How to Make Your Voice-Over's Sound Professional in Adobe Audition

[@amy-007]

1. Noise reduction 2. Normalize to about 93.6 3. Dynamic processing 4. Parametric Equalizer 5. Hard Limiter

[@crawlinginfilm9683]

I (not an expert) de-noise first, because in grainy video editing at least, de-noising visibly works best on the original waveform. I think this is because level changes (as in normalisation) can cause additional re-quantisation noise (that in video editing at least) can confuse the de-noising, reducing its quality. I assume this general principle carries over to audio. Anyone expert enough to confirm/deny this?

[@VOTECHGURU]

Crawling in Film Correct.

[@CottageOffMain]

Amy thanks for the summary!

[@mahartman]

@@crawlinginfilm9683 Sometimes. If your audio is set to improper levels, noise reduction could perform inadequately. I would absolutely suggest increasing gain to proper levels, use a gentle subtractive EQ, and then noise reduction. I need to make another video...

[@BeyondArtistry]

@@mahartman yes pls!

[@Acerlux]

This was one of the most simple, straightforward, practical and entertaining Adobe Audition videos. Many thanks!

[@mahartman]

Thank you! And you are welcome!

[@MDMZ]

Your video helped me a lot with my VO quality, thank you so much! hope to see you make more videos in the future.

[@mahartman]

That means a lot. Thanks for the kind comment!

[@andergraph1]

Many years later and still useful. Thank you for putting this out.

[@Krehnadian]

Man you deserve more subs. You're literally the most helpful person when it comes to making a nice voice-over tutorial -- you're explaining everything nice and concise, and you're engaging while doing so! Fuck yeah

[@mahartman]

Dang dawg. Thanks! Means a lot!

[@Krehnadian]

:)

[@DolisterCovers]

"I'm going to teach you audio!" INTRO COMES IN LOUD ASF lol

[@mahartman]

Eric Dolister ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@mahartman]

And if it’s too loud, it’s you not me lol.

[@ryanbrown1181]

I second this, intro is way to loud

[@MasterZoGaming]

@@ryanbrown1181 it's not loud to me

[@arkbody1878]

i LIKE it like that

[@comunahistoria2431]

I watched other tutorials and I wasn't satisfied..but after following your instructions my audio sounds perfect, thanks!

[@azraelfresnedo8247]

Thank you so much for this video. I just upgraded to Au from using Audacity and the people who recommended me to make the switch have been really silent when it comes to telling me WHY to do certain things. "Just do it!" This was so much more clear!

[@mahartman]

For sure. Audition is a great playground to practice on; to learn the fundamentals of great audio, and to try things out. Don’t be afraid to push things to hard, knowing eventually your ear will be better trained for subtleties!

[@micahbjorgen8902]

You are the first video I have watched that actually explained what you were doing and why. Thanks for the help!

[@mahartman]

No problem!

[@WrestlinGifs]

Still the best video!

[@mahartman]

Hahaha yessir!

[@kunfajarudinwibowo]

This is sound we need when we watch video in smartphone , loud and clear. 👍👍

[@cesarmella8062]

dude, I´m the worst in terms of sound and understanding how to work with frequencies, but with this tutorial...impossible to fail, thanks---

[@Aussified]

I used these steps on my last video and I'm back to use these again on my next video. Thank you!

[@Grifter]

You were doing so well tell you blew my eardrums out and woke up my cat with that outro holy fuck.

[@mahartman]

sorry about your cat

[@harunguven8581]

Hi I watched six of "how to make your voice better with Adobe audition" videos. I tried all of them by taking notes, to find which is suitable for me and I chose yours, it's not perfect but most professional though, thanks.

[@Gio.Carbajal]

I really appreciate that somebody takes their time for miaking this kind of vids, where takes their knowledge and shre it with people :') Thanks Cheeseboi :) I've learned alittle bit more for today. This is awesome since I'm working on a KZbin channel too, and this tutorial will be helpful for me and for improving the quality of contents. Again, thank you :)

[@mahartman]

Thank you! I hope you freaking make the best content you can!

