VOICE Recording??

[aziz]

All I want to do for right now is record voice (via my headset or mic) - all I need is a little bit better sound quality than the windows sound recorder - by being able to cancel out background noise, have the voice in stereo rather than just mono and maybe add a little compression to keep the voice sounds even from clip to clip(?) and some EQ to make simple tone adjustments so it's not so bassy.

I have just downloaded "Audacity" but it's too complex to just "plug-n-play" so to speak. I'm sure it's great but I don't want to spend 6 months on a learning curve. There doesn't seem to be any quick start video tutorials - the text tutorials I've read don't help me much.

I did record a couple clips but I was never able to get into the noise removal or any "EFFECTS" at all - they're all gray & won't let me use them. I was trying to play around with the stereo too. I don't want to be a sound engineer - I'm only trying to get a good voice recording.

I'm short on time right now - maybe there are other threads on this that may be linked here on my issue? If I can't figure this out in a day or 2 then, I'll just have to use the Windows recorder again. Maybe there should be an easy (E.Z.) version of Audacity specifically for voice recording? So, I was wondering if anybody here had a "step by step" I need to quickly record voice?

[allencmcbride]

Hi Aziz,

Thanks for trying Audacity. Did you click the Stop button before looking in the Effects menu? Audacity doesn't do real-time effects, so they'll be grayed out if you try to use them while playing or recording.

In the future, it would be better to post in the forum for your specific operating system and version of Audacity, so we know more about your setup.

--Allen

[kozikowski]

<<<via my headset>>>

If you're suffering with room and other noises while you're wearing a headset, you will never get a stand-alone microphone to work. We finally gave up using other microphone types in our fake theater (featuring fan and ventilation noises) and got the presenters to wear headset-type microphones. Poof, no more fan noise in the recordings.

The higher quality microphones all put demands on the recording environment.

We are using a presentation quality Sennheiser headset microphone with belt battery pack, so no, it didn't cost US$ 19. I can get you the model number if you wish.

And yes, figure out which forum comes closest to your system, so the appropriate people can rapidly help you.

http://audacityteam.org/forum/


Koz

[aziz]

Hey thanks!

"And yes, figure out which forum comes closest to your system, so the appropriate people can rapidly help you."

Of course, I just figured out that I posted in the wrong place - I have Windows XP w/sp 3. Feel free to move this thread into the Windows section. I had been lurking around the recording techniques to learn how to do a simple voice recording. All I want to do is record a great voice track for some short youtube type videos - like a documentary.

It would be great to have a short video tutorial on how to just get started with some basic voice recording and what one can do with it to help people just get started - ya know just a few basic things. I will work on this more today but since I'm on a time restraint If I don't figure it out - I'll have to use my Windows sound recorder again - it's just too easy. The sound is okay but just needs tweaked a bit.

"Did you click the Stop button before looking in the Effects menu?"

Yep, I played around with a 10 second clip I made as a test for about a half hour - I never could figure out how to eliminate computer noise & humms.

"I can get you the model number if you wish."

Sure, what's that model # for that Sennheiser headset?

[kozikowski]

<<<Sure, what's that model # for that Sennheiser headset?>>>

I'll get that for you. We actually have two and were using them primarily for hotel shows of our work and exhibitions. I found out about them and started using them for live presentations in the screening room. World of difference.

I'm no great announcer, but listen to the Left-Right sound sample clip from here...

http://www.kozco.com/tech/soundtests.html

That's not processed except for the last segment to illustrate phase damage. The room really does sound like that.

That was recorded in the bedroom with the microphone on top of the quilt and me kneeling on the floor in front of it. The room is carpeted and I have a "cottage cheese" ceiling. That was not a studio although it sounds very nearly like one. Finding a suitable quiet room to record in is a big deal. You can only go so far with picking the type of microphone.

Koz

[kozikowski]

Our headset microphones are Sennheiser C 555 L with the hip pack battery. They're hypercardoid so you do have to get the pickup capsule just right. We use the foam covering.

I bought a box of sealed alcohol wipers and I swab it down at the end of each show. Many different people use this microphone.

One of the presenters was fitted with this headset just before a lecture and when we turned the room system on and his voice suddenly swelled up perfectly behind him said, "This is freaky."

Yes, it is.

Koz

[conroekid]

Did you say that the effects were greyed-out?
For that, you need to select a portion of your audio.
Then, you can apply an effect to the selection.