Recording While on the Road
Oct 1, 2017 7:02:30 GMT -8
Lady Stardust ★, Rebekah Amber Clark, and 2 more like this
Post by duffyweber on Oct 1, 2017 7:02:30 GMT -8
Recording on the road.
CONSIDERATIONS:
-Recording environment
-Acoustic considerations
-Equipment
-Audio matching
-Utilities (WiFi/Electricity/Skype)
Background: I was out of the country, and ended up having to do a pickup AND a couple of new jobs, and while I've written about recording while not at your studio, I think this bears a little more going into.
The important thing you've got to remember is you're going to be working with less than you usually have, and it still has to sound the same.
Thus, let's start with equipment, since you're going to want to pack LIGHT (especially if you're flying somewhere and it has to fit in with all your clothes. I carry all my stuff in a (large) backpack and so I selected my equipment to fit.
This provides a challenge because anything you're carrying with you, you have to lug around. At all times. After a week, an extra 2 pounds starts to feel like 20. Then you add souvenirs. T_T
After having done this 3 or 4 times now, here's my advice for the traveler who can't afford to miss work:
::EQUIPMENT::
- PLUG ADAPTER for ELECTRICAL OUTLETS <------------------- PAY. ATTENTION.
Okay this, really, is an afterthought that I'm putting FRONT and CENTER. I didn't buy a plug adapter before I left (I thought I had one) and I ended up not being able to find it. Weeeelll turns out I couldn't. "No big deal. I'll find one at the airport." Jeez those were expensive. $20 bucks? Nah. I'll get one when we land. Every bookstore sells them.
Fast-forward to job #1 and I had to go buy one at a camera shop for £35 pounds. (After tax, almost $50 USD!).
Found another one three days later at a bookstore for £6. I could have cried.
(Plug adapters are not voltage adapters. Most modern laptops can work off 120 OR 240, so you don't need a voltage kit. Just a cheap form-factor adapter.)
-SMALL LAPTOP/NETBOOK/TABLET PC/Whatever-you-wanna-call-it.
Tiny PCs, such as the Microsoft Surface are IDEAL. I had an Acer Aspire Switch 10 laptop with me (they make thinner, more powerful laptops now, but this one is VERY tiny, and more than adequate processing to run Audacity or Reaper for one mic. And under half the cost of a Surface).
As long as they have a USB port, you're pretty much good to go. Most portable interface use USB. There are a few that use firewire/thunderbolt/etc. but we're sticking to common things you can find repair items for easily. TRUST ME on this one.
Mine had an Atom processor and 2GB of RAM on Windows 10. Underpowered? For a lot of things, yes. For single-channel audio? Works beautifully. Don't get TOO hung up on specs.
It's small, doesn't take up much room, and it's light. Your mantra needs to be "Tiny. Light. Works."
-INTERFACE
Okay, so you may have to have an XLR-to-USB interface if you're taking an XLR mic with you. They make small ones, such as the Shure x2u which are pretty decent, if slightly cashy. You want small, professional grade interfaces that don't do much to color the sound of the microphone. Cheaper ones tend to impart their own sound. (See EQ patterns later)
-MIC
The selection of mic is VERY important. You want one that you can adjust to where it sounds like your studio gear. (IF you're taking your studio mic, this isn't a problem, but a lot of people don't like traveling with expensive mics, so they want a cheaper one to lug around. I don't like to take my Oktava MK-105 because I would either need to wait 12 weeks for a $250 factory replacement, or spend $700 retail locally to get one fast. So, I carry a PG27 which has a very, VERY similar response pattern and sound profile.
Note, USB-vs-XLR: Fortunately, the travel mic I have comes in two flavors - XLR and USB. Many of them don't have that luxury, but if you have a very nice USB mic, just carry that one with you and eliminate the need for the interface entirely.
Also: BE SURE THE MIC THAT YOU TAKE CAN BE MATCHED TO YOUR STUDIO'S SOUND.
-EQ PATTERNS
That brings us to EQ patterns. It's worth your while to record about 10 minutes of audio in your own studio, with both your travel mic and your usual ones, and then fiddle around creating a process for which to EXACTLY match the sound coming from your travel mic to the sound of your studio mic(s.) This ensures consistency.
If you're using Audacity (as many of you are,) there's a great plot spectrum analyzer you can use to tweak the audio. (guide forthcoming). Most audio tools have an equivalent and they're all pretty easy to understand once you know what you're looking at.
Once you have an EQ pattern (and additional processes) to match your travel mic to your studio kit, you've got the hard part down. Export the pattern, make note of the process, and put it on your travel laptop.
