Mic'ing Narration - for a newbie

K

kirkhere

New member
I'm a video- and computer-literate shooter/editor, but I'm not a trained audio recordist. I'm helping out a friend produce a set of audio tapes of spoken material that has "that NPR" sound and presence (his words).

What kind of equipment is necessary to set up a small studio for this kind of work, starting with a (truthfully) small budget, that can get a nice sound like the one he wants?

He picked up a number of things already while I was overseas on a shoot, including Cakewalk 9, a Gina 20 card, Shure SM58 mic, and some cables, and fooled around with it some. Is this a worthwhile start, and if so, what would you augment it with to begin building something better or more effective?

In addition, to get a bed of background sound that fits his material (ancient civilizations), is there a source for sound effects or tracks that might fit this bill? I figure some of this will have to be created, but perhaps something exists to jumpstart the project.

Last, if there's a good place with info on this topic already, point me there! Sorry to bombard you with questions. And I'd appreciate your opinions too.

Thanks for your comments,

kirkhere
 
About the only thing on your list of equipment that I'd change is the mic. A large diaphram condenser mic would be much better for voice overs.In the dynamic mic world an Electrovoice RE-20 would be cool but a little pricey. Something like a Rode or an Octava can be had in the $200 range. The music beds can be purchased from Sound Ideas. They do a lot of foley sound effects and generic music for this kind of stuff but it's a little expensive too. Also I don't see a mic pre amp on your list. You'll need one for the mic to get the level up to snuff to get into the computer.

[This message has been edited by Track Rat (edited 07-18-2000).]
 
Thanks for your comments. The Sound Ideas catalog has a few things that look pretty good, too.

Coming from a video background, I know the importance of having a good mic and mic placement, but I'm a novice at concepts of mic pre-amp, compression and EQ (which I see talked about here a lot).

Are you familiar with the Gina? It comes with a 2in 8out 20bit breakout box that connects to the computer. Will that serve as a pre-amp, or is a pre-amp still desirable between the mic and the Gina box? And, any recommendations/preferences on a pre-amp?

Sorry if I sound a little goofy. I know how to hook up anything with a picture signal, and most anything with a computer, but I'm new at audio!

Thanks,

kirkhere

[This message has been edited by kirkhere (edited 07-18-2000).]
 
yea, you would still need a pre amp before the Gina, which by the way, I have one as well as some other Sound cards. It's a very fine unit and will serve you well. What kind of budget do you have for a pre amp? It's easy to spend anywhere from $150 to $4000 for one. $500 will get you a dandy.
 
To be frank, I think the budget can stretch to about $200-250 tops... and I'm a bit ashemd to say that $150 may be all we can handle right now.

But if you don't mind educating me, I don't mind learning... What would a pre-amp offer that would not exist by using, say, a small mixer or routing the signal through a tape deck with high rec levels to get its signal boosted. Just curious how the function of the pre-amp would be superior... from what I've read it boosts the mic signal to a line level. Is it cleaner than my off-the-cuff other method? I'd assume so, particularly if the price can range so sidely. But I'd like to understand the why of it.

And please continue to make recommendations. Don't take my hesitation at first to be complete reluctance. I can see I have some learning to do.

kirkhere
 
If you have a mixer, you're off to the races. More than likely that is. If it has XLR (mic) inputs then you have what you need already. Do you have a mixer? If so, what kind?
 
Sorry for the delay in replying... had internet access probs with the ISP off and on now for two days.

I realize now I should let you know the total equipment list... trouble is I only have half of it at the moment because my friend is currently storing the rest, and he doesn't know offhand the models and makes! He's mentioned a compressor and an EQ, but no preamp or mixer. I happen to have an old mixer, but it's a cheesy Radio Shack toy and not for this project (or this discussion!). I would think a Mackie 1202 or Alesis 12R, from the posts I've read, are most appropriate. With low-budget in mind, are the 6- or 8-channel Behringer Euroracks worthwhile? Or are they much more limited than the other two? I'm willing to up the money when I know the value is there down the road. Any thoughts there on what I need now vs what I need later? (Keeping in mind that currently the idea is to record, mix, and output audio narrative tapes with voice, sfx, and bkg music.)

BTW, I'm off to SIGGRAPH in New Orleans for the next week, so this conversation may be interrupted, but I'd like to continue it. I've got 2 days before I leave (FYI).

Thanks, again,

kirkhere

[This message has been edited by kirkhere (edited 07-19-2000).]
 
You'll hear diverging opinions about the Behringer mixers -- they are the cheapest mixer available at a features-to-cost ratio. My MX1604A has 12 channels, 4 mic preamps w/phantom power, 2 busses, and faders, and was less than $200. It seems solid, sounds clean, but of course I've only had it for two months and I have nothing to compare it to.

-AlChuck
 
seems to me, since you're just recording narration, you don't need to spend flying chunks of dough on an expensive condenser mic or an expensive mixer, either. and certainly not a very expensive mackie 1202 when your budget for a preamp is 150-200.

i'd recommend a cheap dynamic mic such as the shure SM57/58 or anything similar (cheap audio technica/sennheisers are good too). recommend a cheap preamp like the event emp, symetrix sx202, or a cheap 2 channel behringer mixer. and lastly, buy it all used and save yourself a ton of money.

all of this is cheap, and what's cool is that the sm57 and the like are still used in professional environs, and the preamp or mixer is still very very clean.

don't believe me? unsure? go and rent the equipment for 3 days for $30 total.
 
AlChuck - thanks for your Behringer commentary. I couldn't miss the price diff between Behringer and the Mackie, and wondered if there was some BIG BAD HIDDEN THING. Glad to hear there is not. I have a good ear, though certainly not a trained ear, and it's quite likely I wouldn't hear the diff's between one mixer and the next that may leap out at others. At this stage, it's good to keep low cost in mind, and that it does not necessarily mean a serious dip in performance.

oldseed - you're right about keeping it cheap... from my background in video production I know that there will always be some amount of expansion I'll want built-in (always a new feature or item to covet). I need to keep in mind that there's a point where expansion becomes overkill! And I had quite forgotten used gear as an option. Thanks for the reminder! I'll check around further now. With several options in mics, preamps and mixers in mind, I'll feel much better looking around for the remaining pieces.

k
 
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