Object-based audio was once thought to be limited to gaming, installations, and film/TV productions, but podcasters and audio storytellers are now beginning to explore the potential of this technology. Formats like 

 all have the potential to make audio storytelling content like podcasts and audiobooks more accessible, interactive, and exciting. Let’s take a closer look.

The term "object-based audio" is used to describe recordings where individual sources (like voices, instruments, or sound effects) are stored as its own audio file (usually mono) and accompanying metadata that defines levels, panning, and much much more. Each audio object (a project can have hundreds) is then joined with some mixed audio elements (often referred to as channel-based or scene-based “beds”) and rendered by software and equipment on the listener’s equipment. That renderer decides how to best represent the audio mix on whatever technology the listener is using, whether it’s headphones, a home entertainment system with a few different speakers, or a carefully tuned movie theater with dozens of speakers surrounding the audience. This offers major advantages for spatial audio content delivery, and one of the goals of these formats is to limit the amount of different deliverables a mixer has to create (stereo, 5.1, 7.1 etc.) and just let the intentions of the mixer be interpreted by the rendering equipment.

Because these audio objects get passed all the way through the delivery format, this can also offer the listener an enhanced level of control over the recorded audio. For example: a listener could turn up the narrator to hear them better over the incidental music in a podcast, or turn off the commentary while watching sports, or choose a different language for all of the dialogue in a film.

This ability to control the audio is very different from the way we’ve conventionally delivered audio recordings to listeners: as a stereo or multichannel mix where all the individual audio decisions get “baked in” to that final mix. Object-based formats wait until that final rendering step to do the “baking”, which means listeners have unprecedented control and customization of the audio they’re listening to, and the rendering technologies can make smart decisions that create a great sounding experience on whatever playback system is available. We can even imagine audio players that can customize playback based on a listeners profile, preferences, and environment. For example: the player could identify that you’re listening to a podcast in a noisy car and make dynamic range adjustments that will work well for that situation. But if you come back and listen to the rest of that podcast on headphones in a quiet library, it can adjust for that situation and provide a more nuanced listening experience.

As this technology becomes more widely available and the content becomes easier to distribute, we could see a significant leap in user-friendly features that mainstream podcast and audiobook audiences could benefit from. Of particular focus will be the areas of podcast accessibility and podcast translation, which may dramatically expand the ways in which audiences engage with audio content. One key result will be a significant increase in consumption of content, and, as a by-product, more opportunities for advertisers to target audiences thoughtfully.

Including Metadata With Podcast and Audiobooks

Normal audio files that are played on music services like Apple Music and Spotify contain metadata like the name of the artist, band, song title, artwork, lyrics, copyright information, etc. With object-based audio, we could imagine even more metadata being included about each individual component within that musical work, including gain, position, and identifying characteristics like who played bass, where each track was recorded, or maybe even musical notation for each track.

When we think about how this might apply to podcasts and audiobooks, there could be individual audio objects and metadata for each guest or actor in the recording. The metadata could include information such as who the speaker is, when and where they were recorded, and more. In theory, it would be possible for a listener to use their podcast app to search for all the podcasts that feature a specific guest, let’s say Kamala Harris, and then bring up the entire catalogue of her guest appearances, across all of the podcasts that she’s appeared on or been quoted within. Wouldn’t that be handy?

There are already some types of metadata included in podcast deliveries, like chapters and descriptions of the shows, and so you can easily jump to different segments or access links provided by the creator. We could take it several steps further with object-based audio, and have the speakers’ names appearing in real-time, and the ability to swipe or tap to see their bio and other information while they’re talking. This could also facilitate sharing quotations or segments from podcasts easily from within a piece of content, helping to curate the best portions of an interview and disseminate them to a broader audience.

Podcasts and Audiobooks in Multiple Languages

The increased demand for interactive types of content coupled with a global growth of podcast consumption points towards another potential use for object-based audio: allowing listeners to access multiple language translations of the same podcast or audiobook within the same deliverable. With the flick of a proverbial switch, you could change from an English-speaking narrator to a French-speaking narrator in real-time. The creator wouldn’t have to publish separate translated versions for each language, which can also help to simplify metrics tracking, reviews, and rankings. We could even imagine advertisements that are targeted based on whatever language version the listener was accessing.

This ability to control the translated versions opens up a myriad of opportunities, including for people who want to learn foreign languages, or for those who are multilingual but have a preferred language. And it can improve global sharing and relatability of content, opening up new avenues of communication between people across cultures.

Another potential benefit of object-based audio is for listeners with hearing impairments. For example, if the music bed of a podcast or audiobook is too loud to be able to decipher the dialogue, then the listener could reduce the volume of the music bed (or mute it entirely), to hear the dialogue more clearly. Or set preferences for the priority of content that the audio player can interpret, like prioritizing dialogue first, sound design second, and incidental music third. We could also imagine metadata stored along with each audio object that could include the transcribed dialogue to make it easy to follow along with an accurate transcription and navigate through a podcast based on the transcription, not just chapter markers and timings.


