Voiceover Translation Services
We provide voice over dubbing recorded in a state-of-the-art studio in Malaysia and a recording studio in the heart of Bangkok, Thailand. We work with local experienced voice talents and enthusiastic expatriate dubbing actors (voice-talents) with native language proficiency that come from all walks of life.
Professional dubbing need to consider the end-user environment, medium and platform and address specific requirements -there’s a big difference between voice over recorded in a Foreign Language for a documentary, or a lip-synced Satellite TV Show, or creating audio for a voice-over for an IVR (Interactive Voice Recognition System), e-learning course, text to audiobook translation, the web, YouTube or a Go-to-market e-learning course audio solution with multiple multilingual menu systems and play options.
Our voice recording services specialize in voice translation and dubbing for corporations, broadcasting, jingles, in-flight entertainment systems, instructional videos, and dubbing for the movie industry with stereo mixing. Our wide varieties of options for audio content translation include:
Audio Translation
- Mixing Audio for Film
- Lip syncronization, lip syncing
- Scene-Synced
- Voice modulation
- Video Voice Translator
- Freelance voiceover
- Off-screen voice-over, un-synced cold recording
- HDV rendering
- Video localization
- Audio & Video (AV) translation
- Time coding
- Mixing SoundFX
- Video Audio Translator
- Transcription Translator
- ADR, Audio Dialogue Replacement
- Audio engineering
- Foley work
- United Nations type of background audio overlay
- Sound recording mixing mastering Dolby E
- Mixing in Stereo; 2.0, 5.1 or 7.1 surround mixing
- Music scoring.
- Translation Audio to text
- Professional sound engineering
- Translate audio from video
- Audio translation services
- Language monitors & sound directors
Translating Transcripts
The end result will only ever be as good as the script available to record. It’s critical the script or the translation of the script is translated for voiceover and narratives that will be read out loud. The voice-translator needs to have the original source audio available to match style, context, matching a distinct type of voice, and timing.
The voice talent selection might be based on the preference of demographics and style-specific characteristics. To ensure we appoint the best overall voice-over talents from our database that meet your selection-criteria and multilingual requirements for Studio voiceover recording, our clients may listen to voice samples from our archive of demo reels which contains audio snippets recorded as a sample to evaluate his/her tone of voice, style, and accent. Our trusted Studio Managers can be consulted for a professional result; with many knowledgeable audio technicians working for us, we have an eye (and an ear) for what each recording project requires.
Lip Sync and Synced Recording
Translation text expansion or target language contraction may occur after translation into the target language which means the translated script becomes shorter or longer than the original source text. This needs to be managed as it means it takes longer or shorter time to articulate the same sentence in the target language. An experienced voice translator needs to carefully consider both shorter or timed productions such as fast-paced broadcasting recordings or dubbings at a more natural speaking speed. Voice translators creating a translation for lip syncing may need to work with a stop-clock to get the timing right.
Avoid Expensive Re-recordings!
It important the translated transcript is signed-off and approved for recording prior to booking the Studio as unnecessary re-recordings may cause delay or incur additional unnecessary expenses that could easily have been avoided.
Dubbing Process
The voice talents will modulate the voices as needed for additional characters. Additional voice talents can be added. The voiceover track will have access to view the video on a monitor during the recording which enables the voice-talents to view the speaker in the video and re-enact the mood and tone of voice of the speakers in the episode. The audio engineers are carefully listening to the recording and monitor the audio signal on a monitor. The voice soundtrack is recorded as uncompressed raw audio before any audio mixing as required. During the recording session, a Language Monitor will be present who checks the linguistic aspect of the speech during the dubbing session to ensure the voice talent’s pronunciation is commonly accepted and typical for that language locale and is clear and articulated properly. Any deviations or non-observance of the pronunciation guide is noted and the voice-talent is immediately requested to correct the mistake.
Voiceover Rate per Minute
Our standard voice over rate quoted depends on seat time, corporate use or broadcasting, synced or non-synced and number of voice talents or characters required. Please get in touch to get our best rate for your voice recording project.
What Type of Audio Format do I need?
- MP3, MPEG-1, Layer 3 is a format which compresses the audio file data to around 1/12 of the original size and is, therefore, suitable for use online due to relatively short upload/download times.
- WAV format (Waveform Audio Format) is a standard raw uncompressed audio format for Windows which has a widespread use. Compression at 128 kbps at a 44.1 kHz sampling rate is known as being of CD quality.
- FLAC and Apple lossless offer lossless audio formats which is a popular format also.
- Technical specifications can be discussed and accommodated as required e.g. video integration or video rendering. If you have no idea of file formats, we will advise on appropriate options depending on the platform the audio will be used.
