This document provides steps to get a perfect radio voice in 3 steps: 1. Get to know your voice by practicing and learning about your vocal strengths. Choose the right microphone, like the Neumann TLM 103 or Behringer B-1. 2. Learn microphone placement techniques to speak at the right distance and volume. Condenser microphones are recommended to capture voice quality. 3. Use audio processing like the DBX 286S to add presence, clarity and warmth to your voice. Settings like compression, de-essing and enhancement can refine your radio sound without sounding unnatural. Regular practice and a coaching session can also help develop your radio voice.

1. Get That
Perfect Radio Voice
in
3 Steps

2. 1. Get to Know Your Voice
The most important thing of all is GET TO KNOW YOUR
VOICE! We can’t stress enough for newcomers to the
broadcasting industry, something we’ll go into a little bit
more detail later on.

3. At Radio.co, we come across stations that use poor quality microphones,
usually they’re PC headsets you can find almost anywhere. They’re great
for talking to people on Skype, but they’re not really designed for great
radio broadcasting tools. We’ll cover which types of microphones to pick
up (plus they’re relatively inexpensive these days).
2. Get to Know Your Microphone

4. Audio processing is a great way to give your voice a little bit more
punch and added presence. We’ll show you a box of tricks you can go
out and buy – Perfect for home studio and not too expensive. Every
single commercial radio station uses audio processing to enhance the
presenter’s vocal presence.
3. Use *Some* Audio Processing

5. 1. Your Voice

6. No matter what anyone says, you can’t change your voice! If you try and purposefully sound too different then
it’s going to back fire on you. You can end up sounding kind of weird and off putting as listeners are going to
know there’s something not quite right sounding too “radio DJ-y” like you’re from a 1980’s station.
Things have moved on since then, there’s no set way or expected sound of a disc jockey. Everyone’s different
and that’s a good thing. People want variety and not hearing the old cheesy radio disc jock style from the 1980’s
anymore. Anyone stuck in that past trying to still sound like that then they aren’t going to get far these days.
It’s important to be yourself and learn about your voice.
You Can’t Change Your Voice
(1. Your Voice)

7. This is a big thing and we’re all guilty of doing this from time to time. You have to just sometimes remember to breathe and
take things at a steady pace. If you try and rush through things too much then people get put on edge and it doesn’t sound
natural. When you’re having a conversation with someone, let’s say you’re sat with a friend in your kitchen, you’re not
rushing through things when you’re talking to them, so why do it on air?
If you try and get too much out in one sentence it just ends up all jumbled up and doesn’t really make any sense to the
listener. Having said that, if you speak too slowly, you can end up just sounding a bit boring. Sometimes in radio you hear
broadcasters talk at a snail’s pace, especially late night shows.
You want to be picking up a nice natural pace that sounds conversational, works well with your voice, and it’s going to be
appealing to the listener.
Speak Conversationally & Don’t Rush
(1. Your Voice)

8. Remember to dot your I’s and cross your T’s! There’s no room for slang on the radio (maybe if you’re on
some kind of urban station), but you don’t want to make the mistake that the BBC did in the 1950’s by
sounding too formal.
These days it’s about sounding friendly and approachable, as if you’re listener was right there in front of you.
Also, remember to refer to them in the first person rather then referring to all of your listeners, like “Well
thanks for listening, I hope your day is going well“.
This kind of stuff really resonates with people who are tuned in on the other end.
Be Clear
(1. Your Voice)

9. It’s important that you practice, practice, practice! The age old saying really rings true: Practice makes perfect.
The more you go on air or record demos, the more you practice then the better you’ll become at public
speaking or talking on the radio. Another option you might want to consider is voice coaching. It’s a really
good option if you can afford it and want to go down that route then there are lots of people out there who
offer voice coaching.
They’ll sit down with you on a one-on-one consultancy basis and really just help develop your sound, pick and
natural pace, and hone what you’re saying. It’s a critical and well trained ear.
Practice & Hone Your Craft
(1. Your Voice)

10. Part of being a good radio presenter is not so much worrying about what you sound like on air, if you’re voice is radio
friendly, or if it’s “boomy” enough, it’s really about how to connect with your audience and thinking about what they
want to hear.
At Radio.co we’ve worked with one of the best talent coaches around called Kate Cocker. She’s been involved in the
radio industry for 15+ years and has worked with all sorts of radio presenters. She’s really passionate about coaching
and helping presenters become the best they can on air.
Kate’s put together a fantastic course on everything you need to know on how to become the best radio presenter
you can be with insider industry secrets you shouldn’t miss. Check out the course…
Better Radio Presenter
(1. Your Voice)
Be a Better Radio Presenter Course

11. 2. Your Microphone

12. In our experience at Radio.co, studio condenser microphones are the best option. They often depict
your voice in a brilliant way and almost every radio station uses them. They are actually quite
sensitive, but we find that they add real character to your output.
What to Choose?
(2. Your Microphone)

