WHEN we record our voice and hear it back, most of us will feel terrible because it sounds differently to how we think the sound should be. Why is that?
There are two ways how sound can reach the inner ear which those paths affects what we perceive.
[ihc-hide-content ihc_mb_type=”show” ihc_mb_who=”2,3″ ihc_mb_template=”1″ ]Air-conducted sound is transmitted from the surrounding environment through the external auditory canal, eardrum and middle ear to the cochlea, the fluid-filled spiral in the inner ear.
Bone-conducted sound reaches the cochlea directly through the tissues of the head.
When you speak, sound energy spreads in the air around you and reaches your cochlea through your external ear by air conduction.
Sound also travels from your vocal cords and other structures directly to the cochlea, but the mechanical properties of your head enhances its deeper, lower-frequency vibrations.
The voice you hear when you speak is the combination of sound carried along both paths.
When you listen to a recording of yourself speaking, the bone-conducted pathway that you consider part of your “normal” voice is eliminated, and you hear only the air-conducted component in unfamiliar isolation.
So you always go “oh no, that sounds terrible” but actually that’s what everyone else hears. You can experience the reverse effect by putting in earplugs so you hear only bone-conducted vibrations.
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