Feedback on audition
Good morning
I have recently submitted my audition to VB and very disappointingly it go rejected due to noise reverb.
My studio is covered with audio quality foam, I have blankets covering everything in the room that could cause problems, my computer is in a different room and that is also surrounded by audio quality foam, I have a mic shield and pop filter.
Is it acceptable to use an RMS normalizer and Limiter to edit my tracks and will this improve my room reverb? A studio engineer advised that a lot of my room noise would disappear if I record at 96000HZ and then bring it to 44100 when exporting to an MP3 or WAV format - is this the right thing to do? Any suggestions that any of you can make regarding this problem would be greatly appreciated as I really want to work for VB and meet the standards.
I have attached a copy of the original submission and one that I have used a RMS normalizer and Limiter on.
Please help and give solutions to my problems! Truth be known I am not sure what exactly room reverb can be heard - feedback on this would be great to please
Original
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Le8D0yb34toDA6LaZwaQPRE8d3b2tuVT
Edited
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1HFY8TsSqXhhGQ-tUKkUz6Dsxj3bdgsDa
Best wishes
Soo
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Hi Soo,
Unfortunately, there is a little bit of room echo/boxiness in your recording. This doesn't have to do with the settings you mention but the space and positioning within the space you're recording in.
This problem might be caused by reflective surfaces nearby like a window, screen, table or even type of flooring.
Luckily, it's not a big problem, it could take just a bit more acoustic treatment or moving the mic around to fix it.
I also noticed another minor issue with editing, as there are small clicks in every edit point. You can fix this by always using fades/crossfades at edit points. The editing between "...in this mission" and "are counting on you..." is noticeable and sounds a bit unnatural.
Hope that helps,
-Seb
Hi Seb
Thanks for the reply.
My recording area is a closed in cupboard, with no windows, walls and ceiling covered in audio sound foam. I have fabric draped over other stuff located in the room. I do have a tablechair and 2 monitors in the room, which I use for reading and editing. I have covered the table with fabric, but not sure what I can do about the monitors as I don't have another area in which to keep them and use them. The flooring is carpet. Each wall and the ceiling is covered in audio quality foam, Do you have any suggestions what I can do about this situation please? Is there any editing software/gates or anything that can be used to deal with this if I am unable to change my rooms settings?
Is it acceptable to use a RMS normalizer and limiter for Voice Bunny?
Thank you for your suggestion to use fades/cross fades for the clicks. Not being a techie sort of a person at all, could you explain how I use fades/cross fades - the idiots guide version please!
Thanks for the support.
Soo
Hello again Seb
I have had a go at removing clicks and tried a fade on the chunk, .in this mission" and "are counting on you, attached sample for you to listen to please, does this sound any better?
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1If0VHELKRo4jGi0ffe8nWRbjeqJLLPWb
Is there anything I can do to remove the room echo/boxiness from this track without actually re-recording it?
Best wishes
Soo
Hi Soo,
So for crossfades, fades just make sure that at every edit point there are very shot fade-outs or fade-ins (about 2-10ms long). Some software does this automatically like Adobe Audition but in others, you'll have to do it manually.
In terms of acoustics, it's a bit more difficult. Your audio sounds like it was recorded in a small space (which is preferable) but there are some undesired reflections. Sometimes acoustic foam does a good job of preventing reflections at higher frequencies but not in the low-mid frequency range. That's why it's useful to play around with the positioning of the mic, to test out a spot where it's less resonant.
Unfortunately, there's no software solution for this type of issue (yet!).
Hi Soo
I agree with Seb's comments.
A solution I can give you for the monitors issue is to locate them always behind your microphone and ensure you're using a cardiod or supercardiod polar pattern. This way your microphone will be set to reject the majority of the sound coming from behind which should help with the reflections from them. This is a common practice from some studios that use monitoring like that.
Also, I don't really like only using one type of acoustic material to treat a space as, like Seb mentioned, it can absorb too much of some frequencies while bouncing others. This is not ideal as the sound can be quite impacted by that. I personally like to mix foams of different calibers and fabrics of different materials. This way, each material will absorb different problem frequencies and ensure the sound is more balanced.
You may want to try switching up some materials to test if that helps with the boxiness of your room.
Hi Angela
Thanks for getting back to me.
My monitors are behind the mic and my mic is in front of a mic shield. I am using a Rhode NT1 which is cardiod. I have blankets and fabric also in my studio and not just the acoustic standard of foam.
Any other suggestions please?
Best wishes
Soo
Hi Soo
Unfortunately, at this time those are my best recommendations. As I'm unaware of how your space is built, its size, shape, etc., I wouldn't be able to tell you what to move and how.
When it comes to acoustic treatment, it's important to experiment, move things around and see how things improve.