What is a typical Voice Over Turnaround Time?

https://youtu.be/V5vJjXkVnGs

Generally speaking, for short form content any professional voice actor should have a standard sub-24 hour turnaround time. I try to do it within the day.

Recording a proper professional voice over often involves:

• Studying the script

  • This includes checking for correct flow, any unusual specific vocabulary, etc

• Recording multiple versions and takes of that script

• Selecting the best takes

• Editing the take(s)

• Applying any processing that might be needed

• Exporting and sending

• Feedback and revisions

All these steps can't be done all at once and there can also be unforeseen peculiarities of a project which necessarily cause delay.

With these factors in mind it would be a disservice to your project to make the voice actor just "read the words" and send the recording. You ideally want to give the voice actor enough time to do the job properly.

When a potential client tells me "You just need to record the words", it is often a sign of not knowing what actually goes into recording a voice over. It is also a big red flag for me because it often implies my work as a professional is not understood and not valued, therefore likely not worth pursuing.

Another thing to consider is script length. Many would assume the shorter the script the shorter the turnaround time. Ironically, the shorter the script, often the more time we spend "agonizing" over it - considering different takes, variations, etc. So 30 words can take a lot longer than you might think.

A campaign I voice for Tia Maria was one sentence: "Try the Perfect Espresso Martini with Tia Maria Cold Brew" and the recording session lasted 45 minutes.

Turnaround times will also depend on a voice actor's technical ability. Over the years I have optimised how quickly I can be setup and ready to work, as well as have a workflow that allows me to make recordings available to clients very quickly.

Things like:

• Having a project template I use for most work which means I can include audio processing at no extra cost.

• Having my equipment always on and ready to use. This reduces setup time.

• The option of two microphones (Neumann TLM103, Sennheiser MKH416) depending on project requirements.

  • The MKH416 is very good at staying clear even in more busy background music and sound effects.

  • The TLM103 has a more full sounding tone, making it more suitable for work in which the voice over is dominant in the project.

• An ultra high-end preamp in my Neumann MT48 interface.

  • Higher quality preamps can have a more finished and ready sound meaning they require less work to make sound good.

• Access to the best audio cleanup software available to transparently remove any unforeseen sound problems, reducing revisions.

  • Steinberg Spectralayers 13.

    
    

So yes, real turnaround times will depend on a number of factors.