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conversational voice overs

https://melhulm.files.wordpress.com/2018/07/mel-convo_2018-v2.mp3

@MelHulm on Instagram

Correct Pharrell. Also makin’ mp3s and freaking µ-laws like a boss. Thanks for asking. But what audio format to choose? Here’s one to save for next time you’re booking a voice actor or about to hit export in your DAW. ⁣ ⁣ Choose wav (or aiff for the Mac-inclined): for broadcast commercials in the traditional sense—TV and radio ads. And cinema ads. This is generally uncompressed, CD quality, big ass files. Specs: ⁣ - sampling rates: 48kHz or 44.1kHz⁣ - bit depth: 16 bit⁣ - channels: mono.⁣ ⁣ Choose wav (but a shitter wav): for telephone system voice overs—IVR and on hold messages. It sounds like you’re in a bucket. I die a little inside whenever I playback these files. The lower quality is cause phone systems used to be analog. It’s also a bit of a trade off between quality and bandwidth. The specs are way low: ⁣ - sampling rate: 8kHz⁣ - bit depth: 8 bit⁣ - channels: mono.⁣ ⁣ Choose µ-law: another one for telephone systems. Pretty much specific to telephone systems in fact. They so fancy. Generally specs are the same as the shit wav. You can go up to 16kHz for your sampling. Sounds marginally better than the wav. But still shit.⁣ ⁣ Choose mp3: explainer videos, social media ads, eLearning, audiobooks, podcasts, apps, long ass recordings. Generally stuff that’s pumped out over the internet. Or requires someone to download it and / or save to their device. Doesn’t sound as good as a wav cause lossy compression yo, but quality is on par with what you hear on the radio. And hello small file sizes. In fact, I have radio producers who request mp3s cause it’s easy to send over email and will be compressed to the max in the end anyways. Specs are usually:⁣ - bit rate: 128kbps (192kbps for audiobooks)⁣ - channels: mono.⁣ ⁣ This is just a guide based on common formats I’m asked to supply. It’s always worth checking broadcast / channel / platform specs to get it right up front.⁣ ⁣
N I C E M I C B A B Y 🎤 with a colourful voice over history, this @sennheiser babe has been on my mind for a while now.⁣ ⁣ And now I’ve upped my promo and imaging voice over quota, I decided it was time to commit.⁣ ⁣ The MKH 416 is popular with Aussie production studios. It’s also long been the promo and trailer mic of choice over in the states.⁣ ⁣ Promo VO legend @joeciprianovo is a fan. And if he’s a fan, I’m a fan. He tells the fascinating story of how a film and TV mic has become a voice over standard. All thanks to famous announcer / voice over Ernie Anderson. ⁣ ⁣ Ernie didn’t want to be in the booth. He didn’t like the fact that people in the control room were discussing his voice overs behind his back. And that they had the ultimate control over how he sounded. He demanded to voice in the control room. To be in on it all. So the producers needed to find a mic that would work in a control room with speakers, people, noise. Hello directional 416 with your tight pattern sass.⁣ ⁣ And the rest, as they say, is history.⁣ ⁣ I’ve said it before—I love mics. I love that different mics suit different needs. That you can have more than one mic in your life without Joey Greco and the Cheaters crew busting you in a cheap ass chain restaurant demanding answers.⁣ ⁣ Check my stories for my latest promo voice overs on this 416 bad boy.⁣ ⁣
🌵Hot diggity dang these cacti are a sight for sore eyes. And sore ears due to an abundance of reverberation, reflection and generally shit acoustics.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ The acoustically-advanced Buzzi gang bring you BuzziCactus. The perfect combo of absorption, attenuation, diffusion and desert-dwelling succulent.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Scroll through for a good perve at the range.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Yee-haw.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣
Client: BCG⁣ Project: eLearning video⁣ Style: conversational⁣ ⁣ Well bless my convo socks 🙏🏻 This is one of the very few scripts requesting a conversational style that is actually a conversation between more than 1 person (I’ve only included my parts in this snippet).⁣ ⁣ It also demonstrates that eLearning doesn’t always need a formal, professional voice. And mad props to companies recognising the importance of work life balance 👍🏻⁣ ⁣ Think of ways to present your staff training in a unique, creative way to make it memorable for your audience. Cause that’s really the goal of eLearning isn’t it? To get people to retain info to help them do their jobs. Building brain muscles 💪🏻⁣ ⁣ ☝🏻Check my highlights for conversational style voice overs. I really wanted to call this series of demos ‘natural style’ as not all are conversational in the true sense. But this is how clients are requesting and searching for voice over styles so it makes sense to go with convo.⁣ ⁣
