Dave Courvoisier's Blog

Posts Tagged ‘Harlan Hogan’

While visiting the studios of KLAS-TV last week during NAB in Las Vegas, audio expert George Whittam grabbed this quick little video demonstrating my routine in the daily YouTube news previews I do everyday from my desk.

You’ll remember I posted THIS blog about George’s visit to the newsroom last week, whereupon he demo’d Harlan Hogan’s Porta-Booth Pro.  THAT was recorded just scant feet away from where George recorded THIS video in our newsroom.

‘Coupla geeks with digital cameras, and too much time on their hands….that’s all.

Here’s George’s video of me:

Thanks for posting that, George!

CourVO

After a long day trolling the exhibit aisles at NAB (Nat’l Assoc of Broadcasters) in Las Vegas, George Whittam shows up at my TV station promptly as my 5 o’clock evening newscast begins.  Great!

He’s got with him a sharkfin-shaped, zippered nylon carry-bag, and I KNOW it’s the Harlan Hogan Porta-Booth Pro.  George confirms that, yes, he’d seen Harlan the day before at the convention, and Harlan insisted George take it for a test spin at home in his studio.

Determined to hold my focus for the rest of the half-hour’s newscast, I then gave George the nickel tour of the CBS affiliated station, and we settled into the news conference room where CNN had provided pizza for the news staff (not sure why).  There, I video’d George in an impromptu set-up of the Porta-Booth Pro.

It’s simple, intuitive, and obviously well-designed and made of quality materials.  When assembled, it shows an integrity of construction, and some nice little features that make it a cinch for an on-the-road voice actor.

Watch the video of George below (roughly 4:30), and pay special attention to a nice “insider” tip for your traveling voice talent types.

George Whittam Demos Porta-Booth Pro from Dave Courvoisier on Vimeo.

By the way, George spent the day at NAB talking to various vendors about the possibility of getting their participation in the Don LaFontaine Voice Over Lab at the SAG Actors Center.  Most, he said, had good interest in being a prt.

George plans to bring the Porta-Booth Pro to VOICE2010 for anyone to take a look.

The guy’s on a roll lately!

On top of having one the most marketable reputations in VO-land…and despite hosting frequent successful webinars and coaching classes, Harlan Hogan is finding the time to make a real go of it staking his name on two dynamite products these days.

His most recent splash is a signature series Marshall-made VO Microphone, getting boffo reviews.

Click HERE to see the offer at HarlanHogan.com, or HERE to see it on AMAZON.com (same price).

Harlan has also long been known for innovating a sweet little portable mic sound booth.   Now, with the right packaging and marketing, he’s making a very respectable run at selling a boatload of these things…and why not?  If you have to travel much, and keep clients happy, this is about as close as it gets to getting it done right on the fly.  Click HERE to get your pre-order in for the Porta-Booth Pro ($100 deposit, total price $349…enough to give anyone pause…but honestly, it’s probably worth every penny).

You might want to pause and see some of the other items Harlan lists on his ‘Voice Over Essentials Department Store‘.

Nice going HH!!

CourVO

You’ve seen ‘em a million times in this day of networking affiliates, spam newsletters, and hyped promotional ads.

A pitch that runs the full length of the carpet down your hallway.

Roll this video to watch as I scroll down the page:

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Normally, I’d say (and HAVE  said) run as fast as you can the other way! when you see promotional ads taller than your back yard Elm.

Only this time, the guys putting on the VoiceOverClass are top notch.

You don’t find any better coaches and genuinely experienced guys in the this business than Harlan Hogan and Dan O’Day.

Click HERE to see the whole pitch….just….couldn’t it have been said in one page, guys?

You dont’ need the hype…your reputations precede you!

CourVO

Freelance VoiceOver talent have strong opinions, ‘specially when somebody does ‘em wrong… jus’ like any other well-meaning businessperson would.

Lately, some notables in our industry have been making it clear how THEY feel about certain personages who (it would appear) are disingenuous about the way they represent their wares.

Two Examples, one about coaching, the second about clients

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#1 BEEF

When respected names like Harlan Hogan and Dan O’Day come on THIS strong, they must certainly feel adamant and assured in their comments

Start HERE to read the criticism…you’ll have to click some links to find the actually beginning of the thread, but it’s all clear when you click the above link to Dan O’Day’s blog.

Go do that, then come back.

OK, whadya think?  Here’s my one comment:  If you’re going to smack someone THAT hard, why not just name names.  I think most of us all know who she is, so just….call her out.  Anything less seems dissumulative given the intensity of the cynicism.

#2 BEEF

Double-Dutch Blogger and International Voice Talent Paul Strikwerda takes a salacious shot at one of his clients…and most would agree, rightly so.

See his diatribe HERE.

How does one see through the subterfuge and read another human being through virtual liaisons to tell if they’re honest or not.  Hmmmm, sounds like the worthy topic of a future blog!

CourVO

…..is up and running.

Commercial Voices' Rick Gordon, and Harlan Hogan (who needs no reference whatsoever) some months ago approached a number of voice actors to participate in a new endeavour.

Their idea was to capitalize on a growing need for professional voices in the exploding field of e-learning.  I was honored to be included as a founding member, along with a sterling list of highly-qualified candidates.

Now…after a lot of design work, recruiting, organizing, choosing a business model, marketing, and other untold details, E-learningvoices is a reality.  I definitely think its time has come. Thanks Rick and Harlan for having that vision.

Click HERE to see.

….and spread the word, willya?

