Rejected because of hiss
Dear QC team,
my application was this morning rejected because of hiss.
I'm unhappy with your assessment because my studio, DAW and other settings have been checked and given the green light by an ex BBC sound engineer who now acts as a technical advisor to voice actors like me.
I sent him my sample I sent you in my application and he can find nothing technically wrong with it at all. In order to detect any hiss, he had to turn the volume of his reference speakers to maximum, which a potential client listening would surely not routinely or reasonably do?
This morning I also submitted to him a base level sound test - his analysis is attached as a screen shot. I would be grateful if you could take a moment to study this. Everything is broadcast-quality and hiss has never been reported by clients, who have consistently welcomed the high quality of my recordings.
My sE2200 Mk II cardioid mic is plugged into my Focusrite Scarlett 2nd gen 2i4 via an MA400 pre-amp then via Van Damme quad core cablesinto my2i4 The 2i4 is then plugged in by USB connection into my iMac, and I then use Pro Tools 2018.4 to edit and master.
The settings on my 2i4 can be seen in the attached image - are these settings optimal to reduce hiss?
My submission was, as directed in the timed project application email, not EQ'd in any way. It was normalised to -3dB before consolidating then bouncing to file at 44/16 as per the instructions.
I was also rejected for not reading from the script - but there was only a drop-down menu listing the type of submission, and unless I missed a link - there was no script I could see.
I would be grateful for your feedback please.
Thanks and regards
Kerry
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Thank you for sharing your work with us, Kerry.
Could you please share the recording here via Dropbox, SoundCloud or Drive, so we can all take a listen to it?
Best,
Oscar
HI Oscar,
thank you for your reply.
I will load it into SoundCloud this weekend and post a link.
Thanks and regards
Kerry
Hi Oscar,
this is the audition voice file in question. It is a SoundCloud link.
I was also rejected for not reading 'the script' - but I found no link to any script in the instructions email - just a drop down box of noun descriptions.
Awaiting eedback with thanks and regards,
Kerry
Hello, Kerry.
It appears that the file hasn't been found. If it's been saved as "private", you can double-check that the link you're sharing is the right one.
Best,
Oscar
Hi Oscar,
thanks for getting back to me.
I just tried clicking on the sentence in my comment 'this is the audition voice file in question. It is a SoundCloud link' . You'll notice the text colour is slightly lighter. The sentence itself is a hyperlink and when I clicked on it, it took me straight to my audition file on SoundCloud.
Does clicking on the sentence not work for you?
Regards
Kerry
That's strange, Kerry. Now I'm able to listen to the file.
Anyways.
I can actually notice a bit of hiss when your voice comes up; you will hear it if you crank up the volume a bit, as it becomes particularly noticeable when it goes from your voice to silence.
Also, I think another problem that might be even clearer to spot has to do with some mouth noises because perhaps you were not properly hydrated.
Question: did you happen to use a noise gate? I read in the description that you didn't use any compression, although it sounds a bit processed.
Let us know.
Best,
Oscar
No, I followed the instructions to the letter -flat EQ, normalised to -3dB, otherwise no processing and certanly no noise gate.
Regards,
Kerry
I understand, Kerry.
Perhaps the mic is requiring more gain than necessary, which is causing the Hiss problem. Do you happen to have the chance to use another condenser microphone?
Could you send us a new recording?
HI Oscar,
sadly I am not allowed, because Voice Bunny have now emailed me stating they cannot accept my application and wish me luck for my future VO career - this despite me emailing them that I can't yet record for my 'second chance' because I'm trying to sort out the hiss.
So now Ihave no idea where I stand...
I'd be gratful for your clarification on this if you could?
Thanks
Kerry
Hi again Oscar,
this was the email that 'Mr Bunny' sent me yesterday after I'd explained I couldn't start the second-chance application because I was still sorting out my hiss issue - I'm not sure anyone even read my email?:
"Hello Kerry Hutchinson,
Thank you very much for taking the time to apply. Regretfully, we cannot offer you a place in VoiceBunny at this time. We realize this is disappointing news.
You may be asking what was lacking in your application. It was a matter of timing. The test project we sent you was not completed on time. Our clients expect us to deliver results fast. As such, we can only work with professionals that can perform great work with relatively short deadlines.
There are many other venues out there that don't have the timing limitations that we have. We are sure you'll be able to grow professionally with them, as we know that other clients that will benefit from working with you. We wish all the success we know you are capable of achieving.
If you'd like to try again, please let us know. We may be able to reconsider your application."
So I'm not sure that even once I've sorted out my hiss issue, I'll be able to resubmit a second sound recording?
Absolutely, Kerry.
That's an automated email.
What it means is that you can request reconsideration whenever you feel you're ready for a second test. You may use this link: https://voicebunny.com/talents/perform_test_again or you can just log into your account, click on "continue your application" and then submit the request.
Here's an article about the topic that can be helpful for you https://help.bunnyinc.com/hc/en-us/articles/360002587679-How-many-chances-do-I-get-at-auditioning-to-become-a-Pro-
What I meant by "can you send us a new recording" was that you can create a comment and share a link to a new recording, in order for us to assess it here.
Hi Oscar,
many thanks for your helpful feedback - much appreciated.
The gain was too high on my pre-amp I think - but there is still hiss if I turn my Rokit 5 KRK speakers to maximum volume - and my ex-BBC sound engineer states that there will always be an audible hiss if you turn the volume up to maximum, that all hiss cannot be completely eradicated at that volume. How likely is it in reality that a Voice Bunny client would turn their reference speaker volume to maximum when litening to an audition?
What are your thoughts on this point please?
That, said, and before I resubmit, I was not able to find a script in the project email - just a drop-down menu asking me to identify what kind of read I was submitting - but I found no link to any scripts, which was the second reason I was rejected.
Could you please advise where I can find the script within the timed project email before I next submit with my 'second chance' audition?
Awaiting your guidance with grateful thanks and regards,
Kerry
Hi QA Team,
I have now found the cause of the hiss. I have done test recordings with no EQ - just a flat line, and it sounds fine even when my Rokit KRKs are at full volume.
Before I reapply however, the other reason for rejecting my applicaiton was because I did not read the script - but there was no script included in the project.
Could someone please advise how I can identify where this would be in the project email as it is not obvious apart from the drop down menu asking me to identify what script I was submitting.
Still awaiting your guidance with thanks and regards
Kerry
Hello, Kerry.
I'm sorry for the late reply. Let me answer your questions in order:
1. Awesome that you've found the cause of that hiss problem. Recording is a game with many variables, but once we've nailed it, it is very exciting.
2. You'll find the script from the drop-down menu that says Script-"part001" where you can click "more". For example:
Length
Gender and age
Male | Middle ageLanguage
Portuguese - BrazilScript
part001
+More
Hope that helps.
Best,