Making the most of your vocal performance!

[Casey]

Helloooooo!

Here you will find a collection of tips and suggestions for how to maximize your vocal recordings for audition, and later, for production. If you have a tip to add, please post it in this thread, and I'll try to get it added to the list! Questions are also welcome, and they may lead to answers that become a part of this list as well.

Vocal Technique: Improving Your Voice

1) Stand up! This expands your diaphragm and straightens your airway.
2) If you can't stand, at least sit up straight on the edge of your chair and keep your knees low.
3) Caffeine and soda (and dairy products! Cantabile) will gum up your vocal cords. For an extra edge, drink only water on the day you record.
4) Even if the mic is only a few inches from your mouth, speak with the volume and inflection that you would to talk to someone across a table from you. (This of course depends on the line you're reading.)
5) Just like in CPR, tilting your head up slightly will open your throat. It will also make you sound a little less nasally if you tend towards a nasally voice like I do.
6) Speaking of nasally, when you're drinking your water on the morning that you're recording, go ahead and take a decongestant with it. It works!


Your Recording "Studio": Improving Audio Quality

1) Move the mic as far from your CPU as possible. It picks up all that fan noise more than you think.
2) If you have a laptop and a desktop, use the former for recording. It's much quieter typically.
3) Record in a room away from traffic or other noise, preferably with the fan and AC off. Pause and really listen to your environment... see if there's anything you can turn off that buzzes.
4) Closing ALL doors and windows in your house (not just the one to your recording room) will help reduce noise. (Submitted by Aricos)
5) If you are using a laptop, find a closet that has a lot of clothes in it. Instant sound baffling material!


The Microphone Is Your Weapon

1) If you own Rock Band (1 or 2), consider using its USB mic. Mine is better than the mic in my headset.
2) Put a dress sock over your mic to cut the wind noise from your mouth.
3) Don't hold the microphone in a direct line with your mouth, especially if you find that you are making "explosive P's". Speak over your mic, not into it.
4) Most people hold the microphone WAY too close to their mouth. This makes them speak quieter and makes your voice sound weak. I would say more like 6-10" is better.
5) DON'T HOLD THE MIC, mount it to something! You'll reduce a TON of "hand noise" this way. Mic stands are $20 at most music stores, though a broom handle leaned against your desk and some strong rubber bands could work in a real pinch!


Hardware and Software!

1) Need an audio program? This program is HIGHLY recommended: Audacity
2) The less digital modification you use, the better you sound, IMO, but you might explore noise reduction if the methods listed above haven't made your recording quiet enough.

---

So let's hear YOUR suggestions below... they may get added up here in this list!

[Aricos]

I already mentioned it in the other thread, but closing all doors and windows in your house tends to reduce outside noise. And when I say "all doors and windows in your house", I MEAN ALL of them, not just the door and windows to your recording room.

[Casey]

Apr 17, 2009 17:57:59 GMT Aricos said:

I already mentioned it in the other thread, but closing all doors and windows in your house tends to reduce outside noise. And when I say "all doors and windows in your house", I MEAN ALL of them, not just the door and windows to your recording room.

Added, thanks!

[xanbcoo]

I've been using a headset for my recordings and I've had great results with it. To reduce noise, all I had to do was turn the mic slightly away from my mouth. To get it louder, I just brought it in closer.

It's a logitech headset mic, and I don't imagine they're very expensive. I have to go buy a new one because I just broke mine, but I have no problem paying for it, as it is a very good mic.

[Casey]

To be honest, yeah, even though as I said above my Rock Band USB mic is better, when I recorded my first audition I just went ahead and used my headset mic. I've kind of established a "sweet spot" with it after many years of phone tech support, and many years of voice comms while leading my world of warcraft guild in raids night after night. (No I don't play anymore.) So yeah, I'm not knocking headset mics... they also conveniently eliminate "hand noise" so there's another bonus.

[cantabile]

If you want your voice at its best, dairy products are your sworn enemy. Especially if you have a cold.

[reyo]

Apr 17, 2009 17:46:16 GMT Casey said:

Helloooooo!

Here you will find a collection of tips and suggestions for how to maximize your vocal recordings for audition, and later, for production. If you have a tip to add, please post it in this thread, and I'll try to get it added to the list! Questions are also welcome, and they may lead to answers that become a part of this list as well.

