Providing High-quality Voiceovers while away from The Home Studio

Ask a dozen different voiceover artists about travel rigs and you’ll get a dozen different opinions. From what exactly is the best set-up to whether to travel with one at all, there are so many differing opinions out there.

And like most things in life: there really is no “right answer”. It’s all about what works for you.

Twenty Years in the Making

It only took me about 20 years to start traveling with voiceover equipment! I really do not travel very often so, for a long time, I felt strongly about being able to actually take a few days away from work and be more present with my travelling companions.

However, my career as continued to grow and the need to have a way to serve my clients or submit important auditions became more and more evident.

An Unusual Result

To my surprise, I have found that–by bringing a voice over set-up with me on the road–it’s actually allowed me to be more present and relaxed. Knowing that I have equipment should I need it has released me from my guilt of being away from the studio.  I have found myself more relaxed and free from the resentment of “missing out”.

The “Best” Voice over Travel Rig

Again, there is no “right” opinion on the best equipment to bring and a thousand different variables that affect that answer. Questions like:

• how are you travelling (by car, plane, etc)?
• how much luggage are you taking?
• Where will you be staying and what is the environment like?
• Are you planning on recording voice over jobs with this rig or auditions only?

All of these questions are important to ask yourself before you decide what set-up to bring.

My Personal Voice over Travel Rig

I wanted something that could easily fit in a carry-on bag (I am allergic to checking bags at airports) and I planned to use it mostly for auditions. The microphone I use in my home studio is quite heavy and very sensitive so, for these reasons, I chose to go with a light shot-gun mic (the Synco D2) for my travel set-up. I paired that with the amazing Audio Sigma MicHero DSP audio interface (highly recommend). Then a pair of headphones and my laptop complete the set-up.

Be Honest and Transparent with Your Voice over Clients

No matter whether I am turning auditions in to my agents or recording an actual voice over job, I am always honest about being away from home and using my travel gear. I would never want to be caught in the position of booking a VO job and then having the client disappointed in the sound. For auditions, I want to be sure and point out that I am using my travel gear so that the potential client knows that this is not the sound of my wonderful home studio.

Already Paying Off in a Big Way

Choosing to travel with my voiceover gear has been the right move for me, and it’s paid off…big time! On a recent trip to Seattle, I received a last-minute email from a client asking me to record several political voice over commercial spots. The audio engineer and the client both felt comfortable with me using my travel equipment and we ended up recording seven spots…which went a long way towards paying for our trip!

My son took the picture of me below looking oh so glamorous during the session.