Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

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Beethro
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Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#1 Post by Beethro » Fri Apr 18, 2003 3:06 am

I just got v2.0 and the speech pack, and although I've only seen the intro so far, I must commend the actors. But, while the voices of (possible spoiler)<br><br>Gervain and Hagatha sounded fluid, Graham's voice sounds rather lo-fi. Does anyone else notice this? <p></p><i></i>

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Vildern
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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#2 Post by Vildern » Fri Apr 18, 2003 3:38 am

I was the great, how Erpy calls those people, 'naysayer' (?) to this voice-pack, and even one like I thought that Graham's voice was of the better heard ones <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START ;) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... s/wink.gif ALT=";)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <Does my last sentence make sense or need I to re-write it?><br> <p><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://navynuke.netfirms.com/ezboard/vildern.jpg" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--><br><br><br><br></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#3 Post by MusicallyInspired » Fri Apr 18, 2003 4:39 am

That's mostly due to the fact that the voicepack was recorded from all around the world and Josh didn't have the great equipment or at least the greatest sound/echo-proof room that the others did while recording....or somethn... <p><!--EZCODE HR START--><hr /><!--EZCODE HR END--><br>"Requires MCGA, CGA, VGA, PGA, or TA-RA-RA-BOOMGA!!" <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--><em>-Gary Owens, SQ4</em><!--EZCODE ITALIC END--><br></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#4 Post by Beethro » Fri Apr 18, 2003 6:15 am

I thought John sounded better in KQ1VGA. Maybe he's using worse equipment than before, but that's just a theory. <p></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#5 Post by anathoth8 » Fri Apr 18, 2003 7:09 am

I thought that Josh did sound a bit hollow. Maybe his was recorded at a lower volume than most of the others. Maybe a bit of low end enhancement would have helped, but it's too late now. All things considered, I thought the voice pack was very well done, and greatly enhances the gameplay. <p><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://image1ex.villagephotos.com/1679471.jpg" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--><br>"May the way of the hero<br>lead to the Triforce."</p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#6 Post by Anonymous Game Creator 2 » Fri Apr 18, 2003 9:24 am

It seems like Josh must have recorded his lines in a small room with a lot of hard surfaces. <br><br>It probably would have been possibly to remove the slight echo from his lines by playing around with Cool Edit, but due to the amount of additional time this would have taken, we decided that it wasn't worth doing. <p></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#7 Post by Vildern » Fri Apr 18, 2003 2:54 pm

I've a question about the instructions. Were instructions given to the people who recorded their voice (like: Shout this word, say this line softly, emphasize this part), or they were just asked to record their lines? <p><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://navynuke.netfirms.com/ezboard/vildern.jpg" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--><br><br><br><br></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#8 Post by Anonymous Game Creator 2 » Fri Apr 18, 2003 3:57 pm

We gave them all the same set of instructions for recording their lines and we wanted to try and get them all sounding as similar to each other as possible. We also placed some text notes next to certain lines and words that required specific emphasis. This helped minimize the amount of retakes that would be required, since this way, the actors pretty much knew what they were doing beforehand.<br><br>For example, Josh had well over 300 lines to record for Graham. He recorded each of these lines three times - with slightly different emphasis placed on different words in each take. This allowed us to choose which one we thought best suited the scene and go with it. For the most part, one of the three takes always fit perfectly and, I think, only about four or five lines needed to be re-recorded from scratch. So giving instructions definatley helped on both ends, I'm sure.<br><br>As for the audio quality, another thing to remember here is that the speech in KQ1VGA's speech pack was in WAV file format, thus the huge filesize compares to the relatively small number of spoken lines contained in the game. KQ1VGA's speech files are uncompressed WAVS so the quality is at the maximum audio level. KQ2VGA's speech pack, on the other hand, is compressed in Ogg Vorbis format with the quality level reduced to 45kbps, Mono... about the furthest you can compress a speech WAV without it starting to sound really bad. <p></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#9 Post by Vildern » Fri Apr 18, 2003 4:02 pm

