Applied to Bunny Studio with an 'Audition'
Okay so I received the following comments about my recorded audition for eligibility on BunnyStudio's database:
1. There is \'boxiness\' impacting your recording which makes it sound as if it was recorded in a very small space. Please ensure you record in an acoustically treated environment. If you already have acoustic treatment, it may not be adequate.
2. There is audible room echo (reverberation) impacting your recording. Please ensure you record in an acoustically treated space. If you already have acoustic treatment, it may not be adequate.
I recorded using the Sennheiser MKH 416 hooked up to a Focusrite Scarlett Solo 2nd gen pre-amp and exported from Audacity unprocessed.
Any feedback would be greatly appreciated on where specifically the room echo or boxiness is at in the recording. Because to me it doesn't sound like there is an obvious echo. I recorded listening with my Sony MDR-7506. Favorite studio headphones in my opinion. Love the detail!
Below is the attached audio I submitted for consideration, https://soundcloud.com/michael-northygan/application-project-for-michael-51002-pm.
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Although to be honest I was hoping for some semblance of evaluation of my overall performance and not as much the environment I record in.
Howdy Marc!
My name is Aaron, I am a fellow voice artist!
First of all, thanks for reaching out for guidance- our industry needs more unity!
Second, great performance!
You have a very dynamic voice. Also a great tone, and timbre.
If I may, I would like to offer some ideas for testing out different setups:
I think this is about all I have for you at the moment, but if I think of anything else I will let you know.
You already are really close to having top-notch recordings, with your great voice! Just a little more work and it will be "there"!
And don't fret- it took me like 4 tries and a handful of revisions to get through the application process- but man, was it so worth it!
You got this!
🙌
-Aaron M.
Thanks Aaron!
I really appreciate the feedback! I have sleep apnea so I tend to have to use more strength from my diaphragm to speak for extended periods of time. So breathing in my case is kind of inevitable regardless of how quiet I try to make it. And silent breath for me isn't very effective because I'm not gathering enough breath. I understand breath can be edited out though. I tend to edit them out myself. What really bugs me is when I'm having vaguely allergic to something while recording or my mouth is dry. You get all that good nasally tonality, haha!
Your audio definitely has a boxy reverb to it. You would need to really change your recording space to fix this. There's really nothing else that can be done to fix it other than to add more noise suppression to your space, and/or choose a different space entirely. Boxiness is caused by two factors. 1) A small space without enough noise suppression, and 2) a space with walls at equal distances so that the echo bouncing off of the walls has the same travel time. These create a boxy reverb.
No offense too Aaron, but I found his statements to be quit off the mark. I'm not to surprised since he called himself a "voice artist." The only people who call themselves "voice artists" are people who don't really know what they're talking about. In the industry we're "voice talent," not "voice artists."
With respect to your presentation, I honestly think you need to practice really getting into the vibe of the novice over more. The read sounded kind of "boring" and "flat." In some cases that would work just fine, but given the obvious style and content of the script it should have been read more like a film voice over. You need to add a lot more drama in my opinion. Try mimicking the presentation of some of the classic "in a world" movie trailers. Just google them you'll find a bunch on YouTube.
This is AWESOME!! 🙌🏻
I feel like we have nothing else to add here, both Aaron and Adam did an amazing job in giving you feedback, Marc.
This is the whole point of this community and I'm very excited and happy to see fellow Voice Over artists sharing knowledge, ideas, and feedback. Keep it up, guys!
Thanks for the feedback Adam,
I think the issue with the direction for the script is that it says both epic (like movie trailer voice, I get that) as well as conversational. There is not a single movie trailer voice out there I have ever heard that sounds conversational. As awesome as they sound, they are purely theatrical and overly dramatic. And it seems both elements are wanted for this which is really not exactly doable since one element is obviously theatrical while the other is meant to sound like a regular person in real time. Another detail that struck me was they don't want it to sound like a salesman. Movie trailer voices sound like salesmen. They are putting on a performance that is tailored to the product. So since this was a tricky direction to go by, what I did was a projected, and epic per se 'regular joe' voice since to me that's what conversational sounds like nowadays. But other wise, I am actually quite the WIZ at movie trailer voices, or I suppose the 'announce' voice XD https://soundcloud.com/northygan/commercial-demo?in=northygan/sets/professional-demos
Although outside of Voice Bunny I haven't had anyone else in the industry tell me there's a boxiness in my recordings.