Vocal Technique: Improving Your Voice

1) Stand up! This expands your diaphragm and straightens your airway.
2) If you can't stand, at least sit up straight on the edge of your chair and keep your knees low.
3) Caffeine and soda will gum up your vocal cords. For an extra edge, drink only water on the day you record.
4) Even if the mic is only a few inches from your mouth, speak with the volume and inflection that you would to talk to someone across a table from you. (This of course depends on the line you're reading.)
5) Just like in CPR, tilting your head up slightly will open your throat. It will also make you sound a little less nasally if you tend towards a nasally voice like I do.
6) Speaking of nasally, when you're drinking your water on the morning that you're recording, go ahead and take a decongestant with it. It works!


Your Recording "Studio": Improving Audio Quality

1) Move the mic as far from your CPU as possible. It picks up all that fan noise more than you think.
2) If you have a laptop and a desktop, use the former for recording. It's much quieter typically.
3) Record in a room away from traffic or other noise, preferably with the fan and AC off. Pause and really listen to your environment... see if there's anything you can turn off that buzzes.
4) Closing ALL doors and windows in your house (not just the one to your recording room) will help reduce noise. (Submitted by Aricos)
5) If you are using a laptop, find a closet that has a lot of clothes in it. Instant sound baffling material!


The Microphone Is Your Weapon

1) If you own Rock Band (1 or 2), consider using its USB mic. Mine is better than the mic in my headset.
2) Put a dress sock over your mic to cut the wind noise from your mouth.
3) Don't hold the microphone in a direct line with your mouth, especially if you find that you are making "explosive P's". Speak over your mic, not into it.
4) Most people hold the microphone WAY too close to their mouth. This makes them speak quieter and makes your voice sound weak. I would say more like 6-10" is better.
5) DON'T HOLD THE MIC, mount it to something! You'll reduce a TON of "hand noise" this way. Mic stands are $20 at most music stores, though a broom handle leaned against your desk and some strong rubber bands could work in a real pinch!


Hardware and Software!

1) Need an audio program? This program is HIGHLY recommended: Audacity
2) The less digital modification you use, the better you sound, IMO, but you might explore noise reduction if the methods listed above haven't made your recording quiet enough.

---

So let's hear YOUR suggestions below... they may get added up here in this list!

I've had 4-5 years of musical experience (playing an instrument) so I know how to manipulate my voice. In fact, I did my last 3 (now 4) auditions while moving. I'll normally move around while talking on the phone so I've grown accustumed (sp) to speaking while moving varieous parts of my body (though I did have to do a couple of retakes for when I either said something wrong or something happened (like a cough or the phone)).

I recorded all of my auditions on my laptop and while I was the only (concious) one in the house. My mic is also very sensitive to the sounds it picks up (apparently) so background noise was almost nonexistant.

I don't own Rock Band.
I tried a dress sock, but was unable to get the thing to record any sounds.
I was continually moving my head and further extremedies while auditioning, and I don't think I would've been speaking "into" the microphone if I wasn't because I recorded my lines as I played the auditions without the sound.
I had to hold it close to my mouth (sensitivity).
Mic came with a stand, but I ended up moving it around anyway (especially for the last audition I did).

My laptop came with a recording program (generic).

I would also clear my throat before each audition and make sure it was cleared of any unwanted substances right before speaking into it.

I ended up recording about 20-30 lines of audio, but only used about 10. I was REALLY picky about what audio made it in the final product.

(That and I'm too lazy right now to do any modifications and re-upload anything to youtube.)

[Goatmon]

To everybody; A regular desktop microphone is crap. Headset mics are also crap.

There are some Desktop microphones you can get which are better than most headsets and will get you a decent quality recording, but if you can get something better, you really should look into it. I have a samson CO1U, which is not great, but much better than a regular desktop microphone and WAAAAy better than a headset.

It's worth the investment, if you're into recording voice work or music.

[Goatmon]

Also, Casey: If you don't mind, I'd like to do a thread with some general reccomendations on how any auditioners might go about to figuring out the right voice for their character of choice, and include a few specific tips on characters that are still up for audition.

I'm kind of a fanatic for voice acting, and since the folks here seem to be taking it pretty seriously, I'd like to throw some tips out there to help people along.

[Casey]

goatmon, this is actually the perfect thread for that kind of suggestion. That's the sort of thing I had hoped to have in a thread about making the most of your vocal performance, so feel free to post it here.

Edit: Do keep in mind, of course, that as much as I want this to be as high quality a production as we are able, I'm not looking upon this as a professional endeavor, and I will err on the side of making the project as accessible and fun for as many people as possible. Let's just be sure not to scare off any potential participants! But with that in mind, absolutely post whatever suggestions you might have. (Keep in mind though that people may not follow them.)

[Goatmon]

Yeah but then it won't be myyyy thread. D:

But yeah, I guess that could work.

