Audiobook Production Audiobook Production 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under ACX's Royalty Share agreement, how are earnings typically split between the narrator and rights holder?
- 90% narrator / 10% rights holder
- 50% narrator / 50% rights holder (Correct answer)
- 25% narrator / 75% rights holder
- 75% narrator / 25% rights holder
Correct answer: 50% narrator / 50% rights holder
ACX Royalty Share agreements split the ACX royalty payment 50/50 between the narrator/producer and the rights holder.
Question 2: What is the typical maximum peak level (dBFS) allowed in an ACX-compliant audiobook file?
- -3 dBFS
- -6 dBFS
- -6 dBFS true peak (Correct answer)
- -3 dBFS true peak
Correct answer: -6 dBFS true peak
ACX requires that peaks do not exceed -6 dB true peak (dBTP), preventing distortion during playback and format conversion.
Question 3: What is 'mouth noise' in audiobook production and how is it typically addressed?
- Feedback from the microphone; fixed with a pop filter
- Clicks and smacks from saliva; reduced by hydrating and editing in post (Correct answer)
- Reverb from the recording space; treated with acoustic panels
- Hum from electrical interference; resolved by grounding equipment
Correct answer: Clicks and smacks from saliva; reduced by hydrating and editing in post
Mouth noise (clicks, smacks) is caused by dry mouth or saliva; narrators drink water and eat green apples to reduce it, and editors remove remaining clicks in post.
Question 4: Which copyright principle allows audiobook producers to use brief quotes from other works without permission?
- Creative Commons licensing
- Fair use doctrine (Correct answer)
- Public domain exemption
- First sale doctrine
Correct answer: Fair use doctrine
The fair use doctrine in U.S. copyright law may permit limited use of copyrighted material for commentary, criticism, or educational purposes without explicit permission.
Question 5: What is the role of a 'QC pass' (quality control) in the audiobook production workflow?
- Recording the initial narration take
- Reviewing the finished audio for technical errors before delivery (Correct answer)
- Setting up microphone placement and gain structure
- Converting files to the required delivery format
Correct answer: Reviewing the finished audio for technical errors before delivery
A QC pass is a systematic review of the completed audio to catch any remaining errors, noise, mispronunciations, or technical issues before final delivery.
Question 6: A producer notices a consistent 60 Hz hum throughout a recording. What is the most likely cause?
- Air conditioning vibration picked up by the microphone
- Electrical ground loop interference from AC power (Correct answer)
- Proximity effect from the narrator being too close to the mic
- Codec artifacts from recording at a low sample rate
Correct answer: Electrical ground loop interference from AC power
A 60 Hz hum (in North America) is the classic signature of an electrical ground loop, caused by multiple pieces of equipment connected to different ground potentials.
Question 7: What does 'mastering' mean in the context of final audiobook production?
- Editing raw takes into a complete, continuous recording
- Applying final processing to meet loudness, peak, and noise-floor delivery standards (Correct answer)
- Recording re-takes to replace mispronounced words
- Writing metadata and chapter markers for the audio files
Correct answer: Applying final processing to meet loudness, peak, and noise-floor delivery standards
Mastering is the final stage of audio processing where levels, EQ, and loudness are adjusted so the finished files meet all technical delivery specifications.
Audiobook Production Audiobook Production 4
Under ACX's Royalty Share agreement, how are earnings typically split between the narrator and rights holder?