Hands-On Tech 203: Voice Acting Setup & Gear

Summary

Host: Micah Sargent
Release Date: February 16, 2025
Podcast Series: All TWiT.tv Shows (Audio) by TWiT

Introduction to Voice Acting Technology

In this episode of Hands-On Tech, Micah Sargent delves into the essentials of setting up a successful voice acting career. Responding to a listener's query, Faye, Micah provides a comprehensive beginner’s guide to the necessary technology and environment for aspiring voice actors.

Understanding the Importance of Your Recording Space

Micah emphasizes that the recording environment is more crucial than the microphone itself. He states, “The space you are in is more important in so many ways than the microphone you are using” (01:30). Properly treating your recording space can significantly enhance sound quality, sometimes even making high-end microphones unnecessary.

Key Recommendations:

Soundproofing: Use acoustic panels, egg crate mattress covers, carpets, or thick moving blankets to block external noise and dampen vibrations.
Room Setup: Incorporate furniture like bookcases filled with books to absorb sound and prevent echo.
Door Treatment: Apply door sweeps or dense pillows to cover gaps, ensuring no sound leaks in or out.

Micah advises, “Putting even just normal stuff into your room... will help to make you are producing better sound” (04:15).

Choosing the Right Equipment

Once the space is optimized, Micah shifts focus to the equipment, particularly microphones and audio interfaces.

Microphones: Micah recommends starting with a USB microphone due to their simplicity and ease of use. He strongly advises against the Blue Yeti Snowball, stating, “Under no circumstances do I ever recommend getting the Blue Yeti Snowball” (07:50). He explains that while the Blue Yeti can produce good sound, its sensitivity and default settings often lead to subpar recordings if the space isn't perfectly treated.

Audio Interfaces: For those ready to invest further, Micah mentions the Focusrite Scarlett as a reliable audio interface commonly recommended on ACX.com’s starter guides. This device pairs well with various microphones, offering flexibility as one’s voice acting career progresses.

Enhancing Recording Quality

To ensure professional-quality recordings, Micah highlights additional tools and techniques:

Pop Filters: Essential for dispersing plosive sounds (like “P” and “B”), which can create unwanted noise in recordings. Micah explains, “A pop filter... helps to disperse the plosives and anything that pushes air at the microphone” (11:20).
Microphone Isolation: Using boom arms or shock mounts prevents vibrations and handling noise from affecting the recording. He notes, “Anything that will keep [the microphone] isolated from the things around it... is incredibly important” (14:00).

Leveraging Online Resources

Micah recommends visiting ACX.com, Amazon’s Audible platform for audiobook narration. He praises their resources, stating, “ACX has some good guides for people who are starting out, including a guide called A Studio of One's Own” (02:55). This guide offers detailed advice on setting up a home studio, emphasizing the significance of location and sound treatment.

Practical Tips for Beginners

Micah shares practical advice for those just starting:

Start Simple: Begin with a modest setup and gradually upgrade based on your needs and success.
Test and Adjust: Utilize ACX’s audio quality tools to refine your recordings, stating, “You can use that to kind of test and make adjustments...” (10:00).
Compare and Learn: Listen to professional narrations and compare them to your recordings to identify areas for improvement.

Encouragement and Next Steps

Micah encourages Faye and other aspiring voice actors to share their journey and progress. He emphasizes the importance of continuous learning and adaptation, mentioning, “Over time you kind of upgrade from there, right? And add to your system... depending on what works for you” (16:45).

Conclusion

The episode wraps up with Micah reiterating the significance of a well-treated recording space and the judicious selection of equipment. He points listeners to ACX.com for further resources and invites them to engage with the community by sharing their experiences and setups.

Notable Quotes

Micah Sargent (01:30): “The space you are in is more important in so many ways than the microphone you are using.”
Micah Sargent (04:15): “Putting even just normal stuff into your room... will help to make you are producing better sound.”
Micah Sargent (07:50): “Under no circumstances do I ever recommend getting the Blue Yeti Snowball.”
Micah Sargent (11:20): “A pop filter... helps to disperse the plosives and anything that pushes air at the microphone.”
Micah Sargent (14:00): “Anything that will keep [the microphone] isolated from the things around it... is incredibly important.”
Micah Sargent (16:45): “Over time you kind of upgrade from there, right? And add to your system... depending on what works for you.”

