VO Hardware/Software/Tools | Dave Courvoisier's Blog

Turnabout

April 12, 2013 By CourVO Leave a Comment

At the end of February, I posted a video interview with Constantino de Miguel — an international journalist, producer, and voice talent.

You can see that interview here: DIRECTVOICES.

Constan is leading a development team spread literally around the world to launch his directvoices.com site. To say the least, it’s a unique business model. Until his service reaches full functionality, the site offers resources and information for budding voice over talent. While I was interviewing him, his staff was negotiating a time for Constan to interview ME.

That finally happened a couple of weeks ago, and now the video is out. It’s not an 0n-cam interview…but an audio track with some hi-production values and pull-quotes. I must say, his production team made me sound good in this video…cutting out all the pauses, stammering, and unfinished thoughts.

I’m not sure you’re going to hear much new in my ramblings during this interview, but remember, de Miguel’s audience is global, and DirectVoices claims the information we shared in this interview will serve their audience well. I hope so, and I was grateful for their expert handling of the 9-min video production you can see below:

Dave Courvosier Intvw with Direct Voices from Dave Courvoisier on Vimeo.

Thanks Constantino!

CourVO

Filed Under: Interview, Training/Education, Web/Tech Tagged With: constantino de miguel, direct voices, directvoices, directvoices.com, VO, voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice actors, voice artist, voice artists, voice over, voice overs, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover talent, Voiceovers, voices

Finding VO Clients Using Social Media

April 5, 2013 By CourVO 2 Comments

In a few short weeks, my friends Terry Daniel and Trish Basanyi will be leading a social media discussion at FaffCamp.

As a frequent presenter with Terry and Trish on the stage, I can confirm that you will walk away from their session with a head-full of ideas. Both of them are living proof that prospects can be turned into paying clients using social networks correctly.

Using Social Media,though, is like a demo that always needs to be freshened-up. Whatever you think you know about VO marketing using social media is already changing to something else. Not that you’ve wasted time, talent, or momentum to this point, just that you must keep after it. Social Media continues to morph.

The good part is, the opportunities continue to grow. All the big networks: FaceBook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Google+ and YouTube are gaining members right and left. However, the growth, and the sophistication of those online populations means finding opportunities requires you try new approaches.

For one thing, the nature of every one of these networks demands that the services MUST change to stay with trends. Facebook is the poster child for this concept. LinkedIn just had a big facelift. Google keeps tampering with YouTube, and so on.

Ya gotta remember though, all these services are free, and once you’re in the swing of things, it can be fun…even almost addictive to be on them. In that sense, you can grow your relationships, learn a lot, AND find prospects at the same time.

Let me share with you a link to an extremely helpful article on mining social media for leads by John Jantsch. John writes an unbelievable blog called DuctTapeMarketing. Bookmark this site, and visit often. Its’ written in general marketing terms…so not specifically for VoiceOver, but all the concepts apply.

Here’s the article you should read: THE GOLDEN AGE OF SOCIAL LEAD TARGETING HAS ARRIVED FULLY.

As you read, please take the time to follow the link to one of his most visited articles from 2010 that is still relevant: 7 Insanely Useful Ways to Search Twitter for Marketing.

…and BTW, it’s not too late to sign-up for FaffCamp. I wish I could go, but I can’t. Say HI to Terry and Trish for me!

CourVO

Filed Under: Social Media/Networking Tagged With: ducttapemarketing, VO, voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice actors, voice artist, voice artists, voice over, voice overs, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover talent, Voiceovers, voices

Managing Mail ‘n’ More

April 4, 2013 By CourVO Leave a Comment

Everywhere people talk about losing the email battle.

A little nonsense post on the Voice-Over Friends FB group yesterday brought this response from a VO friend: “…I get around 500 emails per day. Checking them to just figure out what I want to deal with and what not is laborious enough, but then having to reply or take some sort of action… I think I spend an aggregate of about 4 hours or more per day dealing with email, and I’m still not as on top of it as I’d like…”

I so agree. Even my recent blog post about email (Seriously? Unimaginable!) brought plenty of assent that email is an essential part of the freelance VO day…but businesses and people eager to be noticed somehow keep finding a way to clutter-up things. Social Media notices alone probably make up half of my email list.

