Zoom Music Lesson Settings for Better Sound

This post will help you tweak the settings on Zoom for better sound quality in your online music lessons.

Why We Need to Change Settings for Zoom Music

By default, the settings on Zoom are meant for people talking. When Zoom hears the violin, the default settings treat it as background noise and filter it out. Not what we want! So we need to tweak the way Zoom treats sound to optimize it for violin.

For these changes to actually be effective, both the student and the teacher need to change their own settings. As the student, you don’t actually have to have Zoom downloaded to have a Zoom lesson. You just need a link from your teacher. However, it’s easier to modify the settings if you have Zoom downloaded, and the sound quality of your lesson will be better.

Download Zoom on your computer or device

Note: Zoom regularly releases updates. If you’re having issues with Zoom on your device, using an outdated version is a common culprit. Start by updating Zoom first. For other technical issues, Zoom’s support center is the best place to go with questions.

4 Zoom Music Settings to Change

There are four settings that students usually need to change from the default.

Change #1

Under Settings > Audio, uncheck “automatically adjust volume.”

Settings might be under Preferences if you’re using a Mac.

Change #2

Under Advanced Audio Settings > “Suppress persistent background noise”: Disable

Change #3

“Suppress intermittent background noise”: Disable

Change #4

“Turn on original sound.”

When you make this change, you’re telling Zoom not to distort the music.

If you don’t see this option on your screen, go to where you just were to make Change #3 and click “Show in-meeting option to ‘Enable Original Sound’ from Microphone.”

This setting can be confusing. If your screen says “Turn off original sound,” it means that original sound is on. If your screen says, “Turn on original sound,” it means that original sound is off. You want the original sound on.

More Help with Zoom Music Settings

This post is just a quick overview of what to do to optimize Zoom for violin lessons. There are lots of Zoom tutorials out there. If you want to watch a video about setting up Zoom for music lessons, this one made for music teachers is helpful.