Final Thoughts

Hands-On Tech 203: Voice Acting Setup & Gear serves as an invaluable resource for anyone looking to venture into voice acting. By prioritizing the recording environment and making informed equipment choices, Micah Sargent provides a clear roadmap to achieving high-quality voice recordings. Whether you’re a beginner like Faye or looking to refine your setup, this episode offers practical insights and actionable advice to kickstart your voice acting journey.

Transcript

Micah Sargent (0:00)

Coming up on Hands on Tech, let's take a look at what you might need. If you are looking at setting up your voice acting career, stay tuned.

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Micah Sargent (1:44)

Hello and welcome to Hands On Tech, the show where I, Micah Sargent, take your tech questions and do my best to answer them. We get in some great questions of all sorts from different topics and subjects and it's always a good time to a figure out what people are struggling with out there and what I can help with, but also to see what people are into, what kind of tech they're they're, you know, using and occasionally learn some new things myself. This week's question is a fun one because I think it's a little bit different from what we're used to, where we're kind of troubleshooting right computer issues. This one comes in from Faye and Faye writes in to say what microphone slash setup would be best for voice acting. Is there a standard Mixer slash audio editor that people record on. I'd love to know what your take is as a beginner's guide to voice acting tech. So, Faye, first and foremost I want to say that's super awesome that you're thinking about getting into this. This is a question that you could ask 15 people and get 15 to 20 somehow different answers. It all depends on budget, on desire. In terms of, you know, how important this is going to be on. I think it needs to depend on success. I need. I think it depends on longevity. There are so many factors involved in what I would recommend you buy. And I think first and foremost I'm going to say this. There's no. Sometimes you see people make the mistake of investing a bunch of money in something that either A, they unfortunately do not find success in, or B, decide that it's not for them. And given those things, you don't want to over invest because over investing is again going to. It's risky. It's risky to do. So let's talk about some things to be aware of before we even talk about the microphone. I argue, and actually so do many others, that the space you are in is more important in so many ways than the microphone you are using. And when people are kind of buying these expensive microphones that are very good at picking up sound and are, you know, sort of providing a richness and robustness that they were not used to, they suddenly hear the neighbors that are arguing across the street or the H Vac that's running in the background, or the, I don't know, fish tank that's bubbling in the same room as them. Getting your environment right is the first step to making sure that you have good sound. Now I have a recommendation for you. Getting into voice acting. I'm kind of curious if you mean narration, if you mean, you know, voice acting for television shows, whatever it happens to be. But there's a fantastic website that is ACX.com and ACX is kind of Amazon's audible situation. It's. It's the place where people who are looking to narrate audiobooks go to sign up and kind of put their portfolio out there to be chosen by the authors of the different books or the production companies or distributors or whomever it happens to be in charge of making those choices. And ACX has some good guides for people who are starting out, including a guide called A Studio of One's Own. And this guide talks about setting up your studio and very importantly talks about how location is a huge part of what you're doing so when it comes to having a room that is quiet, you can invest in sound panels, but if you're just starting out. Interestingly, ACX says this Block out external noise and dampen vibrations by covering your walls and your ceiling with acoustic panels, egg crate mattress covers, carpets or even thick moving blankets, duvet covers or curtains. If you're using fabric insulation, leave a bit of space between each panel so the sound of your voice can be diffused a little and won't sound flat because fabric can absorb sound too well at times. Treat the studio side of your door the same way as your walls and ceilings. You want to make sure that all cracks are covered and you also able to get in and out easily. We recommend using a plastic door sweep or a long dense pillow to cover the crack between the door and the floor when you're recording. They go on to talk about the floor of your space. If you know you don't have a carpet on the floor and furniture because it actually turns out that you know putting even just normal stuff into your room, a bookcase that has books in it will help to make it so that you are producing better sound. But treating your room is so important when it comes to getting good sound and then looking for sources of sound that you don't want to be part of your recording, and ditching those is very important. After that, you want to make sure that you don't have any issues with electronic devices kind of wreaking havoc on your system, particularly if you're using a budget option. Occasionally, some of those budget options will not have cables that are shielded properly to keep those devices safe from other electrical interference. And so you want to kind of listen for that and make sure that everything's good to go there.

Summary