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JohnnyUtah

Age/Gender: 29, Male
Location: Philly
Job: NG artist

I have to go return some videotapes.

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10/14/04

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BBS Posts: 1,052 (0.74 per day)
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Entry #8

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JohnnyUtah

How I Record Audio

Posted by JohnnyUtah Aug. 29, 2007 @ 7:44 PM EDT

Look, I never expected so many people to ask me.."HEY! your audio recordings sound pretty good how do you record em?"

The TRUTH is a very dark tale indeed.

While you could spend a few hundred dollars minimum for some recording hardware/software, I myself spent less than a 100 total.

I'll get the most embarrassing part out of the way first:

My hardware is a Socom 2: Navy Seals headset I bought USED at a gamestop. For TWENTY bucks. No, never thought I'd be recording audio with it. I bought it for the game, which I also picked up used several years ago. (yes the PS2 game). It is however made by logitech, a pretty decent hardware company.

When my first mic broke (several years ago) I was dreading trying to find another mic since you really don't know what you're gonna get until you try it out. I then noticed the Socom® headset was usb so while laughing and crying at how pathetic this was I plugged it into my G5 tower. It instantly read it as a logitech headset and holy shit the sound clarity was pretty good. So that's what I've been using ever since.

Why don't I just get a better mic you ask? I have this OCD thing where I hate change..once I find a routine that works, I don't like deviating. When the headset breaks, I'm sure I'll get a better one.

As for software I use this really decent little program called Sound Studio 3. It is mac only, and it's a reasonable 80 bucks. I believe I bought Sound Studio 2 for 50, but it has been getting more and more features so I think the price hike is fair (especially with the going cost of every other program out there like flash).

I'm no audio engineer, so luckily it's relatively simple with a nice interface and does practically everything I want.

So there you go. 100 bucks well spent.

sound.jpg

Updated: 08/29/07 7:48 PM Log in to comment! | Share this!

The People Have Spoken

38 Comments

Aug. 29, 2007 | 7:54 PM cast says:

oh.


Aug. 29, 2007 | 7:58 PM PlatinumX9 says:

damn second. yeah your voices are sweet. gotta love em.


Aug. 29, 2007 | 7:59 PM PlatinumX9 says:

anyway, whenever i watch tankmen or 300, i savor (lol) the sound of that classic voice. It sounds very professional

Aug. 29, 2007 | 8:01 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

maybe i can make a career out of being a second rate voice actor and work 30 minutes a day. hey a guy can dream.


Aug. 29, 2007 | 8:07 PM ApotheosisLost says:

That's awesome man, you would have never thought about it, heh heh.


Aug. 29, 2007 | 8:13 PM Luis says:

im with you on the OCD thing.. thats how i feel about the mouse i use.. its a logitech one that is no longer made anymore but im CONVINCED its that exact mouse that i need so i just buy extras on ebay for 99 cents.... ive bought really expensive mice but this ghetto one just works perfectly.. i cant explain it... same with your professional socom headset...

Aug. 29, 2007 | 8:26 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

it's a terrible disease.


Aug. 29, 2007 | 8:13 PM eggatron says:

Is the Mac SoundStudio any relation to the Amiga tracker "OctaMED SoundStudio?"

If it is, I may well give it a play. If not, I'll stick to my overpriced toys :)

Aug. 29, 2007 | 8:24 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

no idea


Aug. 29, 2007 | 8:32 PM theRedPress says:

Yeah, cheap works. I spent nothing on my mic, but it's an old radioshack omni dynamic mic that can be found on ebay for five bucks, so there you have it. My sound system is basically an Audigy 4 Pro, and it works alright. But everything I record gets a hefty layer of hiss added to the track's background, and try as you might with expensive equipment, removing it will damage the audio. There's just no way around that, so cheap works, but I swear I can't wait until I can afford a new setup.

Thanks for sharing all that stuff, pretty sweet.

Aug. 29, 2007 | 8:56 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

there are ways of removing hissing pretty effectively. in sound studio its called the "noise gate expander" and you can adjust the levels around to remove only the lowest frequencies. it works best for recorded dialogue.


Aug. 29, 2007 | 8:49 PM Reyals says:

That makes me feel silly for getting my poor quality $80 mic.

:'(

Aug. 29, 2007 | 9:12 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

if i get a new one ill probably end up spending 300 and hate it


Aug. 29, 2007 | 8:55 PM Meebs says:

Haha I just use the mic in my iMac. I have a bunch of nice microphones, my family being very musical, but usually I'm too lazy so I just use the iMac microphone and edit it in audacity, and If I remove background noise, it sounds pretty sweet.

Aug. 29, 2007 | 9:07 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

and your audio sounds pretty good.
it works so why change right right?


Aug. 29, 2007 | 9:20 PM AbsintheClock says:

I use audacity and a basic logitech usb headset. It works all right.


Aug. 29, 2007 | 9:28 PM Mitdylan says:

on topic:
I use an eyetoy camera that is used for the Eyetoy games for PS2(how ironic).

off topic:
when are you going to make Tankmen 3?


Aug. 29, 2007 | 9:34 PM FreekC says:

Haha, I use crap I salvage from places.
Eytoy as a camera and mic, a mouse i got from school...

And the guy asking about tankmen, its tankmen 2* ohmygodohmygodwhensitout


Aug. 29, 2007 | 9:38 PM Mitdylan says:

Whoops
I meant the third tankmen.


Aug. 29, 2007 | 10:01 PM MindChamber says:

hey sounds like you ghetto'ed it up.. word

Aug. 29, 2007 | 10:12 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

besides my tv and maybe computer, im pretty ghetto


Aug. 29, 2007 | 10:47 PM Fleek says:

im gonna go buy one now


Aug. 30, 2007 | 2:22 PM Masquatto says:

In a unrelated story: Is there going to be a bit of Office Space soundtrack in the 2nd Tankmen, as there was in the first?

