0535 – Why A Studio Engineer Wants To Know About Your Breakfast

2022.06.19 – 0535 – Why A Studio Engineer Wants To Know About Your Breakfast

When asked for “a bit for level”, it is surprisingly difficult to think of what to say!

It sounds obvious but many people simply say “testing, testing … 1,2,3,4,5” or “Mary had a little lamb” or a producer may use the classic line “tell me what you had for breakfast”. But all of those are too short and don’t encourage you to speak in the same way as you will do when you are ‘live’. Your volume may differ, as too may your tone of voice. It also needs to be a sentence or two so the producer or engineer has time to adjust any settings on their desk or console to better reproduce your special tonal qualities.

So read from your actual script with the same presentation style, volume and vitality, position and posture as you will later on. A sound engineer may ask you to talk slightly differently (“a bit softer” or “pull away from the mic a touch”). Comply with their request and carry on talking until you are asked to stop.

The tip is: say in rehearsal what you will say in reality, say it in the same way, and position yourself in relation to the mic just as you will ‘for real’.

Whatever you do, don’t ‘test the mic’ by tapping it or blowing into it. A microphone is sensitive and doing either of these will damage it.

You may also be asked at this point to say your name and the name of the product or script “for the tape”, so that there is an audio record of whose voice follows on the recording.

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