(06-01-2012, 04:59 PM)Bridge Wrote:

(06-01-2012, 04:32 PM)Juke Wrote: None taken, although I'm not sure what you mean. It must be something native speakers pick up on easily.

And I admit I erred too much for the irritated side.

About the equipment I don't really see it as a problem. I mean sure it's not made specifically for voice acting but at least there's no static in the background.

1. Well it's just that your pronunciation is really severe most of the time. In the words "may" and "nerves" especially you put a lot of awkward stress on the -ay and -er sounds, when they should be very soft and flow naturally. It's like when somebody who isn't British mocks posh British accents; usually the same kind of awkward flow and heavy emphases that aren't present when somebody speaks like that naturally. Basically what I mean is it's the kind of voice someone may choose when satirizing, in the right context it can be hilarious. But in a story with a serious tone like this it just isn't appropriate. I know it's not intentional but it is very noticeable.

3. There actually is static. It's not that bad, but it sticks out to the perceptive listener. On second thought maybe the equipment actually isn't the problem, but I think you should adjust the equalizer settings because right now it sounds rather flat.

(06-01-2012, 05:48 PM)Juke Wrote:

(06-01-2012, 04:59 PM)Bridge Wrote:

(06-01-2012, 04:32 PM)Juke Wrote: None taken, although I'm not sure what you mean. It must be something native speakers pick up on easily.

And I admit I erred too much for the irritated side.

About the equipment I don't really see it as a problem. I mean sure it's not made specifically for voice acting but at least there's no static in the background.

1. Well it's just that your pronunciation is really severe most of the time. In the words "may" and "nerves" especially you put a lot of awkward stress on the -ay and -er sounds, when they should be very soft and flow naturally. It's like when somebody who isn't British mocks posh British accents; usually the same kind of awkward flow and heavy emphases that aren't present when somebody speaks like that naturally. Basically what I mean is it's the kind of voice someone may choose when satirizing, in the right context it can be hilarious. But in a story with a serious tone like this it just isn't appropriate. I know it's not intentional but it is very noticeable.

3. There actually is static. It's not that bad, but it sticks out to the perceptive listener. On second thought maybe the equipment actually isn't the problem, but I think you should adjust the equalizer settings because right now it sounds rather flat.

That's really interesting. Thanks for telling me! As one who studies English I'll be sure to keep all this in mind.

I did some testing and you're right there is static that I hadn't noticed. Not sure how to go about adjusting things but at least Audacity offers a simple enough solution to get rid of it. Again thanks for the feedback.

(06-01-2012, 05:48 PM)Juke Wrote:

(06-01-2012, 04:59 PM)Bridge Wrote:

(06-01-2012, 04:32 PM)Juke Wrote: None taken, although I'm not sure what you mean. It must be something native speakers pick up on easily.

And I admit I erred too much for the irritated side.

About the equipment I don't really see it as a problem. I mean sure it's not made specifically for voice acting but at least there's no static in the background.

1. Well it's just that your pronunciation is really severe most of the time. In the words "may" and "nerves" especially you put a lot of awkward stress on the -ay and -er sounds, when they should be very soft and flow naturally. It's like when somebody who isn't British mocks posh British accents; usually the same kind of awkward flow and heavy emphases that aren't present when somebody speaks like that naturally. Basically what I mean is it's the kind of voice someone may choose when satirizing, in the right context it can be hilarious. But in a story with a serious tone like this it just isn't appropriate. I know it's not intentional but it is very noticeable.

3. There actually is static. It's not that bad, but it sticks out to the perceptive listener. On second thought maybe the equipment actually isn't the problem, but I think you should adjust the equalizer settings because right now it sounds rather flat.

That's really interesting. Thanks for telling me! As one who studies English I'll be sure to keep all this in mind.

I did some testing and you're right there is static that I hadn't noticed. Not sure how to go about adjusting things but at least Audacity offers a simple enough solution to get rid of it. Again thanks for the feedback.

(06-01-2012, 06:37 PM)Bridge Wrote: Take anything I say with a grain of salt as I'm not a linguist and I don't speak English natively (though English is technically my first language; I lived in the US as a child and so I learned English and Icelandic simultaneously, and have been speaking it on the internet since like 2004 and take a great interest in it [really is one of the most beautiful languages out there]). This is all my opinion on top of that so somebody else may find your performance simply breathtaking. I think my advice is good though. Where are you from by the way?

(06-01-2012, 07:57 PM)Juke Wrote:

(06-01-2012, 06:37 PM)Bridge Wrote: Take anything I say with a grain of salt as I'm not a linguist and I don't speak English natively (though English is technically my first language; I lived in the US as a child and so I learned English and Icelandic simultaneously, and have been speaking it on the internet since like 2004 and take a great interest in it [really is one of the most beautiful languages out there]). This is all my opinion on top of that so somebody else may find your performance simply breathtaking. I think my advice is good though. Where are you from by the way?

Oh I doubt if anyone thought it breathtaking at any point.

However, I'm not one to lose my sleep over a bit of criticism. It's good and I've noticed a lot of people I know who are good at English tend to over pronounce every word and try to sound perfect all the time rather than just letting the language flow naturally. I try to keep things relaxed but when you're recording lines you also have to make the words distinguishable. Therein lies the problem.

I'm Finnish and I've never lived abroad.