Currently, there aren’t simple means for distributing 

 content to conventional podcast players or apps, but it does seem to be on the horizon. It’s our hope that podcasters and audio storytellers will soon be able to integrate a fantastic set of new content creation tools to help recognize and grow the diversity of their audiences, and also generate content that takes on all new interactive possibilities.

Object-based audio is more than just a means of delivering spatial audio content, and it has the potential to bring extensive benefits to the accessibility and interactivity of podcasts.

Object-based Audio and Podcasting

Creating a podcast has come within reach for anyone who feels like they have a story to tell. It's relatively simple to get started, record, edit, find music and publish your podcast. But there's still a huge amount of knowledge and skill required to create a great-sounding podcast. It's easy to get lost in the forest of sound recorders, mics, headphones and editing software. But without proper usage, technology does little for you. Let's explore a few concepts that will help you get the most out of your gear without spending any money.

There's a concept in sound production called the 

 that will have a huge impact on how 'clean' your recordings sound. The signal is the sound you want to record, which for a podcast is voice. Noise is everything else; other participants' voices leaking into your mic, traffic outside, room ambience or a tactless neighbor mowing their lawn in the middle of your recording session.

In reality, this translates to bringing the mic (almost) as close to your mouth as possible. A good rule of thumb (pun intended) is to use the distance between your thumb and pinky to get an approximation of how close you should be. If you get too close to the mic it can cause sound artifacts that will ruin your recording.

What happens when you bring your signal source, or mouth, closer to the mic is that the signal-to-noise ratio works in favor of the signal. If your mouth is too far away from the mic, you will inevitably have to increase the gain on your sound recorder. This means bringing up the noise as well which will make your recording sound worse, and since your mouth is far away you will sound distant to the listener.

This is true whether you use a professional mic or your phone to record sound. Can't beat physics.

Bring the microphone close to your source (mouth). Not too close. But close. If you hear puffs or other sound artifacts, move slightly further away or shift your position so the air stream from your mouth doesn’t go straight into the microphone.

2. Pick an acoustically favorable recording space

Even if you have perfect mic placement, your sound can still suffer from room acoustics. The most common problems caused by your space are reverberation and phasing issues.

Reverberation is caused by hard, flat surfaces that let the sound bounce around with no resistance. This effect can be something you want for creative purposes. Like the way a concert hall compliments the sound of an orchestra, or how a recording made in an airplane hangar can add long, overlapping echoes.

In smaller spaces, reverberation tends to create a disturbing and unwanted effect in your recordings since the sound is bouncing over such a short distance that the reflections become problematic.

Phasing issues are a sibling to reverberation but cause a different problem in your recording. Depending on the space you're in and how sound bounces around in it, some frequencies in a person's voice can bounce back and cancel out frequencies in the same spectrum. This can cause all sorts of issues that result in either poor audio quality or a lot of frustration in front of your computer while trying to clean it up.

Some simple ways to overcome these issues, without being in a dedicated studio, are:

Apply the signal-to-noise ratio principle in tip 1 to ensure you’re recording more of the signal (voice) than noise (in this case, the reverberation).

Test the space(s) you're considering to record in and choose the one with the least reflections. A simple way of testing is to clap your hands and listen to how the sound bounces. For reference, you can compare your bathroom with your bedroom.

Record in a space that has a lot of materials that can mitigate reflections. Some excellent sound absorbents are carpets, beds, couches, pillows, uneven wall textures and (thick) curtains. Any material that is soft enough to absorb sound waves or that has rough textures that disperse reflections in different directions will make your recording environment better.

If you still have to use a space that's not ideal, add sound-absorbing materials and elements to your recording space. You can also consider buying acoustic treatment pads, there are cheap alternatives that help your space out quite a bit. It's also an opportunity to make your recording space more cosy. I mean, who doesn't like a mountain of pillows?

Capture test recordings and make sure it sounds good. Use the same number of mics and talk into each one to get a grasp on how the sound bounces. The more voices you can test with the better, but testing with just your own is still a huge step.

I have a few pet peeves when listening to podcasts, and the two most common ones by far are poor sound quality and uneven sound levels.

I bet you've experienced it too; the podcast starts with a short intro. You set your volume accordingly, and then your ears almost explode when a jingle begins at more than double the volume of the intro speech. I keep listening. The sound level between the show host and a person being interviewed is way off.

I find myself struggling to find the middle ground between not having the show host sounding too loud while still being able to clearly hear the interviewee. It annoys the heck out of me as a listener.

annoy the heck out of me (and other listeners).