13. The Neumann TLM 103 is an industry standard
microphone across the UK. Used by many professional
DJs in the radio industry like Howard Stern, it retails for
about $1000 / £850.
This mic’s in lot of commercial stations in the UK, both
local and nationals stations use it, so it’s pretty much
considered an industry standard, particularly for radio
broadcasting.
Neumann TLM 103
(2. Your Microphone)

14. A good pick for community radio stations, school
stations, or people who are on a budget at home that
want to have an entry level mic but still want that
quality radio voice - Retails for $100 / $70.
It has a nice wide diaphragm, so it’s got a really good
frequency response that will give you that sparkle that
you’re looking for with professional results.
Behringer B-1
(2. Your Microphone)

15. Sensitive condenser microphones like the Blue Spark
are great for picking up every little bit of audio like
your’s or a guest’s voice, instruments, and a wide range
of other sounds. The Blue Spark retails for around
$240 / £190.
Blue Spark
(2. Your Microphone)

16. There are some typical rookie mistakes which people do when talking into the microphone. One of
the main ones is speaking far too loudly into the mic; it’s just unnecessary as a good mics will have
good condensing mics will be able to pick up audio quite easily at a normal level.
Other rookie errors include speaking far too closely or too far away. A good rule of thumb is talking
about a hand span away.
Microphone Placement
(2. Your Microphone)

17. 3. Audio Processing

18. Well it gives your voice more punch and clarity. It can add warmth to your voice and it can generally
make your voice sound more present on the radio which is a really important thing when you’re
competing against other radio stations.
Furthermore, it can also help reduce things like background noise and sibilants. When I say that it’s
the “S” at the end of sentences. You can use it to generally enhance your voice and give you more
punch on air.
Why Use One?
(3. Audio Processing)

19. Most commercial radio stations will use compression or audio processing to their output to
add loudness and quality to their streams. This is a really good way to add presence to your
voice.
You can buy a specific microphone processor like the DBX 286S ($190 / £135) which is a great
budget option and adds a real loudness to your voice.
DBX 286S
(3. Audio Processing)

20. This is basically the overall volume or amplification
of your microphone. It should be set to a level
where when you’re speaking you’re not going into
the clipping (the red light), but the two green lights
should be on most of the time.
If they aren’t then it’s too low and if you’re hitting
the red light you definitely don’t want to be doing
that as it’s a signal that your setting it too high.
DBX 286S - Mic Preamp Gain
(3. Audio Processing)

21. The 48v phantom power switch should be enabled
for most condenser microphones including all of
the ones we recommend for Radio.co customers
such as the Behringer B-1, the Blue Spark, and also
the Neumann TLM 103 which we use here in the
studio at Radio.co.
DBX 286S - Phantom Power
(3. Audio Processing)

22. Now the 80Hz cut out switch can help in some
circumstances to reduce some background noise,
particularly low hums, rumbles, or perhaps wind.
The thing is if you enable this setting it will also
reduce the dynamic range of your voice, so we can
tend to leave that off most of the time. There are
circumstances in which you might want to use it.
DBX 286S - High Pass
(3. Audio Processing)

23. Next up is the process bypass switch which will
actually disable any other settings that we’re going
to cover after this.
You probably want to leave this disabled most of
the time, but it can be really interesting to see what
it sounds like without the processing and with the
processing.
DBX 286S - Process Bypass
(3. Audio Processing)

24. Let’s move on to more exciting settings that will make
a real difference to your voice, firstly the compressor.
This basically adds more punch and pizzazz to what
you’re saying. It kind of crunches down or
compresses your voice so it’s all at one level.
Now don’t go crazy here because you’ll end up
sounding a bit weird. We recommend setting to Drive
to around 3 and Density around 3 as well. You can
tweak these settings to develop a sound that’s really
good for your station and your style of voice.
DBX 286S - Compressor
(3. Audio Processing)

25. The de-esser helps to remove S’s from speech, it’s
known as sibilance. We normally set the Frequency
to around 4k and the Threshold between 1 and 2,
but it really depends on your voice.
Quite often the best way to set this is to sit there
and say “S-ssssss“, then adjust it until you’re happy
with the result and it works with your voice.
DBX 286S - De-Esser
(3. Audio Processing)

26. The enhancer is really the best part of the box. It’s what gives
you that radio sound that people are always looking for.
What it does is it can enhance the highs and the lows of your
voice. It takes the sounds that are already come out of your
mouth and just kind and adds a bit more “oomph” to them.
It’s important to know you don’t need to go too crazy with
these settings, if you do you run the risk of sounding a bit
strange. We try to stick between 2 and 3 on both the LF
Detail and HF Detail.
DBX 286S - Enhancer
(3. Audio Processing)

