The microphone in many laptops is located right next to the cooling fan. This is a major design flaw. Connect a USB microphone such as the Blue Yeti or Samson Q2U. The built in microphone in a MacBook is reasonable.
Place the microphone in front of the contributor’s chin, about a hand-span away. Too close will cause breath pops. Too far and the speech will sound ‘off-mic’.
Choose a space with more soft furnishings than hard surfaces to reduce reverberation in the room. In a challenging environment, place a Reflection Filter or a pile of cushions behind the mic.
If practical, cover the contributor and microphone with a duvet or thick blanket. Really.
Wifi is far less reliable than wired connections. 3G, 4G, LTE even less so. Find a fixed internet connection and connect an ethernet cable from the modem / router to the computer.
Check that the input volume slider in your computer’s audio input settings isn’t too low or too high. Untick the box marked ‘Use Ambient Noise Reduction’ in Mac OS. Windows has a similar setting.
Following these five tips will lead to a far higher standard of interview over ipDTL. It will also make Skype, Facetime or Zoom calls more bearable. Oh, and remember to use headphones.
