Jan 08, 2009 05:01 pm You need to talk to Herb, he is your VO man :) I think you are looking in the right direction though. The 990Mxl is a decent mic for sure, I was playing with one yesterday and found it plenty warm\smooth.
Help planning a beginner VO setup?
Posted on Jan 08, 2009 04:19 pm
biznart
Member Since: Jan 08, 2009
I've been combing through the forums and learning a lot. Perhaps too much. ;)
Voiceover work has always intrigued me, and I've done a couple of pieces in studio. Spent a year or so at my college radio station doing some on-air work, also.
I'd really like to get started with a VERY modest setup at home to try my hand at some paid professional work. Sure, there's an opportunity for me to dabble with my guitar, but that would be purely for my own entertainment. My ultimate goal is to be able to record and edit dry VO...with recording and mixing music a distant second.
I'm probably looking at less than $300 to get started with room for upgrades if I can actually land any paid work.
I still have a decent set of headphones from my college radio days, and either my wife's laptop or our old desktop PC should be up to the task. Beyond an interface and microphone (with cable, stand, and pop filter), what are some absolute necessities I may be overlooking?
The Line6 UX2 seems to be a pretty popular choice, but I worry the price tag may cripple the budget. Maybe one of the sub-$100 MXL mics would fit the bill? Or is this budget just not compatible with my goals?
Thanks in advance! Even if the only realistic answer involves shooting this down.
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Jan 08, 2009 05:01 pm You need to talk to Herb, he is your VO man :) I think you are looking in the right direction though. The 990Mxl is a decent mic for sure, I was playing with one yesterday and found it plenty warm\smooth.
Jan 09, 2009 03:05 pm Thanks! Did a little more digging and found some good replies from Herb in older threads.
The prices still look pretty accurate as well. I wonder if I'd be better off getting something like a Behringer UB802 for $50 and putting more money into the microphone based on some of his remarks.
The Audio-Technica AT3035 he recommended to others looks solid and comes with a shockmount for $200. That would put me at $250. I'd still need to pick up a few accessories like a stand, cable, clip, and pop filter.
Unfortunately, the sound on my PC is integrated, so I'm not sure if it would be high enough quality to get the job done with this setup. I think that would be the weakest link in my chain by far. I really don't have the funds at the moment to drop another hundred bones or so on a decent sound card. Also, this setup would rule out the laptop as it lacks the proper inputs to run the mixer through it direct.
Should I look at getting less mic to make room in the budget for a decent sound card?
Jan 09, 2009 03:52 pm Not sure, but I think you would be plenty happy with the 990 and a simple 2 channel usb\firewire interface so you can use it on a laptop or desktop. And always check craigslist for your local area, some great deals on mics from time to time.
Another option, pick up a USB condensor mic. Something like this maybe. Although I personally cannot state how well it works, it seems feasible and I like my other Rode mics.
www.zzounds.com...m--RODPODCASTER
The reviews on ZZounds are very positive although only two of them.
Jan 12, 2009 12:55 pm Pricing them both out, I'm probably looking at $303 for the UX2 and the MXL 990 versus $293 for the other setup. However, I think the versatility of the UX2 is enough to make up the difference, and if I ever actually experience any success, I can upgrade the mic. If the VO deal goes south, at least I have a neat toy to use with my guitar.
Really glad I found these forums as reading through the older threads has opened my eyes/ears to a few things.
Jan 12, 2009 03:21 pm Sorry I missed your post the first time around, biznart.
Microphone, microphone, microphone. It's the most important thing in the chain. The most common problem with stock sound cards is noise. But if your card is a fairly decent one - many of the SoundMAXes are - you can take $200 out of your budget for the mic, get a small mixer like the 802, then upgrade your card when you can better afford it. I did some great sounding VOs for several years this way.
All else being equal, you will get a higher quality stand-alone mic for your $1, versus a mic incorporating USB. I use the Audio Technica AT3035 ($200) and I love it.