When recording, keep the peaks of each mic at approximately -12dB on the meter in your recorder. You can keep -12dB in mind when editing as well. This comes in handy if you're recording to a device that does not allow you to set levels while recording. Instead, you can control them in your editing software.

To make mastering - the task of finalizing your podcast mix - faster you can also set your other sound sources to about -12dB when editing. This includes music, jingles, sound effects and anything else you throw in there.

Set background music 10-15dB below your voice level. This means it should peak around -27 to -22dB, depending on the type of music. Trust your ears — can you hear the voice clearly over the music?

We've now reached a mix that is somewhat even in sound level which ensures you won't annoy your listeners. If you export in this state, your listeners might have to max out their volume on their listening device to get it loud enough. Even though it's not optimal, it's a significant improvement over uneven sound levels.

Closely related to the signal-to-noise ratio, we find mic technique. Once you've ensured that your mic is within a good distance from your mouth and provides a clean signal, you can start improving your mic technique.

Poor mic technique is very obvious to the listener as it creates several problems when recording sound:

Puffs and pops (called "plosives") in the recording

Distorted sound when raising your voice or laughing loudly

Uneven levels as a result of not speaking into the mic

Unwanted sounds when hitting the table, mic stand or adjusting the position of the mic

Luckily, all of these can be avoided by following a few simple principles:

Wear headphones. Nothing beats hearing the issues created by poor mic technique and fixing them in real-time.

Keep the air stream from your mouth off-axis from the mic so the air doesn't go straight into the mic. Position yourself or the mic so you that you still get a good signal-to-noise ratio without forcing air into the mic.

If you're laughing, screaming, coughing or being loud in general, lean away from the mic and/or turn to the side. This makes sure the sound doesn't distort. Distortion is when your equipment gets overloaded and creates a very unflattering sound. No one enjoys distorted voices.

A common beginner's issue is that they move in and out of the mic's pickup pattern. A pickup pattern defines a mic's optimal angle in correlation to the source (your mouth). When recording a podcast with several people, it's easy to look at the person you're talking to and forget about the mic. This can result in talking off-axis and getting worse sound in your recording. The solution is to see your head as a planet, and your mic as the sun. If you want to look left to talk to another participant in the podcast, lean right so your sound source (mouth) stays in a good position for the mic to pick up clean sound.

Keep your hands and fiddliness in check. Mics are sensitive and will pick up any click, bump or thud around it. Again, wear headphones to help you realize how loud it sounds in the recording. Consider putting a soft material on your table so you can put down your coffee cup without acting like you're John McClane handling a nuclear device. Floor protectors on your chairs and table is also a great and cheap way to mitigate unwanted sounds when recording.

I hope you leave this article feeling confident that you can achieve good sound without expensive equipment and ideal surroundings. I suffer heavily from GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome). I've found myself spending hours looking up gear and gadgets instead of creating and doing, and it kills my creativity.

With the techniques listed in this article you can record and share a podcast that sounds good enough, and that's what counts. If you're limited on resources, you can record your podcast with your phone's built-in microphone. Just make sure mic placement is good, that you record in an acoustically decent place, get your sound levels right and spend some time learning one of the free sound editors out there. Once your podcast is soaring, you can look to upgrade your equipment.

What matters in the end is the quality of your story and content. Happy creating!

https://www.youtube.com/user/axknickerbocker

https://www.youtube.com/musicradiocreative/

As I was finishing up this post I was bouncing around on YouTube and other sites to make sure I mentioned everything I wanted to include. I ended up watching this video from Javier Mercedes which covers some of the points in this post. I highly recommend you check it out: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aHy3QMI4XM

Author: Linus Nygren, Director of Content & Community

Linus has deep knowledge in the broadcast radio, podcasting and filmmaking industries. Before Nomono, he worked as a radio journalist, radio show host, podcast show host, film producer and commercial cinematographer. He’s most passionate about the technical aspects, workflow, psychology of storytelling and sharing knowledge to help others create better content.

Learn how to take your podcast from sounding "OK" to "Great" with the equipment and software you already have at your disposal.

Four steps to a better sounding podcast (without spending any money)

Nomono, a Trondheim-based audio technology startup spun out from SINTEF Digital in 2019, has 

, securing an additional NOK 55 Million (€5.4M, $6.4M USD) to fuel their research, development, and growth, after setting out to raise just NOK 35 Million (€3.4M, $4M USD) in this round.

“This is a strong vote of confidence from the investment community that the work we’re doing is important and revolutionary. Our team has built some incredible tools that are already finding traction with our beta customers, and we’re excited to have the runway to continue our work in simplifying the podcast production process while raising the bar on sound quality for all types of audio storytelling.”

