Investigating the acoustic fidelity of vowels across remote recording methods

Abstract Our study tests the acoustic fidelity of remote recordings, using a large variety of stimuli and recording environments. Remote recordings support crucial uses like reaching isolated populations and more speakers; however, it is important to be aware of any limitations therein. A 188-word list was constructed from each English consonant followed by each vowel. Words recorded by one male and one female speaker in a sound-attenuated booth were input for test recordings. Stimuli were played over an electronic speaker and recorded on six devices across five operating systems, four teleconferencing platforms, and two browsers, using internal and external microphones, a more extensive set than has been analyzed in prior research. Acoustic analysis investigates the impact of these recording configurations on fundamental frequency, loudness, and vowel formant measures. Across recording conditions, browser choice had less effect on the different vowel measures, while choice of hardware resulted in a greater number of significant differences and greater variability within and across conditions. Recording configuration effects were observed to exert different impacts across vowels and speakers, resulting in inconsistent perturbations. These results highlight the need for careful selection and detailed documentation of all recording configurations.