VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Jeffrey Kafer · Posted: Thu Jun 12, 2008 5:28 pm Post subject:

The difference is that if you record at the proper volume in the first place, you won't need to raise the volume in post. Therefore, you won't raise the volume of your noise bed as well.
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JTVG · Backstage Pass Joined: 21 Jun 2007 Posts: 433

In my case, my workstation is outside my booth and I record most stuff close to normalized but I'd rather err on the safe side and have a little lower of a track than to exit the booth to find distorted peaks. If I'm not producing, I won't normalize and let the producer do with it what he will. No reason to push the limit. But if I'm producing, normalizing is the first thing I'll do before I process further.

To each their own I guess. If you have a certain amount of noise in your recording atmosphere, boosting the signal on the way in isn't going to make it any more or less noticable than normalizing will.
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Yoda117 · Posted: Thu Jun 12, 2008 7:14 pm Post subject:

different strokes for different folks... that's the great thing about this game Smile

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JTVG · Backstage Pass Joined: 21 Jun 2007 Posts: 433

That and the paid vacation! Oh wait, wrong thread.
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todd ellis · Posted: Thu Jun 12, 2008 7:28 pm Post subject:

oh yeah!!!!
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Yoda117 · Posted: Thu Jun 12, 2008 7:45 pm Post subject:

captain54 · Lucky 700 Joined: 30 Jan 2006 Posts: 744 Location: chicago

MBVOXX · Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 3:26 pm Post subject:

Disclaimer: Of course not everyone falls into this category and you're technical experience may vary. The following comment is based on over 30 years of audio and video production experience.

Although most talents with DAWs usually feel the need to twist knobs, which is not a bad thing, I can assure you that ad agency producers prefer to get the VO track raw (no EQ), uncompressed (or as little compression as is necessary to tame the mic), unedited, ungated, and definately not time compressed. Producers and copywriters have a plan for the production and overall sound of the mix long before the VO gets the copy.
Many times the VO's mic settings are an obsticle in achieving the results they have in mind. It has been my experience that talent with home "studios" tend to set their mics and systems so it sounds great to their ears, in their room, on their monitors. But often, unless the talent's room is exactly dialed in and correctly acousticized the track doesn't have the same sound on the recieving end. Perhaps one of the biggest production issues (tied with over compressing) with talent recording themselves is with gating the mic. Yes CPU fans make noise. There are inexpensive fixes for that too...like putting the CPU in a closet or in another room...or, if space and finances allow, an isolation booth...or even an IsoBox. It's always best to let the producer gate it. If you have ambienct sfx issues (house noises-dogs-birds etc) that's another issue that needs to be addressed. In short-keep it clean and try not to do the producer's job. I'll save microphone quality for the 2nd semester.
(Yes, I've even had talent send tracks that were voiced on an SM58....ugh)

Mandy Nelson · Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 3:26 pm Post subject:

Wow, I'll tread lightly on this thread! The article is useful if you produce other people's work. I'm sure most of you won't be surprised at the number of vo talents who have no idea about outside noise. So these tricks are fun to use to make a crud file sound good. Personally, I prefer to record in a completely clean booth and at a slightly lower volume so I have no noise and can boost if I need to in post. If you don't have the option of a completely clean room (if you record in the same room as your computer and other equipment or even a monitor which can effect the mic) then you'll really need all of these tricks of the trade.

Thanks for posting it. I'm sure there are many who will find it useful, if not just fun to fool around with.
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Eddie Eagle · M&M Joined: 23 Apr 2008 Posts: 2393

Looks like a few folks may have gotten some useful info from this thread.

The thing to remember about this article is that it is from a recording studio for music perspective. It's basically an engineers rudimentary set of techniques. Making records is a whole different animal than recording voiceover.

SOME of these are translatable to voiceover and production in spots and such. Pick and choose wisely what would be applicable for your own circumstance.