The First Skill You Need to Master for Podcasting (and for Voice Over or audiobooks)

This week, I’ve been asking my email list to vote on which PDF course I should build first.

I gave 10 options — ranging from Audiobooks in Audacity to Voice Over in TwistedWave — and let people pre-order their favorite.

To my surprise, the clear winner wasn’t an audiobook or voice-over topic (which I expected). It was:

👉 Podcasts in Audacity

Because of that strong demand, I’ve already started building the guide — and if you’d like, you can still pre-order it for $10 and get immediate access to the live development doc.

But as I’m building the course, I wanted to share a foundational lesson that every podcaster — beginner or experienced — should understand.

Let’s talk about one of the most important skills in podcast production:
Fixing your average loudness.

If you’ve ever looked at podcast platform requirements (Spotify, Apple, Buzzsprout, etc.), you may have noticed they’re… all over the place.

Some say “-16 LUFS,” others give vague limits, and many don’t clarify whether they’re referring to voice, music, or both.

The reason is simple: most podcast hosting platforms host both voice and music, so their requirements can be confusing — or even misleading — when you’re producing voice-only content like interviews or solo episodes.

Instead of getting lost in those scattered guidelines, here’s what I recommend:
Just follow ACX audio standards.

Why ACX Guidelines Work for Podcasts Too

Even though ACX is best known for audiobook distribution, their audio standards were developed with one purpose: to ensure professional-quality voice audio.

As a podcaster, you want your voice to sound clean, clear, and consistent — no matter the hosting platform or playback device. That’s exactly what ACX standards help you achieve.

Here are the only two numbers you really need to remember:

• Peak should not exceed –3 dB

• RMS (average loudness) should fall between –18 dB and –23 dB

If you hit those targets, your audio will sound great on any platform.

Even if the host applies post-processing or automatic adjustments, your voice will still hold up, smooth, loud enough, and balanced.

Why Loudness Matters More Than You Think

Now here’s a key insight most beginners don’t realize:

✅ Fixing your loudness doesn’t just help with consistency — it actually helps you spot other audio problems.

When your audio is too quiet or not properly leveled, issues like:

• Breath noise

• Mouth clicks

• Static or white noise

• Low-end rumble

...tend to hide in plain sight.

But once you normalize your loudness and hit that ACX-approved range, those flaws become immediately noticeable — and that gives you the power to fix them.

So in a way, loudness correction is not just a finishing touch.
It’s a tool to expose hidden problems.

That’s why I say loudness is the first skill every podcaster should master. It doesn’t take long, but it opens the door to professional-sounding episodes.

How to Fix Your Loudness in Audacity

Here’s the simple effect chain I recommend:

1. Normalize (to set peaks safely)

2. Compressor (to balance dynamics and bring up the quieter parts)

3. Normalize again (to finalize your average loudness)

Of course, the real magic is in the compressor settings — that’s what I’ll be showing inside my Podcast in Audacity PDF course, along with screenshots and step-by-step instructions tailored for podcasting.

Pre-Order the Guide for Just $10

Because this guide won the most pre-orders, I’m building it right now.

If you want to grab it at 30% off the final price, now’s the time:

🔗 Preorder Podcasts in Audacity – $10

You’ll get immediate access to the development doc — the actual Google Doc where I’m writing and assembling the course — and you’ll be the first to receive the finished PDF when it’s ready in a couple of days.

What’s Next?

If you’re more focused on audiobooks or voice-over work, I’ll be starting the next PDF course based on which topic gets the most pre-orders by the end of today.

So if you’d like your preferred topic to be built next, now’s the time to grab your preorder.

🔗 Preorder any other PDF guide – $10

This is one of the most fun projects I’ve done, and your feedback is directly shaping the direction of each course.

If you have any questions or would like to suggest something while following the development document, please reply to this email or any email you receive from me.

Akhtar
Master Editor