Not a replacement for email management… but when I really need a digest of my brand/name exposure on Social Networks any given day, I depend on NutshellMail.

NutshellMail is a Constant Contact product. Many of you are familiar with ConstantContact. It’s one of the most-recognized newsletter, CRM, survey-tracking, Social Media marketing, and now event-planning online sites around.

Some time ago, ConstantContact acquired NutshellMail. The service sends you updates from social networks through an email digest. You can manage and interact those updates right from the NutshelMail interface.

Here’s the best part: FREE! You don’t have to have a ConstantContact subscription to get NutshellMail. You WILL have to sign-up with an email address and password. Then you’ll have to grant permission for NutshellMail to access whichever Social Networks you’d like to monitor.

Many is the day NutshellMail saves my bacon (bacon!) by showing me other people’s mention of my name or brand. In fact, sometimes NutshellMail is the ONLY means of getting that information. It’s pretty amazing what it can pick up. You can reply, retweet, post, and respond right from the NutshellMail report that comes to you by (ack) email.

Check it out. The service can be customized in many ways to meet your needs.

CourVO

Filed Under: Social Media/Networking Tagged With: ConstantContact, ConstantContact.com, NutshellMail, NutshellMail.com, vo. voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice actors, voice artist, voice artists, voice over, voice overs, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover talent, Voiceovers, voices

FocusRite iTrack Solo

April 2, 2013 By CourVO Leave a Comment

focusrite Just ricocheting a post from Alan Curry of PieHole that I thought had merit in case you didn’t see it.

Alan hails the new FocusRite iTrack Solo with the following comment on my Voice-Over Friends FaceBook Group: “…it’s never going to replace a properly equipped studio, nevertheless I’m impressed with it so far and can’t really fault it as a portable or temporary solution. Indeed, for certain projects like web video, on-hold & IVR, I’d even go so far as to deem it perfectly acceptable…”

Banking on the legendary FocusRite reputation, and selling at a reasonable $159 at online shops like Sweetwater, the FocusRite iTrack Solo is touted as being compatible with Mac, PC, iPhone and iPad.

From the website: “…A supplied cable connects iTrack Solo to the iPad, and it is powered by the included USB cable that delivers the power necessary to run the iTrack’s high-specification components. If you are using iTrack Solo with a Mac or PC you don’t need to connect it to the mains, your computer will supply enough power via the USB cable….”

Here is the link to Alan’s SoundCloud audio sample using the iTrack Solo: https://soundcloud.com/alancurry/ipad-itrack-solo-audio-sample/s-rZeD8

Thanks Alan!

CourVO

Filed Under: Equipment, Technology Tagged With: Alan Curry, focusrite, focusrite iTrack solo, iTrack Solo, Piehold, VO, voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice actors, voice artist, voice artists, voice over, voice overs, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover talent, Voiceovers, voices

Verizon Dropping ISDN in Some States

March 28, 2013 By CourVO 2 Comments

rip Can the other major TelCo’s be far behind?

For so long, established studios have pooh-pooh’d early predictions of ISDN’s demise. But now, the writing is on the wall.

I think it’s time to call the undertaker and buy the burial plot.

The argument has always gone that the studios — you know — STUDIOS – are refusing to give up their tried ‘n’ true solution for recording remote talent. I get it. Change is upsetting. But I can’t think of any studio (beyond maybe… Disney) with clout enough to forestall the major telephone companies from yanking ISDN support.

Read this announcement from the respected Radio World website. (my thanks to “DemoDave” Martin of Las Vegas for this tip!)

The line disconnects mentioned in the article include the densely-populated New England states, especially the powerhouse NYC broadcast/entertainment market. The article recommends not disconnecting any ISDN lines, as it might be hard to get them re-connected, and to order any new lines NOW.

