This article will introduce you to the Zoom recording features and how best to record lectures or online interviews. If you’re new to using Zoom at Boise State, see https://boisestate.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/LTS/pages/42106931/Getting+Started+with+Zoom.
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Zoom Access
Everyone with a boisestate.edu email has access to a Zoom Pro plan, which allows the Cloud Recording feature. Zoom Cloud Recordings at Boise State are also automatically sent to Panopto for Boise State faculty, staff, and students. Access at boisestate.hosted.panopto.com.
Equipment Checklist
Preparation is critical for capturing the best possible audio quality, free from technical glitches and distractions. Zoom fans claim that it stutters less than Skype and other alternatives, but it doesn’t matter how well the Zoom app works if your Internet connection is bad or your microphone is configured incorrectly. Here is our essential equipment checklist for using Zoom (see also https://boisestateecampus.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/JFS/pages/edit-v2/977862705):
✅ Microphone
Here is a great time to use your smartphone's earbuds with a built-in mic or if you prefer a dedicated mic.
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✅ Computer or Phone
Every day we see people recording on laptops that are outdated and maxed out on memory or disk space. Running on the latest equipment is ideal, but we know how expensive new MacBooks are. It’s critical that you always shut down everything except for Zoom when you are recording — especially Google Chrome; all those browser tabs you are hoarding (no judgment here) are taking up tons of memory that Zoom could use for recording your call.
✅ Headphones
Using headphones is a must for remote recording. Using a pair of earbuds is typically the best option as it is the least noticeable option and typically you already have a pair. Headphones will enhance the conversation, and allow you to better hear what’s being said without also recording the other person(s). This goes for any participants on the call as well. You’ll learn more about this.
✅ Camera
Zoom’s HD video support really improves the quality of a remote recording and your laptop’s built-in camera is OK, but we recommend the Logitech C920s Webcam running the Logitech Camera Settings app for fine-tuning your camera settings to look your best. If your guest is using a phone or tablet, ask them to set it up horizontally.
✅ Internet Connection
Zoom lists the minimum bandwidth requirement as 3 Mbps (upload & download) for HD group video conferencing. You can verify that your Internet connection is fast enough by running a Speed Test. If your speed test does not meet or exceed the speeds you are paying for from your Internet service provider, definitely contact their support and ask for a tech to come out and troubleshoot your network. We highly recommend you and your guest both use a wired Internet connection if possible to eliminate any problems with wireless network connections.
With your equipment in order and your space properly set up, it’s time to get started with Zoom and adjust some settings.
Recommended Zoom Settings
Once you have your Zoom desktop app open and you signed in, it’s time to adjust some settings (see https://boisestate.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/LTS/pages/42106931/Getting+Started+with+Zoom). The Zoom app has decent default settings that will allow you to quickly join a call, but spending just a few minutes configuring the advanced settings will help you improve your recordings. Get started by clicking the gear icon ⚙️ in the top right corner of the Zoom app.
Video Settings
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Under the Video settings tab, the most important thing is to select your external USB webcam if you are using a laptop with a built-in webcam. Next, enable HD and select the option to turn off your video when joining a meeting. It’s common to join a Zoom meeting where nobody has video-enabled, and it’s a little awkward to pop-in with your camera on and then quickly shut it off after joining the meeting.
The video preview dialog option is like a little green room that allows you to check your video and camera settings before you turn on your video. This is an extra precautionary step that lets you join a call smoothly after fixing your hair and adjusting your lighting to look your best.
Advanced settings
At the bottom of the video settings tab is a link to Advanced settings to make additional enhancements
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Audio Settings
We recommend using earbuds with a built-in mic or headphones and an external mic for the best quality sound. Test and play to determine what sounds best to you and others on a Zoom call. Verify that your microphone appears in the list of available mics, select it, and then tap the Test Mic button to record some test audio and play it back.
