Newbie with a new microphone - help mixing?

Hi everyone! I'm totally new to audio engineering and recently purchases a real microphone (Shure SM58) when I had been using my laptop mic. I have no idea what I should be doing to make this podcast audio the best it can be.

With my laptop mic I was applying a high pass filter at 80db and low pass filter at 9000 db, and then very slightly boosting 100-200 frequencies, and applying compression at -12 db, noise floor -40db, ratio 3:1, 0.2 second attack and 1 second release time. Compression is the thing I understand the least, at least, what I should be aiming for. Not sure if any of things things are what I should be doing now that I have a real mic (or if I should have been doing those things at all in the first place)

I have a clip of the first 40 or so seconds of the episode here without any mixing (since I'm new it won't let me post a link, sorry for the annoying format). The room noise is quite louder than the laptop mic, not sure if that is necessarily bad or if that is just how it is since the mic is more powerful. I've never worked with an audio interface before and will probably turn the gain down a tiny bit next time.

Any feedback or tips is appreciated! I don't know what I'm doing but I'd really like to. :)

drive.google DOT COM/file/d/1IkZYLHwePN6pJkR-ZgdglVx8lxxK-ipB/view?usp=sharing
 
The gain won't change the ratio between the desired sound (your voice) and the undesired sound (room noise). It will just raise or lower them together. To get less room noise you can either reduce the actual amount of noise that gets to the mic or get closer to the mic. Getting closer will tend to boost the lower frequencies of your voice.

The sample sounds pretty good. I think it could actually use some low frequency boost you would get by moving closer. Just be aware of how that affects the potential of popping the mic (when a blast of air from your mouth hits it). I don't think you need to low pass it that low, or perhaps at all.

If I were working with that sample, I would definitely add a compressor. Compressor settings depend a lot on the nature of the signal, and in this case I would use something like a 20:1 ratio with a threshold of -20dB. Certain words just jump out (like "after" in "after running out of gas"), and that setting would bring them under control.
 
The gain won't change the ratio between the desired sound (your voice) and the undesired sound (room noise). It will just raise or lower them together. To get less room noise you can either reduce the actual amount of noise that gets to the mic or get closer to the mic. Getting closer will tend to boost the lower frequencies of your voice.

The sample sounds pretty good. I think it could actually use some low frequency boost you would get by moving closer. Just be aware of how that affects the potential of popping the mic (when a blast of air from your mouth hits it). I don't think you need to low pass it that low, or perhaps at all.

If I were working with that sample, I would definitely add a compressor. Compressor settings depend a lot on the nature of the signal, and in this case I would use something like a 20:1 ratio with a threshold of -20dB. Certain words just jump out (like "after" in "after running out of gas"), and that setting would bring them under control.

Thank you for your feedback, much appreciated! I started out closer to the mic, but I felt like I was picking up too much mouth-smacking. I drink a lot, a lot of water already, which is the advice I see from most people online so not sure what I can do to be less mouth smacky (I do have a pop filter, not sure if that does anything for that)
 
Thank you for your feedback, much appreciated! I started out closer to the mic, but I felt like I was picking up too much mouth-smacking. I drink a lot, a lot of water already, which is the advice I see from most people online so not sure what I can do to be less mouth smacky (I do have a pop filter, not sure if that does anything for that)
Playing a guitar, only practice and improved technique will get rid of squeaks and intonation problems and not everyone has the chops!
Similarly you are not gifted with a 'radio voice', takes work.

I understand those doing serious VO work spend an inordinate amount of time editing out fluffs and noises off and doing re takes?

Dave.
 
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