I take no joy in this eventuality. I worked hard to get my ISDN and even harder to pay for it. BUT, I’m also seeking the next-best-thing, and if you’ve read this blog at all in the last year, you know I consider the top contenders to be Source-Connect, ConnectionOpen, and SoundStreak (no particular order), and the possibility of a new Skype service. Those are all Internet-based solutions. Frankly, I don’t see any other technology even remotely on the horizon to take ISDN’s place.

CourVO

Filed Under: ISDN Tagged With: ConnectionOpen, connectionopen.com, ISDN, SKYPE, SoundStreak, soundstreak.com, source connect, Verizon, VO, voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice actors, voice artist, voice artists, voice over, voice overs, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover talent, Voiceovers, voices

They Beat Me To It!

March 22, 2013 By CourVO Leave a Comment

mehmet Mehmet Onur has often come to the States for VO conferences. He’s a prolific Turkish voice actor, TV Producer, and all-around talent. My pathway to Mehmet is Andy Boyns, a British Voice Talent who lives and works in Istanbul (known to many of you). He’s also an associate of Michael Minetree.

Mehmet recently posted a sound-comparison of the new Tascam iM2X…. the newest version of the Tascam iM2 that I reviewed last year (one of my most popular blogs evar).

Here is the link for Mehmet’s AudioBoo audio comparison of the Tascam iM2x vs. the native iPhone 5 mic: http://audioboo.fm/boos/1279412-tascam-im2x-vs-iphone5

rode IXY_02_1024x1024 What I REALLY want to see is a comparison with the Tascam iM2x and the RØDE iXY, that I mentioned in a blog last week. both have the unique X/Y mic configuration, and both fit onto the iPhone 5. Interestingly, the TascamiM2x and RØDE iXY shown here have the 30-pin connector standard on all iPhones EXCEPT the iPhone 5. Do the two new mics have the iPhone5 “Lightning” connector version too? The RØDE iXY touts the fact that it works with the iPhone5, so do they have converter plugs, or native Lightning models??? Curios nerds wanna know!

At any rate, I don’t plan to rush out and buy both of them just for the evaluation (I know, I know…unlike me), but I’ll bet someone will…and when they do…I’ll post it here.

keep

One quick “gimme” here (unrelated), Google now is out with a new app called “KEEP”. It’s being reviewed as a possible alternative to Evernote (or Catch, or SpringPad). It’s available on the Google play store for all Android devices. Side note: naysayers are now bad-mouthing ANY new program Google comes up with after the tech-giant announced it’s withdrawing support for Google Reader. Their logic: why take KEEP under consideration if Google is just going to continue to banish established products that don’t fit their new “cool factor” criteria?

Have a great weekend!

CourVO

Filed Under: Mics, Web/Tech Tagged With: Google, Rode, rodeixy, Tascam, Tascam iM2, tascam im2x, VO, voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice actors, voice artist, voice artists, voice over, voice overs, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover talent, Voiceovers, voices

5+ Google Reader Replacements

March 19, 2013 By CourVO Leave a Comment

Google doesn’t sit still for long. Even on their flagship products (search, email, calendar, G+, etc) they’re constantly tweaking.

Sometimes they just bail on stuff they’ve spent billions on (Buzz, Wave).

Latest on the chopping block: Google Reader. Fans are not happy. There’s even a petition circulating.

Let’s recap. Google Reader is actually an RSS feed reader. RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. The ubiquitous orange iconic logo symbolizes RSS. RSS feed readers

For online nerds like me, RSS feed readers are a Godsend…and Google was among the best, and certainly the most recognized and used RSS Feed Reader. Feed Readers aggregate strictly the content from websites, blogs, and other online sites…into a easy-to-access interface that lets you peruse lots of information FAST. It beats browsing through tab after tab after tab. The word “feed” comes in, because you get to program which sits you want “fed” into your reader.

A few months back, Google changed some features on their reader. They’ve been steadily removing functionality and none of it sat very well with Google Reader regulars. Well, July 1st the whole show disappears.

