Why Do Most People Find Their Own Voice Cringey in Recordings?
The human perception of sound is complex, and a common confusion many people face is why their own recorded voice sounds cringey to them but not the voices of others. This article explores the underlying reasons for this phenomenon and how our brain processes sound.
Understanding the Perception of Our Own Voice
When we speak, we hear our voice through two primary sources simultaneously: air conduction and bone conduction. Air conduction refers to the sound waves traveling through the air and reaching our eardrum, while bone conduction involves the way the sound travels through the bones of the skull.
These two methods of sound transmission differ in perceived pitch and volume. In the natural process, the bone conduction and internal resonance of our body have a significant impact on how we perceive our voice. This is why we often hear our voice as deeper and richer than it actually is to others.
Accustomed to Our Own Voice
Due to the daily use of our voices, we become accustomed to how it sounds. This is why, even when we listen to our voice recordings, it can still sound cringey. We are used to hearing our voice directly through the skull, which gives it a unique quality, and this difference is why recordings seem off to us.
The phenomenon is similar to how we might see a small flaw on our face that we find unbearable, but no one else even notices. It’s a reminder that our perception is heavily influenced by familiarity.
The Acoustic Discrepancy
In recordings, the experience of hearing the voice is different because the direct bone conduction and internal resonance are absent. When we record our voice, we lose the rich tone that comes from the vocal vibrations traveling through the skull and auditory tube to the middle ear. This missing element is what causes the voice to sound off in recordings.
The voice we hear in recordings lacks the fullness and richness that comes from the direct transmission of sound through our body, making it sound unfamiliar and potentially cringey to us.
The Role of Skull Vibration
When we hear our own voice, a significant portion of the sound travels through the skull bone vibration rather than the air. This causes the sound to be perceived as deeper and richer. However, in recording, this bone conduction aspect is absent, leading to a different and often cringey sound.
Furthermore, the recorded sound is transmitted through the air, changing the medium of sound transmission, which is a factor affecting its perception.
Conclusion
Understanding the complex acoustic processes involved in hearing our own voice versus a recorded voice can help us appreciate the uniqueness of our perceptual systems. The familiarity and bone conduction influence our perception so much that even when we record our own voices, we can find them cringey.
Knowing this can be comforting, as it shows that our perception is a product of our biological and psychological makeup. It also highlights the importance of considering the medium and context when hearing any sound to appreciate it fully.