27. The expander and gate will basically act like a switch. If
you’re not talking directly into the mic it will disable it,
so this is great to cut down on background noise. We
suggest setting the Ratio to 151.
Start the Threshold at 0 in perfect silence with your
headphones on and you’ll hear background noise.
You’ll notice then as you turn the knob up the
background noise will eventually cut away.
These are the right settings for the expander and gate.
DBX 286S - Expander & Gate
(3. Audio Processing)

28. Finally the Output should be set to 0. You can adjust
this if needed to suit the equipment you’re using like
a mixing desk or a USB soundcard such as the
Scarlett 2i2.
You just need to make sure the equipment isn’t going
into the red section on the metre. You need to keep
your eyes on those metres at all times. Whatever
device or whatever part of the system, make sure
you’re not going into red because that will ultimately
cause clipping and problems for your listeners.
DBX 286S - Output
(3. Audio Processing)

29. Make Radio.co Work For You…

30. How Radio.co Works
All your music and
announcements like music,
promos, and branded audio are
scheduled and managed from
one central location, for instance
this could be your studio, at
home, or anywhere along as you
have an internet connection.
Audio is streamed directly to anyone
that has an internet connection.
Even retail shops and restaurants
can tune in with a pre-configured
streaming device (Barix box) which
relays audio to their speaker system.
Contact us to discuss your streaming options and how it can work for you: studio@radio.co

31. Your Dashboard
Your dashboard is the hub of your
station, allowing you to control your
music, schedule, and DJ’s from the
anywhere in your browser.
Manage multiple streams from a drop-
down menu, see what shows you have
scheduled, tracks played, how many
listeners you’ve got, how much
bandwidth you’ve used, and how much
storage you have for your tracks.
Radio.co is custom built, this makes us
more reliable, more powerful, and more
flexible to give you the best experience
possible.

32. Manage Your Music & Playlists
Upload all your media files individually or bulk transfer them with the drag & drop playlist editor.
Curate your music into playlists with instant search or use tags for rotation based play-out.
Colour-coordinate all your tags so it’s easy to find them.
Create playlists and schedule them in minutes for a stress-free broadcasting experience.

33. Schedule Your Shows
Schedule live or automated shows, create reoccurring events
easily, and schedule items down to the nearest 5 minutes, so
you can plan all of your shows throughout the week.
Schedule playlists to repeat on days of your choosing.
Colour coordinate your schedule for easy navigation.
24/7 automation allows your station to run non-stop, even when
you’re not physically at a computer allowing you to schedule 24
hours of content without you having to worry about changing a
thing.
Create your own shows with music, tags, jingles, adverts, and
promotions to mimic live broadcasts.
Don’t want certain tracks to repeat? Use album and artist
separation rules, this way your playlists don’t sound repetitive.

34. Build Custom Players
You can customise your player anyway you like so it fits
your brand.
Embed custom players onto your’s or other’s website so
listeners can access your radio station.
Listeners can share your station with Twitter and Facebook
integration.
The DIY player kit is white-label, meaning you can design
and build unique players fit for your school, college, or
university.

35. Fully Managed Account
All plans have the option to come with a dedicated account manager
who will personally oversee your account and provide you with:
Playlist Curation
Content Production
Dedicated Technical Support
Radio Expertise
Honest & Quick Communication
Complete Schedule Management
Your dedicated account manager will be your point of contact and will
always be able to pick up the phone and chat with you when you need
them, giving you peace of mind knowing that your station is in safe
hands.
Contact us for a quote: studio@radio.co

36. Radio.co Plans
DJ
$29/month | $290/year
2GB disk space (500 tracks)
500 listeners
1TB bandwidth (18,000 listening hours)
2 users
(iPhone & Android apps can be purchased as an add-on for $15/pm each)
All plans come with dedicated support throughout our office hours which are 8:30am - 5:00pm (GMT) Monday to Friday either by email, telephone, or Skype. Our technical support check emails during weekends as well, however
we’d be happy to discuss things further with you if you require a dedicated account manager.
Broadcaster
$49/month | $490/year
10GB disk space (2,500 tracks)
2,000 listeners
10TB bandwidth (180,000 listening hours)
10 users
Mobile optimised streams
Custom album artwork & track editor
(iPhone & Android apps can be purchased as an add-on for $15/pm each)
Contact us for a dedicated account manager quote: studio@radio.co
Station
$99/month | $990/year
50GB disk space (12,500 tracks)
Unlimited listeners
50TB bandwidth (900,000 listening hours)
Unlimited users
Mobile optimised streams
Custom album artwork & track editor
Custom branded iPhone & Android apps
(Website Builder can be purchased as an add-on for $12/pm)

37. Say Hello, We Love to Chat!
Email: studio@radio.co
Skype: radiodotco
Twitter: @radiodotco
Demo: Book Here