Voice Over Studios specialise in delivering ultra high quality spoken word recordings. Recorded spoken word is Everywhere! It’s so common and all around us, and as a result, can be easily taken for granted! This includes all the recorded voices we hear on the TV, radio, and web through to when an AI communicates to us through our smartphones. All this spoken material needs to be recorded professionally and at the highest quality possible. Crash Symphony Productions is one of the best voice over studios in Sydney so read on to learn more about how we work!
In this article we will discuss how we deliver the best voice over that money can buy! We’ll discuss the types of voice over studios like Crash Symphony record, our use of equipment, capturing the best performances, accessing the most professional voice talent, our plugin chain, and lastly, how we deliver fast and clean voice over to you on time.
Types of Voice Over
We group voice over into a few different categories. Television and radio commercials are historically the most common types of voice over recordings and this is what people think of when ‘voice over studios’ are mentioned. However, ADR (Automatic Dialogue Replacement) is another form of voice recording. This is where an actor will look at the video of a film production and synch to their own lines. Voice over recordings are becoming more frequently requested for AI related products like smartphones, GPS systems, and other modern high-tech equipment. Podcasts and audiobooks are on the rise, too, with the increasing bandwidth available to customers. The above mentioned types of voice over work indicate the increasing variety and need for recorded spoken word in our modern world.
Recording with the Right Gear
Voice over studios need to make sure that they have the very best gear available to record spoken content. In a world where everyone has easy access to record equipment on their iPhones and laptops we need to make sure our gear is significantly better. This is how we stay relevant.
The microphone is one of the most important tools in a voice over studio. There are two microphones that immediately spring to mind: the Neumann U87ai and the Sennheiser Mk416 shotgun microphone. Microphones, such as these, are veterans of the voice over industry. The Neumann u87ai is a low self-noise large diaphragm condenser microphone that provides detail and clarity. The Sennheiser M416 shotgun microphone is a highly directional microphone that has a frequency response suited to delivery through common listening devices. Both microphones are a must for every serious voice over studio!
The preamplifier is another crucial part of the voice over recording chain. There are many different types of “pre’s” out there but the winner for voice over work is the Grace Audio m103. This is a transformer-less channel strip that has an EQ and optical compressor. Engineers designed the m103 to be ultra clean. This means it has the lowest possible noise-floor. This unit, coupled with the above microphones, gives a clinically clean signal which is exactly what is desired for high-end voice over audio recordings.
IPads are another hidden gem in voice over studios. Too often page turning gets captured on dialogue recordings and proves to be very difficult to edit out. The iPad solves this problem by removing the page completely. Brightness can be varied and font size easily and quickly adjusted. This is another must-have in a truly professional voice over studio.
Recording in the Right Room
Voice over studios must have treated isolation booths. This is a small padded room where the voice over talent will record within. The interior is treated to be acoustically inactive or ‘dead’. This reduces the sound reverberating around in the room, hence, plays a significant role in the recorded voice sounding clean and focused. Thick, heavy, and dense walls ensure that the room is impenetrable to outside noise.
Capturing the Right Performance
It isn’t enough to have all the greatest gear in the world. As a top voice over studio we provide guidance in how to capture the best performance. This involves giving feedback to the talent on their reading tempo and fluency, their diction and inflexion-placement. Capturing the right performance is equally important to having amazing gear. The engineers at Crash Symphony Productions have decades of experience in recording voice over and providing measured feedback to the talent.
Getting the Right Voices
Voice over talent is not common to find. It’s a skilled job that many people work very hard at doing well. Our voice over studio has worked with the absolute best in the industry. We know the best agencies who provide amazing voice over talent. We have created our own database of freelance talent that we work with often. As a result, we can provide options to our enquiring clients very rapidly in order to turn around their job quickly.
