Wow, Travis! This is a generous offer! Your voice is awesome, no doubt. After hearing your voice on the "forum drama" piece, it was clear you've got some serious talent there.

This is a VERY Generous offer indeed.

Say I have a fairly good sized project coming up, that I may need some outside Narrating tallent for a portion of it. Could you tell me what you charge?

Dave

Hi Dave.

Now, see, we're not supposed to "Solicit" in the forum... and I agree -It's a good rule. I think there are criteria which can be drawn to establish what is "soliciting", and what isn't. For instance, If I respond to your post, it's clearly a "solicitation" for work.

Now, of course, most everyone who posts in here is a professional in the business, and it could be argued that every post could be a form of solicitation, but, I think it's pretty easy to know where to draw the line.

Thanks, anyway.

-Travis

Hi Mark...

>Could you tell me what setup you use IE Mic Studio ect ! <

The road that took me to my current career included several years as a recording studio owner/engineer. After driving that business into the ground, I decided that I would never want to be in the "Studio" or even the "Production" business again. So I take pains to make sure my "Mini-Studio" is not "Professional" quality - It must stay "Semi-Pro" - good enough for Auditions and low-end productions -- but "amatuer" enough for me to sincerely recommend to my "High-End" clients that we take their projects to the "Real" audio studios and sweetening facilities. My work is always better when a real audio engineer is pressing the record button.

My system consists of a computer (of course) a TASCAM console, and a pile of Behringer (remember- semi-pro) audio processing equipment, which is used mainly to remove harmonics of the 118.5 Hz rumble from the office building's Air coditioning system, which is located adjacent to my "Studio".

Mic is an Audio Technica 4035. I chose that one after a local studio owner and I compared a bunch of of mics ranging between one of his $4000.00 Neumans, and some of the less expensive ones he had on hand. I sound best on the $4000.00 Neuman, The AT was third runner up, and costs about 5 percent of the Neuman.

-Travis

Travis "thanks" Great Info !

I have A sennheiser KE66 Mic and Marantz 650 MD Player With an Edirol UA-5 Which I use to record from the MD to My Computer.. Also I Tweak it with VSTs like TLA-Audios Plugin or various plugins from Sound forge I have found though That its best to add as little as possible...

Hope you dont mind But I have some Questions that I would Value your Opinion on :)

1) Is My Mic (ME66) OK for VO? Would the AT Be better?..

2) What is the best distance to be from the Mic when doing VO..

3) Any suggestions for A cheap way to get the Advantages of a Studio on No Money... Or a Cheap Consumer affordable Alternative... "Perhaps" Use Blankets Cushions Pillows ect to cut down On sound reflections ect..

TIA

Well, perhaps you could e-mail your prices to me
dayvids_productions(AT)yahoo(DOT)com

Hi Mark.

>1) Is My Mic (ME66) OK for VO? Would the AT Be better?..<

It's like asking "Are Gibson, or Martin Guitars better?" Of all the items in the audio chain, speakers and especially microphones are more like musical instruments than pieces of technical equipment. They all "Color" the sound in some way. And it isn't just frequency response - there are other factors, many which are beyond my understanding, which influence the "sound" of a microphone.

Then there are subjective factors -- everybody has different opinions of what "good" sound is. Also, everyone plays the audio you record on different sound systems, and different acoustic environments. Add to that the fact that each performer's voice is different.

Best thing to do is try different microphones, to see which ones you like. Some dealers offer a "trial" program for trusted customers.

Bigger studios have a selection of microphones to choose from. (Another reason to take your important projects outside to a studio/engineer with resources and experience.)

>2) What is the best distance to be from the Mic when doing VO..<
Depends on studio conditions and environment, the "effect" you're trying to achieve, the microphone, and which party has the majority in congress.

>3) Any suggestions for A cheap way to get the Advantages of a Studio on No Money... Or a Cheap Consumer affordable Alternative... "Perhaps" Use Blankets Cushions Pillows etc., to cut down On sound reflections ect..<

I know a few announcers who record in their bedroom closet, without removing the clothes in there -- they like that "dead" acoustic sound. I prefer a larger room, with a bit of a "live" sound. The main rule is to avoid parallel walls so you don't get standing waves (the "bathroom" sound). In Hollywood, I've recorded in some amazingly "live" rooms -- I've been amazed at how good the recording sounded.

Best thing to do is experiment - Papier mache' egg cartons actually do work -- I've also had reasonably good luck with Auralex products from Guitar Center.

Good Luck,

Travis

Mark if you want a good laugh, but some information on how to build a cheep voice over box...
http://www.vasst.com/streaming/keystonecops-voicebox.wmv

May I add that spot's VO box works very well. I have been using it for a couple of years and it's great!!

What an excellent resource this is....Fantastic..More and better info than I could get from any other source....

Travis

I have a File dedicated to you now and have put everything Down including advice you have given elsewhere I tend to listen to people that Prove themselves Action is Louder than Words ! Thank you

DSE

I Was Impressed by your Presenting Style and Film ! Very Educational... Your Film has gone in My Travis File and I will be Building This VO Box !....wAYY Cool..

Thanks :) Great Stuff...