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Post by spearcarrier on Aug 15, 2017 8:42:52 GMT -8
Apparently through a review of my audio on another site, I have been told I have plosives in the files.
Now I review them and what I put up doesn't have them necessarily, but I can tell you that yes those suckers keep creeping through. Sometimes this means I gotta record all over again. Sometimes I remove the single one that snuck in using Audition. (And I just found a nice trick using Audacity that's even easier.)
My mic has a pop filter. It's even brand-new. I tried adding the second pop filter I have and still those plosive keep sneaking by.
What in the heck am I doing wrong? I tried looking up mic technique for it, but my search-foo is weak.
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Post by benedict on Aug 15, 2017 9:39:53 GMT -8
One of the easiest ways I've found for dealing with plosives is to move the mic off-axis, but still point it at your mouth. The easiest direction is to move the mic to one side or the other, which doesn't tend to color the sound all that much. (It also gives you better line of sight on your copy.) But if you go off-axis by moving up or down, you can tune your sound, which is cool.
Placing the mic high and pointing it down at your mouth (we're talking inches, not feet... small moves) picks up more chest resonance and can bring in lower tones that might otherwise be missing. Placing the mic low and pointing it up at your mouth picks up more nasal tones. I haven't developed a wide enough repertoire of characters to make full use of it, but it's neat to play with. (Sneery characters sound good with an up-pointing mic.)
To play with it, though, remove all your pop filters and wind screens and use the mic bare. Go off-axis by fractions of an inch until the plosives disappear. Mark where that is in your mind and put the pop filter back on. You should be plosive-free at that point.
Another technique I've been working on is to do plosive tongue-twisters (Peter Piper is a good one) with a bare mic and no pop filter. At first it was plosive city, then my Ps and Ts sounded like someone was choking me, but with time and practice I'm getting better.
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Post by spearcarrier on Aug 15, 2017 12:55:50 GMT -8
Well, I have been putting the mic off to the side... maybe I'm not doing it enough. I'll do as you say and play with it.
Haven't considered doing plosive tt's for this. I'll look into this as well. Although I admit I'm not sure how it will help except in learning how not to get tongue-tied. LOL.
Thanks! *scuttles off with the precious*
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Post by Lady Stardust ★ on Aug 16, 2017 1:59:15 GMT -8
If all else fails, you might have to be a little extra conscious of the sounds that you know give you trouble.
I have major problems with sibilance, like a sssssssnake. It's been pointed out on several occasions and it is humiliating and frustrating feeling like it's something I can't control, but it means I just have to watch out for certain words and try to not emphasize those sounds as much. In your case, you can take note of words that commonly cause plosives (like those beginning with p/b/t) and work on pronouncing them a little softer. Over time it will start to become a habit.
Things can sound so much different/more noticeable on microphones than in regular human speech :/
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Post by spearcarrier on Aug 16, 2017 6:18:36 GMT -8
They do sound different, don't they.
I wasn't ready to work on sibilance yet. I think it's bad when I hear my playback, but I've had people tell me it's fine. Yet to me I sound like I have a lisp. So one thing at a time.
I will be practicing this fabulous thoughts when I sit down to do a "demo reel" in the next couple of days. Figuring out what to say on the reel, I swear, is the hardest part.
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duffyweber
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Posts: 220
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Post by duffyweber on Sept 24, 2017 15:33:40 GMT -8
Late to the party, but try backing off your mic and filter a bit, too.
Benedict's suggestion for tilting the mic's axis is spot-on, but if you're using TWO pop filters and you're still getting plosives, you may be speaking too close to the pop filter. The plosive might actually be your breath hitting the filter, and not the mic capsule. I'd say try talking at least 10 inches from your filter, and have your filter at LEAST 3-5 inches from your mic.
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