Thanks, Johnatan!
🙏
Marc, I am super impressed by your strength to work through your sleep apnea!
Do you mind my asking, do you have any special techniques (even mindset stuff) for dealing with that that you wouldn't mind sharing? That is super interesting!
👍
When it comes to the "drama vs. conversational" thing- it definitely can be a tough line to walk! My personal recommendation would be to lean towards the "conversational" side of it though and let the drama play out naturally. I personally have not seen many projects on Bunny Studio that are looking for the overly hyped announcer/ dramatic tone- but quite a few that are looking for the conversational tone!
Also, Adam's tips about acoustic treatment (aka "noise suppression") are spot on!
You can get creative about it too! Like, for example, I have an old mic stand in the far corner with a large trench coat draped over it. Surprisingly- even simple stuff like that can help!
I believe that with a little more persistence and dedication you could be well on your way to going far with Bunny Studio!
✌️
Thanks for the interest, Aaron!
My sleep apnea is moderate but has impacted my ability to fully access an. energized and consistently air charged voice (lung capacity lacks at times because when I sleep I don't get enough oxygen). So the following day the full bass of my voice (and it's REALLY bassy) doesn't come back till it's time to hit the sack again by 9pm. This is an issue that started with me back in December 2018 where I first had wet lung that caused Dyspnea (labored breathing of sorts) and I had to take an inhaler and antibiotics to, I guess remove whatever was making my ling wet at the time. Since then it's changed the way I breathe too. But in the couple years I found that going to sleep at around 8 or 9pm and getting up exactly within the 6am frame has helped me significantly. It's the strangest thing I've ever had an issue with and I love voice over, but this apnea has realyl added the extra challenge. So in my case, I have to get 6-8 hours of sleep, no more no less. If I get less sleep, well I'll just be sleep, and if I sleep too long, being laying on my back for more than 8 hours flattens my lungs and they aren't very strong once I'm up and starting the day. I have used a mouth guard though, but I found that even with that and going to bed late, it doesn't help either. So I guess like anyone else would recommend, get 8 hours of sleep. For people that are more than healthy, the issue I'm having shouldn't necessary apply to them if they don't have apnea or anything like it. I suppose more cardio would suffice too XD Lung health and strength is just as important as caring for your vocal cords. I also have strong nasal allergies to the outdoors at any point in the spring or summer. I live in Pennsylvania, so I'm not at my best when it's actually really nice out since my reaction to pollen makes me sound utterly nasally, you get the full scope of mouth noise and everything. I now apologize for the rant, haha! But I hope any of this info helps in case you or someone you know struggles with similar issues.
I would say my sleep habits for the most part are to blame, Aaron. I'd been going to bed late for such a long time in the past that ever since my wet lung issue which is in par thanks to a winter flu I had, I've been trying to go to sleep earlier in the evening. Falling asleep at 12 am or later, or even at 11pm for me is BAD. I do believe as humans, the healthiest thing to do outside of exercise and lung care, for voice actors most certainly, is to go to bed in the early evening and wake up in the early evening. I don't think waking up at 10am or later or going to bed at midnight is good for voice actors. I believe I attended one of Steve Blum's webinar s where he mentions the same thing. We rely on sleep to energize us the following day, lungs especially where we shouldn't struggle to breath when just talking. But we also should NOT sleep for 10 hours either. Extended bed rest is just as unhealthy as a harmful disease.
Sorry, Aaron. I meant to say go to bed in the early evening and wake up in the early morning XD
Wow, this is a lot of amazing background, thanks so much for sharing, Marc!
🙌
I am definitely on board with your ideas about sleep and exercise.
Recently, I struggled terribly with insomnia, but once I got it under control my voice became much more consistent- you are totally right about the importance of being properly rested and maintained for voice acting!
Personally, I found that I wasn't exercising enough to be "tired" at the end of the day, causing all sorts of breathing and sleeping issues, and so I actually had to temporarily switch to standing while doing all of my voiceover work. Coincidentally, this also led me to develop my own personal studio design (using heavy acoustic curtains on a guided track from the ceiling) which now helps with my overall space in the studio/ recording booth.
