Enabling and disabling Original Sound in Zoom significantly impacts the audio quality, particularly for playback and singing. Here's a detailed explanation of the differences:
Enabling Original Sound
- Purpose: Enabling Original Sound is crucial for playback lessons or any scenario where preserving the full range of audio frequencies is important. This setting allows Zoom to transmit audio without applying its default noise reduction and echo cancellation features, which are optimized for speech[3][7][9].
- Audio Quality: When Original Sound is enabled, Zoom does not filter out low-frequency sounds or soft volumes, which are often mistaken for background noise. This ensures that playbackal instruments and singing are transmitted clearly, preserving their dynamic range and nuances[6][8].
- Settings Adjustment: To enable Original Sound, users must first configure their audio settings to show the "Enable Original Sound" option. Then, during each meeting, they must manually toggle this option on to activate it[2][4][8].
- Equipment Compatibility: This setting is particularly beneficial when using high-quality microphones or sound equipment that have built-in echo cancellation and noise reduction features. It allows Zoom to bypass its own processing and rely on the external equipment for better sound quality[9].
Disabling Original Sound
- Default Behavior: By default, Zoom is optimized for speech, which means it applies noise reduction and echo cancellation to enhance voice clarity. Disabling Original Sound reverts to these default settings, which are suitable for most voice-only meetings[7][9].
- Noise Reduction: When Original Sound is disabled, Zoom actively filters out background noise and reduces echo, which can be beneficial in environments with significant ambient noise. However, this can also mute softer sounds or playbackal instruments if they are not loud enough to be recognized as primary audio[5][8].
- Audio Quality for Playback: Disabling Original Sound can lead to a loss of audio fidelity for playback, as Zoom's algorithms may interpret playbackal nuances as background noise and filter them out. This results in a less accurate transmission of playbackal sounds[6][10].
- Ease of Use: Disabling Original Sound requires no additional action during meetings, as it is the default mode. Users only need to ensure that their microphone levels are appropriately set to avoid distortion or muting[3][7].
In summary, enabling Original Sound in Zoom is essential for maintaining high-quality audio in playback-related activities, while disabling it is more suitable for standard voice meetings where noise reduction is beneficial.
Citations:[1] https://www.lessonface.com/zoomaudio
[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QomLaSTpR-U
[3] https://peabody.jhu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Guide-for-Using-Zoom-in-Playback-Mode-Peabody-Institute.pdf
[4] https://riverside.fm/blog/how-can-i-improve-my-zoom-audio-quality
[5] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBlIXHwoHrA
[6] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSSw9NrssV0
[7] https://www.msmnyc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Zoom-Settings-for-Playback.pdf
[8] https://krisp.ai/blog/zoom-noise-reduction/
[9] https://support.zoom.com/hc/en/article?id=zm_kb&sysparm_article=KB0064198
[10] https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/threads/163315-Zoom-lessons-and-no-sound-quot-Original-sound-for-playbackians-quot
[11] https://community.zoom.com/t5/Zoom-Meetings/Original-Sound-by-Default/m-p/89517
[12] https://android.stackexchange.com/questions/257619/how-to-enable-original-audio-in-zoom-app