-HEADPHONES
Many of you like music when you travel. This is great, because you're taking decent headphones anyway, and I would definitely recommend it.
I, however, in the interest of packing light, tend not to take large headphones when traveling. This is a HUGE detriment to being able to actually hear what I'm doing.
However, I've cleaned and prepped so much audio, and I've used my equipment so much that I have faith in my processes.
If you, conversely, are NOT sure of yourself, I would make room for a decent pair of headphones, and >>not<< the earbuds I use. Small ones will work, but this is entirely your call. If you haven't been doing this a while, or you're not especially a savant at it, I'd recommend lugging the extra weight.
-PACKING
Airports MAKE YOU REMOVE LAPTOPS at every security point. Pack your mic separately and safely in a heavily padded pouch, or a small case, if you can afford the room. Keep your laptop at the top of your bag, or backpack. It's going to see the light of day a LOT during your travels.
Keep your VA business cards with your equipment. It explains a lot to customs and checkpoint people.
I don't take my mic mount or pop filter anymore because I can whip up a perfectly suitable alternative (more on accommodating for that later. PLEASE pay attention to it, if you're not taking this stuff.)
-ACOUSTICS <-- The part you really came here for, though I'd recommend reading all the above. No, seriously.
The important part is matching your acoustic environment to that of your studio*.
(*NOTE: We're not getting into an acoustic-treatment discussion of your studio here; this guide assumes that your studio, be it a professional or home studio already has an acoustically treated, sonically "dead" recording area that you're not getting any wall reverb or noise off of. You ARE NEVER going to match an echoey hobbyist's living room reverb to a hotel room's reverb and we're not going to attempt to cover methods for doing so here. This guide is for semi-professional audio to be used in production work.)
So you're in a hotel room, and sounds are bouncing off the corners and the window and the bathroom makes this weird metallic sound when you talk within 10 feet of it. Great.
I've done guides before about different methods of doing stuff on the road, but here's the only surefire way I've EVER come across of making an acoustically dead space.
--CLOSE ALL the curtains. The big thick ones.
--Close the bathroom door.
--Close any large closets they have (except maybe glass doored ones where the wall inside gives off less reverberation than does the glass panel. Use your judgement.)
--Turn off the refrigerator, air-conditioning unit, unused lights (fluorescent make a buzz), etc.
Booth setup:
--Find the most acoustically quiet position on the bed. (usually near the head of the bead, by the wall)
--Get the luggage rack (that folding aluminum/chrome one they always have with the nylon straps.)
--Place it on the bed, near the wall.
--Stuff all the pillows around 3 of the sides to close it in. Put the final pillow on top.
--Cover it with the bedspread and comforter
--Use the towels to line the inside of the box. Crinkle and wad them to make a sound baffle. (Smooth pillows alone make a sort of ringing reverb noise!)
--Use a towel to prop your mic by wrapping it around the base in a tight mound, taking care not to damage the cord/socket. (I don't take a mic stand. Extra room. And I can fashion one out of towels or other soft materials. DO NOT, DO NOT, DO NOT, DO NOT block you mic's capsule/pickup. Your sound will be muffled and you will not like the result.
--In lieu of a pop filter, I aim my voice/mouth about 2 inches above the top of my mic. If this doesn't work for you, $1 worth of panty hose and a hotel hanger makes a dandy pop filter. (You can pretend you're Bing Crosby in the RCA studios in the '50s.)
--Let the towel/blanket on top/around the sides of the case lop over the edges of the opening to somewhat shield the mouth of your little sound box. Your head will do the rest.
--Record a few things and make sure you've got the right sound (no echo or reverb, no muffled sound, acoustically flat, etc. Once you've got it to where you're sure you've got good sounds, record your lines, and you're good to go!
-POSITIONING
One thing I'll note is that this setup requires you to sit/squat/kneel/be low to the ground. You must REMEMBER THIS AT ALL TIMES lest your voice sound different. As a voice actor, you'll have to compensate for this. But if you're a professional enough to need to record while traveling, you've probably got that bit covered, haven't you? ; )
-GIVING UP (and why you shouldn't)
I lugged a less-than-well-planned rig with me once, and I got so tired of it I mailed it back home halfway through my trip. I came back to my room the VERY NIGHT I'd mailed it back, and had a rush job requesting me to get it done. I missed out on $400 because I got lazy. From now on, I make sure to have my kit, and I make it so it's not such a chore to deal with. I hope this guide helps someone else not run into that same scenario.
P.S.
