Types of Audio Transcription and When to Use Each

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Audio transcriptions are necessary, and their value is evident. It is an industry already, and its coverage grows each day. The audio and video transcribing services are in high demand in many fields. Naturally, specific requirements of each area determined the particular audio transcription types. At the moment, we define four of them:

• Verbatim;
• Edited;
• Intelligent;
• Phonetic.

If your field has anything to do with converting texts from audio into written form by transcribing software or human efforts, you will certainly deal with one or several of those transcription types. Which one will depend on your scope. So, let's review them all to understand the specificity of each one for the transcription services.

Verbatim Type of Audio Transcription

It is the most precise and detailed type of all that captures absolutely everything present in the audio. It fixes filler words, noises, specifies the pauses and even non-verbal signs (chuckles, coughs, etc.). This type of audio-to-text conversion retells everything that happens in the audio without missing the slightest detail.

In practice, Verbatim audio transcriptions have their own subtypes identified by the specification degree.

Full Verbatim. This subtype registers every sound of the audio. This way, you get a complete picture with all context for every word said, including the intonations and non-verbal communications.

Intelligent Verbatim. This subtype also provides the capture of all sounds, both those in words and background noises. However, it "adjusts" the speeches by removing vocal issues like stuttering.

Verbatim transcriptions are very detailed. However, they are also very long, especially for the records containing several speakers. However, the accurate verbatim transcript is unbeatable as the most reliable source of information. It reports everything spoken in the video or audio and presents a detailed context for each word.

Where to use verbatim audio transcripts

This transcription type matches the circumstances where you depend on the reliability of the information. It is necessary for all situations concerning legal issues, police investigations, interviews, and court proceedings. A reliable transcription is obligatory for many research and data analysis programs.

Edited Type of Audio Transcription

This type is a traditional, default option provided by audio transcription services. It is a precise and detailed record of all the said text. It does not allow any changes or paraphrasing, and it preserves the full context. However, it excludes filler words, pauses, and non-verbal communication signs (except for those ones that are necessary for the context).

Some specialists consider edited transcriptions a subtype of the verbatim type. Others consider it to be a separate type. In most guidelines, you'll find it as a "recognized" separate style. We can say that the distinctive feature of converting audio to text this way is the balance. The results of this work are reliable and very informative. At the same time, they are easier to read than verbatim transcriptions.

Where to use edited audio transcripts

This type is most common, and it includes all the essential text spoken. Thus, the scope of edited audio transcripts is the widest. Such text transcripts are excellent for traditional journalistic interviews, recording speeches, lectures, conferences, meetings, business communications, and all kinds of personal records.

Intelligent Type of Audio Transcription

In some aspects, the intelligent type is considered a subtype of the verbatim transcription too. However, it differs from the edited type by more flexibility. It does not only copy the audio contents precisely. It allows changing the material by removing some phrases or even paraphrasing the sentences grammatically. However, the essence must be preserved in all cases.

It requires in-depth analysis and understanding of the said words and phrases in context. This is available if you deal with transcription experts. Furthermore, integrating E learning solutions can complement these expert transcription services by providing accessible and interactive educational content, enhancing the learning experience for users.

Where to use intelligent audio transcripts

Intelligent audio transcripts convey the meaning as user-friendly as possible. Therefore, they are perfect for all cases where you need to consume the information quickly and get it all clear. Business communication, medicine, journalism, and education are the traditional fields for using intelligent audio transcripts.

Phonetic Type of Audio Transcription

It is a specific form of audio transcription. Some specialists even don't consider it to be an individual type. It captures the sounds of the speech and focuses on pronunciation, recording the intonations and all sound nuances. This type of audio transcription uses the specialized system of signs of the phonetic alphabet. One of the catches of this audio transcript is to accurately transcribe the sounds of the speech only and exclude any background noises.

The phonetic transcription process is, perhaps, the most complicated of all such jobs. It demands the highest quality recognition of the speech, the knowledge of different regional language specificities, and understanding of the psychological states.

Where to use phonetic audio transcripts

The most common scope for phonetic audio transcription is learning foreign languages. This type delivers the foreign speaker’s language nuances precisely. It is a popular area for everything related to linguistics, researching the regional dialects, and language similarities and differences, etc.

Conclusion

The best thing about all the modern audio transcription types is that you can always get the suitable variant that delivers the necessary information and the method to obtain it. Some types of transcripts, such as the edited type, can be done automatically.

Modern voice recognition systems get more advanced every day. Still, nothing beats professional human transcribers with their understanding of contexts and emotions. Intelligent and phonetic transcriptions are impossible without human participation. Thus, choose the fitting human audio transcription service if the quality and reliability of the transcript really matter for you.