Weekly VO Workflow: What Industry? Which Standard?

In the various threads and discussions surrounding the VO world, an innocuous-seeming phrase crops up now and again: “Industry Standard.”  Certainly, that phrase is not limited to voice acting. However, unlike many industries where there are specific mandated or accepted particulars, “Industry Standard” doesn’t seem to be that well defined within the confines of voiceover training, recording setups, or deliverables.

In our world of VO stuff gets a bit squishy, which can be confusing for anyone new to the industry. Folks coming into this biz seek guidance for what is expected. But if we are being honest, it seems “Industry Standards” are actually few and far between.

“Best practices” might be a better phrase. That term provides a more flexible directional approach rather than a specific absolute answer. Voiceover and narration practices continue to evolve, and what was “Standard” last year (or even last month) may no longer apply. To my mind, the core VO “Industry Standard” is that we need to be open to, and respond to, ongoing changes. In other words, “change is the only constant…” and we need both a strong foundation of skills and confidence to learn as we go.

There are a few areas where it’s easy to see this play out.

The Best Voiceover Recording Software?

Back in the second or third VO class I took, another actor in the class stated that Pro Tools was the industry standard for recording software. I’ve not yet found that to be the case. Certainly, if you want to work in a commercial recording studio, being facile with that platform is essential. But if the task is getting auditions out the door and delivering work to clients, then that’s an entirely different equation. As I’ve said repeatedly, no software records any better than any other, and the idea that one needs to use Pro Tools in a home VO studio is just not true.

I’m a big fan of using tools appropriate to the task. If I’m going to record and combine different instruments or sound effects, and layer multiple recorded tracks, a multitrack music recording tool makes a lot of sense. However, I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve encountered other voice actors living in fear of changing anything in their complex software setup. If it stops working, they may have no idea how to fix it.

For almost anything we do in voiceover, we need to record with a minimum of fuss, edit effectively, and generate single vocal tracks. Just having a simple recording method with the ability to automate repetitive tasks is a core tenet for running your own studio. 

The Only VO Mic You Need?

More than likely, you’ve heard “Industry Standard” pop up relating to microphones. Heck, we’re voice actors. We loooove to talk about microphones! However, there is not “one mic to rule them all!” even though I’ve heard many models referred to as “Industry Standard” – Neumann U87’s, Shure SM7B’s, Rode NT1A’s, AKG 414’s, TLM103’s, Sennheiser MKH416’s…. While some of those mics are recommended for valid reasons, more commonly it’s just what one person had and it worked for them.

I dig more deeply into this topic in my voiceover microphone resource, but there are a lot of very good microphones out there for the money. If you sound good, you sound good. A great recording space and refined placement and position have a lot more impact on sound quality. Mics can also be pretty task-specific, and a microphone model chosen for promo work would likely be different from one selected to produce audiobook narration. There are also plenty of stories about a high dollar large diaphragm condenser mic that sounded glorious in a large, well-treated room, but ended up unusable inside a closet booth in a condo where it picks up a cat purring on the other side of a shared wall. 

Training for Real-World VO Tasks

As working VO’s, we need to continually assess needed skills while moving forward through our career. There’s no accreditation we get that we can show to a potential client. There’s no “certificate” for VO and we don’t get a formal diploma. It’s a continually changing landscape that has a lot of variables.

When it comes time to send auditions, there’s not even a realistic “Industry Standard” for how loud we might send our files. Outside of audiobook deliverable standards, what a client wants can vary wildly.

Success in voiceover and narration grows from our ability to discover, evaluate, and respond to audition opportunities, and the way in which we connect and interact with those clients when delivering our work on a project. All of that can be a bit frustrating and vague at various points in the learning curve. If we accept that the answer is not generally found in some “Industry Standard”, the better positioned we will be to analyze and adapt.

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.

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