Here is your Home Studio Master’s Tip of the Week, brought to you by Dan Lenard!
What microphone should a voice actor buy?
Perhaps one of the top questions posed in voiceover forums is, “What microphone should I buy?”. This is an obsession you need to remove yourself from. In this tip of the week, The Home Studio Master makes it quite clear that it is not the mic that gets you work.
If you enjoyed this tip, please make sure you tune in each week to this blog, and East West Audio Body Shop, with Dan Lenard and George Whittam.
About the author
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Dan is a Voice123 talent and owner of http://homevoiceoverstudio.com/ |
Marc Scott
January 16, 2013
This is such a valuable tip!
It’s so easy for talent to get caught up in microphone envy. Especially new talent starting out. It’s also common to see talent with expensive microphones use it as a selling feature, as if talent with a less expensive mic simply can’t deliver the goods.
Don’t let yourself fall into the trap. If you can afford a Neumann, great! But if you can’t, don’t assume you’re screwed and don’t go into massive debt to buy one, thinking it’ll be the difference maker.
Steve Krumlauf
January 16, 2013
Thanks, Dan! Loved your piece on microphone shopping.
I can breathe easier, (which I will eventually edit out), knowing my $249 retail AT mike is just fine.
I’ve used some of the best over years of broadcast work and for my money and my ears, the AT sounds just as good as the “high price spread.”
Harry
January 20, 2013
I have a very old TEAC MC-106 dynamic microphone (10K imp.) I bought two back when I was using a reel-to-reel setup for recording. Will this work for voice over work?
homestudiomaster
January 20, 2013
Hi Harry,
Uh… NO. High impedance mics have to much noise and Dynamics are not good for VO.
You need a Studio Condenser mic.
Jennifer Dixon
January 21, 2013
Thanks Dan for taking the time to do this.I really appreciate your recording/vo tips of the week- always useful and very encouraging.
Hal
January 21, 2013
So in other words, even if you drive a Yugo, as long as you know how to drive, you can still compete in the Indianapolis 500 and win? Whew. I was worried there for a moment that I’d have to make some kind of investment to be a professional vo talent. ; )
Kopia Jackson
January 21, 2013
Great tip! Thanks so much!
Pazuzu
January 21, 2013
A real talent sounds good even on a cheap mic.
homestudiomaster
January 21, 2013
Hal,
I clearly did not simplify it down to that. However, if you put a well known professional behind a moderately priced mic, they’ll still be that talent and I’ll bet no one who makes those decisions would ever know the difference. You’re analogy about the Indy 500 is misplaced. Explain to us how the expensive mic makes you more competitive in a home studio environment. I’m not saying drive a Yugo, I’m saying you don’t need a Mercedes. Don’t simplify it down to crap vs. gold.
90% of your audio quality comes from the acoustical nature of your recording space.
Thom
January 21, 2013
So would acoustic foam be a better investment? How well do little setups like the porta booth work?
homestudiomaster
January 21, 2013
Porto-Booths are great for on the road. Concentrate on your home studio set-up. Acoustical treatment is the most important factor. How big a room do you have? DO you have a closet of some sort?
George McNerlin
January 21, 2013
Good advise. My question is this: Do producers look for the kind of mic you use? If so, will you have more credibility with a more expensive mic? Also, I am curious….if you make a living doing this, what kind of a mic do you use? There is no top 50 list here on Voice 123, but the “other” site has them. Last I checked I was number 16 all time. If you are in the top 50, please tell me what mic you use. I use a Rode NT1-A. Until 2 years ago I used an EV RE-20. Like Dan said, I had to build a new studio in order to use the Rode. I got more business back in the RE-20 days, but I think that’s because there’s more competition today. What say you? (Please friend me on Facebook…George West – Kingsport)
homestudiomaster
January 21, 2013
George,
Thats all very subjective. The RE-20 is great for a radio studio. If you’re doing a lot of radio reads, thats a good mic to use. Check out last nights EWABS (Episode 80) as I went into mic technique. We’ll present that one soon on this blog. However for the overwhelming majority of voice work, (E-learning, audio books, corporate narrations) the NT1-A rocks Mon. Its a good mid-range priced instrument.
In all my years doing this, I’ve never once been asked what mic I use.
