Talking head recording - Noob

M

Mork

New member
Hi All,

Just new to the site and wanted to get some advice. We're starting to do some in-house recording at my company and want to start with talking heads and fireside chats.

This will be done in a controlled environment (in the office, in a nice room, professionally lit etc etc)
I wanted to sanity check the audio recording equipment before i ordered - and get any suggestions.

We need to record a maximum of two inputs (interviewer and interviewee). We want a relatively inexpensive but good quality setup.
To my understanding this would work well

Laptop with adobe creative suite (already own)
Yamaha AG06 Hybrid mixing console (usb input to laptop)
x2 Audi Technica PRO70 condenser mics (balanced XLR lavalier)
a pair of noise cancelling headphones to check levels through the mixing console.

Does this work? Have a missed a trick here or will this provide good results?

I welcome all advice. Thanks for your help!

Mike
 
That's perfectly respectable kit for what you want to do.

Those AT mics are excellent value for money. They are cardioid so will help in reducing picking-up 'room sound'.

Are you intending editing the audio after recording and possibly polishing the sound a little? If so, any thoughts on how you may do this?

... and a tip... make sure you engage the low-frequency roll-off on the mics... it will help intelligibility.
 
Unless there is some pressing, other reason for using a mixer I would swap that for an Audio Interface. Tascam 2X2, Steinberg UR22, Focusrite 2i2 to name but three of many very decent 2 mic input AIs.

"Noise cancelling" headphones. Why? If you are in a noisy place you do not want to do VOs there! You might also like to hunt up some soft materials such as blankets and throw them over office dividers to kill some of the room effects.

BTW. Hi Mike! Nice to see you here.

Dave (aka ef37a)
 
Mike Stranks said:
That's perfectly respectable kit for what you want to do.

Those AT mics are excellent value for money. They are cardioid so will help in reducing picking-up 'room sound'.

Are you intending editing the audio after recording and possibly polishing the sound a little? If so, any thoughts on how you may do this?

... and a tip... make sure you engage the low-frequency roll-off on the mics... it will help intelligibility.
Click to expand...


Yes, i'll be using Adobe Audition (never used it before, but it's available on our creative suite license). So my thought is i polish the raw file first, then i marry it to the video then edit in terms of cutting. Sound sane?
 
Hi Dave - those audio interfaces are equivalent prices to the mixer. Showing my ignorance now - what's the benefit of the audio interface over a mixer? Seems that it just provides less functionality....?
 
Mork said:
Yes, i'll be using Adobe Audition (never used it before, but it's available on our creative suite license). So my thought is i polish the raw file first, then i marry it to the video then edit in terms of cutting. Sound sane?
Click to expand...

I don't do much video work, but in talking to colleagues who do it a lot (professionally)... the usual route is edit sound, polish sound, mix to picture. That way you'll know where you need cutaways, noddies etc in the video to mask your sound edits.

.... and that's the way I've worked on the few occasions I've had to do it...
 
Mork said:
Ah - i think i worked it out. Combined stereo output vs discrete channel stereo output?
Click to expand...

Er? Not sure what you mean by the above! Essentially an AI is THE device for home recording. Yes, many of the functions are the same as a mixer. Phantom powered mic amps and, in this case a USB connection to a PC. But an AI is more "operationally" easy to use for over dubbing. Many of the early USB mixers were noisy, if not on the USB feed to the PC but very often in the return signal. I see that mixer is 2nd generation 24 bits so it SHOULD be really low noise but I know an AI WILL be!

Did not know about the video part of the equation and therefore there might be a good reason to get a mixer. Otherwise don't.

Dave.
 
Just looked again at the AG06...

The mic inputs can't be panned L/R so you can only get a combined mic mono-mix on the stereo outputs. (That means you won't be able to work on the voices separately in the edit/polish.)

So mic positioning will be critical as will adjusting the gain to balance the level of each voice against the other.

Try to record in as 'dead' an atmosphere as possible... lots of drapes/curtains and soft furnishings... and where the background noise - traffic, aircon plant, general office noise - is as low as possible.

I've seen many amateur videos with excellent camera work and editing ruined by poor sound...
 
Mike Stranks said:
Just looked again at the AG06...

The mic inputs can't be panned L/R so you can only get a combined mic mono-mix on the stereo outputs. (That means you won't be able to work on the voices separately in the edit/polish.)

So mic positioning will be critical as will adjusting the gain to balance the level of each voice against the other.

Try to record in as 'dead' an atmosphere as possible... lots of drapes/curtains and soft furnishings... and where the background noise - traffic, aircon plant, general office noise - is as low as possible.

I've seen many amateur videos with excellent camera work and editing ruined by poor sound...
Click to expand...



Thanks - I've ditched the mixer for a focusrite 2i2 - i can see how this makes more sense now. I'll also look into whether it's socially acceptable for me to start sticking dampening foam to the walls in a meeting room. Thanks all!
 
Sticking foam on the walls will do Jack S other than make the room deadly dull.

You need some frames upon which to hang blankets, duvets or rolls of glassfibre or rockwool. These can be made from 2x2 timber or 1/1/4" plastic wastepipe or anything else that comes to hand.

Ideally you would place such a fram front AND back of a speaker but since there will be two, facing each other, no can do. So, put them behind each speaker, out of shot and make up as many as you reasonably can and distribute about the space. Just rolling out some GF will help enormously.

If you MUST have a table twixt speakers put a goodly layer of foam or similar on it. MUCH better to have a tabletop made of perforated metal THEN foam. Sit everyone on as thick a carpet as you can find.

Do NOT if at all possible let them have a script. IF you must, type it out in BIG print and stick on card. Better have REALLY big print on idiot boards out of shot.

Others here have done talking video and I bet they will confirm that one minute in 20 is a good "usable take" ratio? Even then it will need editing.

Dave.
 
Mork said:
Yes, i'll be using Adobe Audition (never used it before, but it's available on our creative suite license). So my thought is i polish the raw file first, then i marry it to the video then edit in terms of cutting. Sound sane?
Click to expand...

I have the Adobe CC suite and the method you describe is exactly how I work. One thing I'd suggest is downloading a free phone app called "Digislate". Triggering that at the start of each take will make syncing much easier later on. Failing that, even something like a hand clap can help.
 
Mork said:
I'll also look into whether it's socially acceptable for me to start sticking dampening foam to the walls in a meeting room. Thanks all!
Click to expand...

Actually you'll be better with duvets/quilts draped over something like a mobile wardrobe frame. Not only are these more effective, but you can remove them when finished! Of course, it may not be possible because of 'in-shot' issues.

A better substitute for foam (which in all honesty is not that effective) is to use fibreglass panels from the likes of Auralex, GIK acoustics, Primacoustic etc. They're an inch thick, look smart and can be fastened directly to walls... or for even more effective absorption, mounted on battens an inch away from the walls.
 
I've been a bit busy (between mixing live shows every night and house guests during the day) so missed this. However, I'll second the recommendation of quilts etc draped over frames as being more effective than the dreaded foam on walls. One technique I'v seen that works well is to make your own frames with cheap PVC pipe and joints for your local builders' merchant. A bit of thought on which joints to glue and which not to will give you a frame that can be broken own and stored under a bed or something.

There's a whole lot of physics involved but basically having something sound absorbent hung AWAY from the wall is much more effective--basically any sound that gets through the quilt or whatever the first time has to travel to the wall, be reflected, then travel back through the quilt give the deadening properties a second bite at the apple.
 
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