making voices sound like 'voice over'

clang

clang

Veteran
I'm making an animated film in which one character both speaks onscreen and also in voice over, and I'm wondering the best way to differentiate the audio so the listener can intuitively tell which is which. I've seen(/heard) films and tv where this is done really well, but couldn't consciously tell _what_ was different about the voices.

I presume the onscreen dialog should be recorded as normal, if only to match the other onscreen dialoge and sound effects. Should I do something different when recording the voice over audio, or add some sort of filter or effect in post-production? I'm using Vegas, if that makes any difference.
 
Do something different in both recording and in post. Normal animated voices have the reverb normally associate with where they are, but "Voice Over" sounds like the person is right on top of the mic. Have the voice over person be as close as possible to the mic.
 
What he said. Record up close and personal in a quiet dead place, or vocal booth if you have one. You also might consider a different mic than production. A SM58 might work well or a large diaphragm condenser.
 
:2vrolijk_08:Crazy string and chewing-gum idea... just came to me, maybe it won't work, maybe it will.

If you don't have access to a studio, or time to do anything fancy - use a large bathrobe, and use it to cover your head and mic, making a kind of sound tent - it'll kill any room resonance dead, and if you can work it without smothering yourself, or adding rustling sounds to the recording, it might just work.

If you're laughing right now feel free to nuke me. I don't care.:2vrolijk_08:
 
You could also do some research on the subject with Jay Roses' book on audio post production. He has some good stuff in their that is theoretical as well as practical. You could also pick his brain on the audio forum at dee vee dot comm
 
The bed and Blanket method is used all the time in radio productions for recording VO. It works well if you can stand to do it. It's a bit harder if your VO talent isn't you.
 
I have Jay Rose's book, will definitely check it. The blanket over the head idea is quite practical as it's only a short film, will give that a try.

Thanks, all
 
Hi,
Whenever I want to make something sound more like an ad, or more corporate I beef up the compression (to an extreme amount) in post-production. Although everything is dependent on the audio, but as a guide in FCP the settings I use are threshold -23 (ish), ratio 77, attack 1, release 2000, and preserve volume checked. Works great for me, especially on lapel audio. As also said above, if you want a voice over sound you wouldn't want any reverb.
 
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