[@VoiceDrew]

I'm a pro VO. I pretty much do everything you do. BUT, I don't use noise removal. That's because I record in a treated, sound protected environment with a noise level of -58dB. I found that noise removal algorithms can add distortion to the file. But otherwise, good tutorial.

[@mahartman]

Agreed. Recording a KZbin video in a bedroom with my computer 5 feet away from my head is not the best environment for quiet recording.

[@robweaver1626]

Thank you bro !! Well instructed !! Stay Rockin !!

[@balbasindahaws]

I think it would be better if you eq and deess 1st before compressing

[@mahartman]

Sometimes!

[@DaRandomPerson]

Best video for what I needed, it has actually provided me with the best sound quality output and although I need practise to perfect it and improve it, this has massively helped me! Thank you so much!

[@mahartman]

Sick! Thanks for the comment.

[@GaminDude]

Yes! I've been searching for something like this for hours. Like you said, everyone out there just tells you what to do :D -- I'm just starting with gaming voice-overs and discovering how crazy the process is. Thank you!

[@mahartman]

That’s where I started, and now I do this full time! Keep pushing!

[@libardomm.trasimaco]

Great tutorial. Thanks!

[@BastienDelmare]

Ahah you made my day at 8:35, thanks for the crystal clear explanations, always a pleasure to see sharp people like you.

[@mahartman]

Lol I do what I can

[@justinecustorio2393]

This is heck brilliant, totally worth my time. I sure will watch all your video there is. You the best, sir!

[@LucyGalliford]

Awesome video bro, super helpful!

[@CatInTheBoxStudios]

Officially the first audio tutorial that I feel like I learned stuff.

[@SrikantLive]

I know you like Bread and Eggs :) Nice video dude!

[@Simon_Cross]

This has been a HUGE help for me. I'm trying to make a career doing voice overs and this tutorial just made all the difference. Thank you!

[@nowisthetime7904]

Thank you! I ill probably rewatch this 10 times to fully digest all of it.

[@mahartman]

Make it 11!

[@rainerlewa3253]

I'm a bloody novice at auditions. For my students I want to produce podcasts about legal content in times of corona. You have helped me a lot with your video. Thanks a lot for that! Together with my new micro from amazon I will hopefully make perfect podcasts next week. Thanks again and best wishes from Germany!

[@mahartman]

Right on!

[@SLReviewers]

This is Really helpfull ! Thank you very much 😀

[@gbrandonwood]

"FAM GET OFF MY CASE" is the new Bobby Hill "That's my purse, I don't know you"

[@mahartman]

I'm down

[@gailvaldez08]

BRO! I DID THIS EDIT TO MY SINGING VOCALS I JUST ADDED REVERB! YOUR EXPLANATION AND TUTORIAL IS LIT!!!! 💕💕💕

[@CryptidsRoost]

I am starting up my own YT channel, which will focus on creepypasta stories, as well as cryptid & paranormal encounters. My type of channel is more audio rather than standard video, so your tutorial will come in real handy. Have made some basic notes for future reference. I have got me a copy of audition, and I hadn't even realized that that one track you had to begin with was in mono HAHA. At least I will have a better grip on what to do now. Many thanks dude. Have just subbed too

[@jurajhajducik3620]

The first part where you show the noice reduction and say that it is actually bit hard to hear the difference, you forgot one major factor.. your mic you are using for talking throughout the video has no damping on it nor noise gate applied to it, so as you playback the recording on screen your mic is still producing the noise itself.. therfore ..as you said.. we cant hear the difference ;) Same goes for any other audio processing you show in the video - your mic is producing noise when you dont talk :) Easy fix - set a noise gate on your input channel of your mic; set a side-chain nosie gate (video sound being the trigger - when any audio from your screen plays, your mic is gated); if you use windows - there is a noise reduction (not very good one though) in the sound prefferences. Great video!! Thanks :)

[@martymcnamara1378]

Thanks man, aren't you just a breath of fresh-air?!

