HACKER Q&A
📣 OrphanedPiglet

Why does your recorded voice never match how it sounds in your head?


When we speak, our voice sounds one way to us internally, but when we hear a recording it often feels unfamiliar or even uncomfortable.

I know the common explanation involves bone conduction vs air conduction, but that feels incomplete to me. Even with high-quality microphones and clean recordings, there still seems to be a persistent gap between how we perceive our own voice and how it’s captured externally.

Is this something the brain ever fully adapts to, or is there no such thing as a single “true” voice—only different monitoring contexts?

Curious how others here think about this, especially anyone who’s worked with audio, perception, or human-computer interaction.

  👤 JohnFen Accepted Answer ✓
I have worked for many years with human hearing and audio perception. In my opinion, the bone conduction hypothesis seems complete and correct. It means that you cannot ever hear your own voice as it sounds to others.

> Even with high-quality microphones and clean recordings

High quality microphones and clean recordings don't compensate for the bone conduction, though. What you'd really need to do is to place a contact microphone against the bone in your inner ear. And even then, the results would not be identical because the microphone will necessarily be placed differently than the ossicles and other hearing-related ear structures.

Also, what we hear is hugely influenced by our expectations. When you speak, you know what noises you're intending to make and will interpret the sounds you hear accordingly.

👤 robthebrew
Your true voice is what others hear. Yours is imaginary.