Quick Tips For Recording Pro-Quality Voiceovers in Your Home Studio

For voice actors, podcasters, streamers, or any spoken word artist working from home, addressing the challenges of home recording is crucial. We all strive for results that are seamless and professional, concealing the fact that our recordings originate from humble settings like our spare bedroom or closet.

Yet, mastering the art of home voice-over recording presents numerous hurdles. Professionals must deliver quality that is so refined that the listener remains unaware of the domestic origin of the recording.

So, how can we accomplish this feat? Keep reading to discover my quick tips for recording pro-quality voiceovers in your home studio. Set up your recording space  Selecting the right room and treating it accordingly is of utmost importance. While it may not seem as glamorous or exciting as investing in high-end equipment, it stands as the crucial factor in achieving optimal sound quality in a home setup.

Whether you're using a budget-friendly USB microphone, a premium voice mic connected to a professional interface, or even top-of-the-line gear, none of it matters if your recording space lacks the necessary quietness and freedom from undesirable frequency distortions.

Therefore, it's imperative to carefully choose a suitable space and apply appropriate treatment. The approach to treatment will vary depending on the specific characteristics of the recording environment. Certainly, the effectiveness of any treatment will be compromised if your environment lacks tranquility. By tranquility, I refer to freedom from disruptive noises originating from machinery and external sources.

Creating a soundproof environment can often incur significant expenses, as seen in professional studios where investments are made in specialized construction featuring floated floors, walls, and ceilings to minimize external disturbances.

However, your intention is to record at home and save on expenses, so there are still practical measures you can take to attain your objectives. First, select a space that is as isolated as possible from outside noise. Rectangular rooms are best. Walk-in closets are excellent. The main points are to prevent as much echo and noise as possible, while eliminating outside distractions from coming in.

Therefore, once you have selected an appropriate space, reduce any controllable noise. If an appliance emits noise, disconnect it during the recording session. You will most likely have to sacrifice the use of the air conditioning while recording, especially if it is a room AC. Additionally, be mindful of your computer's sound, as the microphone can capture it. This goes for any other noises, such as squeaky footwear, nylon clothing, a squeaky chair, etc. Consider using longer cables to isolate your microphone as much as possible from the other gear in your studio. Next you must eliminate echo. This entails what we call the clap test. Stand in the middle of your recording space and clap your hands. If you hear any echo or hollowness, you'll need to treat the room. I cover detailed room treatment in other article and podcasts, but in a nutshell you simply need to deaden the room. Deadening the room can be as simple as hanging moving blankets on the walls, over window and doors, etc., and it's also probably the most cost effective way to deaden a room. Use the Right Equipment When you're recording a voice-over, you need the right gear for the job. And when it comes to gear for the spoken word in the home-studio environment, the goal, above all else, is the cleanliness of your recording.

You want a low signal-to-noise ratio along with a clear warm sound. This is more valuable than any harmonic nuance in the world. A vocal with soaring trebles (high end) may be perfect for pop music recording, but for voice acting the high ends (trebles) need to be kept in check. High, whispery tones can become distracting and hard to listen to in a spoken word context, and even the slightest distortion will stick out, especially without any underlying music.

Indeed, clarity extends beyond the mic itself and its audio interface. Accessories can be key. You need to get a pop filter, microphone windscreen, or both, to minimize the energy expended by your consonants, especially "p" and "b", known as plosives. Recording software can help minimize, or even eliminate this during editing if you discover such sounds that have slipped through, but eliminating them during recording is preferred and saves a lot of time during the editing process.

You should also have a mic stand with an attachment known as shock mount, which holds the microphone to minimize or prevent any transfer of energy that may occur from mic stand contact or movement, all of which minimizes vibrational noise. As far as the actual gear itself, I cover the different types of products in other articles, podcasts and my guidance programs, but here are the items you will need: - A computer with at least 16GB RAM, preferably 32GB, and a good sound

card - A DAW (Digital Audio Workstation), which is your recording software on

your computer. - A microphone. A microphone with XLR connectors is preferred, as this puts forth maximum quality. However, they do make nice quality USB microphones

now, which are far more budget friendly. - An XLR microphone cable if using an XLR connector mic. USB mics come

with their own USB cable. - An audio interface, which connects your XLR microphone to your computer and your computer's DAW. You won't need an interface if using a USB mic. - A microphone stand (preferably a boom stand) with a shock-mount for the

microphone and a pop filter, windscreen, or both. - Good quality headphones or earbuds. Do not skimp on this with cheap ones. Prepare For the Voice Recording Session Now it's time to address some often overlooked factors, such as your actual performance. Ensure that you are fully prepared to record and capture your best takes.

If you're using written or printed scripts on paper, consider the potential noise from crinkling pages. Try not to have to change pages during recording. Even better, I highly suggest opting for scripts transferred onto a tablet or teleprompter with a remote control to mitigate this issue, as microphones pick up every sound. Also, make sure that the remote control is quiet. I have had remotes that make clicking sounds when you press buttons. A voice mic can pick up even the most subtle clicking. Also, hydrate yourself before recording and keep water handy to take sips in between takes. Although I have never tried it, colleagues of mine have sworn by eating an apple before recording. All of this will reduce or eliminate the dreaded mouth clicks. Be well rehearsed with your scripts. You shouldn't be searching or stumbling for words as you speak. Make sure you have all word pronunciations dialed in, as well as knowing the emotions that you may need to convey at certain points.

