VO-BB - 19 YEARS OLD!

Don Hammock · Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 8:59 am Post subject: Please critique

Howdy Gang,
I have had a lot of problems on this project from hardware to software. I think(HOPE) I just about have it, or close to it. So, before I burn it to DVD, please give me a critique- Good, Bad, or Ugly! Thanks, Don

http://youtu.be/Z_icSpAakwM

Bruce · Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 9:28 am Post subject:

The video part of it looks fine for the purpose.

The VO sounds like it was recorded in a small, boxy space, but unless it's easy breezy to rerecord with some better sound dampening around you, I wouldn't worry about it. It appears this is for limited distribution to a group of adoring horse fans and I'll betcha that they won't give hoot where and how it was recorded.

The only thing I might heartily recommend that you adjust is the hard raising and lowering of the music volume. It's a little jarring. Your music volume is low enough you may be able to just set one volume and leave it alone, but if you do decide to fade for each spoke portion try making the fade down take two seconds of time and have the voice come in half way into that fade, and start the two second fade up a second before you finish speaking. That way the change is mostly under your voice. Play with it until you find something more pleasing to the ear.

I think your audience will love it.

B
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VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005

I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. .

Don Hammock · Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 11:53 am Post subject:

Thanks Bruce,
I am gonna try what you said with the music. I also am going to re-record, I think I may have had the record gain too high because I did have to cut some off the amplitude. Back to the drawing board and thanks again,
Don

Don Hammock · Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 5:33 pm Post subject:

Haven't redone voice tracks yet, tried what you said on the background track levels. Is this getting close?
Thanks,
Don

http://youtu.be/2-sorAdXpe8

Benjamin Stovall · Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 4:20 pm Post subject:

Hi Don,

I tried to look at the new YouTube video but it has been removed. Have you finished your project?

If you have, this might be coming a little late, but I thought I'd share it anyway. I believe what your project requires is some additional mixing. It's important for the music not to compete with your voice and I think you recognized that so you brought the music down when you were delivering your lines.

Rather than do that, as Bruce mentioned you can leave the music at one level and be just fine--as long as your voice is at the right level to "cut through the mix." Often, you'll find that even when you have your voice track up at a pretty good level you have to turn the music down to hear it clearly, but then the music sounds too buried. What's the fix?

In a word, compression. I'm not sure what you use for your digital audio software, but any one worth it's salt will allow you to add compression to your tracks. You can play with the ratio, but if you compress your vocal track then raise the level (this could just be with trim/gain or with a limiter for example), you will find that you can keep your music at a good level and your voice will cut through it nicely.

There's more detailed explanation here on the board and elsewhere on the Web, and I apologize if you knew all of that already, but it seems to me that it might help you do what I think you were trying to do.

Best of luck!
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Ben Stovall Voiceover
http://www.benstovall.com

"When you're nearing the end of your rope, tie a knot. Keep on hanging. Keep on remembering, that there ain't nobody bad like you." -- The Electrifying Mojo