Voiceover Mic Choice

[john12ax7]

Have a friend in need of a VO mic for animation. Not a large budget. My first thought was SM7B or RE20, or maybe a DIY u87, but it's not really a field I'm familiar with.

Are there industry standard choices for this type of work? And then in the future he also wants a mic to record fx.

 

[Alva Goldbook]

SM7s and RE20's tend to get used for radio and broadcast. A large diagraph condenser I would think would be more likely choice for animation. A DIY u87 is a good choice, but if budget is an issue, there's many good choices to choose from.

 

[k brown]

Pixar is just using the same LDCs that one would use to record a singer.

 

[tk@halmi]

Does your friend know how post process signal effectively for voice overs (equalize, de-ess)? If so there are many choices for affordable condenser microphones. If they are familiar with the gain knob only then a good quality dynamic may be more appropriate.

 

[pucho812]

Most VO sessions in Los Angles use following mics: Sennheiser 416, Neumann u-87. There is the occasional SM7 or RE20, but those mics are found more often in broadcast and podcast scenarios. On rare occasion I have seen a TLM103.

 

[ubxf]

I've seen the 416 used as an ADR mic because they try to match production, for VO mostly U87 or higher end vocal mics

 

[kags]

I see Schoeps, Sennheiser, Neumann, and a lot of Gefell at pro VO and ADR studios. Also, on the lower cost side, Audio Technica 4050 and Mojave MA 201 are well-regarded. For broadcast, the Heil PR40 is becoming a standard.

 

[totoxraymond]

U87 is my mic of choice for voice overs. Everytime i've been using another mic, i wasn't happy.

And i've been working in post for TV and animation for 15 years.

Sm7b or re20 would require the talent to be really close to the mic. You don't want that for animation, you want around 60cm to 1m between mic and talent in a good acoustically treated room for the voice to sound natural.

Ymmv,

Thomas

 

[amplexus]

The de facto standard VO mic is a U87. 416’s are more for ADR to match the location sound- or whatever other shotgun was used on set- but for straight VO and voice acting you’d want a U87 or something that does the same tricks.

TLM103’s are often used on a budget, but if the budget is real tight and DIY isn’t an option, something like the Advanced Audio take on it might be just fine- I’ve had very good results with an AT4033 or 4040 in a VO booth as well. Both are inexpensive and can be found used for a song.

 

[elskardio]

The U87 is the industry standard for a good reason, almost every major post-production facility has one! This makes it easy to do retakes, even if the talent is recording in a different studio located in another country.

If you're on a tight budget, just buy a used P220 for $200 and do this simple mod

 

[joulupukki]

The U87 is the industry standard for a good reason, almost every major post-production facility has one! This makes it easy to do retakes, even if the talent is recording in a different studio located in another country.

If you're on a tight budget, just buy a used P220 for $200 and do this simple mod

Or if you're lucky, you find a P420 and do the mod for $50.

Here's a comparison video I just made that includes the AKG P420 that I modded up against some other U87 clones:

 

[JF]

I would use a linear and low noise microphone, my first try on a "budget" would be a TLM193. I would for sure NOT use a TLM103 (HF peak) or any microphone with high noise floor to stay flexible at whispering parts.
When you want a little more "voicing" of the mic I would have a look at Austrian Audio - not peaky but a little more pre-EQ as a TLM103.

 

[john12ax7]

Thanks all for the info.

 

[GeorgeToledo]

They use TLM193 on all of the voiceover for Family Guy, and that has caused it to spread somewhat for use in animation.

 

[JF]

When I can only own one large diaphragm microphone - it would be a pair of TLM193
Very low noise and neutral for large diaphragm with very low tolerances (I can use my 2 as stereo pair with no issues). In ORTF I recorded about anything with them, I remember a percussion session with a top artist where we had whispering silent sounds to full blown "hammer on woodbox" thunderous noises - everything easy with TLM193.
They are not catchy with vocals - but it's way easier to add some sparkle as to get rid of the TLM103 resonance ...

 

[MicMaven]

So ... returning to the OP's question: what is a truly BUDGET option for voice over work? / James