soundproofing a closet for guitar amplifier

C

cutout

New member
I'm fairly new at recording and have all my gear set up in a small 10'x10' room. Right now there is nothing to dampen the sound. Plus, I play a Fender Twin very loud which is making it hard to overdub & hear properly through headphones.

Anyway, I have a bunch of egg cartons that I was going to use to baffle the inside of a small closet and point the Fender Twin into the closet.

twin.JPG

(Note: I need a longer cable to move it closer to the closet)

Has anyone tried a setup like this?
 
Are we talking about sound-proofing or sound dampening? 2 different things.

I'm not even going to go near the egg-crate conversation. :eek:
 
Well in truth, I'm really just getting started. Currently there is nothing to dampen the amp. A friend of mine came over and looked at my setup and commented that the room was very live and another friend recommended soundproofing the room. I'm just sort of grasping in the dark to know which his best.

So is the incentive to putting an amp in a soundproof box or closet, for example, to get rid of all room noise including reverb? I honestly don't hate the sound I'm getting now. But if there are some simple things to contain the sound, like rockwooling the walls of the closet, that would help, I'd definitely try it.
 
cutout said:
Well in truth, I'm really just getting started. Currently there is nothing to dampen the amp. A friend of mine came over and looked at my setup and commented that the room was very live and another friend recommended soundproofing the room. I'm just sort of grasping in the dark to know which his best.

So is the incentive to putting an amp in a soundproof box or closet, for example, to get rid of all room noise including reverb? I honestly don't hate the sound I'm getting now. But if there are some simple things to contain the sound, like rockwooling the walls of the closet, that would help, I'd definitely try it.
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OK, I get ya now. The reason I mentioned sound-proofing and sound dampening are 2 different things is because I wasn't sure if you just wanted to tame the reflections in the room, or if you wanted to keep sounds from entering/leaving the room.

First off, I'll say that if you like the sound as it is now, there's no reason to change it. But make sure you like the recorded sound as much as you like the room sound. If you do want to dampen the reverb in the room, then don't use egg-crates, carpets or foam. There are a variety of legit materials, like fibreglass batts, rigid fibreglass, rockwool, etc....
 
Thanks! So if I covered the closet in rockwool and pushed the amp into the closet facing the wall, maybe that would dampen the room reverb a bit? )Although, the Fender Twin has an open back, which is part of the other problem - when I overdub, the room sound is so loud, it overpowers what I'm hearing in the headphones...)
 
cutout said:
Thanks! So if I covered the closet in rockwool and pushed the amp into the closet facing the wall, maybe that would dampen the room reverb a bit? )Although, the Fender Twin has an open back, which is part of the other problem - when I overdub, the room sound is so loud, it overpowers what I'm hearing in the headphones...)
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I'm not an amp or amp placement expert, so hopefully someone will come along with more knowledge as far as how and where to place the amp.

But, as far as the amp being too loud for the headphones, is it possible for you not be in the same room as the amp while recording? You'd be able to get as much guitar in your phones as you want without worrying about the volume of the actual amp.
 
Which is it that you're interested in?

Isolating the sound so the neighbors don't lose it, or dampening the room so your recordings sound better?

Rockwool is probably your best bet for improving the room sound. An isolation box is the best bet for pleasing the neighbors.
 
You asked the same basic thing (without the useless egg cartons) in the thread in the newbies section about your headphones not being loud enough.
 
I'm not an amp or amp placement expert, so hopefully someone will come along with more knowledge as far as how and where to place the amp.

But, as far as the amp being too loud for the headphones, is it possible for you not be in the same room as the amp while recording? You'd be able to get as much guitar in your phones as you want without worrying about the volume of the actual amp.
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I'm considering it. I live in a 3-bed house by myself so it wouldn't bother anyone to put an amp elsewhere, though there'd be wires trailing across the hallways ;)

Isolating the sound so the neighbors don't lose it, or dampening the room so your recordings sound better? Rockwool is probably your best bet for improving the room sound. An isolation box is the best bet for pleasing the neighbors.
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Neighbors aren't a problem (so far). It's more getting a pure, direct, non-compromised guitar signal with no room interference.

You asked the same basic thing (without the useless egg cartons) in the thread in the newbies section about your headphones not being loud enough.
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Yes. Still trying to get it all sorted out.
 
You've got a mic right on the grill. How much more direct do you need it?

Do you think the room is too live, or are you just going off what your buddies say?

And what kind of tracking headphones are you using? I record loud as fuck amps too, sitting right next to the amp sometimes, and I can hear just fine inside my cans. I use drummers tracking headphones.
 
Greg_L said:
You've got a mic right on the grill. How much more direct do you need it?

Do you think the room is too live, or are you just going off what your buddies say?
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The latter. :confused: Like I say, I'm just starting out and learning what a great guitar signal sounds like. I have very few friends in town who know their way around a studio, but the couple who do recommended (vaguely) improving the room sound in various ways. Maybe they're being overly meticulous and the sound is fine? Personally I think the guitar/amp sound great in the room, but a bit off and lifeless when recorded. I'm not sure why. So, I'm just trying to figure out if there's anything I need to do to give me a sound that's more "true" to the live sound. Maybe an SM57 directly in front of a Fender Twin is fine regardless of the room configuration?

