VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[GunslingerWriting]

A colleague will be travelling very light in a remote area and, at times, may have to use only his iPhone 7 and its built-in mic (and the Voice Record Pro a) to submit a series of three-minute narration clips as commercial samples for a client.

How would you describe the likely difference in quality, to an untrained executive's ear, between that basic setup vs. the adding of a Mixerface PRO 2 and possibly a Neumann TLM 49 to the recordings? I’ve heard some iPhone samples/auditions that, for whatever reason, were surprisingly effective, while others were certainly not. This guy is very good but we’ve never made the direct comparison so hope you folks can give us your insights.

The objective is simply to demonstrate that the narrator is skilled, has a fine voice and that, with the proper equipment and production, this will turn out quite well. The client is aware of the rustic nature of the recording environment.

If the difference in quality for this casual project isn’t immense, the basic iPhone setup described above would work best for a variety of logistical reasons but, if there’s a giant gap in quality, he’d look at changing his hiking route and making some other changes to try to connect with some better options along the way.

Thanks very much.

[Bish]

I have heard some surprisingly good iPhone recordings as well. Also some bad ones! To be honest, most of the bad ones are easily identified as bad because of bad technique or bad environment. If the client understands that these are just demos or scratch tracks, and your colleague practices technique with the phone and some rudimentary sound treatment (pillows and whatnot). The differences will probably be minimal and not a problem for this particular usage. If he knows what he's doing (and practices to nail it) then he may actually sound better than some peoples' closet studios

I've never been a slave to carrying around equipment and turning a hotel room into a makeshift studio. Some people love doing it... but I think it's a pain. He should travel light, enjoy his time in the wilderness and simply use his phone when needed. Obviously, I would not suggest this for production work... but for samples etc... go for it.
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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

[GunslingerWriting]

Thanks for that; it simplifies things considerably for us to take this approach and your similar encounters with decent (enough) iPhone results is doubly encouraging.

In your opinion, would a Mixerface and superior condenser mic, used with the iPhone and in a good recording environment, produce a pro-quality result?

[Bish]

I haven't used the Mixerface... but I have recorded with a Shure MVi interface and an AT875R (short shotgun) into an iPad using Twisted Wave. This is certainly going to give you a vast improvement. I would say that in a good environment, the entire chain would work as well as the mic itself would allow. Although I stopped taking it anywhere, I tested that rig in my booth, and it was fit-for purpose. The only thing to watch out for is that some of these smaller "portable" interfaces do NOT supply a full 50v phantom power. The Shure MVi comes up short... the AT875R worked fine... but the MKH416 just shrugged and impersonated a stick. Just test everything beforehand... don't find out when out in the field
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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

[Eddie Eagle]

I used my galaxy s6 with Audio Evolution software for a few auditions when traveling. It worked fine. Evolution has a few effects including a nice gate that can filter out unwanted noise. The quality was good for audition purpose. I used a closet for dampening to record in.

[GunslingerWriting]

Eddie, did you use only the Galaxy's built-in mic?

Did you have any other gear 'enhancements' to improve the result or was it pretty much just as you described?

[Eddie Eagle]

I did use the built in mic. No other enhancements. I listened later to it on my system and it sounded good, not like a studio but, good. I told my agent ahead that I would be using the phone to record and they let the client know. No probs.

[GunslingerWriting]

Things have come technologically a very long way…

[todd ellis]

i just built a backpack for my otari mx5050, drawmer 1960 pre, and a diesel generator - i had to buy a new truck to haul it - but it works great!
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"i know philip banks": todd ellis
who's/on/1st?

[craigsvoicetalent]

But how do you block out the generator noise Todd???????
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Reading, talking and listening.

British Voice Over

[Bish]

He's probably floating it across a dozen or so old car batteries and an inverter. Just kill the genny when recording and go on silent power... shouldn't add too much weight
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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

[craigsvoicetalent]

Bish, your ingenuity knows no bounds! Well played.
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Reading, talking and listening.

British Voice Over

[todd ellis]

peter is dead on. i had to get a new truck to hold all the weight.
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"i know philip banks": todd ellis
who's/on/1st?