Geg Hopkins

Most, English English, English Russian, English Arabic, English anything, English Filipino, caricature accents.

I resemble my reputation. As well as self voicing client's requirements on request, daily I produce and direct voices in any other language, but mostly English and Arabic, live or linking by ISDN or Audio TX over IP. (It is a gross amateur myth that different languages require different direction in a commercial sense). My entire existence is voice and studio production of everything from catchy music jingles, SFX, commercial and documentaries in my own commercial facility. The tool is the voice and the way it performs. I have personally voiced commercials for almost every corporate name you might think of. Promos; TV; radio; long story corporate DVDs and a fair amount of comedy acting when time permits. Good solid scripts, written for voice are equally important but few clients understand that, thus present clichéd ProNoun virus ('WE' - 'US' - 'OUR') infected babble, which many voices might record in silent protest, despite it potentially impairing their performance through no fault of theirs'. Thus, for perfection, I sometimes might respectfully suggest you change a word or the flow slightly without detracting the essence. Like a precision lock, you'll hear and deeply feel it, when it clicks, then you know 'it is right'! If it isn't I will not present the job. Started as a ship's Disc Jockey while serving in the Royal Navy and even did link-ups with BBC Radio. On leaving the Navy in the 70's I continued as a performing DJ and producer, breaking off for university and studying electronics/communications. In the 80s I settled in Bahrain and joined the pioneering FM pop station. Of course fully digital with the very latest hardware and software, you name it, I probably have it or some equivalent. We have Neumans - AKG - even trying out the new TM103 digital. I love Yamaha and it has been faithful. Web site shows DM2000 - O2Rs - Racks and racks of toys: TC Electronic Gold Channels, Finalizers, Helicon, 24 bit digital patch bays, the kit is endless. We have 2 X Pro-Tools LE (Don't like it much). Alessis 48 tracks. Akais, Yamaha 4416 and more. Plus all the other softwares generally associated with editing or music production. Irrelevant for this purpose, but for the record: The latest Yamaha and Roland synths and samplers, plus in the video suite we generally use Grass Valley Canopus or Adobe Premier. Final Cut great! Avid is available and merely a name!Although all new toys are now in use, I still keep most of the good old kit. (You'd be surprised, some ask for it) I have been digital since 1989, seemingly long before the rest of the world caught on. I bought what was then a small fortune, one of the first digital audio workstations from Microtechnology Unlimited out of N.Carolina. (This is exceptional, brilliant and NOTHING since has come close to touching it). Way back then, I bought a couple of the the very first digital Mixers, the Yamaha DMP7 but needed the rather brilliant Micro Fx noise gates and reduction boxes to keep them quiet when no signal was present. Multi track recording was done on Tascam in the early days and Soundcraft and Allen & Heath analogue boards. We used AKG mic and even the old BBC type Ribbon mics (Still got them - in perfect working order). On the transmission ISDN side, we have Audio TX and Mayah Centauri 3001 codec (Great kit works with anything, solid sound out the DA/ADs but the local Telecom company installed an IP GSM switch and pure ISDN is no longer pure ISDN. So we installed 'Audio TX Communicator' software and it works fine. Basically, your project can be realized here full stop!! Trust! I have produced most things media but especially audio related projects, such as commercials or radio programmes and documentaries. Turn-key original scripting, Ideas/concepts, complete campaigns if necessary, nothing frightens my team or me. IVR- TELECOM and BANKING Systems: I discovered many years ago, quite by accident that I was good at IVR systems. Because of my background in telecoms, back in the Cable & Wireless days, some telecom boys I knew suggested I design and produce some heavy systems. I'd heard such rubbish everywhere and wondered how to better the generally ham acting on these things, the awful linkage and the low audio quality over compressed circuits. It is endemic all over the world. Getting good voices and professional direction and delivery was one thing I could do quite easily, but It took several years to discover a way to fix or stabilize the linkages, such as a balance enquiry for example. BY trial and error, I then discovered a solid method to keep the broadcast sound balanced, loud and clear in the required format. This is secret still. We design your logically trimmed flow charts too. You will NOT find a more experienced or better IVR producer in the entire world. But we cost. I hate the work, it takes a lot of time, but we/I do so many now in several countries and major telecom companies and banks at that. (Always on a 5 year contract). I had no intention of staying and in fact was often heard on other radio stations, but the place is friendly, the weather good (when not roasting you), work was crazy and I personally built a recording facility, both audio and video. This was NOT intended as a commercial facility, merely a top notch need to service my own programmes and music production, plus a now growing list of direct advertising clients. The studio remains an in-house facility, but we do allow some agencies who like my production and direction to use it. Often told to re-locate to UK or the States, there are too many wires, too much kit and it would cost a fortune to house all that in say London. Besides, with real-time, high quality IP (ADSL) linkage now and the old ISDN, studio to studio, it really doesn't matter where you are. Apart from my own projects, my client list has been the same corporates or similar for 20 years or more now. Once introduced, they rarely go elsewhere - In fact, even despite rare but healthy disagreements, I cannot remember a single one leaving us. You pay for what you get. Rarely if ever to we get walk-ins. If they come, they are only after the lowest price and are generally deluded amateurs who wouldn't know the difference between art and tart when all is said and done. I have no problem rejecting them and that is easy to do; Just make a ridiculously high quotation and you never see them again. .