Aug. 30, 2007 | 5:14 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

no office space..no.

there is music from a certain game i really like and a certain japanese show..and a movie i like too.


Aug. 30, 2007 | 2:36 PM cast says:

BTW I figured out Mountain Dew game fuels secret, it taste like cherry gummy bears.

Aug. 30, 2007 | 5:15 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

ugh. im actually too embarrassed to pick that shit up. GAME FUEL? god dammit I never thought i'd say it but i think they crossed the line.


Aug. 30, 2007 | 6:44 PM cast says:

I drank a whole two liter of it yesterday, and the caffeine content was making my insides burn, I don't recommend it. I was fucking miserable.


Aug. 30, 2007 | 11:49 PM TheCriminalDuder says:

I got one of 'em Logitech headsets too. One of the ear pieces are broke but it still should work. I'm gonna try it out and see how it works. If it works great for you should work good for me too right? Besides, my crappy lil' $15 mic isn't really the most charming.


Aug. 31, 2007 | 4:32 PM OperationIvy says:

you sound an awfully lot like trey parker sometimes

Aug. 31, 2007 | 8:15 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

all i need now is his millions and ill be set


Sep. 1, 2007 | 7:15 AM PeterPUNCH says:

why using sound studio, when you have garageband?
garageband offers you some basic filters, and i like the way you can edit them so easily.

Sep. 1, 2007 | 2:44 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

garageband is really meant for composing music tracks...while i have edited dialogue together in it, it's really not the best solution for me. it just doesnt have all the sound editing options i need

Updated: Sep. 1, 2007, 2:44 PM

Sep. 2, 2007 | 4:51 AM Bendo says:

if only I had a mac :( ty for the info jeff


Sep. 3, 2007 | 3:40 PM Supi says:

Your profile pic looks familiar :\


Sep. 3, 2007 | 8:16 PM LordZeebmork says:

OctaMED SoundStudio is (I think) a tracker program. SoundStudio is an audio editor.


Sep. 3, 2007 | 9:03 PM MaestroRage says:

I have bested you! I have NO mic! I use nothing but the finest pencils to write down the voice file on the harddrive!

Sep. 4, 2007 | 10:11 AM JohnnyUtah responds:

i never drew a damn thing unless it was with a #2 pencil all the way till i was 18 I RULE


Sep. 4, 2007 | 11:22 AM Bug says:

haha i remember sending you a pm about your sound. i didnt wanna give into buying that so i got some podcasting mic instead.

when i think about it i probably could have saved like 70 bucks if i got that headset instead but at least it makes recording easy. or maybe im just a chump.

Sep. 5, 2007 | 8:49 AM JohnnyUtah responds:

you probably made the right call

i REALLY need a new one, the little foam end just fell off


Sep. 6, 2007 | 8:37 PM Delta66 says:

Look a dot


Sep. 6, 2007 | 9:41 PM hausoft says:

titty


Sep. 7, 2007 | 4:22 AM Zeofar says:

Hehe, I have a little OCD thing like that as well. Then again... I have some other OCD problems which are a bit more intrusive. Still, relatively informative about how the price tag might not signify the value.


Sep. 7, 2007 | 10:36 PM Imacow says:

Hah, I use a peice of shit my grandpa found in someone elses trash.

well it's not like I Voice Act anyways.


Sep. 8, 2007 | 6:17 AM ZekeySpaceyLizard says:

Back in my day we didnt have no fancy microphones.
When we wanted sound in our internet cartoons, we'd hire the town cryer to record for us.
We'd stand him up, shout the lines in the script as loudly as we could, and then send him on his way to visit every house watching that particular cartoon at the time.
oh thems was dahk tahms, child.

Sep. 8, 2007 | 4:40 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

i had one animation class in college, and you dont even want to know what i went through to get audio on a vhs tape. i should post about that sometime.


Sep. 8, 2007 | 2:02 PM pezzo says:

thx


Sep. 8, 2007 | 8:40 PM Rudy says:

Thanks for sharing your story. :D


Sep. 8, 2007 | 9:53 PM Sidenote138 says:

i make songs using a really shitty logitech mic and Sound recorder for Windows. i put a sock over the mic to get rid of feedback. i put up a song on Newgrounds that we used to record all of the instruments AND vocals. it came out pretty good. btw i have OCD as well.


Sep. 9, 2007 | 2:30 AM MisterDielectric says:

I came to your profile to say something like "STOP BEING SO NICE TO YOUR FANBASE" but I actually read your post.

I'm in a similar situation as you. My old shitty headphones broke on me and my mom generously went to get new ones. She came back and i was sorta pissed to see that they were microphone/headphones. I didn't say anything because I didn't want to seem like an ungrateful prick...turns out they play music LOUD as balls, which I like. And it records crisp and perfect audio. Which is awesome because I record voices in most of my flashes.

So we both won. We got what appears to be cheap shit, but it's just as effective as any other mic. Well...maybe. I haven't really compared my audio to yours.

Glad to see such an established animator using cheap things that get the job done effectively.

btw, MAKE MOAR TANKMANS THEY R FUNY.

Sep. 9, 2007 | 6:10 AM JohnnyUtah responds:

i am an extremely cheap piece of shit, guilty as charged


Sep. 10, 2007 | 4:40 PM toxxic-pro says:

i have sound studio too im guessing you have a mac like me? =D

Sep. 15, 2007 | 7:52 PM JohnnyUtah responds:

indeed


Sep. 26, 2007 | 11:15 PM DrNeroCF says:

Heh, yeah I use SoundStudio3 too, with a video camera as a mic though. I guess you win there...

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