VO Weekly Workflow – One Size…Does Not Fit All

It’s always a little iffy publishing something on April 1st. Pretty much every email I receive on that day remains suspect until proven factual. (I will say that Warm Audio kind of nailed it with this). If I try to make a serious point on this historically significant Day of Fools, it’s possible that you might not believe a word I’m saying.

I’m OK with that. In fact, I’d encourage you to question anything you hear me say. The fact is that tech doesn’t stand still and what the voiceover and narration market wants continues to evolve. Over the years, I’ve certainly stopped recommending certain microphone or audio interface models, and often refine what adjustments are appropriate for different deliverables. I’m always considering whether workflows can be updated or refined. Flexibility remains an important part of our studio workflow.

Remain Flexible in the VO Studio

There is no one way to achieve optimal results. That is why I’ll rarely suggest that someone has a “wrong” approach. When capturing audio at home, each of us has a unique set of challenges – whether caused by a roommate whose gaming sound system inflicts maximum audio damage upon our recordings, a recording space with decidedly unfriendly dimensions, or gear that has some unique quirks of operation.

Over the years I’ve heard great audio from the “wrong” microphones tucked into highly inappropriate recording spaces, and spent hours figuring out why someone’s high end gear sounded worse than their phone. The idea that there’s a one-size-fits-all solution simply doesn’t hold water. We all end up with some unique corrections and adaptations in our process.

There are certainly some best practices – whether setting recording levels, positioning microphones, or treating spaces effectively. Ignoring those basic tenets starts us at a disadvantage. The thing to be mindful of is how we build out from there. “Industry Standard” EQ or Compression settings from someone who has never heard our audio can easily result in less-than-optimal results. Though many of those hints stem from good basic approaches, they are often translated into “Truths” that don’t get questioned – even when they clearly don’t work.

It gets back to a core truth: If it sounds good, it is good. We’ve all been ingesting media for most of our lives, and have a pretty good sense of when something is wrong. If you feel as though something doesn’t sound right, that’s a great time to ask for help.

Published 4/7/26 (though this was originally emailed to subscribers on April Fool’s Day…)

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