[Casey]

Well, do what you wish, of course. I just think it would be more organized to keep all of the same kind of information in one place.

[Goatmon]

A general rule of thumb about recording any lines; Try to downplay your T's (Tees) and P's (Pees). They tend to create a pop that gets picked up by the microphone. Specifically the Tuh/puh that comes with words that begin or end with those letters.

You might try softening them into a d sound "whadever" instead of "whatever". In general, just try to be creative and make it as easy as possible on the microphone. It's a little easier to get away with those sounds if you've got a better quality microphone that can handle those sounds a little easier without as much air interference.

[xanbcoo]

S's too, are particularly grating.

I'm pretty sure they're the most turbulent sound in English, so anything you can do to dampen them would greatly improve the quality of your recording.

It's frustrating when you've got a good recording and all of a sudden you get a high pitched "SSSSSSSSSSSS" that's twice as loud as every other sound when you try and say something like "Surma"

[Casey]

Remember to not hold the microphone in such a way that your aspiration (that's escaping air) is blowing directly onto the microphone's diaphragm. That should help with P's, T's, and S's to a certain degree. (See Tip #3 in "The Microphone Is Your Weapon".)

[Goatmon]

Wind screens are very helpful for that sort of thing.

One of the reasons I love my microphone.

[ultrabluesky]

Two questions, if I may.

I'll be auditioning soon, and am using a head set mike, but am holding it in my hand. (Unless question 2 is answered...) And as I am using it now, I get a high frequency pitch in my recording. It might just be my mic or is it something I can get rid of? I've gotten rid of the muffle and the uh "explosive P" but is there a cure for this? It's actually quite easy to get used to, and fades well into the background. Then again, I get used to everything...

Question 2 is, what is a good suggestion for a serious recording microphone? I'll possibly be using one as I audition for Music Conservatories in the future, and so need to know what a good computer based on is. I've seen them, they look über-cool, but like an investment. So, the question is, where is the place to get them? Can you suggest a good company? Things/characteristics to look into? Or maybe, is there a guide you can point me to?

I'm looking forward to auditioning this looks like so much fun!

[Casey]

Can you make a sample recording with the high pitched noise and post it somewhere like rapidshare? It would make it easier to make an educated guess.

[ultrabluesky]

I'll link you to the youtube video I began putting together for the audition. Volume is low, next time I do this, I'll have to get close to the microphone I suppose--or is there a volume 'increase' button on 'audacity'?

I've left some 'audio-less' bits for which to compare. In the middle and at the end.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gy2nCm-C69M

Thank you.

[Casey]

I'm guessing this is a laptop you're working on? Many laptops have unshielded audio bits, and the sound you're hearing is electromagnetic interference from other internal components.

The bad news is that that cannot be fixed in and of itself. The good news is that there are very cheap ways of circumventing the problem. If it is a laptop, or a desktop with no available PCI slots, you can get a USB Audio Interface and run your sound through that instead of the onboard circuitry. If it is a desktop with an available PCI slot, you should get a PCI sound card, any will do. Anything to get the audio into the system without going through the onboard unshielded inputs.

Others might have differing analyses, and I would listen to them as well if I were you. This is just my analysis.

[littlebigfan]

Hi, I am new here. Do you still neen voice actors for the project? Is this the right place to ask?

[konaya]

New here (first post even), so sorry if any of this has already been mentioned.

One good way of downtoning the P's, the T's and the S's is making your own wind screen. Simply take some old thin cloth (nylon stockings are ideal) and stretch it over a loop of steel wire (you can get steel wire from the type of coat hanger that is no good for hanging coats) at least the diameter of a CD. Place it between you and your microphone. Tada! Experiment with several layers of nylon until you are satisfied with the sound.

ultrabluesky: Try changing the sample rate prior to recording (both the project sample rate and in the Audacity microphone settings). For me, the high pitched noise completely disappeared when switching to 48000hz. YMMV.

One other thing of note: Don't save your samples with a lossy codec! That would be the equivalent of saving images in JPEG when you know you'll be editing them later; the image would degrade each time you save it. Likewise, saving sound with a lossy codec such as MP3 or Ogg Vorbis, while optimal for an end product (especially Ogg Vorbis), is a really bad idea if you plan on editing the sound later. WAV is the traditional way of saving losslessly; FLAC is a better idea if you plan on sending your samples to someone (takes a lot of less space). In short: Use FLAC.

[nikita]

Another tip that I find useful:
Smartphones and digital cameras are usually capable of recording audio (or video including audio). Give them a try! I found them to be much better than my PC mic!

Check the quality by listening to your recording with headphones.