Do the same for the Speaker setting: select your headphones and run a quick test by tapping Test Speaker. You should hear the Zoom ringtone in your headphones. We recommend that you enable the Press and hold spacebar unmute shortcut. Zoom calls work best when everyone except for the speaker is muted, but the participants can rapidly unmute without having to click around to find the mute button.
Audio Settings (Recommended For Most Users)
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Under Audio Profile, select Zoom optimized audio and under Background noise suppression select Auto.
Audio Settings (Recommended for Studio Environments)
Further down the Audio tab, you will see an option for Original sound for musicians.
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This is a setting you will want to test out and play with prior to recording. Some recordings need Zoom audio processing such as echo cancellation and background noise suppression. But if you are working with the eCampus Multimedia Team or editing yourself, it is better to have the original sound from your recording equipment for any post-processing.
You can also choose which tools to toggle on and off when the original sound is active, such as High fidelity Music Mode. This feature will require more CPU but will improve the quality of audio by disabling compression and Zoom’s post-processing and raising the audio codec quality.
Once you select this option to enable original sound in a meeting, the final step is to click on Turn On Original Sound whenever you are in an active Zoom call.
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Advanced Audio Settings
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Under the Advanced Audio Settings, you can choose the intensity level of your Echo cancellation, if you choose to use that feature. The two echo-cancellation options are auto and aggressive. Again, in some cases, echo-cancellation may be helpful, but we typically recommend turning this feature off in order to capture the best audio for editing in post-production.
Recording Settings
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Cloud recording is the easiest way to manage your video recordings. All recordings will automatically be stored in your Panopto account under the ‘Meeting Recordings’ folder indefinitely.
Step 1
We recommend the following settings for Zoom recordings:
Store my recordings at: Set location and check that you have at least 16GB of space remaining, if not be sure to free up space before starting.
Record a separate audio file of each participant. This will allow you to mix your audio properly.
Optimize for 3rd party video editor. This records in file formats that are best for editing.
Add a timestamp to the recording. Recommend turning it off to eliminate the need to edit it out.
Record video during screen sharing. This will record your self-view and place it in the upper-right corner of the shared screen recording. Optional but recommended to better engage the audience.
Place video next to the shared screen in the recording. This eliminates the chance for hidden content below your self-view video by placing it next to the shared screen in the upper right.
Keep temporary recording files. If something happens to your computer during the call, this may help you recover the audio and not lose a valuable interview.
Step 2
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You can access the Cloud Recording settings using the Manage on web… button found under Zoom settings > Recording tab.
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We recommend the following settings are checked for Zoom Cloud recording (uncheck the unmentioned):
Record active speaker with shared screen
Record active speaker, gallery view and shared screen separately
Active speaker
Gallery view
Shared screen
Record audio-only files
Record a separate audio file for each participant
Save chat messages from the meeting / webinar (optional)
Advanced Cloud Recording settings
Record thumbnails when sharing
Optimize the recording for 3rd party editor
Create audio transcript
Save panelist chat to the recording (optional)
Save closed caption as a VTT file
Recording With Zoom
Before you start recording, be sure you are running the latest Zoom Meetings Client. Click your profile icon in the top right and then click “Check for Updates.” Zoom is constantly rolling out new updates, features, and bug fixes.
We recommend recording to the cloud as this is the easiest method and videos are automatically added to your Panopto account under ‘Meeting Recordings’ where they will live indefinitely. Be sure to use our Recommended Settings to give you the best quality recording.
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Recording Interviews With Zoom
Before you start the call, be sure you are running the latest Zoom Meetings Client. Click your profile icon in the top right and then click “Check for Updates.” Ask that any guests do the same thing before you start the meeting. Zoom is constantly rolling out new updates, features, and bug fixes.
