VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Bruce · Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2014 10:17 am Post subject:

As far as auditions go, dry or not dry, which do you think I should send of the two choices below? On one file it's the same audition, first with about 6:1 compression and a tiny bit of gating, and it's followed by the same audio totally dry. I tried to set the average volume of both at -6db with a couple of peaks near 0db. They wanted something Sterling Holloway-esque.

https://soundcloud.com/bruce-miles/brucemiles-pick5test

Which, if either, would make the better impression on ad agency people you probably know nothing about?

B
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Chuck Davis · Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2014 10:40 am Post subject:

I always add a slight bit of compression to auditions. Just "ticking over" at 2:1.

Dry VO is just that. No EQ. No dynamics.

When I was sending stuff to the networks for Cip, he always wanted stuff sweetened. 4:1 compression and a tiny bit of EQ to make it pop a bit. After the first session or two, I guess he trusted my ears.
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Ed Fisher · Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2014 3:07 pm Post subject:

Bish · Posted: Fri Mar 28, 2014 8:18 am Post subject:

Some good points here... I think the main one to think about is "consider your audience". Bruce's example is perfect... if I was sending something to someone with no production skills or expertise (e.g.I just want to a a VO to the corporate video my boss has got me working on) ... Then number one is more impressive and ear-catching... far closer to a final product. However, if I was sending it to a production house, then I would assume they would see right through the processing, and prefer the dry take, knowing inherently what they could do with it. They may even be a tad annoyed at the "presumption" of me trying to do their job for them!

I usually like my auditions as dry as my martinis... just open the top of the vermouth five feet away and wave it around a bit. I never gate or noise process (I've got a good environment) but I will usually manually tame any stray peaks and when I feel it's appropriate, use my "just a tad" Adobe Audition compression preset (2:1 above -12dB).
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Bill Eshelman · Joined: 04 Oct 2011 Posts: 15 Location: Central PA

Bruce, that's exactly what I'm talking about. Thanks for the great example. From a producers standpoint, I personally wouldn't mind getting the file with a touch of common sense processing unless it is done badly which in that case I would ask for another take. I'm pretty easy going though. I could imagine some audio peeps getting all prissy about it and I just want to get paid without drama... Wink

I think what this boils down to personally is that I don't like my dry reads. I need to start practicing more to get dry reads I am happy with and quit hiding behind compression and eqs. Dang, just pep talked myself... OK off to the booth.

Again thanks for all the input here!
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captain54 · Lucky 700 Joined: 30 Jan 2006 Posts: 744 Location: chicago

Foog · Posted: Sun Mar 30, 2014 10:58 pm Post subject: