Voice Recording

[TonyFalla]

Up to now with one exception I have not used any voice recordings in my AV’s. The one exception I used a very cheap microphone and Audacity to record one sentence, it was not totally successful but I did eventually after about 2 hours get a reasonable recording. I am now considering doing some more AV’s that will require voice but am not sure how I should tackle this as I want something quicker than my previous method.

Thinking about it I can come up with 3 ways, there may be more, in which I can make a voice soundtrack.

1. As before using Audacity and a better microphone, which one would people recommend? The problem with this, as I see it, is how you eliminate background noise, my current PC has a very noisy cooling fan I can see difficulties with that and other noises in the room the PC is housed in.

2. Use some kind of recording device that I can speak into and record my voice sound track and then load on to the PC. I presume that such devices exist but have not investigated. Is this the way to go and if so what equipment would people recommend?

3. To use Voice Generation software where you type in some text and an audio track is produced. I have found an AT&T website that allows you to do this plus several vendors of packages on the Web. Is anybody using this method and if so what has been their experience and which package are they using?

As you have most likely gathered I am still feeling my way on this subject and would be grateful for any advice that can be offered

Tony Falla

[Ken Cox]

TONY

START HERE

http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index....amp;#entry50144

http://www.naturesound.org/

http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=7930

KEN

[fh1805]

Hi Tony,

Ken got in before me! I have posted at some length on several occasions about voice-over recording.

If you are going to be using Audacity you might be interested in this thread:

http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=7979

And for some background on voice-over work, this one:

http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=8003

The problem with trying to record into the PC is that you are operating in an "audio-signal hostile" environment. There are the power supplies, the processors, the cooling fans, the hard-disks, the CD/DVD drive, etc. - all capable of generating unwanted electro-magnetic frequencies (EMF). And running from the Line In jack to the sound card through all of this clutter is a signal cable of dubious shielding quality. The cable has the potential to act as an radio aerial and will pick up these unwanted noises. The soundcard then does its job and amplifies the signal - and of course that includes the noise!

My personal opinion is that it is impossible to get good quality recordings by driving the signal in through the PC's input jacks. I've chosen to use a battery-powered, solid-state digital sound recorder - the Zoom H4 (it also has a little brother, the H2, but that hadn't been released when I bought my unit).

The benefits of such a device are:

- It's battery-powered - so no mains hum

- It's solid-state - so no mechanical noise

- It records in WAV or MP3 format (my choice is WAV)

- It connects to the PC via a USB cable at which point its SD memory card is seen as just another device and the files can be transferred to the hard-disk via normal "drag and drop" with no file conversion software to modify the signal.

I don't know whether you subscribe to the RPS AV Group's magazine "AV News" (you don't have to be an RPS member) but it is likely that the next issue will carry an article by myself about my experiences with the Zoom H4 (the editors have got all the material, so the ball's in their court now).

The H4 was a touch pricy at £250 but I think the H2 retails at about £150-170 - not much more than you would pay for a new lens for your camera. You probably end up paying that sort of price for a good quality mike anyway.

Although I cannot release the text of my article until after publication day, what I can say is that I keep setting the H4 new challenges - and it rises to the occasion every time. I am really impressed with it.

regards,

Peter

[Johnwnjr]

May I recommend Edirol R-09 Portable Audio Recorder. This like the one above and appears to have the same features and again is a high quality machine with an inbuilt stereo microphone of fine quality. As you would expect the price is in line with the quality at £250. To read full details go to www.keene.co.uk who are a most reliable firm. They have a catalogue and this item has detailed information on half of page 39. The catalogue is free, but you can probably look up the details on the website.

Hope that this helps in some way,

John

[johnleslie]

Hi Tony

Another avenue for you to look at: Samson Microphones

www.samsontech.com

I bought there Q1U USB Dynamic microphone which i've found to be very good.

Never have i picked up any fan, or other noises when recording and only costs around £35 .