CourVO

With absolute credit to Deirdre Cooper, Board Mistress of the VO-BB, and Voice-Actor extraordinaire, I’m re-posting in its entirety this entry from the Voice-Over Bulletin Board. The article was provided to the divine Ms.C by the equally impressive Harlan Hogan.  Hogan is the author of helpful books on voice-acting, and especially well-known for his expertise in configuring equipment for portable needs. 
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A “Porta-Booth" for Road Warriors

By Harlan Hogan

Quality sound can be portable

I’m a big proponent of setting up and using a home recording studio –
even when you’re far from home. A decent laptop, an audio interface,
and a microphone allow you to audition and work almost anywhere. And
with high-speed Internet readily available there’s no reason to miss
sessions and auditions because you are on location or vacation, unless
you choose to.

I heartily understand, respect, and secretly admire actors who can
tell their clients and agents, “Don’t bother me, I’m on holiday and the
only performing I’ll be doing this week is down at the pool.”

I understand, respect, and admire — but I just can’t do it. I love
this work and when I spend an hour or so a day working on vacation, I
enjoy the remaining 23 hours that much more.

On the road – even with pro-quality recording gear – you’ll often
find yourself in less than perfect recording environments. Most guest
rooms, cabanas, ship cabins, and hotel rooms are OK as long as you
avoid the ones adjacent to the elevators and the ice machine.

However, even a very quiet room (this applies to homes and
apartments, too) can sound like a “big boomy box” to your microphone,
instead of the tight sound booth quality we are used to in
purpose-built studios. That’s because in addition to picking up the
sound of your voice, the microphone is also “hearing” the ambient sound
of the entire space.

Until recently, I’d build myself a tiny little fort out of every
pillow and comforter I could scrounge from housekeeping on the road. My
wife found my constructions less than pleasing esthetically. Then I
remembered the brilliant idea of composer and audio guru, Douglas
Spotted Eagle, that Jeffrey Fisher and I described in, A Voice Actors
Guide to Home Recording.

Douglas realized that for a microphone to sound good and tight you
didn’t need to be inside a sound box – the microphone did. So, he built
a simple 16” by 16” four-sided box out of foam core, lined it with
acoustic foam (usually sold in 16 x 16 inch tiles), stuck his
microphone inside, and recorded with it . Dubbed the VO Box, the
results were stellar even in a “bad” room.

So I decided to construct a road warrior’s version a.k.a.

The Harlan Hogan “Porta-Booth.”

Dell
XPS laptop running Adobe Audition 2.0, Edirol UA-25 USB audio
interface, Sennheiser 416 mic, desk stand, shockmount, pop filter,
headphones, and the Porta-Booth at the Hotel Dominion 1912 – Quebec
City, Canada.

After a few false starts trying wood and plastic, my LA voice actor
buddy Steve Schatzberg suggested one of those “pop up” folding cubes
used to store everything from kids toys to laundry to garbage.

My first attempt with a flimsy mesh cube from The Container Store
worked, but sounded only so-so. Then, Jeffrey Fisher pointed out that
the cube needed to be made of a more substantial material to sound
right. Another shopping sortie and I struck gold! The Home Box
manufactured by Reisenthel.

The folding Home Box has a great sound and is a perfect size at 15
x 15 x 15 inches. Despite its relatively light weight it’s very
sturdily constructed of heavy-duty Dacron sail cloth with a
sound-stopping solid plywood bottom. The Container Store article number
is CX1325CO and as of this writing, the price was a measly $19.99.
Since products come and go and luggage gets lost, I bought a couple of
spares just in case.

One caveat – Reisenthal also makes Home Boxes that don’t swivel and
collapse and they look identical – so make sure you have the fold-up
version! I found this out the hard way when I convinced VO Bill
Ballenberg that the Home Box he’d just purchased on my recommendation
would absolutely, positively fold up. So Bill twisted and pushed and
all but sat on it….and sure enough, it crushed into a mass of bent wire
and polyester. To their credit, his local New Jersey Container Store
happily exchanged it for a proper folding version.

The acoustic foam can be purchased from Markertek, Sonex, or
Auralex – Guitar Centers carry it too and you might ask your favorite
friendly recording studio if they happen to have some scrap pieces
lying around.

The photos tell the story – pop it open, arrange the four foam
tiles, set you favorite mic inside and talk. The foam pieces aren’t
attached to the interior so you can nest them together to save space
when you flatten the box. A quick twist and the whole shebang folds up
to a thickness of about four inches. I tighten a nylon strap -
purchased for a buck at the hardware store – around the box to compress
it even thinner and shove it in my suitcase or a saddlebag if I’m
traveling via motorcycle.

That’s it! (Manufacturing right reserved)

H2

PS: If you do find yourself in the room from Hell, here’s a tip I
learned from a movie soundman. One of the best designed acoustic spaces
on earth is the modern automobile. So, if all else fails, get in that
rental car and find a nice scenic rural roadside. Pull over, shush the
cows – and hit record.

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Also, this additional information from Frank Frederick concerning the portable array:

http://www.ajprindle.com/products/sku-12594__id-72.html

This is actually a Folding Cooler… unique concept – keep your soda
pop in there until you need to do a session, take the cans and ice out
- record your scripts, then pop a cold one and put the ice and the rest
of the cans back in the folding box…

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0006ZPC3E/nextag-kitchen-20/ref=nosim

This is a set of 3 cubes in various sizes.  From 16" x 16" x 16" down to 12" x 12" x 12".

There are many others available in the 13" x 13" x 13" size too.

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Thanks Frank!

CourVO