Presence (sound recording)

Presence is like when you listen to someone on the phone and it feels like they are right next to you. In sound recording, presence refers to the feeling that the instruments and voices are really in the room with you, as if you are hearing them live. This feeling is created by using the right microphone and microphone placement, and by balancing the levels of the different sounds so that they all sound like they are coming from the same source. When a recording has good presence, it makes you feel like you are a part of the music or conversation.