Scott J. Smith
January 22, 2013
Isn’t it true that some microphones (at the same price point) will sound better for a particular voice type than others? The common “advice” I hear is, “Well, you just have to ‘test-drive’ several, and decide for yourself which is best.”
Okay…I have no idea where there is a “Best-Buy”-style try-it-until-you-like-it across all brands of microphones. The nearest Guitar Center has a couple high-end microphones for musical vocals, but I don’t know of any place I could drive or fly to within 500 miles where I can “try before I buy.”
So, do I just order one of each from Sweetwater, and plan on returning most…or is there a better way?
Moose
January 22, 2013
Dan, was that an Apogee imic you were using?
Jen
January 22, 2013
I agree with everything said in that video, but feel one thing was left out. How about the actual “sound quality” of the mics? We get a lot of cases where our talent has the green light to record at home, or outsource some of our material to mainland China voice talent. The voice quality and reads all worked (the reason we chose the talent) but we’ve found some some problems with the sound quality their mics are giving – particularly that “shrillness” often associated with a lot of cheaper condensers.
So in addition to the comments in the video, I would also submit that you should LISTEN to the mic before buying to know if it has decent sound quality. (not to mention if it suits your voice well or not) IMO, the higher up the mic chain you go, the less chance you have for that problem. And that’s not to say there aren’t some great sounding cheaper mics. Believe me, there are! Take a look into the history of Line Audio’s CM3 microphone. (NOT FOR VOICE OVER) People compare it to a much more expensive mic from Schoeps, but at about a 1/10th the price. So there ya go!
homestudiomaster
January 22, 2013
Hey Moose,
Indeed it was. Works with i-Pad, i-Phone and also is an outstanding USB mic.
:-3)
homestudiomaster
January 22, 2013
Scott,
In a home studio, the notion of “The right mic” is means little if you don’t monitor your output with studio monitors. I’ve done lots of comparison tests between mics and honestly, if you watch last weeks Tip Of The Week again, you’ll see that the better mic doesn’t make you better. In many cases, depending on your studio acoustics, it could actually make you sound worse. My stated philosophy is any studio condenser mic over $250 or $300 will fill the bill. (ther are some exceptions to this for under $250) Its when you go for cheap, cheap mics (under $150) that a “perceptible” difference can be heard. Remember, “The idea of a home voice over studio is not to make you sound “great,” its to make you sound like “YOU.” I don’t know of any mics that would make you sound like someone else. People setting up their home studios for the first time need to get way from the idea of the right mic for them and concentrate on the mic that fits their budget. Its more important to learn proper mic technique. You need an outside ear to truly determine if a mic is the wrong one for you. Most mics will work for anyone. Audio geeks that read this will cry foul. However, audio geeks don’t hire voice talent. This isn’t about what sound YOU like.Its about whats acceptable in the marketplace.
homestudiomaster
January 22, 2013
Hi Jenn,
Do you know what mics they were using? It could be a combination of factors. It might have been a matter of simply not knowing how to record properly or even misuse of processing like EQ, normalizing, and compression. I wouldn’t blame the mics right off.
:-3)
The Orrator
January 23, 2013
With regard to the cheaper mics (150 dollars or less, that being the lower end cutoff in at least one response), what recommendations does anyone have? I’ve heard good things from several voice performers about the Samson G Track and a few others in that range.
Matt Tittle
January 24, 2013
Great. You were using the same mic I have, as was one of your still pics. Apogee digital Mic. I love it.
Matt
January 25, 2013
Hello I have an APEX 435 , Its a gold diaphragm condenser mic. It seems to work for me and I think I paid about $100.00 on sale. Can you tell me what a good upgrade would be for a new mic ? Something comparable but maybe a bit better quality, my budget is about $300.00 to $500.00. Thanks for the tips and advice.
Matt.
homestudiomaster
January 27, 2013
Hi Matt,
Not knowing your voice and the type of work you do makes it hard to make a quick recommendation. However, a mic that has gotten great reviews, is an excellent price point, is the Harlan Hogan VO-1A. Its really designed for voice over as opposed to musical vocals. A quick way to Harlan’s site is through my website homevoiceoverstudio.com. just click on the Voice over essentials icon (Third one down on the right side of the page)