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I'd like to consider myself a voice-acting hobby-man, so like many others, I also tried out the Sommerset Hills test. Let me know what you guys think. 
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Jun 5, 2015 10:09
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Oh, hell, I thought I'd make my submission because I was anxious that I was getting used to the same text, and I've finally allowed myself to listen to other contestants. Good job, Harold Krell! And I think you've got a really nice voice for this thing. Meanwhile, in comparison my attempt moves at a glacial pace, and in retrospect sounds pretty drunk. I was trying to find some kind of original voice, but probably should have listened to as many professional ad VAs as possible instead. Although I'm not sure I'd ever be able to fake this rich a timbre... Uh, I guess I'll leave my attempt up for entertainment value: "Summerset Hills" - the drunken Russian edition.
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Jun 5, 2015 17:28
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A quick snippet of Bathysphere. I listened to the relevant portion of the radio recording, and am feeling a bit retarded, since my version is again slomo. I'm slipping out of the tone along the duration of the bit, but I don't think anyone will listen anyway. And herein lies one of my numerous problems -- I don't have a dedicated... entity... to provide me with feedback, such as acting group, and I don't have the money for a personal coach. So this, among other things, makes me wonder how much progress I'm going to make with all these disadvantages, just recording for myself, and am I not simply wasting everybody's time? Judging by how that "female voice" thing turned out, I probably am.
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Jun 8, 2015 15:31
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supermikhail posted:A quick snippet of Bathysphere. You said you're doing this as a hobby, that's great! There's no pressure here, just have fun recording yourself. Listen to audio books and old time radio shows and do your best to pick apart what they do that you like. The radio plays are especially good because you *feel* their emotions all through the power of their voice. Now get some scripts for free online and practice having a little dialogue with yourself where you try to convey a particular emotion. Record it, listen to it and then try it again. Practice practice practice. When you have recorded yourself for a while and gotten comfortable with your equipment and process then go ahead and ask for some outside feedback. In the meantime, you could always try contributing to a project like Librivox - https://librivox.org/ They are nice folks and have lots of projects at any given time. Try and find a short piece like a compilation of children's stories or maybe something in your native tongue. Record it, edit it to give your very best sound and then submit it to the project.
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Jun 8, 2015 22:30
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supermikhail posted:I'm slipping out of the tone along the duration of the bit, but I don't think anyone will listen anyway. And herein lies one of my numerous problems -- I don't have a dedicated... entity... to provide me with feedback, such as acting group, and I don't have the money for a personal coach. So this, among other things, makes me wonder how much progress I'm going to make with all these disadvantages, just recording for myself, and am I not simply wasting everybody's time? Judging by how that "female voice" thing turned out, I probably am. You can still make progress. I went from never having recorded to performing and producing audio that is comparable to what gets used in local markets. This isn't saying a lot because I live in a small area and the ads that get airplay around here are fairly amateurish, but I was able to get there in a couple of months through practice and feedback from the people in this thread.
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Jun 8, 2015 22:35
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Oh, thanks for your encouragement, guys. My confidence has sunk quite far over especially the past week or so, in particular since I discovered that I couldn't hear the quality of my accent (if that makes sense). But LibriVox sounds good, and if I'm stuck with my accent, it does indeed have a foreign languages section with Russian included.
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Jun 9, 2015 12:42
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It's just occurred to me that it could be fun to voice act for game mods. The quality standard is lower for the actors... and the same goes for the writers, although there's a lot of variation, of course. Unfortunately, Google points me to forums on the brink of extinction, if that. I don't imagine anyone here would have any healthy links? Before I started searching, I thought there'd be a lot of demand, but I guess not.  Oh, as a precaution, I'm not into anime.
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Jun 10, 2015 21:05
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supermikhail posted:It's just occurred to me that it could be fun to voice act for game mods. The quality standard is lower for the actors... and the same goes for the writers, although there's a lot of variation, of course. Unfortunately, Google points me to forums on the brink of extinction, if that. I don't imagine anyone here would have any healthy links? Before I started searching, I thought there'd be a lot of demand, but I guess not. Here's where a bunch of kids that don't know what they're doing hire other kids that don't know what they're doing: http://voiceactingalliance.com/board/forum.php
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Jun 10, 2015 21:15
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Well, when you put it like that...  Thanks. I swear I've stumbled on that forum while searching, but maybe some inopportune section that made me dismiss it. I'll bookmark it just in case. After I posted I realized that my prominent Russian accent is bound to limit my role range if the producer cares at all, but then I remembered Skyrim nords.
