VO Studio Quality: “One Size Fits All”? Not for our audio!

Within the various voiceover and narrator online discussion groups I haunt, there has been a recent spate of panicked posts asking a similar question: “What settings should I use?” They are trying to deliver audio to spec and it’s not working. Those voice actors want to know specific values they should input within particular tools in order to fix it. They are asking the group to share their methods.

A landslide of responses occurs, providing a monstrously wide range of options. This audio tool at that setting, or that plug-in and this setting. Advice piling upon itself creating a myriad of options, all of which are slightly unique.

The interesting thing is how many of the proposed solutions might actually work. It’s usually possible to find some validity in most of the options. We realize again there are actually very few “One Size Fits All” for audio.

Now I’m certainly not claiming there are no best practices or solid workflows. I collaborate with folks all the time to help build a reliable foundation in their recording software of choice. My aesthetic bias is that the studio and software environment should feel like a comfortable instrument, not an automated device to be feared when it stops working or does something weird and unexpected.

But when trying to fix a particular problem, specifics matter. There could be a flawed assumption, such as feeling compelled to completely debreath an entire audiobook. It’s possible that an audio issue is misidentified, for example describing something as “boxy” when it’s actually a reflection within the recording space. The cause of the problem can be misdiagnosed, such as a recent situation where a “high noise floor” turned out to be a “poorly set compressor.”

The most salient answer might be that breathing is normal if it’s not distracting us from the storytelling…or the reason a voice doesn’t sound full is because of the echo off of too many hard surfaces….or that aggressively using dynamics tools can create additional issues. Those are all pretty general points, certainly not as specific as “use a -4.3 dB EQ notch at 237 Hz with a Q of 63“…

All of which gets us back to the basics: taking the time to hear how things actually sound. Without having the opportunity to listen to the original audio, any suggestion remains a well-meaning guess. Your voice is unique and deserves to be treated that way.

Have you tested your studio’s audio quality to make sure it meets professional standards? For a free review of your vocal recordings, please use the upload tool on my Audio Review page.

Please share! If this resource has been helpful to you, please share with one of the buttons below!
You can also sign up to receive these and other advance announcements via email each week.