mic for vo

[Ramji Meena]

I am planning to record voice over for my own documentaries .One of my house room is not noisy.I have few shotgun mic but for vo i am looking for shure SM7B which is within my budget .Please some one tell me what are the results of this particular mic.I have heard good things about studio projects C1 also.

[Jerry Porter]

I used one when working in radio for many years. Decent mic, but I prefer my AKG 414 by miles.

[Robert Turchick]

Ha! Another vote for the 414...mine is the TLII variety.

On a budget, the AT2020 is what I have set many VO talents up with.
When the VOs have the budget, the Neumann TLM103 is becoming a standard in the industry.
others to look at:
AKG 214
AT4040
Shure KSM42

The 7 is ok but the modern condenser mics listed are much nicer. I had a 7 about 25 years ago and sold it. I dont miss it at all!

[Jerry Porter]

You should also look into some of the RODE studio mics. I have used a few of them and they are also very nice and around your budget.

[Bill Davis]

Originally Posted by Ramji Meena

I am planning to record voice over for my own documentaries .One of my house room is not noisy.I have few shotgun mic but for vo i am looking for shure SM7B which is within my budget .Please some one tell me what are the results of this particular mic.I have heard good things about studio projects C1 also.

Having done literally hundreds and hundreds of paid VOs over my career, I can say with some authority that the human voice isn't a particularly difficult sound profile to capture. Some of the mics you mention, like the SM-7 (and it's predecessor the SM-5b "fat boy" were very popular in radio since they were basically reasonably sensitive dynamic mics with lots of pop-filtering, so you could work them close for proximity effect and get some extra close-mic'd bass tones.

The AKG mics were "clearer" with more attack and more crispness, as one would expect with a phantom powered "active" approach compared to the dynamics.

All mics also take on the "color" of the preamp circuit that they drive, so a decent mic with an excellent pre-amp would often out-perform a great mic fed into a mediocre recording circuit. Today, most pre-amps except the cheapest are pretty clean, if a bit "sterile" for my tastes. You can often fix that with post-processing, but it's more efficient to just do it properly in the first place and not have to spend a lot of time futzing around in post.

At the end of the day, no matter which you use, all they can do is capture and record the voice that hits the diaphragm. So the key to a good sound is good talent. Always was and always will be. You can start with a sub-standard read and compress it for clarity, make it crisper or boost certain frequencies - but it's still going to be a recording of the performance that happened.

So starting with someone who knows how to perform VO work will get you farther faster than putting down more money for a better mic and sticking it in front of someone who has little experience and who hasn't conditioned their voice and their brain over time to do the work properly.

For what it's worth.

[Ramji Meena]

Hi Robert ! I was reading some literature about the mics mentioned by you.I think the requirement is of Neumann TLM103. But that is not affordable.In your opinion between the AKG 414 ,AKG 214 and AT4040 which one has some tight bass suitable for narration?

Bill , I absolutely agree with you as far as the role of VO artist is concern. But if I consider your view while choosing a microphone, I can record VO on my already available shotgun Sennheiser MKH416 .By the way I have SD302T which has got nice preamps.

[Robert Turchick]

If you can't swing the Neumann, my second choice would be the 214.
Reason is the 414 is meant to be an all purpose mic. It has dual capsules and multiple polar patterns which is useful when recording all sorts of stuff. The 214 has the same capsule (single) but is cardioid only which is the most common setting used on the 414. Essentially you're getting a 414 without the bells and whistles and for a great price. I own a 4040 and only occasionally pull it out. Had the 214 been around at the time I would have picked up the AKG.

[Ramji Meena]

Thank you Robert,I have purchased 214.Thank you all.

[David W. Jones]

Just an FYI, now that you have spent money on a different mic, I can tell you that the Sennheiser MKH416 you already have can be used to good effect doing voice work. It was the mic of choice for a national session I did a couple of days ago.

Good Luck!

Dave

[Bill Davis]

IIRC, the Senn MKH-416 was the mic or choice for the late, great Ernie Anderson - who did the lion's share of the ABC network daybook announcing and was well remembered for his signature sound on promos for TV programs like the Love Boat!

I can still hear his dulcet tones in my head drawing out that long "O" in "Tonight on the Looove Boat" in promos every night on TV throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s!

May he RIP.

The point being, Ramji is that you already had a mic that has been field proven to work wonderfully at the national broadcast level in recording VO work. That you elected to dismiss it and change direction is fine, but the larger point is that what you are searching for may not be "in the mic" at all.

FWIW.

[Jerry Porter]

Originally Posted by Bill Davis

IIRC, the Senn MKH-416 was the mic or choice for the late, great Ernie Anderson - who did the lion's share of the ABC network daybook announcing and was well remembered for his signature sound on promos for TV programs like the Love Boat!

I can still hear his dulcet tones in my head drawing out that long "O" in "Tonight on the Looove Boat" in promos every night on TV throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s!

May he RIP.

The point being, Ramji is that you already had a mic that has been field proven to work wonderfully at the national broadcast level in recording VO work. That you elected to dismiss it and change direction is fine, but the larger point is that what you are searching for may not be "in the mic" at all.

FWIW.

I couldn't agree more. I have done thousands of spots and been on air in Radio (WSB Atlanta and others) and TV for many years (I still do some freelance voice work, time permitting.) A good mic processor is just as important as a good voice and mic. I'm a big fan of DBX processors for the home studio these days.

[Rick Reineke]

In my 'old school' tenure, some pro VO artists have specified their preference for 416s. (some brought their own) But of course.. they had 'the voice' and delivery to go with it....which is most important.
But I guess in these days of low cost equipment...'good pipes', delivery skills and a talented engineer is no longer a requirement. Times they are a-changen.
But there is no 'one size fits all' solution... case in point ... years ago, I recorded a very famous actor / VO artist with a U47.. which I thought would work.... Big mistake.. it came back to haunt me all the time on CNN.

[Ramji Meena]

Dear Bill , Jerry and Rick ! I am a novice in the field of recording VO. Now that I have purchased AKG 214,the only option left is to compare the nature of the sound captured by the mics and then decide.
Basically I am going to record on AKG 214, Sony ECM-678 and MKH-416 and see which one is better suited for my voice over artist's voice.

[Ramji Meena]

I will have to see which one picks the less noise.Let me tell you that my room is not fully sound proof like a studio , though I have made it extremely noiseless.

As I understand every mic has a deferent flavor.One of my friend has a great mic called Sanken CS3E, I just wanted to know whether this can also be used for VO?Looking at the above posts I am wondering how come the shotguns are being used for VO.

[Jon Fairhurst]

Originally Posted by Rick Reineke

it came back to haunt me all the time on CNN.

Personally, I like the way Mr. Jones sounded on CNN. ;)