Amazon Prime Day 2022! A WIN for VO!! (WITH UPDATES!!)
I have updated this piece to reflect some of the great sales on relevant gear! Whether you love Amazon or hate it, there is no denying that they were an invaluable resource during the pandemic when we simply couldn't get to the stores. Their Prime Day continues to be a day of deep discounts for everything they offer, and microphones, interfaces and accessories are no exception.
If you're not already a Prime member, this might be a great time to join. When you join, you have access to free shipping- which in itself has always been a selling point... but you also get Prime TV, with tons of movies, shows and exclusive content. They also include Amazon Music, with a pretty massive included library. Right now they are also adding benefits like a year of Grub Hub ordering and more!
There are sure to be many more values during Prime Day, but I simply don't have time to follow them all. If you find something great- reach out to me so I can include it or tell you if it's worth it! This list is in no particular order.
One of the first things I spotted this morning was the Fired HD10 tablet that I've previously written about. It's always a great deal, but for just $75, it's an amazing bargain! Not only is a great for reading scripts, a full functioning Echo Show device, an e-reader, a movie player, an email tool, and a gaming device... but you can also record and edit audio on a number of free apps!
Headphones:
The much heralded (and my personal favorites) the Beyerdynamic DT770 Pros are currently on sale for just $134- an awesome deal!! Anyone who uses these will tell you they are pure comfort on your ears- physically and sonically. They very quickly became the new studio standard.
If you're looking for something at a lower price, the AKG Pro K240 were a staple in booths everywhere for a long time. They are currently just $55!
Interfaces:
As I've previously written on this website, the Universal Audio Volt series is an affordable game changer. While I love the Volt 176- a single mic pre interface that even has their classic compression baked into it (currently $249), their basic Volt 1 is just $139.
I love that Universal Audio now has their own shop within Amazon, so you can feel confident about your purchase. If you've already got an interface like the ubiquitous Focusrite Scarlett Solo, and you're considering leveling up- then you'd want to check out other offerings like the Apollo Solo for $699.
Critical Accessories:
Before I continue talking about the obvious gear- I want to share some of the less obvious- but equally important- things for your studio. At the recent Voice Actors of NYC Teach-a -Thon, I discussed the importance of having a backup plan if things go wrong before a session. Hard drive space is something that catches people off-guard. A spontaneously failing mic cable is another. And of course, with high demand for air conditioning coupled with hurricane season, blackouts and brownouts are not only a concern- but can damage your gear!
Let start with an easy one: mic cables. Everyone loves to brag about their mogami gold plated cables. I promise you for most all of you reading this that you're wasting your money. In fact I've had so many people brag about those cables only to see them used in noisey booths with cheap mics. You gain nothing except for an empty wallet. But no matter what your tastes are for mic cables, having a spare on hand will save you a lot of headaches down the road. At home, I actually have a lot of Amazon Basics XLR cables, and they work perfectly fine!
When people reach out and tell me their mac is acting funny, very often the culprit is critically low hard drive space! Recording auditions or directed sessions on your computer will eventually gobble up all your space. It's a good habit to learn to record to an external drive- or at least get used to transferring files to it and deleting them on your internal. Either way, you want to keep plenty of local space for your machine to run properly. You can read more about why here. External hard drives are one of those items that often gets reduced on Prime Day- so be on the lookout! A 1TB Lacie is currently now just $52!!!
Power outages happen. But with a simple APC UPS battery backup, you can keep your studio running for enough time to safely shut things down before any damage or drive corruption can occur- or possible even finish your session if you're close to wrapping things up! I keep mine setup to my Wifi, computer, interface and some peripherals JUST in case. It instantly kicks in when the power goes out! While it's true purpose is to give safe time to shut down correctly, it can drive your rig for a little more time if you only needed a few more minutes. On sale for $189!!
Microphones:
Be on the lookout for deals on some of the more popular mics for VO: The Rode Nt1a (currently showing at just $199), the Stellar X2 (ON SALE FOR $159.99!!), and the Synco D2(currently down to $199 with an additional $18 coupon at checkout!). If you're considering leveling up to a Sennheiser 416 or Neumann- this might be the right time!
Be sure to follow my Facebook account, as I will share any additional items I spot on sale for Prime Day- including mic stands, acoustic panels and more! I hope this helps.
FV
