Working on an eLearning module, a message on hold recording or a voice over for an online video? If so, you’ll likely hear some jargon in and around the recording studio. We’ve put together this glossary of voice over terms to help you understand our industry and follow what’s happening during your project.
Voice over terms from A to Z
A
Account Executive: The person who acts as the liaison between you and an agency. A sales representative at a radio or television station may also be called an Account Executive. Sometimes agencies hire On Air, and we work with your Account Executive directly.
Ad Lib: A spontaneous addition to the script, or a change to it, made by the voice over talent. Talent may ad lib to sound more natural or to fill required space.
Airtime: The time a media outlet, such as a radio or television station, slots for a commercial. Typically, you buy 10, 15, 30 or 60 seconds per commercial.
Ambience: A script direction for background sound effects that suggest a place or feeling. For example, quiet conversation and clinking dishes create a restaurant ambience.
Analog: The old-school way of recording, which processes and records audio on tape.
Announcer: A role assigned to voice talent in a script. The announcer follows specific directions on how the recording should sound.
Articulation: Clear enunciation by the voice over artist.
Audio: All things sound, including the production, transmission and reception of sound.
B
Background and Bed: The background of a production might be music or sound effects. The bed is the music or sound effects that play behind the voice recording.
Board: The large console the audio engineer uses to record and produce audio. Faders adjust the volume and mix all the elements of your production.
Boom: A mic stand that holds the microphone overhead.
Booth: An enclosed, soundproof room where you record your voice into the microphone.
Buy: The amount of money an advertiser spends on media time for a campaign. For example, “It was a $5,000 ad buy.”
C
Cadence: How the voice actor breaks or pauses between words. It is usually marked on the script.
Character: A fictional person the voice over actor plays in the production.
Cold Read: A read where the voice over artist has had no time to rehearse or review the script before recording or auditioning.
Commercial: A pre-recorded message that advertises a product or service on the radio, television or online. Commercials are commonly called spots.
Control Room: The room where the engineer or producer works at the sound board. It is separate from the booth.
Copy: The text or script read during a recording session.
Cue: The signal, usually from the producer or engineer, for the voice actor to start performing. “Cue up” means lining the voice over up with visuals or music.
D
Dead Air: A pause in a voice over that runs too long. Radio and TV stations also experience dead air when they lose signal or have technical problems.
Decibel (dB): A unit for measuring sound level. Zero decibels is about the quietest sound a person can hear, and very loud sounds can be uncomfortable or even harm your hearing.
Demo: A recording of several voice over samples from one artist. It shows their range, sound and capabilities.
Demographics: The characteristics of a target audience or customer base, such as age, location and gender.
Dialogue: Two or more people talking together in a script.
Director: The person who gives direction to the voice actor during a session. Depending on the size of the studio, the director, engineer and producer may be the same person.
Distortion: Fuzziness in the sound quality of recorded audio.
Donut: A commercial with the same beginning and end but different content in the middle. Advertisers can share different information while keeping the same branding.
Drop Off and Drop Out: A drop off happens when a voice actor doesn’t end a word or phrase strongly enough. A drop out is a slight pause inside a recorded word or phrase.
Dry Read: A recording with no added music or sound effects. It can also describe a factual reading style with no embellishment.
Dub or Dubbing: A dub is a duplicate copy of an audio production. Dubbing is the process of transferring audio from one source to another. It also means replacing dialogue in a foreign film, such as dubbing an English voice into a German film.
E
Editing: Arranging recorded audio. Editing can include deleting, adding, speeding up, slowing down, trimming and adding effects.
Ellipsis: Three periods in a row (…) that signal a pause in the script.
Engineer: The person who operates the equipment during the recording session. This person is sometimes called the producer.
Equalization (EQ): Adjusting the frequencies in a voice, such as more bass and less treble.
F
Fade: Gradually raising or lowering the volume of a sound. A voice actor can also create a natural fade in or out by turning their head toward or away from the mic.
Feedback: A high-pitched, distorted squeal through the speakers or headphones. It usually happens when a microphone picks up sound from nearby speakers or headphones.
Filter: A screen placed in front of a microphone to reduce pops and help the voice sound clearer. It is also called a pop filter.
Fluctuation (Inflection): How a voice goes up or down during a recording.
G
Gobos: Movable partitions placed around a voice over artist to reflect or absorb sound. They can also separate two voice actors in the same booth.