⚡️S C R I P T T I P⚡️ When you’re spending dem dollars on your production, a little script checking up front can save you a lot of eye water making 😭 later on.⁣ ⁣ Us VO peeps are trained to read the words EXACTLY as they appear on the page. So wrong words, wrong names, wrong numbers, wrong acronym ordering... will all be voiced WRONG.⁣ ⁣ As a slightly obsessive pedantic type, if I notice a one-off typo or grammatical error that’s super-obvious, I’ll provide an extra take. But I’m not gonna give your script a substantive edit (well I can, but it will cost).⁣ ⁣ So how to avoid wrecking yo self? A check, a proofread, a read out loud, a peer review.⁣ ⁣ Cause big blips in yo scripts is bad for your health.⁣ ⁣
⚡️last minute to-do list⚡️can this dang financial year be over already? K thanks.⁣ ⁣ With T minus 2 days to go (here in Oz anyways), here’s what you and your biz need to do:⁣ ⁣ 🔎 Dig out all of those receipts from your old shoebox, car glove box, and jeans’ pocket (yeah the ones you haven’t washed in 8 months).⁣ ⁣ 🤔 Consider whether coffee is a legitimate tax deduction⁣ ⁣ 🎛 Buy up on all those gadgets RN⁣ ⁣ 📤 Send a gazillion invoices⁣ ⁣ 🏃🏼‍♀️ Chase up a gazillion invoices⁣ ⁣ 👩🏼‍💻 Complete a gazillion last minute jobs for clients who just realised their budget disappears 1 July (just like it did last year 🤷🏼‍♀️)⁣ ⁣ ☕️ Confirm whether coffee is a legitimate tax deduction with your tax agent⁣ ⁣ 🧮 See in 1 July with your financial nearest and dearest—abacus, calculator, spreadsheet⁣ ⁣ 💤 Sleep off that killer financial hangover ⁣ ⁣
If you need the freshest voice overs for your project, save this list of on-trend voice over styles.⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ Here’s my top 5 most requested styles so far this year. I’ve included the top 5 for commercials (television, radio, cinema and online) and corporate (explainers, eLearning, corporate videos and telephony).⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥:⁣⁣⁣ 👋🏻 friendly / conversational⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 🤸🏼‍♀️ playful⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 💋 enticing / alluring ⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ☀️ warm / welcoming⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 🤱🏼 nurturing⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ 𝐂𝐨𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞:⁣⁣⁣ 🌱 natural / not ‘salesy’⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 🏆 inspiring⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 📊 confident / credible⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 🖋 eloquent⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ 💼 professional⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ When booking your voice over, don’t be afraid to get all emotional and describe it like you mean it damn it. Here’s a great example from a recent project: 𝘓𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘺. 𝘔𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘥, 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵.⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ Hear examples of these styles right up there in my highlights in my profile ⬆️⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣
Always a good time when a mute inflatable possum is the fall guy for 6 years and under (plus Dave) bedtimes all along the east coast of Australia.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ This here is my very first television voice over (circa 2005). ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Prior to this, my voice over chops were c/- my gig as a radio announcer. In those days being on radio meant, by default, you were a qualified voice over actor. ⁣ ⁣ Before working in TV, my VO repertoire consisted of shouty, over-excited radio voice overs for local skate shops, nightclubs and shopping centres. ⁣ ⁣ Back then I had no concept of mic placement or how to read to time. I was full of plosives, mouth noise and ugly breaths.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ But I was honoured to dial back the VO excitement levels and help get the kiddos to bed. Every night around 7.26 in the last ad break of Home and Away.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ And to all those now 14 - 20 year olds, I sincerely apologise for making you miss every flamin’ Summer Bay end of episode cliffhanger.⁣⁣ ⁣ ⁣
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