Anyway- if you are okay with it I would love to share your message with my voice-acting Facebook group for inspiration?
Either way-
Your perspective, and story, are very powerful!
Thanks so much for sharing it here!
✌️
You know what else I recommend, Aaron? Biotene. Biotense is for dental hygiene and can be used as a mouth wash or gel that you spread around the gums and teeth. It is meant to hydrate dry mouths for if people that are mouth breathers at night. And I gotta say, it's GREAT. Recommended for when you brush your teeth in the mornings and evenings.
Wow, Biotene?! 🤔
I never would have thought of that- but now that you mention it, this sounds so right!
I have definitely woken up in the night after brushing my teeth, and felt like my mouth is overly dry- I will definitely look into this, thanks for mentioning it, Marc! 👍
Much appreciated, Aaron!
I am happy to allow my responses to be shared in your group! But I would just ask that you fix whatever typos may have sneaked their way into my posts XD !!!! I type like Barry Allen, so my writing is almost always imperfect with long responses like these. For awhile I believe I may have also been afflicted with Insomnia, or may still be since my brain is always so wired in the evenings. Any form of task at home or other wise keeps my brain active. It then becomes a chore to simply fall asleep, coupled with the fact that laying flat on my back is not good for the lungs in general if you have Apnea. So I'm pretty uncomfortable going to sleep more often than not -_-
I'll also let you in on another secret, Aaron. It's your choice if you decide to share this on your group. Small sips of hard liquor, preferably a smooth vodka like New Amsterdam or less harsh whiskey like Maker's Mark, clears the sinuses and loosens your vocal cords from whatever strain you might have in the moment you do voice over, much like eating an apple or honey lemon tea. But the results are more immediate and longer lasting cause liquor is just powerful in general. Of course you shouldn't chug or drink large amounts either while recording, other wise you'll be slurring your words as well, haha! Just small sips and then practice vocalizing anything to see how much you're able to freely speak without straining your voice. Another thing I should have added, I would not recommend recording professional voice over work sitting down at any times unless it's an audiobook that would have you in the same location for hours on end. But it's still challenging doing audiobooks sitting down as well. You constrict space for your lungs when sitting and start to hunch for long periods of time. Standing is always the best in my book, move around, shake your arms, and just find that right spot before hitting record.
Although I am investing in a whisper room/booth. I can finally be at peace once I have it 😌🥃
Hi Marc,
Another voice guy here. First, what a great voice. You've really been blessed with some pipes. Second, different people have different words they use for essentially the same thing. What VB calls "boxiness", I call close-order reflections, those coming from nearby reflective surfaces, possibly a desk, or walls, even a computer screen can do it. But to my ear it isn't that bad.
The whisper room should do the job, congrats. I've always built my own booths, trying to save a few bucks there - Roxul can do wonders for a space.
Best of luck!
Joe Brown
Joe Brown
A
Thanks Joe,
Roxul eh? Another name to add to my collection of potential merchants! I have Whisper Room as a default choice but I will surely check out Roxul as well given you say it costs a lot less to treat a room's acoustics with them. Thanks!
Great points, Joe!
I have heard many great things about whisper rooms, and Roxul in particular. And, you are so right about the near-field reflection thing! I am starting to think that some of the Bunny Studio articles on this topic need some minor updating! ☝️
Marc, when it comes to whisper rooms though, I don't actually have any personal experience with these!
In fact- personally, I don't think I would ever get one, anyway! I actually really prefer the openness of my "curtain and treated area", and I know I can easily take it down and set it up anywhere! Plus, the whole thing only costs about $100 to make, and since I am an expert with post-editing, this is all that I will ever need for my vocal recording setup!
Essentially, for my "booth" I use this + this + this + advanced post-editing for nearfield reflections= not ONE internal rejection for nearly 2 months from Bunny Studio for anything related to sound quality! (With about 250+ projects completed in that time!)
It is still really cool to see the different ways of doing the same thing, and I really appreciate y'alls willingness to chat about this!
🙌
Even though I have now made thousands of voice-overs for so many amazing spots, I still feel like a beginner because I learn something new about voice acting every day.
✌️ 😁
Hello everyone!
I just wanted to say that I LOVE this thread, please keep it alive with any other cool tips and tricks for everyone!
You guys rock!
Kind regards,
Daniel