- Record a few test names with varying sounds to be sure your names sound clear and consistent
File Specifications
- Audio files must be mp3, wav, or m4a
- Each name recording must be submitted as a separate file in a zip folder
- Audio recordings must be trimmed to exclude silence at the beginning and end
- File names must exactly match the ID column in the reference excel (your supplied ID's or StageClip assigned ID's)
- If you need StageClip to assign IDs, please submit your participant list to us and we will return it to you with that field added
- If you have participants who appear more then once, whether in a single ceremony or in multiple ceremonies, we must have an audio file for each time the name is to be read.
- Finished recordings and reference spreadsheet must be submitted at least 12 days prior to your ceremony