AV News 200 - May 2015
This means, of course, that you must first recognise that something is wrong and
needs investigating. It could well be that similar problems are the cause of the
(what I call) 'alien space-invaders' sound that we hear far too often on voiceovers. When I ask "what have you done to the voice recording" I've never really
believed "nothing" as an answer, but it now looks as if it might be true. The
producer may not have done anything, but his computer has, behind his back.
Many workers seem just to accept that 'that must be what a voice recording is
supposed to sound like.' Well it isn't. A recording of Fred should sound like Fred,
not sound like a recording of Fred, if you see what I mean.
So please, have a good look at all your settings and ensure that any 'effects'
or 'processes' associated with your soundcard are switched off. Permanently. If
you need to process a recording, the algorithms in Audition will give you far more
control and achieve far better results than the sledgehammers associated with
your soundcard.
Incidentally, such 'processes' are sometimes (often?) included in the driver
software that comes with USB mics - which could explain why they often sound
so terrible. Best live recording results will be obtained either with a decent mic
(from an audio shop, not a computer shop) and preamp into your soundcard OR
by using a small digital recorder and transferring the recording digitally to your
computer.
There's a lot of information about recording the voice, and many other things,
on 'All About Microphones.' It answers all the frequently asked questions and
shows how to avoid all the frequently heard mistakes. It could save you money
by helping you to buy the right microphone first time. For the benefit of newer
readers it is one of a series of tutorial CD-ROMs covering various aspects of AV
and video production. Just drop me an e-mail if you want details.
NB If you use a VOIP program such as Skype then you need to leave the 'disable
all sound effects' box UNTICKED in the 'Recording Devices' but ticked in the
'Playback Devices' otherwise it will not work correctly. Therefore for best results
just tick the box when you need to make a voiceover recording & then untick it
again afterwards. Eds
The 21st Great Northern Festival
4th to 6th December 2015
The Hough End Conference Centre
Mauldeth Road West, Chorlton,
Manchester M21 7SX
Judges: Ron Davies (Chair)
Marion Waine & John Rowell
Full details will be available shortly on
www.gnfestival.org.uk
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