So ya wanna cut some VO, eh?

I've produced/engineered all kinds of VO projects for clients - everything from simple commercial spots to editing-intensive web-inars and teleseminars. These tips come from the engineer's perspective, but you should be able to adapt them to your own situation.

Very first thing to do is prep the room for the session.... you want to make the talent as comfortable as possible. If they are focusing on the environment - uncomfortable room, too hot/cold, noise, bad headphones, etc... then they aren't going to be giving their best read. I always provide a comfortable chair nearby (most VO artists will stand for short reads like commercials, but they like to be comfortable during pauses/breaks/discussion), a table nearby, water, and the most comfortable headphones in my arsenal. A comfortable artist is a performing artist!

Next thing is mic selection and mic placement. This is critical - everyone's voice is different, and not every mic is suitable for every voice - having said that, I find that 90% of the time, I can throw up both an RE20 and an Audio-Technica 4033 and one or the other will be appropriate (not both!) If you're dealing with a new artist that you've never worked with before, then it pays to take some extra time and experiment with mic selection. Keep a log of what you've used for which artist so that you can refer to it when they come back for the next project.

Once you've selected the right mic, then you have to deal with placement. Let the artist get comfortable in their position first, then place the mic. I like to try and keep the mic as unobtrusive as possible while still obtaining the right sound - placement doesn't have to be on-axis, but you have to be aware of your mic's frequency response so that you place it effectively.

The biggest issues you'll encounter with a person's voice are lip smacks, tongue crackles, sibilance, breathe blasts and pops. Pro VO artists are familiar with their voice characteristics and take steps to control them before they even get to the mic, amateur or occasional artists may not be so self-aware, so you'll have to tackle these problems by a combination of artist-education and mic placement. Often once the artist becomes aware of these, they can contain them a bit. In serious cases, particularly with lip smacks/tongue crackle, you may have to edit the issue out in post-production editing. The breath blasts and pops are easily handled with a pop filter and slightly off-axis mic placement. And while mic placement also affects sibilance, it's a good idea to have a de-esser handy to put into the signal chain when needed - again, this can be done in post, but personally I prefer to capture the sound the way you want it going "to tape" as opposed to futzing with it afterwards... there's already enough to do with edits later than having to add a sonic rescue operation to the list!

Now you're ready to set signal levels and get some test reads. Proper recording technique and signal chain are beyond the scope of the article, but let me say this - in setting signal levels, you have to be aware of two different metering scales, the analog scale - which you might be familiar with from small-formats mixers and mic preamps equipped with meters - and the digital scale, which is used as soon as the signal is within the computer. The only thing you need to understand is that the zero point on the analog scale (0VU) is NOT the same as the 0 point on the digital scale (0dBFS). The calibration of the two scales is different such that 0VU = -18dBFS. All this to say that in setting your mic preamp levels, you should be getting a reading of -18dBFS on your digital equipment for a healthy signal. More than that and you're overdriving the preamp, which ultimately will have a negative impact on your sound. (I'm oversimplifying here based on the assumption that you're not trying to be an audio engineer, but just want good results! Email me if you want more specifics on the topic!)

So levels are good, now get some test reads from the artist. You'll want a clear, present sound, with as few voice "artifacts" as possible.
You may have to re-position the mic a bit to get the right tone -- note that an inch or two can literally make or break the sound. Once you like what you hear through the control room monitors, then you're ready to get takes.

Here are some additional points to consider:
Don't get more than 2 or 3 takes for a spot - more than that and editing becomes a real chore. Also take note as you're recording of which take you or the producer thinks is best - this will be your starting take for editing later. And when doing timed spots, make sure the timer you use has stop/resume capability, that way if the artist stops or needs a line re-take, at least you can still get an accurate time. Also keep the momentum of the session going - if the artist is on a roll, don't arbitrarily go for a break. Let the artist dictate the flow - remember the quality of the result depends entirely on their delivery.

Now go cut some tracks!

Cheers,
Bruce