[@MensGroomingAdvice]

I decided I wanted to increase the quality of my little KZbin channel, so bought myself a nice mic and the sound amp box thingy (I have no fucking clue about these things clearly!) plugged it all in and did my first recording. So proud! But it sounds like I have my head in a metal bucket. Downloaded Audion and was like "Erm, yeah. Don't understand a thing". This video showed me EXACTLY what I needed - nothing more, nothing less - and I thank you for it!

[@MashedLinux]

Just switched over to Audition from Audacity and your the first KZbinr to help me get good audio with it, thanks dude

[@avia4281]

Excellent, can you do a tutorial on how to remove little echo in bigger rooms with out using sound blankets? Thank you!

[@iShockGamers]

For some reason I can never remember this process so ive been back to reference this video like..................................... at least a dozen times. Thanks again x12

[@mahartman]

Of course!

[@iShockGamers]

@@mahartman i still visit 🤣

[@Gei4Mei]

This guy makes a really good point about other tutorials lol. I'm looking to update my workflow, and this was a good refresher on the basics @u@

[@MrCamsaki]

I always use this video as a guide to fix my audio just because this guy has such amazing charisma ^^

[@recfilm1883]

You have an amazing skill of sharing knowledge and getting your listener's interest. Bravo

[@mahartman]

I appreciate that!

[@ateam388]

Awesome! You remind me of the actor who plays the hitchhiker in There’s something about Mary.

[@mahartman]

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@KerryCharlotteEly]

Thank you Cheeseboi21!!! Most informative and easy to follow :)

[@chandragaur8033]

Do you know whenever I record my voice-over, I always come to this tutorial. :) Very nice video. Thanks.

[@mahartman]

Glad I could help! Save it as a preset and you won't have to next time. I appreciate the extra view :)

[@BokashiBran]

You're a superstar! Thanks for the awesome, quick help to a complete beginner on Audition.

[@gstcy7925]

Awesome video tutorial !

[@darlawkopx]

This is so straight forward and good . Thanks bro for the good explanation .

[@LaelineRose]

You are so entertaining to watch, thanks for sharing your tips and advice!

[@mahartman]

Thank you! :)

[@DoctorShepherdTV]

I like bread in the morning and I like to eat eggs for breakfast. Heeeey! Nice Tutorial :)

[@mahartman]

Thanks, man! Gotta love bread in the morning...

[@SPECTROID]

Dude, your tutorial is really cool, mate, heeey!)))

[@EMAZINGERIK]

That's gotta be a t-shirt xD

[@totodepatas]

Did I heard a bit of a scottish accent in there?

[@Darryl09]

That heeey made me laugh so loud 😂

[@CanningPetto]

From new to pro in 9 minutes, thanks my guy!

[@AmmahD]

I thought it was kinda weird how you dissed other tutorials for doing the exact thing that you did. I have no idea why I’m using the effects that you told me to use. But hey, it works!

[@moviemaker2011z]

Guy: I made this video out of spite! Me: i can appreciate such a familiar passion.

[@CookeAaronJ]

You are confusing Limiting with Normalizing. Limiting reduces any peak above your set limit by the amount of gain needed to set the peak at the limit. Normalization changes all waves such that the highest peak meets your chosen limit. The reason your audio is getting louder in the Limiter is you've chosen to increase the output gain by 6dB. Both do similar tasks, but with your setup you are raising the entire waveform by 6db except any peaks above the limit, which are cut. This can make an uneven sounding audio. Normalizing will change the waveform equally by a given percentage. Many voice and post-production professionals use both a hard limiter and a normalizer, but if you're only using one, consider normalizing instead.

[@victorfilm_]

Good info. I'm always confusing the two terms myself lol

[@TonyonTech]

I got a lavalier microphone connected to a Zoom H4N Pro. Would you recommend hard limiting in the Zoom device while recording or in post-production in Adobe Audition?

[@sagarganesh2476]

Nah I'm sticking to your channel for more tutorials, damn good style of narration. Waiting for more ...