I feel like it bears mentioning that your hotel should have decent WiFi. And that Skype can make calls to landline phones anywhere in the world for like 2 cents per minute, over WiFi, even if your phone doesn't have data/cel service.
CONSIDERATIONS:
-Recording environment
-Acoustic considerations
-Equipment
-Audio matching
-Utilities (WiFi/Electricity/Skype)
Background: I was out of the country, and ended up having to do a pickup AND a couple of new jobs, and while I've written about recording while not at your studio, I think this bears a little more going into.
The important thing you've got to remember is you're going to be working with less than you usually have, and it still has to sound the same.
Thus, let's start with equipment, since you're going to want to pack LIGHT (especially if you're flying somewhere and it has to fit in with all your clothes. I carry all my stuff in a (large) backpack and so I selected my equipment to fit.
This provides a challenge because anything you're carrying with you, you have to lug around. At all times. After a week, an extra 2 pounds starts to feel like 20. Then you add souvenirs. T_T
After having done this 3 or 4 times now, here's my advice for the traveler who can't afford to miss work:
::EQUIPMENT::
- PLUG ADAPTER for ELECTRICAL OUTLETS <------------------- PAY. ATTENTION.
Okay this, really, is an afterthought that I'm putting FRONT and CENTER. I didn't buy a plug adapter before I left (I thought I had one) and I ended up not being able to find it. Weeeelll turns out I couldn't. "No big deal. I'll find one at the airport." Jeez those were expensive. $20 bucks? Nah. I'll get one when we land. Every bookstore sells them.
Fast-forward to job #1 and I had to go buy one at a camera shop for £35 pounds. (After tax, almost $50 USD!).
Found another one three days later at a bookstore for £6. I could have cried.
(Plug adapters are not voltage adapters. Most modern laptops can work off 120 OR 240, so you don't need a voltage kit. Just a cheap form-factor adapter.)
-SMALL LAPTOP/NETBOOK/TABLET PC/Whatever-you-wanna-call-it.
Tiny PCs, such as the Microsoft Surface are IDEAL. I had an Acer Aspire Switch 10 laptop with me (they make thinner, more powerful laptops now, but this one is VERY tiny, and more than adequate processing to run Audacity or Reaper for one mic. And under half the cost of a Surface).
As long as they have a USB port, you're pretty much good to go. Most portable interface use USB. There are a few that use firewire/thunderbolt/etc. but we're sticking to common things you can find repair items for easily. TRUST ME on this one.
Mine had an Atom processor and 2GB of RAM on Windows 10. Underpowered? For a lot of things, yes. For single-channel audio? Works beautifully. Don't get TOO hung up on specs.
It's small, doesn't take up much room, and it's light. Your mantra needs to be "Tiny. Light. Works."
-INTERFACE
Okay, so you may have to have an XLR-to-USB interface if you're taking an XLR mic with you. They make small ones, such as the Shure x2u which are pretty decent, if slightly cashy. You want small, professional grade interfaces that don't do much to color the sound of the microphone. Cheaper ones tend to impart their own sound. (See EQ patterns later)
-MIC
The selection of mic is VERY important. You want one that you can adjust to where it sounds like your studio gear. (IF you're taking your studio mic, this isn't a problem, but a lot of people don't like traveling with expensive mics, so they want a cheaper one to lug around. I don't like to take my Oktava MK-105 because I would either need to wait 12 weeks for a $250 factory replacement, or spend $700 retail locally to get one fast. So, I carry a PG27 which has a very, VERY similar response pattern and sound profile.
Note, USB-vs-XLR: Fortunately, the travel mic I have comes in two flavors - XLR and USB. Many of them don't have that luxury, but if you have a very nice USB mic, just carry that one with you and eliminate the need for the interface entirely.
Also: BE SURE THE MIC THAT YOU TAKE CAN BE MATCHED TO YOUR STUDIO'S SOUND.
-EQ PATTERNS
That brings us to EQ patterns. It's worth your while to record about 10 minutes of audio in your own studio, with both your travel mic and your usual ones, and then fiddle around creating a process for which to EXACTLY match the sound coming from your travel mic to the sound of your studio mic(s.) This ensures consistency.
If you're using Audacity (as many of you are,) there's a great plot spectrum analyzer you can use to tweak the audio. (guide forthcoming). Most audio tools have an equivalent and they're all pretty easy to understand once you know what you're looking at.
Once you have an EQ pattern (and additional processes) to match your travel mic to your studio kit, you've got the hard part down. Export the pattern, make note of the process, and put it on your travel laptop.
-HEADPHONES
Many of you like music when you travel. This is great, because you're taking decent headphones anyway, and I would definitely recommend it.