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Jun 11, 2015 14:18
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Massdrop has the Blue Yeti for $124 and free shipping. https://www.massdrop.com/buy/blue-mic-yeti
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Jun 11, 2015 15:09
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Well, another bit of Bathysphere: link I used LibriVox settings here (for bitrate and stuff), and also their Checker to adjust the final volume, which exposed a lot of noise. One part of it seems to stem from turning the mic to a certain angle - there's a buzzing when it's turned upwards or downwards by more than about 45 degrees. Which is a bit  for me. The rest is from my room, probably mostly from the computer. My solution would be to turn the mic's volume down on the interface, and turn output in the recording program up. This way only my voice should go through. Is this sensible? Or I could clean the noise up in the program (which is Audacity), but I haven't been a fan of the results previously, because this eats up high frequencies, although I'm not sure my volume fiddling doesn't do the same. Any hints?
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Jun 12, 2015 18:09
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supermikhail posted:... Any hints? Try running your raw through Levelator. It's a preset noise and level program that is decent for what you are trying to accomplish. Drop in a wav and let it do it's thing. That should produce a slightly better product than audacity unless you tweak everything exactly to your specific situation. Think this is the right one: http://download.cnet.com/The-Levelator/3000-2170_4-197650.html
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Jun 13, 2015 03:22
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  Studio is done being built! Still have to clean off that table but Panic Attack Studios is live. I've been recording in it the past couple weekends and it has treated me really well. Hope to get a group voice recording in there asap.
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Jun 13, 2015 03:25
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An Ounce of Gold posted:Try running your raw through Levelator. It's a preset noise and level program that is decent for what you are trying to accomplish. Drop in a wav and let it do it's thing. That should produce a slightly better product than audacity unless you tweak everything exactly to your specific situation. I just want to report that I've installed it, but the results of the first (voice) test were somewhat ambiguous, since I have lowered the input volume, so there's very little noise to begin with. Although for some reason the system input volume was set rather high, and the program lowered the volume to something more reasonable. Oh, my real first test was with a guitar recording, and the output was quite interesting, so presumably it'll do more with a more uneven recording. It's something I'll keep in mind, thanks.
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Jun 13, 2015 17:04
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I've become disenchanted with my ideas for the characters in the play, and went to watch an example of a leader in a TV series that just came to mind. I feel weird because the actors are supposed to be great, and the series quite acclaimed, but it sounds to me like they're all phonining it in. There's another couple caveats - the series is Russian, and it was made about 30 years ago. Come to think of it, most Russian TV acting sounds phoned in to me (although I haven't watched it in a ages, at least on purpose). Am I broken? Or would acting standards have changed in the past 30 years? Or something? Maybe "phoned in" is not the best description. In the series I'd describe the acting as mismatched with the script, actually.
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Jun 14, 2015 14:50
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I used to feel the same way, honestly. I'd compare, say, Hedy Burgess to Kath Soucie, and Yuri Lowethal to Jim Cummings or Tony Jay. I'd concluded that VA standards had dropped considerably from the mid-nineties onwards. Then it occurred to me that the VAs might not have actually dropped in skill, but the standard of writing and the freedom of expression and improvisation they once had has fallen. You might be a fantastic actor, but a lovely script and a shittier director might have you sounding like Dan Green when he's banging anime waifus.
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Jun 14, 2015 14:55
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I've given a lot of thought on the subject as well. You'll very rarely hear any VAs in the biz talk ill about it, at least not directly. This is because it puts them in hot water career-wise, so they keep their mouths shut. I would agree with WarpedNaba, by and large it's an issue of terrible writing quality and bad directors. I've given the subject intense study, and frequently ask myself the question "is there really a better way to deliver this line?" the answer is often a resounding "No". There's a limited amount of ways you can read a script, and if the script writer(s) decide to take the character you play in a direction that goes against it, anything you do from that point won't be believable. By and large, the job of a voice actor is to be given garbage writing and make it sound good. Most actor's careers will have one good show they're part of, the more fortunate may have a handful, but it's still a small number. The other key problem is the limited productions out there for animation. There's not a whole lot of cartoons out there these days. They're very expensive to make and the medium is limited to imitating The Simpsons, or low-budget children shows. You'll get something like Avatar The Last Airbender very rarely. So actors don't exactly have a whole lot to pull on for reference when looking for outstanding performances in animation, you often have to go back many years for those. Animation is a very small piece of the pie, privy to those living in the location where they record it, either Los Angeles or New York. Videogames are where most of the 'dramatic' work is now, and we all know how great the writing is for most of those. Have the standards fallen? Yes they have, but only in the quality of writing which is a result of stagnation in the entertainment industry.
