Does everyone think they sound weird when they rcord themselves singing?

Question

I'm talking about being a serious singer. I sing the same way as i do live and ppl say im good but when i listen to it on the comp it sounds weird. im wondering is it just me

Thank u all of ur answers helped

Answer 1

I think most ppl do. Just wish that alot of those who try out for American Idol would take the time to record themselves then play it back to a group of their peers before making such a fool of themselves in front of national tv and then blame the judges for being so harsh!!! does anyone else agree??? **smiles**

Answer 2

The first few times, we do sound strange because we are used to hearing our voices "from the inside" as it were. An average person hears their own voice 1) the reflected sound from outside, a sort of close up echo, that is carried through the air and back into the ears, where the mechanism of the ear transfers the sound via the nerves and into the brain
2) through bone conduction ( through the skull) where it gets transferred to the nerves and into the brain, etc.
So we have a distorted perception of what we sound like, and even more, what we want to sound like.
Recording one's voice is the auditory equivalent of looking in a mirror. It's honest ( sometimes unfavorably so), and it takes some getting used to. As you would not want to trust a circus mirror to give you accurate information, you also don't want to trust inferior recording equipment to give you the best information on your voice. Use good mikes!
Most classical singers welcome the chance to learn from recording their lessons, gradually coordinating the sense of "when it feels right in my body, it sounds right", rather than listening for the sound alone.
Enjoy experimenting, and keep on singing!

Answer 3

The quality of your recording equipment and environment are crucial to the final product. Also the speakers that you use to listen to yourself will certainly affect how your voice sounds. Example... listen to your favorite vocalist on your home stereo... then play the same track through cheap pc speakers, cell phone, etc... huge tonal difference. You also aren't used to hearing yourself "outside of your own head", but that will come in time.
Studio mics can be expensive, but you should avoid radio shack type brands and at least invest 100 bucks into a shure 58 or a beta 58. Portable home studios are all over the net as well. Self contained, and some with built in burners too... lots of fun and great creative tools. Good luck...

Answer 4

I think everyone is weirded out by how their voice sounds when recorded. There's an actual physical reason for it, which I'm about to explain really badly! - lol!

Basically it has to do with the fact that when you speak, and you hear your own voice as you speak, it sounds different to you in your own head because of the way your voice vibrates against your ear (in other words, it's almost a little distorted in your own head because of your inner ear structure and temple bones, etc.). However when you hear your own recorded voice, you're hearing it without the distortion of your own head - so that's what you REALLY sound like.

Does that make sense, or did I do a really poor job of explaining it?

Answer 5

Not wierd at all. When you hear yourself talk, your inner ear actually detects not only the sound comming out of your mouth, but the resonance of your head, brain and sinus cavities. When you listen to a playback, those resonances are gone and you hear what you actually sound like.

Answer 6

I think I do, my friends recorded me while I was singing (for the fun of it) and we all thought I sounded older and just...different. Probably depends on the recording device you use. We used a cellphone so yeah.

Answer 7

The voice you hear when you listen to yourself speaking is distorted. When you record yourself, that's your real voice, thus the weirdness feeling. I'm used to hearing myself recorded so, no, I don't sound weird to myself.

Answer 8

yah, cuz the recording doesnt sound like a live person singing...Like if you record the fan blowing you would hear a WOOOHHH sound even though thats not how the fan sounds...It would sound a bit different...

Answer 9

No, but I sure sound weird on an answering machine!

Answer 10

Nah. i'm very serious of myself, and that i many times imagine i'm a lot worse than human beings say i'm. you've 2 extremes even as in contains how human beings imagine they sing. they imagine they both suck, or rock. :T Or, a minimum of from my adventure.