Inconsistent Audio Results
Here's the voice set up. Few thousand dollars in padding, carpeting and additional sound proofing around the mic. What is wrong with these audio recordings? What is wrong with the studio setup? Why is it that my stuff is rejected by the night time QC people - but not the day time people? Why is QC so inconsistent?
We need QC for QC. 
https://www.dropbox.com/s/zam1pb4wtvso1jd/French%20Way.wav?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/mziutg1fum17hw4/cda%20wood.wav?dl=0
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Hey, Matt!
Thank you for reaching out, we totally understand why this must baffle you. Honestly, with that much soundproofing and isolation, you shouldn't have any issues with echoes, which is really the biggest concern of mine right now.
Faint reflections are audible in both audios, but more present in the CDA recording since you're recording at a louder volume coming naturally from the intention and tone.
I got a couple of thoughts on the reflections issue: what gain are you recording at? You should ideally select a level that prints around -9 to -6 dB. I can hear some harmonic distortion which is often related to a hotter-than-ideal tracking level. This also impacts some mics in which capsules are overly sensitive to high gain levels, leaving them overly sensitized and producing a pseudo-echo effect (along with the harmonic distortion).
The other thing that pops to mind is your mic: if it's the early and original NT2, that means it has a dual pattern capability: omni and cardioid. If it's set to omni, you'd get early order reflections from whatever is behind and to the sides of the capsule. In this respect, a neat little plugin from Lewitt mics works even with microphones by other manufacturers, giving you the ability to manipulate the signal after the fact. I've tried it on my condenser and shotgun mics as well to superb results, should selecting the proper cardioid pattern on the Røde don't work as it should.
Finally, the picture makes it look as if the height clearance is pretty low, which could have an effect on your recording quality as well.
Hopefully, you can apply these tips and share the results with us. We strive in helping you out to get the most out of that marvelous setup.
Hear you soon!
- Héctor Adolfo Ituarte (BunnyStudio QC Agent)
Thanks for the help Hector. By the way, one of those audio pieces was accepted, the other rejected. Later that day - submitted another which was accepted. This morning... first one accepted - the other rejected.
Each time there is a rejection - I have to get the engineer in at great cost to evaluate it. All that to say that all my earned money is going to the engineers rather than the performer. I can confirm that that we are recording with a cardioid pattern and it's between -9 and -6 - then normalized to -3. We could indeed raise the mic a bit.
But you see the problem right? Equally interesting is that night time reads get rejected while the daytime don't. The engineers are at a point where we are tracking humidity in the room because we have rejection issues more often at night and in the winter when it is drier.
Our next step is to likely to rebuild the set up. However, Voice Bunny is the only company we have audio issues with.
More to come as we learn more.
Hey, Matt!
It's very interesting indeed, but if I had to put my money on something to name as culprit it'd be 20% the volume/dimensions in the space and 20% the mic. I used to be a Røde man myself, still owning an NT1 long forgotten in my gear cabinet.
I don't know if it's a QC withing their production facilities, but some people get amazing units and some of us get great mics with some less than desirable drawbacks.
I'd recommend that instead of getting an engineer, since we're all self-produced talents, it'd be best if you devote some time to mapping out and learning from your booth instead. You'll be the one working from there day in and day out, so knowing its ups and downs will prove crucial in the long run. Same as for the gear you use and what you can expect from it.
Adding to the subject of humidity it can be a factor and function with condenser mics. I have seen mics ruined by the humidity level in the room and not getting properly stored while not in use. That was one of the reasons I chose an MKH 416 when my setup was static, as I couldn't maintain proper humidity and temp conditions for other more delicate mics to properly work without the potential for failure and that mic (while sensitive in a very annoying lobar way especially indoors) was easier to maintain 'cause it's built for the outdoor jobs expected out of ENG or film sound settings.
If I could offer you some advice, I'd try to borrow mics from friends/colleagues and see if other models/brands would work best in your acoustic settings. I'm thinking something like pencil mic of the small diaphragm variety, such as the AT 2035b in the sensible spectrum of an artist's budget, with more expensive alternatives such as Sennheiser's MKH 50, which many sound pros use for indoor dialogue, even in untreated spaces. The MKH 416 is also a great choice if you have the acoustics properly resolved, otherwise you'll also experiment with some odd reflections that can drive anyone mad.
As for a project's chances to be accepted/rejected, that would depend on a great number of variables within our criteria in QC. But I can tell you I would've asked for revisions on both of them for the reasons mentioned in the previous comment.
The one thing I can tell you not only as a QC Agent, but as an obsessive freak with audio and recording is: try to figure it out. It pays off handsomely, as it makes your work super consistent and way easier, but because like in my case I can tell that quality is not something we demand of you, but something you hold dear as well.
Please don't hesitate and ask for more help, insights or whatever is needed! We love it when a fellow pro of your stature finally dials in that last 10% and achieves the sound. Not only does it make our jobs easier, but when people share the way you do, it helps us learn and understand the unique challenges inherent to our very personal recording conditions.
We're looking forward to hearing the updates! Please keep us in the loop =)
Cheers!