Picture me as the voice of your Kid's fav Cartoon Character?

Ramona Roman · **Voice Talent** Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 10

OK so i didnt even get into the studio to record yet but i'm so anxious! There are two small demos we did last night. Quality is lacking ($9 mic from wal-mart! Shocked

hehehe) but i'd like some critique on my voice itself.

Since I have such a "youthful" voice aka MOUSEY voice, heheh, I think i need to stick to the child/teen/young adult part of the business, or so I've been told. Not that I mind, I've tried the smooth, sexy, sultry and frankly, I think I should stick to the young cute and hip too! LOL Laughing

Its ok though....I'd love to one day be a cartoon voice one day!!! Cool

http://ramonaroman.voice123.com/

Erik Sheppard · **Voice Talent** Moderator Joined: 02 Mar 2005 Posts: 1317

Ramona,
Your voice sounds like it could be marketable but your demo is way too hard to listen to. If you are serious about this business you have to record professionally without all that noise. Great, cute voice but it needs to be heard clearly.

Nikki Saco · **Voice Talent** Joined: 25 Aug 2006 Posts: 465

Ramona, your voice is adorable but your demo is killing it. I downloaded and ran it through a noise filter. I think that improved it a little. Recording in mono is OK because your voice is only going through one channel, the mic (although I record in stereo for mix effects later when needed). But surely whoever recorded it can do something about the line noise? The file I downloaded also indicates it's at 44100 Hz, but I find it hard to believe you got that quality at that sample rate. Maybe it was resampled to 44.1. At any rate, the initial recording should definitely be at least at 44.1; then you can save your demo as an mp3 at 44.1/64kbps which is I think the best sampling Voice123 will allow. If line noise is unavoidable, the studio's software should have a noise filter. Leave some space in the recording where you don't talk; they can select that small section, capture a profile of it and then run the noise filter on the entire recording. That will reduce your noise and give you a cleaner demo.

Really, you're voice is adorable and the delivery is good, but the recording isn't doing it justice. I'm attaching the copy I ran through the filter in case you feel you can use it. Really, you have a cute voice. There's a market out there for it.

Ramona Roman · **Voice Talent** Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 10

Thanks so much guys, I re-posted the demo you fixed up for me and took down the other one. Don't want to damage my chances any until I can get into the studio and record some quality stuff!

I'm looking into purchasing a new sound card for my home computer, I think that is the problem. I remember seeing somewhere that I would need an M-box. Not sure what that is, i'm going to pick up a book this weekend.

My boyfriend's parents own a marketing compnay and they have a sound studio, my only concern is that, although, technically they may know how to make it sound good, i'm not sure they know how to produce and give direction on my voice and technique itself. I'm thinking i might need to find a voice coach or rather a studio that can help me with my voice instead of only being able to help me record my voice.

Chip Hinshaw · **Voice Talent** Joined: 23 Feb 2006 Posts: 65

Ramona, I really recommend doing a lot of research on home recording before you lay down ANY money on any piece of it. You really should "design" your system before purchasing bits and pieces. Mainly this will help you avoid compatibility issues. Lots of people wind up spending way more money than they need to in setting up a home studio.

If your boyfriend's parents have the ability to produce a quality recording (from the technical aspect) for you, and you can get it on the cheap (or, better, free) do that asap. Then you have a "clean" demo even though you may still need work on your performance.

You've definitely have a unique voice and, with the right training I think you can definitely get yourself going in this biz.

Ramona Roman · **Voice Talent** Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 10

Free, Yes! Thank goodness!

I appreciate all of your expertise and thank GOD your you all and thank GOD for this forum!

So...got it....Clean Demo FIRST....THEN

...library library here I come!!

Thanks again fellas!

Julie Williams · **Voice Talent** Joined: 12 Jan 2005 Posts: 168

Hi Ramona,

Your voice is sooo cute. YES, I could see it as the voice of my son's favorite cartoon character... or even an image voice for a network like Nickelodeon.

I listened to the cleaned up demo that NIkki did for you...so I wasn't frustrated by the bkg noise...

Good that your boyfriend's family has a studio... use it!!!!

The demo I heard was great...but way too short, of course. It's hard to tell how good you are by that short clip... but every beginner can use training.

I know very little about cartoon voices (except that I'd hire you in a heartbeat based on what I heard) but James Alburger and Penny Abshire (in San Diego) do cartoon voice workshops. You can reach him at www.voiceacting.com or jralburger@voiceacting.com. Tell them Julie Williams sent you. (NO, I don't get a kickback!!!!)

Good Luck, Ramona,
I suspect you have quite a career ahead of you!

Ramona Roman · **Voice Talent** Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 10

Thanks Julie!

We are work work workin at that Demo! Can't wait to share it with you all!

I greatly appreciate your comments!