[@mahartman]

Coming soon haha.

[@MichelleSouthern]

I am also using this in a production training class next week. Love your delivery and simple technique that makes such a massive difference. Thank you for all of your videos. Going to try OBS next. :)

[@mahartman]

Michelle Southern Plumlee you’re welcome! I’m hoping to do another tutorial on recording voice. Thank you again!

[@jahiasad]

Great tutorial! I'm trying to get into the voice over arena without spending wads of cash for the home studio. I'd like to learn more about Adobe Audition. I have that app but I'm not familiar with it at all. Again, thank you so much. You have a new subscriber ✌

[@mahartman]

Thanks for the comment! The home studio is an investment for sure, but you can totally get by with a good microphone, small interface, and some research, learning, and time investment. You don't have to have a $4k mic, $3k preamp, and boatloads of hardware to make something work or grow in knowledge. The cost is simply an avenue to taste, allowing you to have the control you want, when you want it. Hustle hard!

[@themetalhead9952]

Really cool stuff man! I’m in my second year of Game Development and this past semester my group has been working tirelessly on our second year capstone game, I did all of the cinematics and audio for the game, some of this stuff would’ve been useful lol I’m quite proficient in most of adobes software including audition but this would’ve helped a lot lmao good job

[@themetalhead9952]

The changes were small but effective and that is what will really make the difference

[@mahartman]

Awesome man! Thanks for the words. Glad I was able to help!

[@necolejamespedrigal1590]

Thank you for the Tips sir💕💕 it has big help to me Soon to be a Broadcaster✨✨

[@NorbertGGomes]

Doink! One of the very best tutorials. At last Victory!

[@NationalParkDiaries]

That was really helpful, thanks for explaining things!

[@6amfilms-videostoriesforsm619]

Just found out about you.You are doing amazing job,such an inspiration and help for other channels :)

[@v1rusking]

You should normalize only at the very end, not in the beginning. The reason for that is if you have random peaks the normalizing will turn everything up until the tip of the peak touches the ceiling of audio level meaning your whole audio gets less loud. You have to cut the peaks first and then normalize, I've done the same mistakes in my current videos. Use limiter to get the peak waveforms pretty close to the rest of the audio, then you can normalize the whole audio and get more sound out when normalizing to the standard -3db. Don't put too much limit or it will sound terrible, 6DB is usally enough. I hope this will help you too, these are the tips I've got from professionals in the voice over industry. I've applied them to my further videos and they sound way better.

[@mahartman]

CasualRussian the reason I normalize at the beginning is so that I have an accurate compression floor when I apply compression. That way I can level out the entirety of the audio and then apply equalization, de-essing, and ultimately limiting to the whole audio. There are a lot of right ways to do something! I really appreciate your comment!

[@CS-uc2oh]

Yep, that's why he has all that extra hiss at the end. He's just normalizing left and right like a numpty.

[@TechoBD]

I have no word to thank you !! Really man you did a very helpful video for us. ! THANK YOU !

[@mahartman]

You're welcome!

[@RavshanAbdusalyamov]

Thanks man! Important info in quick way without bullshit! Respect!

[@mahartman]

Haha thanks! RESPECT!

[@Laegolas]

I've just discovered your video (and therefore, your channel). Just for this video already: I LOVE YOU, GUY! :) I've had some sound mixing training via a Motion Designer training, but you've shown here two elements that they forgot to mention, and with which FINALLY I can get some cool sounds from my recordings :) THANK YOOOOU !!! ^___^ (and you've just gained one more subscriber :p ). P.S.: For the "Equalization" part, I chose to not boost (or barely) the high freqencies. But I guess it depends upon the recording material you have and the sound environnement condition you're in when recording ;-)

[@mahartman]

Thank you Roselyn! I am glad that I was able to help you! :)

[@honey4xi]

Light & sound separations: White light can be separated into different color lights by a prism (science). Can a song be separated (mp3, AIFF, Wave) into each different instrument track and vocal track by the computer software (art)?