I, however, in the interest of packing light, tend not to take large headphones when traveling. This is a HUGE detriment to being able to actually hear what I'm doing.
However, I've cleaned and prepped so much audio, and I've used my equipment so much that I have faith in my processes.
If you, conversely, are NOT sure of yourself, I would make room for a decent pair of headphones, and >>not<< the earbuds I use. Small ones will work, but this is entirely your call. If you haven't been doing this a while, or you're not especially a savant at it, I'd recommend lugging the extra weight.
-PACKING
Airports MAKE YOU REMOVE LAPTOPS at every security point. Pack your mic separately and safely in a heavily padded pouch, or a small case, if you can afford the room. Keep your laptop at the top of your bag, or backpack. It's going to see the light of day a LOT during your travels.
Keep your VA business cards with your equipment. It explains a lot to customs and checkpoint people.
I don't take my mic mount or pop filter anymore because I can whip up a perfectly suitable alternative (more on accommodating for that later. PLEASE pay attention to it, if you're not taking this stuff.)
-ACOUSTICS <-- The part you really came here for, though I'd recommend reading all the above. No, seriously.
The important part is matching your acoustic environment to that of your studio*.
(*NOTE: We're not getting into an acoustic-treatment discussion of your studio here; this guide assumes that your studio, be it a professional or home studio already has an acoustically treated, sonically "dead" recording area that you're not getting any wall reverb or noise off of. You ARE NEVER going to match an echoey hobbyist's living room reverb to a hotel room's reverb and we're not going to attempt to cover methods for doing so here. This guide is for semi-professional audio to be used in production work.)
So you're in a hotel room, and sounds are bouncing off the corners and the window and the bathroom makes this weird metallic sound when you talk within 10 feet of it. Great.
I've done guides before about different methods of doing stuff on the road, but here's the only surefire way I've EVER come across of making an acoustically dead space.
--CLOSE ALL the curtains. The big thick ones.
--Close the bathroom door.
--Close any large closets they have (except maybe glass doored ones where the wall inside gives off less reverberation than does the glass panel. Use your judgement.)
--Turn off the refrigerator, air-conditioning unit, unused lights (fluorescent make a buzz), etc.
Booth setup:
--Find the most acoustically quiet position on the bed. (usually near the head of the bead, by the wall)
--Get the luggage rack (that folding aluminum/chrome one they always have with the nylon straps.)
--Place it on the bed, near the wall.
--Stuff all the pillows around 3 of the sides to close it in. Put the final pillow on top.
--Cover it with the bedspread and comforter
--Use the towels to line the inside of the box. Crinkle and wad them to make a sound baffle. (Smooth pillows alone make a sort of ringing reverb noise!)
--Use a towel to prop your mic by wrapping it around the base in a tight mound, taking care not to damage the cord/socket. (I don't take a mic stand. Extra room. And I can fashion one out of towels or other soft materials. DO NOT, DO NOT, DO NOT, DO NOT block you mic's capsule/pickup. Your sound will be muffled and you will not like the result.
--In lieu of a pop filter, I aim my voice/mouth about 2 inches above the top of my mic. If this doesn't work for you, $1 worth of panty hose and a hotel hanger makes a dandy pop filter. (You can pretend you're Bing Crosby in the RCA studios in the '50s.)
--Let the towel/blanket on top/around the sides of the case lop over the edges of the opening to somewhat shield the mouth of your little sound box. Your head will do the rest.
--Record a few things and make sure you've got the right sound (no echo or reverb, no muffled sound, acoustically flat, etc. Once you've got it to where you're sure you've got good sounds, record your lines, and you're good to go!
-POSITIONING
One thing I'll note is that this setup requires you to sit/squat/kneel/be low to the ground. You must REMEMBER THIS AT ALL TIMES lest your voice sound different. As a voice actor, you'll have to compensate for this. But if you're a professional enough to need to record while traveling, you've probably got that bit covered, haven't you? ; )
-GIVING UP (and why you shouldn't)
I lugged a less-than-well-planned rig with me once, and I got so tired of it I mailed it back home halfway through my trip. I came back to my room the VERY NIGHT I'd mailed it back, and had a rush job requesting me to get it done. I missed out on $400 because I got lazy. From now on, I make sure to have my kit, and I make it so it's not such a chore to deal with. I hope this guide helps someone else not run into that same scenario.
P.S.
I feel like it bears mentioning that your hotel should have decent WiFi. And that Skype can make calls to landline phones anywhere in the world for like 2 cents per minute, over WiFi, even if your phone doesn't have data/cel service.