Now, recording on the road is its own special beast: you don't have your normal studio, you most likely don't have your normal equipment (microphones, etc.), and you may not even have your usual computer and software.

This happened to me recently. I had to "commandeer" an old closet in my parents house, fill it full of clothes and blankets, and get everyone in the house to be quite for about 10 minutes while I recorded. (Click on the image above to see my make-shift solution.)

My set up

I normally record on my iMac desktop at home, but the laptop I carry with me when I travel is old, which means that I can't run my favorite Adobe Audition CS5.5 on it. Instead I use Twisted Wave (it's Mac only, sorry), which in many ways can do just as good a job as Audition at a fraction of the price. If you're a beginner (or even a veteran) to voice acting, then this little gem of software magic is an excellent choice.

Now, that little blue light you see in the photo is my AT2020 USB condenser mic. It is an excellent little USB mic with a surprisingly good sound. (And the price is sweet as well!)

Wanna learn more?

As luck would have it, there just happens to be another webinar coming up by VoiceOverXtra. Recording expert Dan Lenard will talk all about the dos and don'ts of recording on the road. If you're interested, you can learn more here.

Working while on vacation?

Voice talent Paul Strikwerda wrote an excellent article (well, he always writes excellent articles) about should a voice actor work or not work during vacation. You can read it here.

Last year, I posted some photos of my sound booth. Well, a lot has changed since then. So let's go back in time and follow my home studio's progress up until the present day...

How it was...

I used to use a simple pipe frame with a blanket wrapped around it to cover my closet. It was quick to setup, but it didn't block the sounds from outside too well. (Click on the images to see them larger.)

How it morphed...

I then decided to go all out and really enclose the closet area with a permanent frame. It blocked the outside sounds very well and even improved the room tone. Unfortunately it was a huge eyesore that stuck out into the middle of the room and was a pain to maintain. (Click on the images to see them larger.)

How it moved...

A few months later, when I was cleaning up the house, I had one of those "man inspirations". You know, when an idea involving hammers, nails, a lot of construction, and a healthy amount of destruction pops into your mind.

The man inspiration came after seeing my children's closet. It was the perfect size for a sound booth. My previous booth was wide but not very deep, so I needed to build a frame around it. This closet was almost perfectly square so no frame would be needed! All I had to do was "gently" remove the door (it was one of those folding V style closet doors), rip out three securely nailed shelves, and all would be ready for the acoustic foam I had ordered!

I hung some thick blankets to cover the entrance. The blankets were flush with the wall so nothing stuck out. To make things even sweeter, the closet was behind the door to the room. So when the door to the room was open, it almost completely hid my booth making my house look neat and organized. (Again, click to see the larger size.)

How the acoustic foam sorta sucked...

You know what? Acoustic foam doesn't always solve your sound issues. This acoustic foam did a fantastic job of cutting most of the mid to high frequencies, but left the low frequencies pretty much untouched. This, along with the fact the closet walls were quite hollow (a bad thing), left me with a slightly boomy and very boxy room tone.

Ack!

The final solution...

It took a lot of experimentation with a variety of blankets, carpeting, and the acoustic foam, but I was finally able to get rid of the boomy boxy room tone, smooth out the frequencies, and even make the sound booth look almost elegant. And even though it may not look like it, there is plenty of room for me to move my arms about while performing.

And here it is...

The moral of the story...

Voice actors who have their own studio are always looking for ways to improve their sound. It's a never-ending, ongoing process. As a budding voice talent you, too, should always be on the lookout for ways to improve your own sound. Here are some ideas for those of you on a tight budget:

• Try different rooms and/or closets. No two closets are created equal.
• Test a variety of blanket fabrics and thicknesses.
• Try moving your blankets around within your booth. This will change the room tone.
• Experiment with different body placements. You'd be surprised how your sound can change just by facing a different direction within the same booth.
• Move the mic around to different locations.
• If your closet ceiling is low, try sitting down. This WILL change your sound immensely!