Several 3rd-party developers are dancing a jig, though, ’cause this opens up all new opportunities for THEIR products.

The important thing is to beat the deadline, though, so you can export your feed FROM Google to your new reader…after July 1st…you won’t be able to, and if you’ve spent a lot of time building your feed…that would be a big loss.

So below are my 5 suggestions for RSS Feed Reader replacements:

(for tablets) Flipboard, Pulse, Google Currents, Zite, Taptu

Fever

Honorable mention: MS Outlook. Yup, Microsoft Office’s premiere CRM program also brings in RSS feeds, and it ain’t half bad.

OOOooooor…you could go on flitting from site to site manually, and wasting precious auditioning time.

CourVO

Filed Under: Web Resources Tagged With: Feedly, Fever, google reader, Netvibes, Newsblur, really simple syndication, RSS feeds. RSS feed Readers, The old reader, VO, voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice actors, voice artist, voice artists, voice over, voice overs, voice talent, voiceover, voiceoves, voices

Record On Your Android Device

March 17, 2013 By CourVO Leave a Comment

irigpre Now that Android OS phones are dominating the smartphone market, and Android OS tablets are becoming a regular fixture, it only follows that voice actors will be hoping to find ways to do a decent recording on those devices (the endless search for the perfect portable recording setup!).

A number of voice actors have told me they have successfully installed and recorded using the USB Audio Recorder Pro availabe in the Google Play store. My good friend, and ace audio engineer Cliff Zellman sweetened the pot when he mentioned that Audio Evolution is the perfect sound editing compliment to USB Audio Recorder Pro (also works in Windows).

Sadly, this geeky blogger has not been able to get the USB Audio Recorder Pro software to work on my Motorola XOOM tablet, nor my Google Nexus 7 tablet, despite the fact that both devices are listed as compatible with the app (and believe me, I’ve TRIED with just about every configuration I could come up with). I would encourage to you to try it though, as the app is reasonably priced, and is said to be reliable. Maybe you’ll have better luck. I continue to try to get this Android solution to work, and have a customer support ticket in with the folks at USB Audio Recorder Pro.

In the meantime, though, fellow Vegas Voicer Dennis Allen pointed me to the latest offerings from IK Multimedia…makers of the iRigMic for iOS that I’ve blogged about in months past.

Now, the folks at IK Multimedia have re-designed their iRig Recorder to work with Android too.

More than that, IK Multimedia also is out with their iRig Pre XLR Mic interface for iPhone, iPad, and Android. This device not only works across device formats, but also allows you to use any standard XLR mic input to record on your tablet or smartphone. A smart move!

I have not had a chance to evaluate the new iRig offerings, but you know I will. My iRig Pre XLR is already on order, and when I get it in, I’ll give a whirl in a comparison sound recording.

Have a great Monday!

CourVO

Filed Under: Mics, Technology Tagged With: android, Android OS, Audio Evolution, Audio Evolution app, Google Nexus 7, iOS, iPad, iPhone, iRig Pre XLR Mic, iRig Redorder, Motorola XOOM, smartphones, USB Audio Recorder Pro, VO, voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice actors, voice artist, voice artists, voice over, voice overs, voice oves, voice talent, voiceover, Voiceovers, voices

SoundStreak Windows Preview Released

March 14, 2013 By CourVO 1 Comment

Thursday I got the email I’ve been waiting for. The SoundStreak Preview Release for Windows is out.

I’ve blogged about SoundStreak several times in the last few months. The definitive article, featuring an interview with CEO Dan Caligor is here: SoundStreak – From the Top.

Dan sent the email…and I was excited to hear about it (1) because I’m a diehard Windows user, and (2) I have a great deal of respect for the potential of this product.

Galigor and his developer — Matthew Hensrud — have been letting me in on the beta testing. I’ve been doing some sessions with them over the past weeks, and I’d like to think some of those instances helped a little bit.

SoundStreak’s native development was for the Mac OS, but after reaching a Beta product in that realm, SoundStreak wasted no time working on a version compatible with Win7. It should more than double their possible user base.