And what kind of tracking headphones are you using? I record loud as fuck amps too, sitting right next to the amp sometimes, and I can hear just fine inside my cans. I use drummers tracking headphones.
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I've got the headphone volume turned all the way up. I'm using AKG 240s I bought years ago.
 
You need a room mic to capture a room sound. Mic it on the grill and put a mic out in the room. Blend to taste.

If the open back is causing loudness problems, put the amp up against a wall. It'll kind of simulate a closed back cab sound.

I'm not familiar with those headphones, but unless they're some kind of sound cancelling tracking cans you're gonna have trouble tracking a loud amp in the same room.
 
cutout said:
Personally I think the guitar/amp sound great in the room, but a bit off and lifeless when recorded. I'm not sure why. So, I'm just trying to figure out if there's anything I need to do to give me a sound that's more "true" to the live sound. Maybe an SM57 directly in front of a Fender Twin is fine regardless of the room configuration?
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You'd treat the room for the opposite reasons.

What you want to do is get a mic further back from the amp.
You say it sounds great when you listen from where you are in the room, but that's not what your microphone hears, so maybe have two mics?
Dynamic on the grill and a room condenser?

Either that or play with some very tight room reverbs.
EDIT: Beaten to it. :(
 
cutout said:
Anyway, I have a bunch of egg cartons that I was going to use to baffle the inside of a small closet and point the Fender Twin into the closet.
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I've found the ideal use for egg cartons is to put eggs in. And arts and crafts for kids.
cutout said:
Has anyone tried a setup like this?
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Sometimes I'll put an amp in the wardrobe, but this isn't to do with the sound of the room. In fact, I'm often at a loss to understand how close miking an amp {and by close, I mean anything from a centimetre to three feet} that's blasting out some serious volume isn't sufficient to cancel out any significant room effect. I put the amp in the wardrobe if I'm in a particular room and I don't want to freak out the neighbours or if I'm simultaneously recording through two amps.

cutout said:
So is the incentive to putting an amp in a soundproof box or closet, for example, to get rid of all room noise including reverb? I honestly don't hate the sound I'm getting now. But if there are some simple things to contain the sound, like rockwooling the walls of the closet, that would help, I'd definitely try it.
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Why are you trying to contain the sound ? Or more to the point, what do you mean ?

Steenamaroo said:
An isolation box is the best bet for pleasing the neighbors.
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Believe me, it is. I've been having a great old time recently with loud guitars and I've been recording sometimes past 9 o'clock and none of the neighbours have said a thing.

cutout said:
I'm considering it. I live in a 3-bed house by myself so it wouldn't bother anyone to put an amp elsewhere
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Then go for it. There is the solution to your hearing while overdubbing problem. One other thing you could try is to connect your DAW to your stereo and use the headphone out there.
I used to have that problem, I'd be tracking guitar or bass with drums and the drums were often so loud because I'd be right next to them. The room was small and those cymbals and snare would blow your head off and the volume on my recorders were just never loud enough. But now, I connect my DAW to the stereo and then use the headphone on the stereo amp and turn the volume up full. The drums can still be loud but they're no longer a problem.
cutout said:
Neighbors aren't a problem (so far). It's more getting a pure, direct, non-compromised guitar signal with no room interference.
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I reiterate what I said earlier ¬> your mic is right up on the grill. You can't get closer than that unless you put the mic inside the amp itself. I can't see how that sound can be compromised or how the room can interfere. I'm surprized that you say the sound is lifeless. Perhaps it's the mic or the settings.
 
What you hear out in the room and what the mic hears right up close are two drastically different sounds. If you're new at this, you're probably not used to hearing a close-mic'd amp all on it's own. Mic position means everything. Little changes in position yield big changes in sound. Keep experimenting. Your room ambience is doing very little, if anything, to that mic right on the speaker.
 
If you're new at this, you're probably not used to hearing a close-mic'd amp all on it's own.
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I think you guys are right about getting used to recorded guitar sounding differently than it does in the room, specifically in the ears of someone who isn't experienced with that. Honestly, this is the first time using powered monitors and I understand their "flat" sound is meant to be more accurate, initially. But I think it's also made me think I'm not recording correctly. But I've learned that a little EQ'ing after the fact makes it sound great.

Regarding the room, the reason I wondered if it was too live is there's a slight 'clang' of reverb plus a bit too much bass. Again, I can EQ it, but if there are other small things to treat the room (rockwool, etc), I may try it.
 
Greg's right. The room won't play a big part in your recorded sound unless the mic is a few feet back from the amp.
That said, room treatment is a great idea for monitoring and mixing, so maybe you should look into for that reason?
 
Yup. By all means treat your room if you plan to mix in there, but don't go making a dead zone just to record an amp. Again, that close mic doesn't care how lively your room is, and a room mic will care and appreciate a lively space. Use both, blend the two.

Also, move the amp around. Put it up on a table. Put it in a corner. You'll hear it differently each time. You'd have to turn your room into a sealed, airless, vacuum chamber before you could rid it of any reflections.
 
I just had an experience today that I thought I would share.

Blues kinda band in here today. Could not get a guitar tone to save my life. SM7, 57, 421 through X73i all sucked ass. Cheap ass MXL R144 ribbon was the solution.

Not sure why, and really don't care. :)
 
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