Huh, I see. Thanks for the explanation.<!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... /smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://navynuke.netfirms.com/ezboard/vildern.jpg" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--><br><br><br><br></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#10 Post by Deledrius » Sat Apr 19, 2003 5:33 am

Oddly enough, I didn't mind so much that he sounds a bit odd (tinny and such). Frankly, he sounds very much like he did in KQ5! It's all very nostalgic. C'mon, you know you made his voice sound like that on purpose, admit it! <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START ;) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... s/wink.gif ALT=";)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p>--------------------<br>Art: http://www.the-labyrinth.f2s.com<br>Science: http://www.zero-factorial.com</p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#11 Post by MuzlakOofmay » Sun Apr 20, 2003 2:47 am

By the way *spoilers* the King's Log sounded very good. Except I think Josh ran out of breath at the end... <p><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://www.nancycarterdesign.com/bryce/pimpbot.gif" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--><br>----------<br><!--EZCODE LINK START--><a href="http://www.nancycarterdesign.com/spongefactory/" target="top">Sponge Factory</a><!--EZCODE LINK END--></p><i></i>

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AHA

#12 Post by Vel » Sun Apr 20, 2003 5:56 pm

Got it! Josh recorded the lines in the bathroom!<!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :rollin --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... s/roll.gif ALT=":rollin"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p></p><i></i>

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It sounded..............................................

#13 Post by The Knight » Tue Apr 22, 2003 2:34 am

I thought Josh sounded great. And the King's log was funny. I thought it sounded like a perfect star trek spoof. <p>The Knight<br><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://image1ex.villagephotos.com/1799499.jpg" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--></p><i></i>

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Re: It sounded..............................................

#14 Post by optic » Tue Apr 22, 2003 2:55 pm

Josh was indeed excellent for doing the voice of Graham. End of discussion. <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :rollin --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... s/roll.gif ALT=":rollin"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://www.southwest.com.au/~jackie/signature.JPG" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--></p><i></i>

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Re: It sounded..............................................

#15 Post by El Ravager » Thu Apr 24, 2003 9:54 am

King's log? <p>~El Ravager~<br><br><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://www.2dadventure.com/ags/gandalfsigtag.jpg" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--><br><br></p><i></i>

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Re: It sounded..............................................

#16 Post by Erpy » Thu Apr 24, 2003 10:00 am

It's a Star-trek spoof. Click "talk" on the fallen log east of Hagatha's cave.<br><br>Did you ever consider taking a look at the "odds and eggs"-list of my FAQ, Rav?<br><br><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://httpd.chello.nl/c.vanempel/Nashl ... <!--EZCODE IMAGE END--> <p></p><i></i>

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Re: It sounded..............................................

#17 Post by El Ravager » Sat Apr 26, 2003 10:04 am

I probably should've, that's the second easter egg I've managed to not stumble across. No, by the time your FAQ came out, I'd already beaten the game twice. The only part I really used a lot was the maps (extremely helpful), and I skimmed through the hints just to see how they were set up. <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... /smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p>~El Ravager~<br><br><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://www.2dadventure.com/ags/gandalfsigtag.jpg" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--><br><br></p><i></i>

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yeah..................................................

#18 Post by The Knight » Sat Apr 26, 2003 6:52 pm

After I beat the game with a perfect score and Erpy walkthrough came out, I checked it for the easter eggs. I had already found the king's log one though. <p>The Knight<br><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://image1ex.villagephotos.com/1799499.jpg" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--></p><i></i>

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Re: yeah..................................................