[@shadow_dancer25]

Thanks a lot for that!! I’m literally doing my very first video, and releasing soon, now it won’t be 100% amateur, with your help it’s just 90% :V They don’t explain well, because they want you to buy their products ahaha

[@mahartman]

Happy to help!

[@dacrianzo]

learning this right now!!! and it went well thank you very much!!!!

[@Q10-p2e]

Me too heeEYYYY!!

[@mahartman]

Great!

[@melih2810]

Thanks! I keep coming back to this video!

[@rayjackson164]

Thank You Sir!!! Helped A LOT!!! :)

[@MishkaSibert]

Dude, You're a legend!! THANK YOU!!

[@epeterson711]

I understand that this isnt exactly what this video is about, but I was hoping you could answer a question for me, or possibly make a video doing this in Adobe audition. Could you record a phrase as you did in this video, and lay in into a music track so each word lands on a note/beat, and turn the volume of the vocals you recorded way down so it sounds like the word is inside the beat, and the actual music notes are saying something, but it's not noticable to someone who doesn't listen extremely closely. I know this is a very specific request, but I think music producers are doing this, and I'd like to see it done. Either way, I enjoyed this video! Thanks!

[@BehindtheCurtain]

i found this video while searching for voice-over processing. thank you cheeseboi21

[@CS-uc2oh]

This whole process make hiss become more noticeable by the end. Mine was doing ok until the EQ and I noticed yours also has more hiss by the end.

[@mahartman]

Really depends on the quality of your preamp/ converter, microphone, and interference. If those are solid, hiss should be tame. If not, well you may have issues!

[@dinugranaci5812]

how can I create a loop sound for example for a video presentation? by the way you have a new subscriber ;)

[@mahartman]

What do you mean? Can you give me a bit more details! Thanks man. Really glad I could help you out!

[@dinugranaci5812]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/eqDVZYusn6ZrjdE you see the background music? How can we create that?

[@mahartman]

You would need to go into a DAW (Digital Audio Workspace) to actually create and produce tracks, instrumentation, and MIDI composition. Auditon really only works well for recording voice and some single tracks for instruments. If you found a song, you can easily take that file into Audition, chop out the part you want and then copy and paste until you reach your end result. Hope this helps.

[@chubbybunny6975]

Thank you dude. I wanna try getting into voice-acting, and I know editing the audio is gonna be the most challenging part of it for me!

[@mahartman]

Definitely adds a layer of difficulty. You can do it.

[@CryptidHunter_official]

Great tutorial, I've been looking for something to help me with my videos. Thank you!!

[@CS-uc2oh]

If you skip the first EQ and the normalize right after and just do the hard limiter, your audio will be golden and you won't get the added hiss.

[@ArcYT]

I like bread in the morning and I like to eat eggs for breakfast, heeEYYYY I'm gonna use this for a video I'm making right now, thanks for the tips I've never used Audition before but I want good quality audio

[@mahartman]

Go for it! Glad you got something out of it.

[@ArcYT]

@@mahartman It's been working great for me ever since I did it, thanks a lot man. You changed the game

[@sutterfield72]

Great video Cheeseboi! I am new to Audition and have been using Audacity for a while, so this is helpful. I have yet to finish scouring the net, but looking for a way to add an image or slide to my podcast so that it can be converted to video. My internal social media site doesn't allow for streaming audio only video so I need a conversion and someone told me that could be done in Audition CC. Any help is appreciated.

[@mahartman]

Logan Sutterfield Adobe Audition, to my knowledge, is solely a sound editing software. There is no way to add images or slides in Audition (aside from possibly meta-tagging, but that will not help you in this case). The easiest way is to throw the exported sound clip from Audition and your video clip into a video editing software and export that as an mp4 or mov file. There are tons of software available to do this, but there is always a learning curve to these, as you know. Software that works for this is Adobe Premiere Pro, Davinci Resolve, iMovie, Final Cut Pro...etc. I wish I could help you further, seeing as this is what I do for a living. Hope this helps! If not message me and I’ll see what I can do!