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Take a minute to review our recommended recording settings in the section above, and then follow these steps to record your call:
Start a new Zoom meeting
Click the “New Meeting” button to get started. This will launch the Zoom video chat, and you will see an overwhelming set of controls. So take a minute to just look around at the different controls. Where is the mute button? Where is the camera toggle? Open and close the chat panel. Knowing where the controls are in advance will make you a better host in the middle of your interview.
Send an invite link or meeting ID to any guests
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The first control you will need is the Invite button at the bottom. Tap “Invite” and then tap “Copy Invitation” to get the meeting ID and passcode. You can send this to your guest however you want — just paste it into an email or a message to them.
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Allow participants to record the meeting
If you’re recording an interview, Once your guest has joined the Zoom call you will see the number of participants increased from 1 to 2 in the Manage Participants button at the bottom. Tap “Manage Participants” to see the full list of guests on your call.
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Grant your participants permission to record the call. To do that you hover over their name in the Participants listing. You will see a “More” button. Tap that and “Allow Recording.” After I did this, Colby was able to record our Zoom call locally. An option to Record appeared in his menu bar and all the recording controls are unlocked for him to begin recording.
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(Studio Environments Only) Turn on Original Sound and ask your participants to do the same
Everyone should start recording and “Turn on Original Sound” at this point. At this point, you want to run through a quick checklist before you start the interview.
Do we all see “Turn off Original Sound” in the top left?
Are all of our microphones working?
Is there a red recording bubble next to every participant?
Start recording
Beautiful. You can finally get to the business of recording the interview. Ask all participants to start recording as well. Once you are finished, ask everyone to leave some time at the end after the call to sort out the recordings. Zoom will take a few minutes to save all the audio files and then each participant should share their tracks. Give clear instructions for how to handle the recordings.
6. End the meeting
Now tap “End Meeting” and then “End Meeting for All”. After you end the meeting, Zoom goes to work converting your tracks and preparing to save the call. It’s important for you and your guests to stay put while this is happening so you don’t lose any recordings.
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7. Wait for Zoom to save all recordings and ask your participants to do the same
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Next Zoom will ask where you want to save the files and automatically open the folder with the files. If you can’t wait for the conversion, you can tap “Stop Converting” and do it later by opening the .zoom files in the recording folder.
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If you are working with the eCampus Multimedia Team, an m4a audio track is needed from you and each of your guests at a minimum. Each person should collect the file with their name from the Audio Record folder and send it to you and/or eCampusvideo@boisestate.edu.
The .zoom files are the original Zoom native format used to convert to m4a files. You shouldn’t need these, but you should keep an archive of the entire session just in case you need to recover some audio in the future.
Should I Record My Interview with Zoom?
It depends. Zoom has exploded in popularity, and you and your potential guests have likely used it already. So the convenience of recording with Zoom is an advantage.
Having worked with several video chat software, Zoom is now hands-down the best video conferencing experience and packed with features.
However, audio quality is the primary concern when it comes to remote interviews and you will need to decide if the audio you are getting out of Zoom sounds good enough for your listeners. The “Original Sound” feature in Zoom shows that they are listening to podcasters and musicians and constantly improving the system.
Next Steps
Record a short interview with Zoom to test it out
Next time you schedule a phone call, use Zoom instead. Test it out on a low-risk call
Install the Zoom app on your phone so you can easily join calls when you are away from your desk
Install the Zoom Scheduler Chrome Extension. This is our favorite feature — you can add Zoom calls to any Google Calendar meeting with one click
Conclusion
In this post, we covered the Zoom features that allow you to record online meetings. We walked through a checklist of the equipment that is required to record a remote interview using Zoom and shared https://boisestateecampus.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/JFS/pages/edit-v2/977862705. We covered https://boisestate.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/LTS/pages/42106931/Getting+Started+with+Zoom, our recommended settings, and how to record a Zoom call.
If this article has been helpful or you have suggestions, please comment below. Thanks
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Content for this article comes from https://resonaterecordings.com/podcast-production/zoom/
(updated 03.26.21)