I assume you have a recording app. If not, there are good ones out there that are free or almost free e.g., Audacity and Reaper.
If all you're doing is voice and you don't need a buttload of inputs, you can get very good results with a surprisingly small amount of coinage.
Jan 12, 2009 03:26 pm Ha, sorry I overlooked this:
Quote:
Unfortunately, the sound on my PC is integrated, so I'm not sure if it would be high enough quality to get the job done with this setup. I think that would be the weakest link in my chain by far. I really don't have the funds at the moment to drop another hundred bones or so on a decent sound card. Also, this setup would rule out the laptop as it lacks the proper inputs to run the mixer through it direct.
Better go USB then. The one Tripps recommended looks like it will fit the bill.
Jan 12, 2009 03:59 pm Thanks Tripps and Herb!
Do you think I would be better off getting a mic like that Rode model that is a direct USB connection, or is a USB interface + a condenser like the MXL a better bet?
If I wanted to use the desktop/soundcard/mixer combo and if the MXL 990 isn't a bad choice, I *could* settle for it now. That would free up enough funds to grab a decent sound card like the M-Audio you suggested in a few other threads. Then, assuming I make some coin with this endeavor, I could upgrade the mic to something like the Audio-Technica.
Of course, if the 990 isn't up to the task, I may never get off the ground.
And our desktop isn't the best machine. It's a pretty old system that's been upgraded piecemeal over the last 5-6 years (or longer?!). Windows XP, 1.35gHz AMD (Athlon, if I'm not mistaken), 1GB RAM, firewire card...and it's noisy as hell which could wreak havoc on recording if I don't take some serious measures to contain its whirring.
My wife's laptop runs Vista (for better or worse), but it has a decent dual-core processor and 1GB RAM. No connections for recording beyond USB, though.
Assuming some minor success landing paid work, I'd love to scrap the current desktop (salvaging a few parts) and to build a new machine with VO/production in mind.
Or maybe I should take all my waffling and turn it into a political career. ;)
Jan 12, 2009 07:46 pm I think Herb mentioned it above, but I'll re state.
Stay away from the USB direct connected mic's. These are basically a disaster waiting to happen. Most folks barely get them functioning and then find out that they cannot playback at the same time they are recording due to the USB driver for the mic taking over the entire sound system.
So that is a huge drawback.
I would opt for the smaller footprint mixer as stated above and a decent mic.
I will second the AT3035 for a good over all voice mic. It is clear and has a very good tonal curve.
Jan 14, 2009 12:59 pm Found some (allegedly) new UX2s on ebay for less than list price. If I can score one of those at $150, that might help quite a bit. That would still put me over budget paired with the AT3035 and necessary accessories, but something like the Studio Projects B1 would keep me from going into the red. I've found mostly positive comments on it, but do any of you have any positive or negative experiences with the B1?
Or (maybe even more importantly) is there any reason the UX2 would be a bad choice for VO?
Jan 14, 2009 01:10 pm For the price, I have heard the SP mics perform pretty nice. Should at least get you by, if you find you have some extra cash and would benefit from an upgrade later on, then you can.
Jan 14, 2009 05:15 pm As best I can tell, the lower-priced UX2s on eBay don't have any mention of Pod Farm. Should that give me pause on purchasing? It mentions the Gearbox software.
Jan 14, 2009 08:27 pm Gearbox is the same thing as PODFarm. PodFarm is simply the newer version of Gearbox. Not really any difference at all.
A different look to it is all. Functionality is still the same.
And the SP B1 is a very good mic for the price. I now longer own one but have used them in the past and liked them a good deal.
Jan 15, 2009 09:58 am Awesome! I'll go with the UX2 as my interface and the SP B1 for my first mic. If/when checks start coming in, I can upgrade and revamp the setup as needed. Ultimately, a setup closer to Herb's is what I'd like, but this should get me started.
I really appreciate all of your help!
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