[@theeditor9352]

When you said "might blew your head off", I hurriedly tried to removed my earphones but too late, you played it already. Didn't blow my head.

[@shokarempudi4909]

very talented teacher - cheers

[@The_Great_Hejaz]

how I didn't come across your video all these years , thanks is not enough bro

[@Lumiyori]

He’s funny. I like the way he explains everything xD

[@tomrelth]

Nicely done. Very instructive, very clear! Thanks!

[@bigoprods]

Quick tutorial and great explanations!

[@jonfreeze]

You sound like the comedian Harlen Williams. Thanks for the tutorial!

[@mahartman]

You are welcome!

[@yemohutm6330]

man i swear i thought you had like 100k but you only have 102:( srry your awsome

[@mahartman]

You're awesome-er دذبوم Dzboom

[@Bromz519]

You know what , I've been recording for years , like COOL EDIT days if any of y'all know what that is ,and learnt alot about the damn purpose of these tools , like you said , was told to do this and that but not what the F this and that did lol thanks for that 😂 I'm definitely going to start using my hard limiter and now know why and how to use it 💯 good video

[@exogendesign4582]

damn this is a pretty decent easy tutorial to follow with an output. Thanks man for this.

[@mahartman]

Got you man. I am hoping to make a few more videos/ tutorials soon! Thanks for the support!

[@ericsesame6321]

How do you add bass to your voice or decrease the treble? Your voice sounds full if that makes sense; very professional. If I can do that, you will save my life. 😁

[@juancarniz]

Very helpful even almost a year later! Thanks!

[@mahartman]

Of course!

[@CJ-uh8bk]

Very good video bro, thanks for the help

[@mosestulip5357]

Bro can u make a video on that how can we change our voice as a professional singer ,😁😁 thank u...

[@chrisordinola6507]

thank you so much man earned my subscription! very well explained and I like eggs in the morning too

[@umonox]

actually, boosting the High frequencies for Voice Overs is a very bad idea. Because you exaggerate the Hiss to a point where it hurts. And the hiss in your example is extremely noticeable. Depending on your Microphone, lowering the Highs around certain frequencies with a custom Q factor is absolutely mandatory; unless you use a good DeEsser. the rest of your tipps are Ok though and pretty simple, yet effective. however: for the noise reduction i would recommend tools that analyse Noisefloors in advance (50 ms up to 2 seconds if necessary). because a simple noise sample doesnt capture the natural noise fluctuation happening across multiple minutes of audio. so you will end up with noise that changes its character over time and your basic noise reduction cannot remove all of it in the end. i recommend izotopes RX Suite which handles these tasks (almost) to perfection. but one thing is most important: you need a good microphone! :-) take me for example: i process my voiceovers quite heavily to counter the crappy quality of my cheap microphone. today i ask myself if the money for Izotopes RX Suite should have gone into a new microphone instead :-) but anyway: i still recommend them. oh and before i forget it: a DAW and an Audio Editor are NOT the same ;-)

[@mahartman]

My boy! A lot of this is so very true, and most of it makes a lot of sense to me. Some however I think can be taken as a sort of opinion or stance on the matter. I really appreciate you taking the time to write these suggestions to me and to the rest who read this! Thank you!

[@corybaker24]

What step causes that hiss Ess sound? I did try is recommendation and it sounds good except for the Es and C's are way to harsh.

[@stephenlowz1x2c3]

Cory Baker its the parametric eq. adjust your highs in the loudness maximizer to your mic and preference

[@2kaykim]

Hey bro, thank you for this video. Im such a noob when it comes to this stuff but i was able to set everything up with Adobe Audition. Thanks again, u a life saver. *Side note: yes ur video was most informative and actionable and easy to understand.

[@mahartman]

Of course! Thank you!

[@pinoyesoteric]

Man you deserve more likes and views! Kudos bro

[@mahartman]

livinglifeph Jay Penn thank you!