Remember to record yourself as you experiment. Even though you think the room sounds good, the actual recording might stink. And even though you think the room sounds bad, the actual recording might shine.

If you have any other suggestions for improving your sound on a budget, please share them in the comment section below!

On Monday, April 25th Dan Lenard (the Home Studio Master) will teach you how to choose the voice over microphone that's BEST for you and how to use that mic to win auditions and in performances. In addition, Dan will test various mics so you can hear the differences for yourself!

Sign up here:
Microphone Choice & Best Techniques webinar ]]> http://www.voiceactorsnotebook.com/how-to-choose-the-best-mic-webinar/feed 1 http://www.voiceactorsnotebook.com/boom-baby http://www.voiceactorsnotebook.com/boom-baby#comments Tue, 01 Feb 2011 10:21:23 +0000 David Radtke http://www.voiceactorsnotebook.com/?p=2155 I love getting new toys, especially when those new toys help me make an even better voice over studio. Just recently, I got a new "home studio" toy, and it has made recording even easier. This purchase is one more link in my home studio makeover (which I've been working on for the past few weeks.)

The new goodie that has me all excited is the Rode PSA1 Swivel Mount Studio Microphone Boom and if you click on the Read more link below you can see how cool it is and how I set it up in my upgraded studio:

Umm... fresh out-of-the-box smell!

On my desk and pushed up out of the way for when I need to do other important work like... well... Facebook, Twitter, and surfing the Net for Harry Potter toys for my kids.

Pulled down and ready for recording!

What I like about this boom stand is that the springs are hidden inside, making it a beauty to look at (if a desktop boom stand could be called beautiful.) It moves easily, effortlessly, and quietly to any place I want it to go and then stays there.

I like this set up because it allows me to read scripts right off the computer screen, thus saving paper that would normally go towards printing them out.

Some might wonder about the sound of the computer bleeding into the mic but, as luck would have it, my Mac doesn't have an internal fan (it's "convection cooled")

The price was just right: not too expensive and not too cheap — just right for the guy who believes in the path of least financial resistance (but won't skimp on quality.)

If you'd like to read more about it or grab one for yourself, check it out here:
Rode PSA1 Swivel Mount Studio Microphone Boom

Check out the BEST voice over recording equipment page!

Now I warn you, if you are a beginner to voice acting and doing voice overs, then you may have images of sleek and sophisticated studios complete with effects cabinets twinkling with little LED lights, microphones that cost more than some cars, and mixing boards longer than many people's hallways. If that's the image you hold in your mind, then prepare to be disappointed. But hey, at least after reading this post you'll have a better idea of what many home studios look like!

The room

My studio fits in a room that isn't even big enough to hold a twin bed. I've got my old, old, old midi keyboard on the left, then my desk complete with iMac and studio speakers in the middle, and then my practice area on the right.

Gotta practice

To the right of the computer I keep my mic on its stand along with a whiteboard on the wall to hang scripts. This allows me to practice anytime without the hassle of setting up my "sound proof booth" (which you'll see in a minute.)

The booth

When it's time to do an actual recording to send off to a client, I gotta set up the "sound proof booth" (for lack of a better term.) I simply open my closet door, push aside some of the clothes hanging there, and place my mic stand right in the middle. I use a highly sophisticated system to attach my printout of the copy to the blanket covering the back wall (a.k.a. cellophane tape). Take a look:

The movable wall I place around the closet was constructed out of parts I bought from the local hardware store. I think in total it only cost about $50 (excluding the blanket I drape over it — that was a freebie.) I took photos when I built the thing to be used in a future post, so stayed tuned. In the meantime, here are some pics:

And that's it!

As I said before, if you are a beginner to voice overs, then your image of what a home studio consists of might be skewed a little. Of course, if you've got the money to buy some really good stuff then by all means, go ahead. But since I'm the type of guy who tries to find the path of least financial resistance, this set up works perfectly for me! (And if you think my studio is a little "barren" then be sure to watch this video I posted a few months ago.)