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Jun 14, 2015 18:13
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Meanwhile, I was talking about live-action 30 years ago.  In the USSR. I guess they didn't have bigger budgets or more time for TV series back then either, if that's part of the issue.
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Jun 14, 2015 19:15
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You would think that with the advent of CGI and digital animation that we'd see a new wave of decent writing (And paid work!) Sadly, it ain't so.
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Jun 14, 2015 23:43
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I've randomly looked around my uploads and found an old gem, from a time when I did fun things for fun's sake. It's a reading of a thread from a different forum. The thread was for a pretty half-assed call for voice actors, and I thought it would be fun to do interpretations of the posts based on the posters' userpics, and I'm pretty sure I wasn't actually interested in the project itself. I'm gonna go be even more depressed now. Where does all that youthful energy go?
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Jul 2, 2015 17:54
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'Allo lads, I'd like to talk a little hardware. I've got a Blue brand Snowball mic, by and large this (and a little tweaking in audacity) serves me well enough, but I've been thinking about investing in a Voicecube to improve the quality of my recordings. Is it worth the odd two-hundred it'll cost me? Will there be a significant improvement in quality? I can't exactly remodel any part of my apartment into a studio, so I have to make do with more compact measures.
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Jul 5, 2015 11:53
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There's a bunch of tutorials on how to jury rig up a small recording box for far cheaper. I'd start there first. Do some research, see if any techniques look good/achievable and then price that out first. You can very likely make something that works just as well for under 50 bucks. The reality is that the 200$ commercial products are more often about the look of thing. If you need to look pro then it very well may be worth the price tag, but if looks are not a concern, then I'd attempt to make your own. Plus you'll feel super crafty at the end of the project. I built 16 sound panels for a little under 20 bucks a pop. They don't look quite as nice as 80-100$ alternatives but I could actually afford them.
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Jul 5, 2015 15:55
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I just got this email for those in NYCquote:You're Invited to a
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Jul 6, 2015 18:33
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JossiRossi posted:
Way late on this but...I like it.
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Jul 30, 2015 01:40
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Thanks! I should get some new photos that look a little more professional. I've cleaned it up and rearranged slightly. Also everyone should make swag. It feels WAY too cool. Also something I recorded the other week with a friend. https://soundcloud.com/panicattackstudios/kathleen
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Jul 30, 2015 04:02
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JossiRossi posted:Thanks! I should get some new photos that look a little more professional. I've cleaned it up and rearranged slightly. Also everyone should make swag. It feels WAY too cool. I think it looks great and if I'm ever in the area I intend to take you up on that beer and recording session and I'll buy you a thick burg and also s ur d
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Jul 30, 2015 04:12
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titties posted:I think it looks great and if I'm ever in the area I intend to take you up on that beer and recording session and I'll buy you a thick burg and also s ur d Oh man I would be so down for this. The studio is located in Nashua,NH. Just over the border from Mass. If you (or anyone else in the thread) is ever close by we should absolutely hang out and record.
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Jul 30, 2015 04:18
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JossiRossi posted:Oh man I would be so down for this. The studio is located in Nashua,NH. Just over the border from Mass. If you (or anyone else in the thread) is ever close by we should absolutely hang out and record. I'm down for this too! I mean I have no idea when I'll have any free time to ever take a road trip ever but if/when I do, I'm down!
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Jul 30, 2015 14:35
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How come all the big/decent studios are in another country? 
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Jul 30, 2015 20:32
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Hey guys--could I ask you all for a small favor? I JUST found out that this year's Backstage Reader's Choice Awards is live online now, and ends today. I was a Top 5 Finalist for Best NYC Voiceover Coach last year (less than a YEAR after teaching my first weekly VO class), and would love another run at it this year. If you've ever learned something from me (or heck, even if you haven't), I would really appreciate your support. You don't have to vote for any other categories you don't want to; just enter "Melanie Ehrlich/Listen To Melanie" under the NYC Voiceover Coach section. For reference, Backstage is a very popular industry trade magazine with a very wide reach, and the exposure from it last year was really nice and brought some great people my way. This first stage is for nominations; if I get enough nominations, I'll be a finalist (and will ask for everyone's support one more time then, to try to go for the #1 spot)! Here's the link: http://offers.backstage.com/readers-choice-2015 (Vote for "Melanie Ehrlich/Listen To Melanie").
