VO-BB - 19 YEARS OLD!

Rognog · Posted: Wed Oct 04, 2006 8:38 am Post subject: Audio Book Demo

I'm putting together an audio book demo. I spent the morning working on this:

www.tomdheere.com/AmericanGods.mp3

This is my first crack at it so your input will be a big help. Thanks!
_________________
Tom Dheere - The "H" is Silent, but I'm Not!
www.tomdheere.com

donrandall · Guest

I have listened to a fair number of audio books over the years. There are some very, very good audio book reader/presenters out there - and an even greater number that are pretty good and even more that are just okay and of course, many who really are not able to hold my interest at all.

For a first effort, I say "Well done" - - you have a pretty good handle on it, so pursue it, I think you will do well.

COURVO · Posted: Thu Oct 05, 2006 1:47 am Post subject:

I was really listening for technical things, 'cause the intent and interpretation of the read seemed engaging enough...although I thought you could use pauses to greater effect here 'n' there.

I heard plenty of breath sounds, and the wave-form showed a background sound baseline that could probably be removed with a noise-reduction feature in your software treatment of the signal. (GoldWave has that, so does Adobe audition..to name two)

Also, the wave form needed about a 3db Boost to make it have more presence for my taste. You should probably edit down the very high high waves, too.

It seems when you visually review the maximum collapsed wave form of a very accomplished voice artist, you see a very consistent wave pattern...highs and lows either are spoken or edited into submission as a very full-form pattern.

my 2-cents

Courvo
_________________
Dave Courvoisier - Las Vegas, NV
http://www.CourVO.com
CourVO@CourVO.com
Courvo's "Voice Acting in Vegas" Blog: http://www.CourVO.biz
on your phone at courvo.mobi
702.610.6288
"I'm not a news anchor, but I play one on TV."

Hart · Posted: Thu Oct 05, 2006 4:48 am Post subject:

I'm just adding on to what Courvo said. I like the read, but it could use some technical massaging.

You should probably work on getting rid of the background noise. While you can use your editor to adjust some of it, I'd suggest finding the problem and solving it. There's a high pitched whine that's really annoying, especially after compressing it.

Rognog · Posted: Thu Oct 05, 2006 6:24 am Post subject:

Thanks for your in-depth responses! I'm still very new new to the home-recording setup so...

It was a rough cut so I can remove the breaths no problem.
How can I figure out what the background sound baseline is? Did it sound like an acoustic problem or a PC problem?
Audacity has a noise removal feature but when I use it my voice sounds "metallic".
Can you see the wave-form using Audacity? If so, what do I look for?
Can Audacity do a decibel boost?
How do you edit down high waves?
Should I take a class so I can get a clue?

Thanks for tweaking it, Brian. There is a big difference!
_________________
Tom Dheere - The "H" is Silent, but I'm Not!
www.tomdheere.com

Hart · Posted: Thu Oct 05, 2006 3:02 pm Post subject:

Rognog · Posted: Thu Oct 05, 2006 3:44 pm Post subject:

I'm not sure my sound card is the problem. I have a Presonus Inspire 1394 with an insulated firewire.

I'm not sure whether to keep the door closed in my recording space aka closet. I don't want a "dead" sound. I left it halfway open when I did the audio book sample. Which is best?

When you export a sound file as an MP3, it automatically compresses it, right? If that's the case, I don't have to do anything except make sure the settings are good.

I'm putting togather a "checklist" for my settings before I record and a guideline for editing to remove noise, etc. Does anyone already have something like that?

Thanks for the links, Brian. They were a big help!
_________________
Tom Dheere - The "H" is Silent, but I'm Not!
www.tomdheere.com

Deirdre · Posted: Thu Oct 05, 2006 4:14 pm Post subject:

Tom:

I am approaching this as a theatrical director, OK?
And I may address things that other folks have already mentioned.

#1. Be aware of your "S". It's a bit "lazy" and needs some sharpening. Use the James Alburger cork or my Pencil-Trick: you place a pencil in your mouth like a horse's bit, but not too far back. Just behind the canines is good. Then read aloud. About a minute. Yeah, it sounds crazy-- you don't record that stuff. It works your tongue out by giving it an obstacle. Remove the obstacle and your speech will be much crisper.

#2. I like your narrative voice very much. I like your pacing and timbre. Be on the lookout for relationships in the text-- the thing about "relief" has a small payoff when it's mentioned later-- Don't throw it away.

#3. I lost your great narrative voice when you got into the conversation part. The interstitial sentence fragments still need to be infused with life. They flattened out between the "he said"s. The Cellmate's accent was a strong choice-- just make sure you're consistent as hell.

Verdict:
I'd like the hear more. I think you'll make a very fine audiobook guy.
_________________
DBCooperVO.com

Hart · Posted: Thu Oct 05, 2006 4:33 pm Post subject:

donrandall · Guest

Diane Maggipinto · Posted: Fri Oct 06, 2006 12:52 pm Post subject:

Rognog · Posted: Fri Oct 06, 2006 2:18 pm Post subject:

So, I've been doing a whole lotta research on finding the noise in my system.

I've eliminated many suspects: microphone, microphone cable, speakers, firewire ports, AC cords, monitor, adaptors, light dimmers, firewire cord, and the Windows Volume Control.

Then I went to the Presonus Inspire 1394 Control Panel and this is what I saw:

When I turn off the "Boost" button on Channel 1 the noise fades to almost nothing. When I turn the "Gain" to 12:00 once again the noise fades to nothing. So I laid something down with the gain cranked up but the "Boost" button turned off:

www.tomdheere.com/FluSample.mp3

The db level didn't go any higher than -24. It should be around -12, right?

So is this just a gain/boost level issue or is it something else?
_________________
Tom Dheere - The "H" is Silent, but I'm Not!
www.tomdheere.com

donrandall · Guest

It may be possible to add some gain by using an adjustment in the Windows mixer or perhaps you have an input level control somewere in your editing software that could be adjusted.

Rognog · Posted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 11:43 am Post subject:

Ok, here is my next stab at it. I made both technical & artistic adjustments based on your input.

This is the first take I posted:

www.tomdheere.com/AmericanGods.mp3

This is what I did today:

www.tomdheere.com/AmericanGods2A.wav

Can you hear a difference?
_________________
Tom Dheere - The "H" is Silent, but I'm Not!
www.tomdheere.com

donrandall · Guest

I did not listen for a long time, a minute or so.

1) There are some very impressive audio book readers out there. You are not going to knock any of the top line performers off their perch - not today, anyway. That is not a knock on you, your talent, your skill or ability. That is simply a recognition that you are not at that level - yet. I like what I hear when I listen to your reads.

I also believe you have the innate talent to take you there and I hope you pursue it, because I believe you will succeed. If you make the effort, you will become one who is in demand.

2) Technically, I noticed considerable noise - possible a combination of soundcard and ambient room noise - in the first and much less in the second. Whatever adjustment you made seemed to help quite a bit. I also noticed that the level was rather low and I had to boost it substantially in order to record it so that I could do an A/B comparison.