H
Hard Sell: A commercial style often used by high-volume retailers, such as car dealerships and furniture stores. For example, “Rush down to Danny’s Car Dealership today while supplies last!”
Hook: When the voice actor starts a spot on a high note to grab attention, then dials it back right away.
Hot: A microphone that is turned on.
I
In the Can: Part or all of the production is complete and approved.
J
Jingle: A commercial, or part of one, that is set to music.
L
Level: A sound check. The engineer asks for a level, and the voice actor reads at the volume they will use throughout the session.
Library: Pre-recorded library music is used for music beds in commercials and messages on hold. The studio usually pays a per-piece or annual fee to use it.
Lines: The copy the voice artist reads.
M
Marking Copy: Marking a script with lines and circled words to show emphasis. Some voice actors do this to follow direction more easily.
Master: The final approved recording.
Mic: Short for microphone.
Mix: The blend of music, sound effects and voice over. It usually refers to the finished, accepted recording.
Mouth Noise: Clicks and pops the mic picks up from the voice actor. It often happens when the mouth is dry.
Music Bed: The background music that plays behind the voiced copy.
O
Off and On Mic: Speaking directly into the mic or away from it. For example, a script that calls for shouting may have the actor turn away and voice it off mic.
Over-the-Top: A direction that makes the copy sound larger than life. It asks the voice actor to overact.
P
Pace: How fast or slow the voice actor reads the script.
Paper Noise: The sound of a paper script moving near the mic. Booths have stands to reduce it. Today, many artists read from a tablet or other digital device instead.
Phonetic: Spelling that shows how a word sounds. For example, Nike is written as (nye-kee).
Pickup: A short re-record of a single line or phrase, which is then edited into the existing take.
Pitch: The musical level at which a voice actor speaks.
Playback: Listening to what was just recorded.
Pop: A burst of air from sounds like P and B that creates a popping sound in the mic. A foam cover or pop filter reduces it.
Post-Production: All the work done after the voice actor finishes recording. Music and sound effects are mixed in during this stage.
Producer: The person in charge of the recording session. Often the producer is also the engineer and director.
Promo: A spot a radio or TV station uses to build awareness of its own content, such as a contest or upcoming program.
PSA: Public Service Announcement.
R
Read: The style a voice actor uses when voicing a script. You might hear us call something a “strong read.”
Remote Session: A recording session where the voice artist records from their own studio while you or the producer listen and direct live online.
Reverb: An echo-like effect added in post-production.
Room Tone: The quiet background sound of an empty recording space. Engineers use it to smooth over edits.
Rough Mix: A near-final mix where the voice, music and sound effects are fine-tuned. It is the last step before the final mix.
Run-Through: A rehearsal read of the script before recording starts.
S
Safety: A retake of a voice over, either to fix a problem or to have a backup. You may hear, “Let’s do one more for safety.”
SFX: Short for sound effects.
Session: The time slot when a voice actor performs and records a script.
Shave: Trimming the read during recording, either by speeding up or cutting words.
Slate: A short spoken label at the start of a take, such as the project name and take number, that helps with editing.
Spec: A sample spot made to help sell a client on a commercial. For example, a radio account executive might have a spec spot produced as a sales tool for a prospective advertiser.
Spot: A commercial. In the early days, commercials were performed live between songs and programs, so performers were literally “on the spot.”
Station ID: A short clip where a station announces its call letters.
Storyboard: A script with visual concepts for a television or video production. It shows the voice talent what will appear on screen during the voice over.
Studio: Where all the recording and mixing happens.
Sync: Aligning tracks to start or end together, or matching a voice to a previous take.
T
Tag: Information at the end of a spot, such as a date, website, phone number or legal disclaimer.
Take: One recording of a section of voice over copy.
Talent: The voice over artist, entertainer or broadcast performer.
Tease: The opening part of a recording that builds interest.
Tempo: The speed at which the copy is voiced.
Tight: A script with very little wiggle room on length. The copy is often slightly too long for the time available.
Track: A piece of recorded audio, or the act of recording it.
U
Usage Rights: The terms that say where, how long and in what media your recording can be used. Confirm them before you book talent.
V
VO: Short for voice over.
W
Wrap: The word a producer says at the end of a session.
Ready to start your voice over project?
Now that you know the voice over terms, you’re ready for the studio. Browse our voice talent to hear samples, or learn more about our voiceover and narration services. We also produce message on hold and IVR recordings and corporate audio.
Have questions? We’re happy to answer them. Contact us here.