Types of Voice Recording
Knowing which type of voice recording you need and what the differences are will help you request translations, monitor job status, and listing specific requirements.
Cold Voice Recording
Untimed or ‘cold recording’ refers to dubbing recorded at a natural pace of narration without time constraints or syncing. Such audio files are suitable for PowerPoint presentations, Camtasia, audio snippets for games, e-learning audio books, instructional demonstrations, voiceover commands, in-flight systems presentations , eLearning, voiced medical narrations, online platforms, or phone menus or car entertainment menu systems or any interactive multimedia with navigation audio play buttons.
Warm Recording
Timed or ‘warm’ recording is synced to adapt to changes of scene e.g. synced to a video track or animated video or cinema production. The audio narration matches the plot unfolding or onscreen text (OST). The voice talent usually views the video on a monitor, or is provided live video direction, or listen to the original soundtrack via a sound reinforcement system during the voice-over narration. Any video with changing scenes can be considered a warm recording e.g. a safety instruction video with a change of events on the screen or a ‘talking head’ video which still needs to have its audio synced with the video to make sense.
Hot Recording
Lip-sync or hot recording refers to when voice actor matches and moves the lips in sync with a soundtrack and the on-screen characters. Professional lip syncing is often part of film and music track and audio-visual recordings though also used in some corporate or broadcasting productions. The process in such settings can become very complex with use of translators counting a number of vowels and use slow-motion effects in more elaborate post-production techniques to achieve the desired polished result.
Games Recording
Gaming localization often makes use of lip-syncing sound files to give the impression of speech for the on-screen characters of the game. Oftentimes voice modulation is made to create characters by skilled voiceover artists. A talented voice over artist can usually modulate 3 to 5 voices but individual abilities may vary. Recording for MMO Games / MMOG (A massively multiplayer online game) or massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a skill that requires enthusiastic gaming fanatics with a natural talent for bringing the spirit and mood of the game to life by awesome voice acting and action! Larger productions can also have an additional Studio Director present to manage the session and give pointers to the actors in addition to the language monitor.
Studio Pre-production
The Pre-Processing: phase involves planning the Studio recording in advance; setting up the control board and sound system, software, the dubbing timeline, microphone selection, dialog and character studio planning , collating reference materials and making scripts available in advance to voice talents, appointing language monitors and sound/studio directors who are partaking in the session. The voice talents will be familiarized with the scripts in advance and clarify any specific pronunciation in the source. This takes place before booking in the voice talents to come to the Studio for the daily recording.
Audio Mixing
The audio team provides professional audio mixing, file-splitting, checks on pitch levels to avoid capped peaks, crackles, background noises, lisps the microphone picked up, pops, hizzes, noises, buzzes or edgy tones are all corrected as needed. If a so-called United Nations-style overlay recording has been made, the original soundtrack overlay is checked via the mixing console. A U.N style dubbing refers to when the original sound has been kept faint in the background as a backdrop with the new audio as an overlay on top.
Audio Linguistic Quality Checks
After the completed recording a linguistic quality evaluation is performed by a native linguist as a final audio quality assurance (QA) control measure. This is a final check that ensures the spoken audio is read at normal voice and pace, or modulated as specified, and is free of linguistic slip-ups or misreadings. The linguist listens to the audio again and if any errors are heard, this is communicated back to the voice talent who will be booked in to re-record this section in the Studio for a high-quality service from beginning to end.
What is a Pronunciation Guide?
A pronunciation guide is a document meant to provide guidance for the recording artists when they articulate and pronounce the words of the script and provides directions how to provide certain terms that may be difficult to pronounce or have alternative ways of pronunciation. Example: ‘2017’ could be read out loud as ‘twenty seventeen’ or ‘two thousand and seventeen’. Acronyms, names, numbers, dates, places, measurements, types of units and foreign words may have alternative ways to be narrated, accented and pronounced, all which may be equally correct and accepted in different locales. Therefore, such terms should be identified and listed in a pronunciation guide which should be checked and approved by the end-client. This document may also incorporate any instructions regarding the pronunciation of any names, jargon or terms or tone of voice instructions if received from the client.
The Pronunciation Guide (PG) can also be accompanied by pronunciation guide audio (i.e mp3 or wav files) or links to audio references. The pronunciation guide documents any input, feedback or preference provided by the client or recommendation by the voie translators. Websites such as ‘how do you say it’ which is a Pronunciation guide dictionary provides phonetic audio-recoded on how to pronounce different terms (in English) to help with English Pronunciation Guide creation. Most commercial languages e.g for creating a Mandarin pronunciation guide or a Thai pronunciation guide etc have equivalent online audio references.
Companies & Brands we worked with