Read the official SoundStreak announcement. You’ll find all the appropriate links there to get started. The program installs quickly.

In addition, Dan Caligor offered me a few other tidbits of information in his email:

“This preview is fully functional and largely feature-complete, and is fully interoperable with the Mac version (i.e., you can assume either the Production or Talent role on either platform and mix-and-match within sessions).

All sessions on SoundStreak — as well as the software and account — will remain free of charge while we continue to finalize all the elements of our system. This preview is the tip of the wedge for a number of exciting changes we will be making over the next eight weeks or so. These include new features and capabilities, a new and highly scalable back-end, multi-user and eterprise-grade account capabilities, and user and account admin portals.”

Just briefly, for those unfamiliar: SoundStreak maximizes an internet connection between talent and producer to provide a real-time link for studio quality remote recording. Like ISDN, the session is usually initiated from the producer end, and both parties need to have the SoundStreak software up and running. The producer feeds the script and even lo-res video (if needed) which appears on the talent’s screen. Talent delivers as many takes as the producer wants…the producer listens…chooses the one he/she likes, and the “good” take is immediately downloaded in a hi-res version to the producer’s side of the equation. All recordings also remain on the talent side of the recording.

That’s a quick paraphrase, and there are many other handy and feature-rich nuances to the process, but the system is robust and intuitive.

Hensrud told me that by the end of business Thursday, the new Windows Preview Release had gotten a couple of hundred hits. ‘Not bad for the first day on the market!

Below is a quick screen capture I did of my test session yesterday to show you the screen interface. My promo read is horrid, but you can see the sequencing of the countdown into the delivery of the video. In my headphones, I was hearing all the background crowd noise of the video, plus Traci Ulman’s soundtrack, as well as the beep-beep-beep of the 3-second countdown.

Great going SoundStreak!

CourVO

Filed Under: New Paradigms, Technology, Web Resources Tagged With: Dan Caligor, Matthew Hensrud, SoundStreak, soundstreak.com, VO, voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice actors, voice artist, voice artists, voice over, voice overs, voice talent, voiceover, Voiceovers, voices

Like Lightning!

March 13, 2013 By CourVO Leave a Comment

Barely had the digital ink dried on my blog from Monday’s unveiling of the RØDE iXY before my good friend Tim Keenan (owner of Creative Media Recording) chimed in with some welcome news.

Most portable mics designed to work with iPhones, iPads, iPods, etc. come with the 19-pin connector common on the iPhone 3 and 4, and early models of the iPad and iPod. But as I mentioned in the iXY blog, Apple is fond of designing away from 3rd-party vendors, just to keep ‘em hopping, I think.

But look at what our friends over at Zoom Electronics did! They’ve already come up with a pretty snazzy mic

Zoom H4n

that fits Apple’s new Lightning Connector now installed on the iOS 6.0 or later (iPhone 5, iPod touch [5th generation], iPad mini, etc.). Bingo!

As you know, Zoom is the innovator behind a number of pro-quality hand-held audio recorders…chief among them, the Zoom H4n…and now the new H2n as well.

The new unit is called the iQ5. It has a unique ball-type design that they call “stereo mid-size microphone” that has both horizontal and vertical positioning.

From the SamsonTech website: “…the iQ5 features a 3-position Mid-Side stereo field switch (90°, 120°, RAW) for selecting the width of your stereo field and creating incredible flexibility over your recordings. The iQ5’s 3-position gain control switch (Auto, Limit, Off) lets you quickly choose your volume settings, while its analog mic gain wheel allows you to fine tune your levels while recording.”

I don’t see a price anywhere for this unit. It’s not even listed on the offiicial Zoom site.

The site I’m linking to here claims the Zoom iQ5 is available at Guitar Center, but Guitar Center’s online site doesn’t return any results on a site search.

Again, this disclaimer — so well elucidated by tech officianado and LA voice talent Bo Weaver: “No mobile mic-with-tablet-and-app configuration will match the fidelity of your home studio.” (paraphrased)

Innovation marches on!

CourVO