I would like to propose that people making audio products give as much care and attention to the quality of the sound as they do to the content.


My hearing is slightly dodgy due to mi-spending my youth playing guitar in loud bands and a lot of my adulthood in loud clubs but I am certain I am not the only one who has problems with a lot audio content.

Typical issues are:

1. Background noise particularly in seminars
Air conditioners and other hums: switch them off or turn them down, reposition the mike.
Cups and saucers: give people mugs and then they won't make a noise, easy.
Traffic noise and car alarms: If you are making a recording then check out the venue beforehand and choose a room that doesn't back onto a road or a car park

2. Sound badly mixed.
Telephone calls where the caller is very quiet compared with the person doing the recording: get a phone where you can adjust the sound and spend 5 mins beforehand cheeking the levels. Perry Marshall and lots of low budget radio phone ins get it right so it is just laziness.

Seminars where the audience are muffled or very quiet. Use some extra mikes and use someone to set the levels or use AGC.

If the people making the audio do not understand what to do, perhaps they could go on a course or buy a CD/DVD.

PS The title would be TM Jonathan Swift, but since he isn't arround I don't think he will mind.