#19 Post by optic » Sun Apr 27, 2003 6:26 am

I wonder if easter eggs are probable in reality...<!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... /smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://www.southwest.com.au/~jackie/signature.JPG" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#20 Post by Ozzie » Wed Apr 30, 2003 11:19 pm

I liked Graham's voice, he made it really well.<br>I didn't liked it in the previous King's Quest, against the other meanings.<br>The voice of Count Caldaur didn't fit, I think in compare to the other voices.<br>There are also two voices I think there were not only bad recorded, they really doesn't fit.<br>The first one is the voice of Possum. Why has she so a peepsy voice? A sweet would have been much better.<br>And connor. He sounds like my grandmother.<br>Oh, think of it, I'm german, that's why my grammar isn't really perfect. <p></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#21 Post by Storm » Thu May 01, 2003 4:29 am

I thought Graham's voice was one of the better voices. The one I liked the most was Hagatha, though I think her voice should have sounded different after taking the youth potion. <br>The Father's voice didn't sound right to me. It sounded too young and not evil enough. Sorry. <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :\ --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... ohwell.gif ALT=":\"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <br><br>About the way Connor sounded - you have to give them a break. It would have been almost impossible to make his voice as irritating as it was on MOE, and they managed a close approximation <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :b --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... tongue.gif ALT=":b"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#22 Post by Kitsune » Thu May 01, 2003 9:58 am

This topic made me muse about what it would be like to reach the answering machines of various characters in the KQ worlds.<br><br>*beep*<br><br>"Hi, this is Graham. If you're listening to this message, I'm likely off slaying a dragon or out cold with death pangs (if you don't mind, I could use some Mysterious Fruit o' Life TM, thanks). Please leave a message and I'll get back to you."<br><br>"Hi, this is Valanice. I've been rescued, so I'm not really checking my messages here at the tower anymore. We left in a bit of a rush, so I didn't have time to get the new number in Daventry. It shouldn't be too hard to find me -- after all, Graham did."<br><br>"Velcome to my answering machine, this is Anastasia. I'm either lying in my coffin, sipping an O negative latte, or trying to read Dick and Jane. Either way, I don't feel like coming to phone right now. Unless, you've got blood, do you have blood?"<br><br>"Hello, this is Hagatha, Beautiful Witch Extraordinaire, been eyein' that newt since 356 B.C. I've been rather unsuccessful lately and without any succulent humans to feast on, I decided to eat my answering machine. Please stop calling, it makes the most dreadful rumble in my stomach."<br><br>"Hiiii! This is Rosella. Sorry, I can't come to the phone right now, but I've probably fallen into another damn interdimensional pool."<br><br>"Good afternoon, this is Alexander. Actually no it isn't, I'm not 17 yet and I don't know I'm me. Oh well, here, have a cookie for your efforts."<br><br>"You have reached the interdimensional whirlpool communication nexus whatsamahookie. This is the Father!" *dramatic echo* "Unfortunately, I really don't think I should be at the beck and call of an answering machine, so you can leave a message, but I'll NEVER ANSWER IT UNTIL YOU GIVE ME YOUR CROWN! MWA HA HA HA!"<br><br>And Josh rocks! I could not believe it when I heard he did the voice. I was, "Not really! Really?!" <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :D --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... /happy.gif ALT=":D"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <br><br>-Kitsune <p></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#23 Post by Erpy » Thu May 01, 2003 12:52 pm

Hahaha...those are great.<br><br><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://members.chello.nl/c.vanempel/Nas ... <!--EZCODE IMAGE END--> <p></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#24 Post by GrieP » Fri May 02, 2003 1:11 am

I spent some time listening to Graham's voice. I think it sounds more like he used a Noise Reduction effect on the lines. This often gives voices a more metallic, hollow sound. <br><br>In my opinion it might be smarter to decrease the amount of NR to 50 or 40, of increase the sampling rate of the reduction base.<br><br>If this isn't the reason, then pretend I didn't write anything <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :D --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/im ... /happy.gif ALT=":D"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p></p><i></i>

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Re: Why does Graham sound like an answering machine?

#25 Post by The Knight » Sat May 03, 2003 6:22 pm

Those are great Kitsune. How about making ones for the other characters in KQ2:RTS. <p>The Knight<br><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://image1ex.villagephotos.com/2397360.jpg" style="border:0;"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--></p><i></i>

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