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Aug 7, 2015 18:31
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Hi guys, I just found this thread. I've always been thinking of doing VO/VA work, back in like 2005 or 2006 I signed up for voices123 but I didn't pay for it and never actually used it. I did college radio way back and have a podcast currently so I do feel comfortable behind a mic. My setup is a CAD U37 USB mic which sounds eons better then my previous set up of a Logitech headset with a mic. I use Audacity for editing and feel comfortable enough with it. Anyway, I came to this thread because a friend of mine pointed me in the direction of an 6 week course that's up on livingsocial.com (outside of the Boston area), and it's 3 hours a week for 6 weeks. Is this sort of workshop/course a good starting point to know where I stand in the Voice acting world? I've done customer service phone work forever and all my supervisors and customers say that I have a pleasant and endearing voice so I'm interested to see where it goes. The instructor has some good credentials (Lau Lapides) but I just want to make sure a novice course is copacetic in the field. (From the OP I've gathered it is, but just want to make sure.) Thanks!
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Aug 17, 2015 17:10
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I recorded this for a show I'm doing - like the name says, it's a first rough cut, so any suggestions for my next go? Using an SM 57, are there any technical or performance tricks I should be doing it to make it sound better? the ambient stuff behind it is Eno's Scape app, which I'll probably be doing live.
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Aug 23, 2015 10:19
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So I guess this is the thread to ask. I like doing voices during DnD, and I like picking up accents and trying to make them works. Some go amazingly, others are super super super bad. What's a good way to learn accents, and basically get a wider range in the voice you're affecting? I've read the thread a bit and it looks like you guys do more professional stuff, I really want to impress my friends and throw good Tabletop games with funny voices.
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Sep 9, 2015 11:36
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There's a bunch of accent videos on youtube, but you'd want to take suggestions from some of the vets here as to which are worth your time.
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Sep 9, 2015 12:55
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Hi, I'm working on a video for a tabletop horror RPG Kickstarter. Normally I would narrate it, but I'd like to explore additional options for it. I'm looking for a male voice, preferably low and authoritative - think like the XCOM Council Spokesman https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2o2iW4mPR8 but this is not set in stone. edit: position has been filled. Thanks! clockworkjoe fucked around with this message at 04:20 on Sep 28, 2015 |
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Sep 26, 2015 19:30
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Thread! Things are happening. 1) The latest anime series I worked on, Ladies Versus Butlers!, was just released on Crunchyroll! All twelve episodes are currently available to premium members. I play Kaede Tenjouji, the insane school chancellor. Kaede was one of the most exhausting characters I've ever played but the end result was totally worth it. If bawdy anime is your thing (and boobs. So. Many. Boobs.), go hog wild! 2) I'll be demoing two games that feature my voice acting (both goon projects!) at this event: http://www.playcrafting.com/event-detail/?event_id=18634777120 If you're local to NYC, please come by and say hello! 3) Finally: Reached a huge, huge, huuuuuuge personal and professional achievement for myself recently and I am ridiculously excited about it--I booked a recurring character (and some additional characters) on a new animated children's show that will be airing on a major network internationally, most likely next year or the year after. I can't say anything else about it before everything's officially cleared, but I'll share specifics when I can. This project has challenged me in ways no other project has previously, stretching me to develop and push my abilities further than I ever have before in certain ways, and I have felt myself growing as an actor as a result. It's projects like this that remind me why I do everything that I do in between. Edit: Counting to three blinkeve1826 fucked around with this message at 18:53 on Oct 17, 2015 |
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Oct 16, 2015 06:28
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Good on you, lad. Hope all goes well.
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Oct 16, 2015 07:24
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I can see the headline now - "Local Goon Made Good". Good on you!
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Oct 16, 2015 08:21
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I decided to post a very choppy video a friend and I made of me doing some different voices. I hope it's not really lovely, but I did characters like Rick, Bubbles, Bane, and a few others. Criticism is definitely wanted! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkCAXS3_VJE
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Oct 18, 2015 18:42
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There is a problem inherent to doing impressions of the voices of professionals. If you don't do them like 99% perfect, then you wind up sounding really bad... I would say that the best advise I can give is to work on acting before working on voices. Also just keep practicing so you can build muscles and better control. After doing a weekly podcast for a couple years (and extra stuff in between) I've gotten more and more control over my voice. I'm not amazing by any stretch but I can hop into vocal variations more quickly and stay in them longer these days because of it.
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Oct 18, 2015 22:24
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