Keeping sound from bouncing all over the room with plaster walls for better vocals???

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pisces7378

pisces7378

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Hey guys…. I finally just went out and bought myself an NTK by Røde. And it is sweet. I had an NT-1000 that the music store let me take home while my NTK came in for a week and I have to say that the valve really does make a difference in the sound. Quite a nice microphone it is. Anyway, I am having some acoustic issues that I was hoping you guys could help me with. My “studio” in my apartment is very, and let me stress again, VERY small. It is actually a 4 ½ x 4 ½ walk in closet. Well, it isn’t really a walk in closet like in the United States. I am in Germany and often flats have this coat room that is bigger than a walk in closet, but not really a proper room either. Anyway, the walls are made of solid white cold plaster. So they are as reflective as of I were singing in a shower. So needless to say, I get more acoustic bounce than is even close to acceptable.
Now my question is, how can I make it so that when I sing into my Condenser microphone, I only hear what I am singing and not the flood of echoes that I am picking up at the moment? I know that I will be needing some foam pads, or some other sound dampers. But I do not know which brands are out there and which are the best for the money et cetera. I certainly do not know where to put the foam on the walls to quiet the echoes. I mean, I could just coat the whole room, but that would be expensive as hell and it is probably not necessary. Plus, I don’t want it to sound like I am completely without room ambience. I want some bouncing back sounds… just not as much as I have now.
Could you guys please take a look at the drawing that I made of my home studio, and tell me where you would place some foam boards, and how large? Should I get the wedge shaped ones and stick them in the corners to eliminate the 90 degree angles? Is the ceiling the problem or the walls? And most importantly… where can you buy these foam pads on the Internet. I have checked Musiciansfriend.com and Americanmusical.com and I cannot find anything. I do not know any brands to run a search for, nor what these foam pads are really even called. Where can I find them on the net?
Here is a key for the attached drawing…
1. Beyer Dynamics Headphones
2. Røde NTK Condensor Microphone
3. Evolution MK-149 Midi-keyboard controller
4. Midiman Midisport 2x2
5. Line 6 POD Direct Recording Box
6. Roland JV 1010 Midi-Sound Module
7. OMNI Studio Audio Interface/Pre-amps/mixer-unit
8. Cork Bulletin Board
9. Pent III 933 Mhz, 128 MB RAM PC with Logic Audio Platinum
10. Computer Monitor
11. PC Keyboard and mouse
12. Book shelves, and books

Thanks guys,

Mike
 

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Nice pic! Did you do it in paint?

I'd see if you could hang some blankets on the wall some way. It's cheaper than foam since you already have them, and they might sound fine... Since it's your voice and not a Marshall stack, I think that just covering up the flat, solid surfaces with something soft will help.
 
Pisces

First of all, musician friends definately has studio foam but quite often it's not in there magazines. John Sayers is certainly the expert here when it comes to room acoustics.But, depending on your budget bass traps in the corners from auralex would help.John posted a great thread about rigid fiberglass panels which I don't know how hard it would be to find in Germany, otherwise carpet would certainly help on the walls.I put my bass traps approx. 6" down from the ceiling,put a 24"x 48" panel of auralex studio foam on the ceiling for sure because when a vocalist is standing up usually it's the closest hard surface to the mic/vocalist. maybe two more of those panels one behind your monitors and one more on the opposite wall from your monitors.This should certainly help.If you don't mind spending a little cash,auralex makes bass traps and they go for around $20/25.00 ea. and the 24"x48" panels sell for around $20.00ea.Otherwise, if you are creative there are alternatives.
P.S by the way I own a ntk and I agree it's a nice mic,enjoy it.check out www.marsmusic.com
 
I thought so too, about the blankets, and you are probably right. But I was looking for some foam pads, basically because it looks better. I know that shounds horrible, but this room is the first room that people see when they enter my appartment, and my girlfriend would never stand for me having blankets on the walls. And I personally would prefer to work in a more "professional" looking environment. If you think pro, you are pro.

So if anyone knows where I can get some foam boards on the net, just send me a link. Also, if you have any suggestions on placement of thes foam pads. And I record my caoustic guitar, both close miked and ditance miked. So it is not just my horrible voice I am worried about.

:D


Thanks,


Mike


PS... yeah I did it in Paint.... this is the epidome of "bored at work"
 
Pisces check it out!!

Mars has them under recording/acoustics or search for auralex.Peace...
 
Nice drawing, I was expecting to see Homer Simpson walk on the set!

I use carpet, it looks better than foam, does the job, and is a whole lot cheaper than foam.
 
Bumpy foam mattress pads from WalMart are only $14 each. You can put them up with a tiny spot of velcro on the walls and take them down when not recording.

I converted one of my bathrooms to a quickie booth this way and it only takes a minute to slap them up.
 
In a pretty decent room, for vocals, you can get away with not having sound treatment if you close mic. I have abox of auralex foam that I dont use anymore because I sing from less than 5 inches away.

I would suggest you take the mic to another room that does not have the plaster, or a bigger room , and close mic.

BTW congrats on your purchase of the ntk
 
When I was looking into getting some sort of dampening in my "studio" I just did a web search on google.com for egg crate foam. There are a lot of companies out there that sell the stuff in big sheets (often custom sizes as well) and for prices considerably cheaper than you would pay if you bought it from one of the music retailers. Off hand I don't recall where I got my stuff, but it was pretty cheap.

If I can find the receipt...I'll post the company's name here...
 
You are still going to have a problem with the computer noise in that little room.

Do what Cyan Jaguar suggests. large room/close mic.
 
Warning guys!!
Some of those foam/egg crate pads are a fire hazard because
the smoke is poisonus if they catch on fire.
I read about a guy who spent 6 weeks in the hospital because
he wanted to "customize" a pad by making holes in it with
a welding torch! (luckily he did live)
 
picture

well i dont know aynthing about your question, but i have to agree - very nice picture...haha
 
Are blankets/carpet realy that effective? How thick does the foam need to be? Whats the main differencs between normal foam and "acoustic foam"? (price wise and the way they work)
 
Tim O Brien

Are the bumpy mattress pads from WalMart good? How big are they? I'm REALLY interested...
 
Hi,
I just covered my little room with em...they seem to work real well, but still allow some bass to leak through...same with carpet...but fer the money it's still worlds better than hard walls, which is what I had before :)

I bought a twin size, which is like 4x8, and they had em up to king size, which is like 8x8 or something...big, anyways. the twin size was 8 bucks.
 
...But I was looking for some foam pads, basically because it looks better. I know that shounds horrible, but this room is the first room that people see when they enter my appartment, and my girlfriend...
Click to expand...

If you want the room to look better, then order those books by their hieght and their colors!
:D
 
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