Lowbudget solution for voiceovers/podcasting

[Paul R Johnson]

The only thing to watch with USB mics is that the gain settings are often fixed, and a bit low - so you need to get in perhaps a little closer than idea.

[Battle Vaughan]

+1 on Richard's AT2020 USB suggestion. For that matter, I've done nice voiceovers using a "lowly" Samson C01U.into Final Cut. Any of the USB mikes will most likely be better than a conventional mike going into your computer mike input. For more bucks you can get a Presonus or MOTU or equivalent a/d converter and a conventional mike, but why bother?

[Ty Ford]

Originally Posted by Peter Berger

So do you think that MCA SP-1 pluged into a regular soundcard on a PC will sound ok? Or should I recommend her rather Zoom H1 (or MCA SP-1 plus Zoom H1)? The Tascam is out of her budget.

BTW, MCA SP-1 is a XLR mic, so she will need some XLR to 3,5mm adapter, right?

This'll do the job more easily: Ty Ford Audio and Video: Centrance MicPort Pro - 24/96 Audio On A Stick

Regards,

Ty Ford

[Mark Fry]

Originally Posted by Ty Ford

This'll do the job more easily: Ty Ford Audio and Video: Centrance MicPort Pro - 24/96 Audio On A Stick

Regards,

Ty Ford

If you already have an XLR microphone, that's a really neat gadget. It's going on my Christmas list right away! The spec. sheet it says it has 44.1 and 48 kHz options, but not whether those are 16- or 24-bit. For video voice-overs, I'd prefer to record in the target format (48kHz/16 bit) and not have to reformat later, though I guess it's not really a big issue.

[Mark Fry]

Try this for a DIY sound booth - open the doors of a wardrobe, spread a quilt or blanket over the doors to make a roof, face the rail of clothes... The real problem is getting far enough away from the computer that you don't have its hum and whine in the background.

When I've made voice-overs, I've used my camcorder as the recorder, then imported the clips into my NLE just like normal video. It helps that the camera has XLR sockets and phantom power, so I can use a "proper" mic. I sit the camera on a cushion a few yards away from the "booth", which is enough to stop the mic hearing the tape motor (yes, still using tape!) and point the lens at a clock with a second hand, which gives a visual cue to help when scrubbing through the clips. I have an old AKG C1000 condensor mic in a simple crossed-rubber-band shock mount, the Heath Robinson pop-shield I described earlier and a music stand to hold the script. It's not perfect, but it works well enough. You could probably hear how it was done on a good hifi, but not on most TVs and certainly not on YouTube ;-)

[Ty Ford]

Originally Posted by Mark Fry

If you already have an XLR microphone, that's a really neat gadget. It's going on my Christmas list right away! The spec. sheet it says it has 44.1 and 48 kHz options, but not whether those are 16- or 24-bit. For video voice-overs, I'd prefer to record in the target format (48kHz/16 bit) and not have to reformat later, though I guess it's not really a big issue.

Read closer! It's 24/96 capable and will lock to whatever your computers has between 16, 24 bit and 44.1, 48 or 96 kHz.

Ty Ford