Human body · 60 s
Why your recorded voice sounds wrong
Yes, you really sound like that.
You’d think. The recording is lying. That cringe is really common, but it isn’t.
Actually. Your voice reaches your inner ear through the air and through your skull. The bone route boosts low notes, so in your head you sound deeper and fuller.
The twist. In 2013, 80 people rated voices with their own hidden in the mix. Most apparently didn’t notice, and rated their own as more attractive than others did.
How sure? A small study, and familiarity is the authors’ suggested explanation. The bone-conduction part is well established.
Sources
- Why your voice sounds weird on recordings (2021), Popular Science
- Hate the sound of your voice? Not really (2013), ScienceDaily
What the video says
Yes, sorry, you really do sound like that on recordings.
That cringe at your own voice note is really common, and the recording isn't the one lying.
When you talk, your voice reaches your inner ear two ways. Through the air, like everyone else hears it, and through the bones of your own skull.
The bone route boosts the low notes, so in your head you sound deeper and fuller than you do to anyone else.
In 2013, psychologists at Albright College played 80 people recordings of voices counting from one to ten. Their own voice was hidden in the mix, and most apparently didn't notice.
They rated their own voice as more attractive than other listeners did. The researchers think familiarity played a part, even without recognizing it.
So, deep down, you like your voice, as long as nobody tells you it's yours. Go on, play that voice note again.