There are other microphones which are only around £70

You simply just connect into a USB and load into your PC/Laptop

I hope this may be of some help to you

JohnLeslie

[fh1805]

Hi all,

Anything that connects via a USB port is likely to produce a clean recording because the data will be getting captured "outboard" of the PC and then uploaded as a data file. I know nothing against the USB microphones except, as I understand it, that they cannot do an outdoor recording at an event unless you take the PC with you. I find it hard enough doing the photography (with my Nikon D70) and the sound recording (with the Zoom H4) without the extra hassle of having to lug around a laptop as well.

As a studio mike, the one mentioned by John Leslie sounds (pardon the pun!) an excellent option. But for location recording I feel that you need a unit such as the Zoom H4 or the Edirol R-09.

regards,

Peter

[TonyFalla]

Thanks for the replies it is very interesting what people have to say. I think however that recorders costing £150+ cannot be justified for the use that I have in mind. I only intend to make voice recordings at home, I have no need for location recording, like Peter says I find it difficult enough carrying my camera and lenses without adding any more to the bag.

How with a microphone do you eliminate background noise, do you position it well away from the PC with a long lead or is there some other trick?

One of the reasons I am attracted to the use of Voice Generating Software is that it eliminates all need for voice training and regional accents. Has anybody any experience of these?

Tony

[ferrolux]

The microphone supplied with the Asus MB

http://www.andreaelectronics.com/Buy/Produ...rbeam_Array.htm

And a small cabine of cardboard an insulating material?

regards,

[fh1805]

Tony,

There are basically two kinds of microphone:

- omni-directional - will pick up sounds from almost the complete sphere around the mike.

- directional - have a "cone of acceptance" from which sound is picked up (usually no more than the front hemisphere)

If you are going down the microphone route then you want a directional one with a cone of acceptance around 60degrees (any narrower than this and it is difficult keeping your mouth in the "sweet spot" of the mike. A directional mike will help enormously in reducing the pick up of unwanted sound. You will still have to deal with the problems of unwanted pickup of EMF within the PC if you are still thinking of recording via the Line In/Mic In jacks on the PC. If this is your intended route then choose the jacks that are part of the soundcard baseplate rather than any extra jacks on the front casing. The jacks on the card have got the minimum of "aerial" length and so will pick up less unwanted EMF.

Hope you find a solution that works for you and at the quality you want it to have. Don't under-estimate the challenges that you have set yourself. You're in for a period of frustration and elation in roughly equal measure as you travel along the learning curve. AV with voice-over is a whole new ball game and whole set of new skills to learn. The end result will be worth it, so persevere!

regards,

Peter

[johnleslie]

Hallo again Tony

As Peter has explained, when making a voice-over, quality is hard to find.

This has been a pathway i've been along, trying to decide, while also thinking of the cost.

I chose the Samson Q1U Dynamic USB after reading several web-sites and ringing a company called -

Music On My Pc Ltd - ( www.musiconmypc.co.uk ) who advised me this would be the one for me.

The microphone is mounted on its short stand on my desktop and connected via a USB lead, just in front of the monitor. My

Tower PC is below.

Regarding any "tricks" - don't have a TV/Radio playing - but joking apart, i've just done a couple of tests by running it on

Audacity. With the room windows open and with the microphone recording, the low key noises outside showed very, very slightly. When i recorded Voice, these other noises could not be heard.

For me, this works great and causes no problem with the finished result.

Good luck with your search.

JohnLeslie

[TonyFalla]

When I first raised this question I thought I knew what I wanted to do but having followed the various links given to me and reading the replies posted I am beginning to wonder if I should rethink my position.

Following the links provided by Ken and looking at other things, I at first thought was that all I needed to do was to buy a decent microphone. I then got to thinking that if I did that, in a few months time, would I be saying I wish I had bought a solid state recorder.

