Using office cubicle panels for vocal recording

[centurymantra]

I am converting a large room into a recording area and was planning on taking advantage of some good deals on a purchase of some acoustic office panels of the type that are normally used for cubicle/reception area construction. I intend to buy 4 or 5 "L" shaped sections that can be moved around for use to contain amp sound, isolation, drum isolation, etc. I had a notion to use these for vocal recording in the room as well. The idea is to join a couple sections together to form 2/3 of a square around the singer. In this setup, one portion would be open and the top would be open as well (high ceilings). I was thinking that the singer could stand a bit back singing "into" the partition walls with the open space behind them. The high ceiling and open back would add some room sound, but it is a rather large room (app. 24x24 with high ceilings) and this would presumably be OK.(?) Any suggestions from folks out there? For one thing, I wonder if I should have them sing towards a corner of the contained area or at a flat wall...and how far back should they be? Should I add something above (?); (the panels are 66" high. Any and all insights are much appreciated!

[dcwave]

I'll let you know this weekend how they work. My company has about 30 in storage that they are letting me have. 6 feet tall by 4 feet wide. I'm getting 10 of them.

[Innovations]

Depending on their construction they may make a good starting point for gobos. depending on their construction you will no doubt be needing to either add mass or absorbtion. Despite their marketing hype these panels are mostly designed for privacy, appearance, and function, not accoustics. The average office worker wants to be able to raise his voice and be heard in the next cubicle if desired.

[elove]

I was thinking of doing the same thing. I wanted to use two cubicle walls and a corner in the room as my other two walls. I was going to join the two cubicle walls with some type of hinge so that one of the walls could sway open somewhat as a door. And then put some foam or something on the inside. Do you all think that this would work?

[centurymantra]

Hopefully 'dcwave' will have some input for myself and the others who are looking for some feedback on this. I do realize that they are a starting point and probably can't compete with a proper gobo, but are somewhat functional, look pretty nice and have surprisingly dead acoustics. I got inside a cubicle that was constructed out of the panels I was considering and clapped and made some loud vox sounds and it was pretty tight sounding...certainly more than I was expecting.

[dcwave]

I'm using them because I have not finished my control room/vocal booth build out. I have a quintet coming in to record and need to use the unfinished space. I will have some 4in. 703 in the corners and the taller cube walls to help cut down the reflections from naked drywall.

[TexasMusicForge]

Originally Posted by centurymantra

I got inside a cubicle that was constructed out of the panels I was considering and clapped and made some loud vox sounds and it was pretty tight sounding...certainly more than I was expecting.

In all cases like this, *trust your ears* when evaluating whether you have a net improvement in your results. As an actual working musician (with a working musician-sized budget for studio paraphernalia), I'm a big fan of using cubicle sections. I've got two I use for isolation for pesky/noisy guitar amps, pesky/noisy drummers and for vocal mics. I often track as many musicians playing together in the same room as possible, a la Phil Spector, and have found panels really useful for controlling mic bleed and instrument balance.

The earlier poster was correct in stating they're a good starting point. I'll be using several in the new studio I'm building in my new house. They're really easy to mount on walls, diagonally in corners and are really easy to mount soundproofing materials on (budget hint: you can find used heavy draperies really cheap which you can cut up into cubicle partition-sized pieces for mounting) while still maintaining a neat, professional appearance.

Best regards,

Tio Ed
Austin, Texas
Land O' 10,000 Guitarists With Day Gigs

[brzilian]

Originally Posted by centurymantra

I am converting a large room into a recording area and was planning on taking advantage of some good deals on a purchase of some acoustic office panels of the type that are normally used for cubicle/reception area construction. I intend to buy 4 or 5 "L" shaped sections that can be moved around for use to contain amp sound, isolation, drum isolation, etc. I had a notion to use these for vocal recording in the room as well. The idea is to join a couple sections together to form 2/3 of a square around the singer. In this setup, one portion would be open and the top would be open as well (high ceilings). I was thinking that the singer could stand a bit back singing "into" the partition walls with the open space behind them. The high ceiling and open back would add some room sound, but it is a rather large room (app. 24x24 with high ceilings) and this would presumably be OK.(?) Any suggestions from folks out there? For one thing, I wonder if I should have them sing towards a corner of the contained area or at a flat wall...and how far back should they be? Should I add something above (?); (the panels are 66" high. Any and all insights are much appreciated!

Tell us what you're buying. Who makes them?

I can tell you right now if you're going for the kind you buy at your local super store (Office Max), you will be sorely dissapointed. Having worked at Bush Industries (one of the manufacturers who sells the product in question), I know how they are constructed.

[TimOBrien]

Yup, trust your ears. Make sure when you stack them together that you put them at all different angles (no right-angles or parrallel to each other...)

[dcwave]

I set some up in the area where I 'think' I might have this group of singers perform at. The pannels my company bought (and let me use) were bought because of their sound absorbtion. The 1st thing I noticed was an INCREASE in flutter echo(?), solved with a 703 pannel (4x8) mounted to the ceiling, the area had a more focused and even sound to it after words, still not the greatest (very minor "basementy" ping, but workable with singer and mic placement. The corners were the deadest areas. Because this is an open space near a half finished room, I can hear the echo from the sheet rocked room more pronouced, So I will be getting some more panels (we have about 50 in storage) to block out the doorway and some of the walls in the nearby room.

[HapiCmpur]

Originally Posted by centurymantra

...acoustic office panels of the type that are normally used for cubicle/reception area construction...Any and all insights are much appreciated!

I've seen these things but I've never given them a close inspection. Give us some info on the ones you're thinking of getting. What material is inside them and how thick is it? What's the outer covering made of and how thick is it? You'll get excellent advice here if you're very specific about what you need.