audio for video info

[Kyle]

Do any of you have any good resources for recording audio for video?
How about for Voice-over work? I'm looking for any good books or websites that have been helpful to you.

I'd like to get better at both of these aspects of audio.

thanks

[JGriffin]

There's a few people on here (myself included) that do this kind of work professionally. Feel free to ask questions.

As far as reference materials, I'll see what I can come up with.

[Kyle]

Thanks DWLB

My day job (educational research) knows that I have a recording studio so they asked me to build a studio for them here in the office. It's mostly VO work for internal training videos with a little bit of live recording work as well. They eventually want to expand these services to our clients and I want to make this full time position.

I'm really just looking for some tips from guys like you who have the experience. Are their any words of wisdom or things that you discovered along the way that have had a major impact on the quailty of your work?

[Professor]

Is the work primarily audio for video or is it primarily audio only like for books on tape?
Is the company hoping to do the final authoring of their video product there or will they simply be receiving an edited video (from either an internal or external editor) creating an audio track, and then sending it off to someone else for assembly?
Will they need to do other audio production work for the products such as adding in sound effects, background music, or similar stuff?

Knowing that will help to determine what kind of system needs to go in and what kind of things you might need to consider when spec'ing the system.

-Jeremy

[I'm Painting Again]

I'm the engineer for a educational cable TV station..I would be glad to answer any specific questions..it's quite hard to sum up years of experience in one post though..especially with such broad and vague questions..

you should really be more specific..

your build will depend on the budget they give you..you can set up a VO rig for $100 or a million..and you can come off with decent results with the budget set up too..

if your business wants to be profitable..look at what other facilities use and charge in your area for similar work..you goal would be to produce similar or better results at a competitive price..and provide a similar "experience" for those clients..

I personally know some producers who hire specific studios based on the most stupid things..like if they have a pool table..things like that..

if you want to turn this into a full time gig for your self you have to show your work how much they want..no need..it..and then provide the results that won't make them change their minds..

[Kyle]

Sorry, my response to DWLB was unclear and lead us down the wrong path.

I'm looking for resources to help me get better live sound or VO results; tips, techniques, advice.

We already have the audio studio and video editing capabilities on site. We are an educational research organization (we build tests for state or local school districts) and we are not going into the video business. We put these training videos together in house for our staff and burn them to DVD or post them on our intranet. We would like to eventually send these types of training videos to our clients all across the country. So I want to deliver high quality audio.

I'm doing voice over work for internal training purposes. I also record live audio here in the office for training videos.

I want to be better at both of these new to me aspects of audio. I've been recording rock bands for years and so my our vice president has put me in charge of the studio. We use an AEA 92 with the VO mod, great river pre, Summit tube limiter TL50? and we use an mbox into a powerbook. My room is prety boxy because it is a boxy office. I have ordered acoustical treatment and it is on the way. I've been doing this part time for a month or so and the results are good, but I want it to be great. I have never had this much fun at work and I want to make this into a full time gig here.

My questions are as follows. Can anyone recommend some good books or website that have been helpful to you? I 'm really looking for techniques.

Can you think of any key techniques in your career that helped you get great results, something that you wished you knew about when you were first getting started?

I'm sure I'll have some specifc questions but right now I'm just trying to get caught up.

thanks

[audiogeek1]

For me I currently do Post work as my job. I would suggest getting your room that you record in right. VO work only sounds as good as the room. I am constantly fighting VO stuff on video because they recorded in a room that was too roomy or had lots of reflection from the glass.

As for video the biggest thing you can do as an audio person is to make sure the audio is in sync with the video. Also learn the limitations of the formats you are using. Make sure you get a pair of VU meters. Most specs deal with VU. Also a good pair of Peak meters are a must. VHS has a certain level that you cannot go above. This is not like analog tape. It will sound crappy not just a little extra compressed.

For me the best education has been the guys I work with and going to AES shows and forgetting the gear and going to the classes. Also the Surround conference has been a good resource. The digidesign users conference has a post forum and has a lot of people with years of experience that are willing to help.

Me I have around 8 years of Post Experience and find the more I know the more I realize I do not know.

Mike

[Kyle]

Thanks Mike

Great information.