The Importance of Audio Quality in Gaming Streams

Stream quality is one of the largest make-or-break factors for gaming streamers looking to make their mark and grow their channel. Your audience needs to know what’s going on, and high-quality entertainment will keep them coming back for more. New streamers tend to focus on their visual quality, but an often-overlooked factor is audio.

At MinMxD, we help gaming streamers create strategies that encompass and evolve all elements of their streams, from the quality itself to the marketing, brand, and lifestyle around it. In this article, we’ll impress the importance of audio quality – and offer methods you can use to improve it – helping you enhance the all-round impact of your streams.

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Audio quality is one of the biggest distinguishing factors between streamers that succeed, and those that don’t. Especially when you’re growing, having good audio quality ensures people can get into your content without having to put up with any irritating quirks. And for some, sound is the only way they’ll experience your streams.

Here’s a breakdown of some of the key reasons why you should put more focus on audio:

Background Watchers

A lot of people like to watch gaming streams and other content in the background while they play games of their own. These ‘second-monitor viewers’ won’t spend much time actually watching your content, and may be there more for the sound of your voice or the notion that someone is there.

For background watchers, audio matters far more than video, and low audio quality will likely deter them from watching your streams at all. It’s also important that you vocalise what’s going on so these viewers can follow along, but try and find a balance so as to not alienate viewers who are engaged visually as well.

Accessibility

Along with people who choose to only listen, there will be those who don’t have that choice. For people who are visually impaired, having better audio quality makes your streams more accessible. This provides a welcoming and inclusive atmosphere, while also making your content easier to understand for people from all walks of life, such as those with English as a second language.

Find out more ways to improve the accessibility of your gaming content >

Quality Viewing Experience

Crackly audio, mics without a pop filter, and other sound issues can be a massive turnoff for prospective viewers. Having high-quality audio feeds into a better viewing experience, increases engagement, reduces your ‘bounce rate’ (the rate at which people click on your stream and quickly click away), and makes it easier to convert viewers into subscribers.

Starting with high quality audio can also make it easier to create other content from your streams such as YouTube videos, especially if you’re not running two recordings at once. Meanwhile, best practice setups will mean that any spikes in audio won’t cause issues in your stream, leading to a smoother viewing experience.

Your stream’s audio can be broken down into three categories: game audio, stream audio, and mic audio.

Game audio is made up of all the game sounds such as background music, sound effects, voice lines, and ambient noise. Depending on the game you’re playing, these factors could be incredibly important, such as having audible footsteps for a twitch shooter like Counter-Strike 2.

Stream audio is made up of any background music, stream notifications like subscriber alerts and automated donation read-outs, and other interface effects. The most important thing here is to create a balance so these background sounds don’t drown out the main feature.

Mic audio is exclusively the things you say. You need to ensure you have a high-quality microphone, with background noise suppression and sound thresholds so you don’t transmit things like your breathing.

For each of these categories, you need different software and equipment to ensure the best results. Here’s a breakdown of some of the key components to consider:

• Microphone. An obvious start is the microphone you use. While there are plenty of high-end options to choose from, you may not always have the budget. Take a look at what other streamers are using; they’ll often have specs in their stream description!
• Audio rig. From the microphone stand to the pop filter and more, there are many components that go into a successful audio rig. These help you position your mic in the optimal place for both audio quality and viewer visibility, while also preventing nasty audio issues from breaking audience immersion.
• Streaming software. Another limiting factor can be the streaming software itself. You need to ensure your software of choice can record and stream audio in high-quality formats, preventing loss at this crucial stage.
• Mixing software. This kind of software helps you separate channels, giving you control over each individual audio source. From there, you can limit or boost audio levels, sharpen the audio quality, and ensure a consistent balance.

Audio mixing software can be a bit complicated to wrap your head around at first, but don’t worry! We’ve got some key areas for you to focus on so you can quickly get to grips with enhancing your stream’s audio quality.

Create Audio Channels for Each Audio Type

Each sound stream – from game, to microphone, to background music and stream effects – deserves their own audio channel. You can view and manipulate these channels separately in your audio mixer, helping you individually adjust them to create your perfect audio setup.

Balance Audio Levels

Whether or not your audio is balanced is the key to audience engagement and immersion. You don’t want the game to drown you out, but at the same time it’s important that key moments can be appreciated with the right level of impact. Having audio mixing software you can adjust on the fly can be even more helpful when making minor adjustments for specific events or situations.

Prevent Noise Spikes

You can set limits on your audio output through your mixing software. This can prevent large audio spikes such as shouting, mic booms, or in-game audio from overwhelming your viewers. No more ‘RIP headphone users’ here!

Cut Out Unwanted Sounds

Annoying sounds like breathing, clicking, keyboard inputs, computer/desk fans and more can all contribute to an unpleasant viewing experience. With sophisticated audio mixing software, you can eliminate these noises with ease, setting transmit thresholds and audio focuses that let you stream in the way you want.

Find out more with our guide to recording equipment for gaming streamers >

With so many factors from the software to the physical equipment, finding the right progression path that aligns with your budget, viewer base, and growth strategy can be challenging. Every streamer is unique, and at MinMxD, we create a plan that tailors to your specific circumstances.

Our goal is to help you improve your streaming strategy and quality, enhancing engagement while ensuring you can focus on doing what you love. Minimise audio hiccoughs and maximise your stream impact – get in touch today!

Check out our gamer’s guide to streaming platforms to find the right one for you >