Keep in mind that the editing process is always an option should you come across any unwanted sounds on a recording, or if you muddle a word or sentence, so don't be too hard on yourself. Simply stop when you blunder and re-record. You can do this as many time as it takes to get the desired result. During editing you can weed out the bad takes and use the good ones. Other considerations to keep in mind are: - Cell phone on airplane mode, with reminders or alarms disabled. - Any house phones in the room unplugged. - Make sure the dog won't need to go out. - Make sure anyone in the home knows you are recording and instruct them not

to knock or enter the room, unless of course it's an emergency. - Don't wear noisy clothing or footwear. - Minimize your movement during recording. - Make sure fans and AC units are off. - Keep your microphone a safe distance from your computer's fan(s). Also, one last thing . . . it’s always a good idea to create audible breaks in between takes as you record long passages. This is known as slating in the industry. Slating can consist of a hand clap, tapping sound, etc., followed by a brief pause and then you briefly describing what you are about to record, or a combination of all three. The purpose of this is that it creates a visual and audible marker for you during the editing process. Let me give you an example and explanation: You hit record . . . (clap) "This recording is a commercial for Toyota, line one" (clap) . . . "Are you looking for a pickup that combines power and durability with elegance?" . . . (clap) "Re-recording line one" (clap) . . . "Are you looking for a pickup that combines power and durability with elegance?" . . . (clap) "Line two" (clap) . . . "Then look no further than the Toyota Tundra" . . . (clap) "Line three" (clap) . . . "The Toyota Tundra embodies rugged capability with Toyota's legendary heritage" . . . (clap) yadda yadda yadda . . . While this is just a brief example, imagine you have a 30-munute recording session with multiple lines and multiple re-takes. When you sit down to edit, you will see the waveforms representing your claps, so that you can quickly locate any editing spots. Then your verbal cues let you know what's going on. It makes editing so much faster and easier. If you were to simply keep talking without the hand claps and verbal cues, by the time you sit down to edit, you'll have to keep searching and stopping as you try to find what's what, and what stays or goes. On a 30-minute waveform that has virtually no noticeable fluctuation or gaps between lines or takes, this can be a seriously frustrating process. Utilize Proper Microphone Etiquette One of the key voice acting tips emphasizes proper microphone etiquette. Given that the vocal is the focal point of any voice acting project, mastering mic technique is crucial. The aim is to achieve a clear and robust sound, free from issues like bad cables, sharp or hissing sounds that can occur when saying "s", "sh", "ch", etc., or distracting plosives from certain consonants So, here are three essential tips for mic etiquette: 1. Invest in a windscreen, pop filter, or both, for your microphone. While some sounds engineers avoid using these for recording sung vocals due to potential high-end softening, it is quite beneficial for voice acting work. And the reason that audio engineers don't worry about it with singing is because those unwanted sound nuances virtually disappear within all of the other instruments and vocals going on in the mix. 2. The primary challenge you'll encounter while recording vocals in a treated home environment is reducing room ambience. It's not just about room noise. Rather, it's the reflections within the room that can affect your recording. Even if your recording space is well-treated, as I spoke about earlier, there's still a risk of added ambience to your signal, as any room has a certain amount of natural ambience no matter how well treated. To address and overcome this, leverage various close-mic techniques to your advantage. What do I mean by this? Well, you want to get as close to the mic as possible without causing unwanted sharp, hissing, or plosive sounds. Everyone's voice and delivery are different, so you will have to experiment with what will be your sweet spot regarding how close you get to the mic. Also keep in mind that every project is different as to volume, emotion, delivery, etc., so you will need to find that sweet spot for each recording project. So, how do you accomplish this? My suggestion is to start recording a test sample with your mouth approximately 12 inches from the mic. Then get about 6 inches away. And then 3 inches. Listen to the playbacks. You will hear the difference between takes. Find the take that sounds the most warm and robust without any sharp, hissing, or plosive sounds. This is why the pop filter and windscreen are so important, because without them at close distances, you will certainly have unwanted sounds. Now, if you love the way your voice sounds at 3 inches, but you have a few unwanted sounds here and there, don't be too concerned as you can fix those in the edit (a topic for another discussion). You can also experiment with talking slightly diagonally at the mic, instead of traditionally straight into the mic. This will capture your voice while hopefully sending those sharp, hissing, or plosive sounds past the mic instead of directly into it. The only thing that you need to watch out for is that you don't lose too much of your robust and warm presence, which can occur when speaking diagonally at a mic. 3. And finally, it is good practice to always record room tone before and after your recordings. What do I mean by room tone? Relative silence . . just the sound of the room with nothing else. Record about 10 seconds of that before and after your recording. This will allow sound adjustment software or plugins to learn what that sound is and then remove it from your recording. Clean Up Your Recording During Editing Even in the most treated rooms, and taking the most precautions with mic etiquette, you can run into issues that will demand audio repair by utilizing software or plugins within your DAW. A burst of low end (plosive) could ruin the best, liveliest take. Those unwanted sharp or hissing sounds can do the same. And those pesky mouth clicks that sneak by. Or simply unwanted room background noise that slips through.

In a home environment, and depending on the gear you are using, you’re bound to run into sonic irregularities that show up on your recordings at times. Therefore, it's wise to invest in software or plugins that can remedy all of these unwanted sounds I have discussed. There are many on the market, but one that I discuss in some of my other articles and podcasts is iZotope. Look it up. It's well worth the investment.

Conclusion That concludes my advice on achieving professional-quality voiceovers from the comfort of your home studio, at least within the confines of this particular discussion. And again, I can't stress enough the importance to prioritize the proper treatment of your recording space — it truly yields significant results, representing more than half the challenge in producing professional-sounding voice recordings. Should you desire more thorough explanations surrounding the things discussed here, please see my podcasts and tutorials related to recording and editing.

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