What's the minimum equipment I need to start doing voice overs? How does it work?

Ok, this gets asked A LOT and probably because there really isn't one right answer, so I'm gonna start on the real simple basic side. At it's core, you need:

1. A microphone.
2. A recording device.
3. Period.

At this basic level, will you start making money? No, probably not. Let's forget about the sexy and exciting world of mics for time being and hone in on the recording device. The most common, of course is a computer. Yes, there are studs who carry a dedicated "non computer" digital recorder for when they are on the road or whatever,

but even they have to load that recorded file into their computer and send it somewhere (presumably a potential client). And, you are going to have to edit whatever you put into your recorder. So, whether you are a PC or Mac person, there will be some software involved. Before we get into the pros and cons of operating systems and DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations), we need to talk a little about microphones.When you first point your attention towards the VO profession you'll get a lot of conflicting information about what mics, what gear and whatever that is the best for beginners, the best for professionals and on and on. There really isn't one right answer to any of these, but there are a few generally agreed upon rules of thumb that you should be aware of and don't worry I'll explain each one in a second.

1. VO's typically use a LDC mic (LDC= Large Diaphragm Condenser) except when using a shotgun mic.
2. VO's almost universally don't use USB mics, they use microphones that use XLR cables.

For the first point, the diaphragm is the circular membrane that pics up sound and transfers it to the other parts of the mic for amplification and stuff. LDC stands for Large Diaphragm Condenser, and the magic is in the "large" part. These mics capture a broader range of frequencies with a warmth and clarity that makes your voice sound like it's wrapped in velvet. It's all about that full, rich sound that fills up the space, making every word you say not just heard, but felt. Voice over artists dig LDCs because they're like a spotlight for your voice, ensuring every emotion, nuance, and whisper stands out, making your performance not just good, but unforgettable. Something that is much harder, if not impossible to achieve with a smaller diaphragm mic.These mics are typically addressed from the side as the diaphragm is usually parallel to the mic body.

So, that's Large and Diaphragm out of the way, what about the word "Condenser"? There are many types of mics, but for our purposes there are only two that people talk about. That's Condenser and Dynamic. The choice between a condenser microphone and a dynamic microphone is like choosing between a scalpel and a Swiss Army knife. Condenser mics, with their sensitivity and wide frequency response, are the scalpel—perfect for capturing the full range of your voice with all its subtleties and nuances in a controlled studio environment. They're the go-to for that crystal-clear sound that brings scripts to life. Dynamic mics, on the other hand, are the Swiss Army knife—robust, less sensitive, and great at handling loud sounds without distortion. They're more forgiving in less-than-ideal recording environments and are a solid choice for voice over artists who need versatility and durability, especially if you're recording in a space that's not soundproofed to perfection. For further research here's a short list of popular mics from both families.

• Rode NT1 Studio Condenser
• Neumann TLM102 Condenser
• AKG C414 Condenser
• The Electro Voice RE20 Dynamic broadcast mic
• Shure SM7B Dynamic mic

Finally, what does XLR mean? It actually means eXternal Line Return but no one actually knows that, or cares. The important bit is that there is a male XLR connector on the microphone and a female XLR connector on whatever you are plugging into. Like these:

What do I use? Well, I'm glad you asked. I rocked an Aston Origin for a long time and I really can't say enough good things about it. It's a great mic all around and I think it looks cool (yeah, that's important), made a lot of money with that mic. Now our daughter is making money with it. Then I bought a very expensive tube mic. It's a "frankenmic" built by an engineer in Philadelphia. It has the dual diaphragms from a Neumann U67 and the guts of an AKG C12. It was finished and tuned by Advanced Audio and it is a lovely mic, one of a kind and it's mine, haha. Here he is:

also owned a Rode NTG5 and no matter what I did, I couldn't make it sound good. Also, lately I've been testing out the Universal Audio SC-1 ($499) with "Hemisphere mic-modeling". Don't let it's size fool you, this is a serious mic and I can't believe how good it sounds even without the modeling... and you'd be hard pressed to find anything that sounds as good for less than $900. anyway, when I do a full review I'll link to it but so far super impressive. I digress.So, right, now you've got a mic in mind. If you've done some looking around you've probably thought, hmmm the Rode NT1 studio package seems like a good deal. Well, it is, and there's some others out there from M Audio and more that really have a value packed set up. I hate the Rode NT1. There. I hate it because I hate using what everyone else uses, but that's just my thing, you do you. If you purchase a package, you'll notice that it comes with a DIGITAL AUDIO INTERFACE. Wtf is that?The 'interface' is what converts the analog signal of your XLR mic into a digital signal that can be put into your computer via a USB C (or A) or Thunderbolt cable. What makes one interface better than another? Mostly it's the number of inputs it can handle. Most of the interfaces all claim to have super high digital audio resolution (more on that in another post) Some are $139 and some are $3K, some have more output options and some less. The good thing about being a voice over artist is that we only need one channel, so that really lowers our costs. I think it's no secret that the most popular (based on price and features) is the Focusrite Scarlett line. They sound good, have easy to use controls and are cheap. The important thing is that your interface doesn't add any noise to your recording and it doesn't color the sound too much. Do you need an interface? Yes. So, stop thinking you can get around it by using a USB mic. It looks something like this.

Finally, what sorcery is going to record all of your gorgeous sounds emanating from your mouth? Your DAW, Windows or Mac, you need software that will recognize your Audio Interface and commit the sound file to memory. There are a ton of options out there and most are either in the Windows or Mac camp. Can you do it Ubuntu? Yeah, but don't be stupid. A few words about Win vs Mac in the audio world. I was a die hard Windows guy most all my life because I would argue that it's so customizable and if there's an issue I know how to get into the file and fix stuff and blah blah blah. I got my first Mac in 2005 and have never looked back. For audio and video I have no idea why people wouldn't use them. I've never had to even think twice about what audio card I have, or video card. Never had to spend anytime downloading a driver for my set up. I just plug things into it, it knows what I plugged in and it works. Done.Remember that we only record one track at a time? Well, turns out that most DAWs are made for people to produce music in their bedrooms with a lot of tracks.

So, we really don't need all that stuff. A lot of people find free software like Audacity or trial versions of others. Mac users can easily use Garageband because it comes with the OS and you can get a lot of mileage out of that until you're ready to upgrade. I use LUNA, it's free for Mac users and if you use Universal Audio plugins, it's made for that and integrates seamlessly. I used Logic Pro for years and haven't gone back because while I'm not happy with everything in LUNA, the editing flow is miles faster than it was with Logic. I'm not going to go into the world of plug-ins because this post is long enough. After you record your beautiful voice into whatever DAW you've chosen on your computer, that's it. Wasn't that easy?Wait. You kind of need to hear the finished product. For that you'll need a pair of speakers or at the very least headphones. Also, there's a pop filter for the microphone, something to mount the mic on (floor stand or desk arm), the cables and somewhere to do all this. If the very basic equipment you need to produce your first recording were a flow chart from your mouth to your ears, it would look like this: