VAM 161 | Interview with Jordan Reynolds, Part 2
Welcome to episode 161 of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with yours truly, Crispin Freeman!
As always, you can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:
http://www.voiceactingmastery.com/podcast
Welcome to the second and final part of my interview with voice actor and home studio guru, Jordan Reynolds! You may be familiar with Jordan’s voice acting work on games like World of Warcraft, Fallout 76 and the new Final Fantasy 7 Remake. He’s also been in numerous anime including Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, Hero Mask, and Lupin the Third. He’s done voice over for thousands of commercials and corporate videos and he even produces demos at his website, DemosWithChops.com. In addition to being an accomplished voice actor, Jordan is also extremely knowledgeable about home recording equipment and how to build an effective home studio!
In the previous episode, Jordan and I discussed how he broke into the world of voice acting. He began by learning all he could about recording equipment. He did extensive research and in relatively short order, he had built himself a professional quality home studio. However, he quickly realized that it would take more than the right equipment to become a working voice actor. He also needed to have professionally competitive acting skills. So he began taking classes from coaches who were working in the industry. He also set himself the goal of practicing voice over on a daily basis and recording everything he practiced. After a couple of months, it was eye-opening for him to go back and listen to his audio files from earlier practice sessions, and to realize just how much he had improved! Once his skills became professionally competitive, Jordan was able to combine his acting abilities with his technical knowledge and began to make money as a voice actor part-time from his home in Denver, Colorado. Later, as his client list and voice over work load increased, he eventually decided to move to Los Angeles to pursue voice acting in a bigger marketplace. I was excited to share Jordan’s experiences with my listeners, especially those who may not live in a major voice over city like LA, and who may also be trying to figure out how to create a professional quality booth at home. If you haven’t already, I highly suggest you listen to the first part of our interview, because Jordan shared some truly useful information on these topics!
As we wrap up our discussion together, I ask Jordan what inspired him to become a voice actor in the first place. Much of what drove him was the desire to be creative, especially when he saw other people expressing themselves through music or acting. Jordan and I also share what animated shows influenced our childhoods and how they shaped our pursuit of voice acting! Jordan then talks about the value of improv and how he applies his improv training to all of his voice over work. We wrap up our discussion with Jordan’s advice to the aspiring voice actor and how important it is to step outside of your comfort zone on a regular basis to make sure you keep growing and expanding your abilities! It’s a very honest and personal conversation and I’m eager to share it with all of you. Let’s dive in!
If you are interested in hiring Jordan to help you with your own home recording setup, you can visit him at JordanAudio.ninja and make an appointment online!
Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #161 Here (MP3)
Hey Crispin! I am trying to get equipment to practice voice acting, and when looking for a Blue Yeti Microphone (as recommended by your toolbox section), I was recommended the Audio-Technica at2020 Mic, which has both a traditional cable and USB cable variant. I heard that it captures subtle sound and especially deeper voices better. Do you know anything about this microphone? If so, should I get it or would sticking to the Blue Yeti be better?
-Peter
I am not a fan of the USB versions of the AT2020 because they don’t have any gain control. Without proper gain control, you risk clipping your audio in the Mic’s pre-amp and creating a distorted sound wave. It’s vital for any USB microphone to have gain control for the mic. The USB microphones I recommend all have gain control. If you use an XLR AT 2020 with a USB audio interface, the interface will have the gain control.
Hello again, thank you very much for the information. I’m sorry if I was a bit too vague. For a bit of context, I don’t think I’ll be ready to do into competitive voice acting for another year or two, and I wanted to get something that sounds good, while still being affordable. Would you think going with an AKG at2020 and a USB audio interface would be good, or should I get the Blue yeti? Again, terribly sorry if I caused any confusion or trouble.
-Peter
If you want to do voice acting at any level, hobbyist or professional, you will need to have a microphone with gain stage control. The AT2020 USB variants don’t have gain stage control so they are disqualified, just as you wouldn’t buy a car without headlights to use as a daily driver, no matter how well it performed.
In my opinion, sound quality differences between the Yeti and the AT2020 are minimal. Both are in the $100 price range. Industry standard professional XLR microphones start at $350 and up. The only USB microphone that I think stands out from the crowd is the Shure MV51 that I recommend in the toolbox section of this website because it’s a true large diaphragm condenser mic. It’s $200.
Thank you very much for your time! Sorry if I troubled you at all. I hope you have a fantastic time despite everything going on.
Not a problem. Hope that helped.
Hi Crispin! I just listened to this, it was actually the first podcast of yours that I listened to- I absolutely loved it; it was incredibly inspiring. I’m actually currently living in Denver, and voice acting is something I’ve always dreamed of pursuing, just never knew where the heck to begin. Listening to this interview not only gave me a place to start, but the feeling that I can. I know I need to turn one of my closets into a recording booth, which I’ve started looking into that- I know there are some diy options for me.
I was really hoping, that you could help answer just a few questions for me. 1. Should I focus on preparing an acoustically solid space to record first and foremost? 2. I want to start practicing every day, but how should I pick what free material to practice? Should I choose something I just like, or a genre or type of work that I’d like to actually get work for in the future? My love for anime is what really inspired me to take my dream of voice acting seriously, should I focus on that, since that’s my passion- or does it not really matter? I’m sorry if any of these questions seem dumb, I’m just trying to go about this in the most effective way. I know my journey won’t be any easy one, considering I don’t have any connections or know anyone in the industry- and at the same time, I have such a love and passion for anime and voice acting, as well as this feeling that it might be something I could become great at, that I just have to try. And I have your podcast to thank for the actual drive to start this journey, so thank you, even if you don’t respond to my book of a comment. 🙂