Nomono is building hardware and software that makes it easier for professional podcasters, journalists, and audio storytellers to 

create great sounding immersive audio experiences

, and leverages the latest innovations in Spatial Audio that have recently become available through technologies like 

This extends the initial seed round investment of 

NOK 25.5 Million (€2.4M, $2.9M USD) closed in September of 2020

 (their first Norwegian investment). This round welcomes a number of new investors including Tvenge og Adolfsen.

The Nomono team has more than doubled in size in the past year, and now has employees based in Trondheim, Oslo, Sweden, and New York. At the same time, the podcast landscape continues to grow exponentially, 

with a more than 280% increase in the creation of new podcasts in 2020

, from 300,000 new podcasts in 2019 to almost 900,000 in 2020.

“All these podcasters are working through cumbersome workflows that make field recording and collaboration difficult, often at the expense of creativity and audio quality. We’re excited to remove some of these roadblocks so they can focus on the conversations with their guests and colleagues, and to make it possible to bring their listeners right inside the conversation through Spatial Audio technology.”

Nomono’s expertise in Spatial Audio has also become even more valuable given recent announcements from companies like Apple and Netflix around 

, setting the stage for podcasters to bring immersive audio storytelling to their audiences. Spatial Audio technologies are being implemented for listeners in headphones, smart speakers, soundbars, mobile devices and cars, but the process of creating Spatial Audio requires specialized equipment and expertise that often puts it out-of-reach for the traditional podcaster or journalist. Nomono’s technology removes this bottleneck, giving audio storytellers access to this powerful new medium in a simple, accessible way.

Norwegian startup completes oversubscribed round to simplify podcasting and enable spatial audio content creation.

Nomono raises €5.4 million in late seed round

Trondheim-based sound recording technology startup Nomono recently closed their first seed round. The target of 20 MNOK was over-subscribed, hitting a total of 25.5 MNOK. The round was lead by Skyfall Ventures and Spintop Ventures alongside existing investors like SINTEF Venture and Investinor.

Nomono has piqued the interest of several well-known venture firms, more than doubling the company's value in this seed after the successful pre-seed in 2019 which oversubscribed from 8 MNOK to 10 MNOK.

The list of investors in this seed contains a number of heavy hitters in the Scandinavian venture market. Among them we find Swedish deep tech-experienced VC Spintop Ventures who, through their investment, help create a unique relationship between a Norwegian consumer tech startup and a Swedish VC.

We sent out a few questions to the investors to get a sense of why they chose to invest in Nomono and what primary values they see in the company. Below are excerpts from each investor.

"We love the space Nomono is targeting, namely the high growth market of sound and audio creation. […] The need to efficiently record, process and release great sound is in high demand, and Nomono is addressing this need with their software enabled microphone product line and their post-production application. Also, the team is truly extraordinary with their proven track record of building successful technology companies and their deep domain knowledge when it comes to audio."

— Espen Malmo, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Skyfall Ventures

"We are excited to join as an investor in Nomono. The team has true world-class competence, the company rides on strong market trends and the product proposition has a potential to truly disrupt the recording workflow and final experience of audio."

— Sami Niemi, Partner, Spintop Ventures

"SINTEF has a long history of advanced signal processing and acoustics which has enabled us to support research and successful startups for a long time. When we started working with Audun Solvang [Co-founder, Nomono], we saw a seed of something that can fundamentally change the way we record and process sound in the future. In 3 years time we have moved from some very interesting graphs on a piece of paper to where there's a company, a product and the path forward looks very promising. We at SINTEF Venture are very pleased to have leading nordic VC's join us in this journey."

"Nomono is uniquely positioned to streamline the complex and cumbersome audio recording and processing workflow. People want "plug-and-play" solutions without compromising on sound quality, which is exactly what Nomono delivers. We believe they have the perfect mix of product nerdiness and entrepreneurial savviness to get a strong foothold in a rapidly growing international market."

"We chose to invest [in Nomono] because they have a proven management who has the right experience to carry out this development, both technically and commercially, to vastly improve the effectiveness of spatial recording. Combined with patents and the backing of SINTEF, they should have a very good foundation for success."

"I have been a digital creative and remote worker for 20 years which comes with a lot of challenges. I'm quite a sound nerd and spent a lot of time searching for the optimal setup for creation and meetings. Sound quality is actually more important than video quality in human interactions and storytelling, and I believe Nomono has the chance to crack this market open through their experienced leadership and solid team."



Nomono wouldn't have made it to this stage without their early financial supporters. SINTEF and FORNY aided during the initial research and development process. Once Nomono launched, Innovasjon Norge stepped in with grants and loans to support Nomono up until the pre-seed.

Trondheim-based sound recording technology startup Nomono recently closed their first seed round. 

Updates

Object-based Audio and Podcasting

Four steps to a better sounding podcast (without spending any money)

Nomono raises €5.4 million in late seed round

Investment funding for Norwegian spatial audio startup Nomono