To say the least I am now umming and aahing between the two options. Can I ask another question which may help, or hinder, my decision. If I were to go for a solid state recorder would I also need a microphone or are the built in ones adequate for most purposes?

Peter I thought I knew how to use Audacity until I read your User Manual, I downloaded it yesterday and have read through it twice already noting things that I was not aware of. It is a fantastic guide, would you mind if I sent you a personal e-mail on a query I have long had with Audacity to see if there is a solution?

PTE really keeps your brain working I find that every time I want to do something new I have another learning curve to climb.

Tony

[fh1805]

Tony,

By all means e-mail me with a specific question about Audacity. I don't guarantee to know the answer!

I use the Zoom H4 with just its in-built stereo microphones and, so far, it hasn't let me down. It has two jacks for plug-in microphones so you have both options open to you.

regards,

Peter

[JEB]

Tony,

For what its worth I wouldn't recommend going down the mike route. See my post "Sound Advice".

John

[johnleslie]

Tony

Before you decide which to buy, i think the following web-sites are worth looking at for further imformation:

1. www.thetecstop.net/?page_id=940 This is a YouTube vidio on the Samson H2

2. www.audio-ideas.com/reviews/mp3/samson=zoom=h2-recorder-review

I know you are also interested in costs;

The Samson H4 is around £215:95

The -:- H2 -:- £139:95

I hope this does help you and not confuse you further

Best of luck

JohnLeslie

[jfa]

Tony have a look at these discussions on the forum ---

http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=7677

http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index....c=8025&st=0

http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=8643

Also the link to the H2 recorder stats. http://www.samsontech.com/products/product...6&brandID=4

For what its worth I think the H2 is the way for you to go.

[Alan Lyons]

Hi Tony,

I just read through your thread today and would like to add my bit.

As most people come to Audio Visual through photography the come to sound as the second part of the mix. We are happy for a while to add pre recorded music for a while and then, reach the point you have just arrived at. I'm amazed by those who proudly claim to have spent a lifetime learning photography, but if you cannot teach them everything about sound in an afternoon they want their money back.

Sound is just as creative a part of this dicipline as photography and once you are over the worry of cost, you will unleash a creative side you will enjoy as much as your photography.

The good news is that sound technology is going backwards rather than fowards. The big thing now in studio recording is valves!!!! What this means to you is that you don't have to "chase technology" as you do with PCs and Cameras.If you invest now in good equipment it should last a lifetime. Studio mics are routeenly expected to last 30+ years.

One option you could look at for recording voice at home is an external sound card wich allows you to move away from the PC as this is conected by USB to the pc and bypasses the onboard card. The background noise most recordingd pickup is due to the fact that the mic gain is too high for the voice which is near the mic so the sounds are picked up. Think of it as Depth of Field for sound.

Don't be shy to use the EQ facility in Aduacity to chase down rogue hums etc.

"Fixing it in Photoshop" is seen as the lazy way out for photographers. Whereas,

"Fixing it in the mix" is seen as the creative genius of the sound engineer.

Have a look at http://www.soundonsound.com/ it is a treasure trove of all things sound.

One final quote to set you on your way

"Ya buy cheep ya buy twice!"

Alan

[TonyFalla]

Well having slept on it for a couple of nights, and getting the OK from her who holds the purse strings, I have ordered myself a Zoom H2. So I will be starting to climb a new learning curve so expect some elimentary questions being asked on this forum in the near future.

Thanks to everybody who contributed, the information provided gave me a lot of food for thought and helped immensely in making my decison.

Tony Falla

[Ken Cox]

Tony

practice ready text from the newspaper so you can get the right cadence to your voice - talk slowly as tho' you were making an emergency annoucement and it is imperative that there be no mistakes in your presentation

it will soon become "natural"

Ronnie West used to have some tutorials that could be downloaded for you to listen to

and Lin Evas has tutorials that you can download and listen to

ken