Vocal Booth build vs buy.

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Thinking that I will never get an adequate treatment for a good sound in 'Studio A' (my walk-in closet) and the inconvenience of needing to turn off the heater and tell everybody to be quiet when I want to record something, I am considering adding a practice room/self-recording booth in my garage. I figure 4X4 or maybe 3x5 would be fine. Now there are several places on the net that sell standalone vocal booth kits of this size, complete with fan, door, etc. for aboout US$2000 plus shipping. That is not a small amount of money for me, but I wonder, by the time I am done with it would I have spent about the same doing it myself.

If you were wanting to build such a booth for well less than $2000 in materials where would you spend and where would you scrimp? Do you think the end result would be better/worse than the kits?
 
I'm wondering the same thing; whether to buy a vocal booth or use an extra room in my house and treat it so it would be adequate for a tracking room. For me, there are advantages and disadvantages on each route. If buying a vocal booth, I wouldn't need to dedicate a room in my house for tracking purposes. And a vocal booth would probably provide better sound isolation than the room I have to treat. The disadvantage is of course its cost. In my case, I might have to customize my vocal booth and that might cost a lot. Treating my room would be the other option. It would probably be cheaper and I can get the right materials nearby (I can get those rigid fiberglass 703 locally). The disadvantage is I would need an extra room in my house just for this purpose (nobody is going to sleep in a close to air tight room with a bunch of foams in it).

If I have the money right now, I would rather buy a vocal booth.
 
pdlstl said:
You may want to look into this...

Vocal Booth Plans
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Thanks for the link. It is interesting that he says that he built it for only $500 but is only selling the plans and I am feeling uneasy about coughing up $30 for them, particularly without any data about how well the booth really works.
 
Built a booth

I just finished building a booth. 40"x46". It cost about $450. It's in my basement. I only do voice over work so sound getting out was not the issue; I needed something where I could sit and read commercials and narration. I do need to add ventalation, though I can get by for a while (about 20 minutes) before needing a quick break and breath of fresh air.

I used Medium Density Fiberboard (from Home Depot), Auralex foam on the inside (Musicians Friend special) and a little carpeting on the floor and ceiling. I also built it so that if we moved, I could tear it down (using drywall screws).

The issue I ran into with the fiberboard was the smell. Each panel needed a couple coats of Polyeurathene. Other than that, as far as investments go, I wish I had built this before investing in other equipment. I use a Rode NT1-A into a Studio Projects VTB1 preamp then into a dbx266xl compressor. Nothing in the chain made as big a difference as that room in terms of getting a better sound.
 
steveanthony said:
I just finished building a booth. 40"x46". It cost about $450. It's in my basement. I only do voice over work so sound getting out was not the issue; I needed something where I could sit and read commercials and narration. I do need to add ventalation, though I can get by for a while (about 20 minutes) before needing a quick break and breath of fresh air.

I used Medium Density Fiberboard (from Home Depot), Auralex foam on the inside (Musicians Friend special) and a little carpeting on the floor and ceiling. I also built it so that if we moved, I could tear it down (using drywall screws).

The issue I ran into with the fiberboard was the smell. Each panel needed a couple coats of Polyeurathene. Other than that, as far as investments go, I wish I had built this before investing in other equipment. I use a Rode NT1-A into a Studio Projects VTB1 preamp then into a dbx266xl compressor. Nothing in the chain made as big a difference as that room in terms of getting a better sound.
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Interesting, So I take it your vocal booth consists of just ONE layer of MDF plywood with the foam on the inside? I dont think that would provide me anywhere near the isolation I would need in my noisy garage.
 
Here's a link to some pictures:

http://www.anthonymedia.com/booth/booth.htm

The odor I mentioned comes from formaldahyde used in the manufacture of the the fiberboard. It's been known to cause throat irritation in some people. Two coats of polyurethene were recommended to contain the odor. It worked for me.

Regarding the single layer of MDF, yes, and foam inside. I considered dual layers, even using Sound Barrier high density vinyl between the layers. That would have added $250. That is still an option but the configuration right now works for what I need. It keeps out the noise when the furnace comes on and water running through pipes (basement sounds) along with noises from the upstairs such as the TV and people walking around.
 
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Interesting design, I noticed that you didn't bother having a door but just hinged one whole wall. What if anything did you use as a seal for the crack, anything?
 
The wall the door sits on is framed with 2x4's. The door, when shut, sits tight against the 2x4s. It won't pass the waterproof test, but it works in my environment. I use eye hooks on the top and bottom of the door to get a tight seal. Crude but effective.

I took my design and materials que from WhisperRoom:

http://www.whisperroom.com/facts.html

They use MDF, too. I considered sheet rock, but I chose MDF. To me, in this situation, it was easier to work with. I only had to build two framed walls instead of four (if I went with sheet rock). Plus I wanted something that would be easy to tear down in case of a move.
 
I used a "Whisper Room" once I think it was about $3000

The reason the Company went with the name "Whisper Room" is because if someone is whispering anywhere within a one mile radius it can be heard loud and clear inside the "Whisper Room"
 
VanAmp said:
I used a "Whisper Room" once I think it was about $3000

The reason the Company went with the name "Whisper Room" is because if someone is whispering anywhere within a one mile radius it can be heard loud and clear inside the "Whisper Room"
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Yeah, I am hoping to cut the price of the Whisper Room by about two thirds. I know that I won't be able to get complete isolation from a single panel.

Here is my current idea. From the outside in:

3/4 inch MDF
3/4 inch EPS
7/16 in OSB
5/8 Gypbd
5/8 Gypbd

Since that would be way too heavy for a hinged panel I am considering splitting the door down the middle and having half of a swinging panel for the door.
 
What is EPS? Foam?

What are your planned dimensions? And will you be seperating panels to allow an air gap between them walls or double them up?
 
steveanthony said:
What is EPS? Foam?

What are your planned dimensions? And will you be seperating panels to allow an air gap between them walls or double them up?
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Expanded polystyrene, foam like in coffee cups. Since I want the booth be able to be disassembled stud construction is impractical, so I am considering a sandwich panel as a mass-spring-mass in which the EPS (about as springy as you can get and still be suitable for a sandwich panel) is the spring. So the exterior MDF will be glued to the EPS, the EPS will be glued to the OSB, and then the gypbd will be glued and minimally screwed to the OSB.

I am considering 4 ft by 4 ft nominal inside dimensions before adding the interior absorbtive wall covering. (felt over 2 inch rockwool or fiberglass if I can find a supplier)
 
i've helped build a few vocal booths in the last 2 years.. as small as 4''x4'' to 10''x16
we mainly used mdf or hdf wood. hdf keeps more sound out and is more dense, but cost more too.
we usually always used 2 layers of hdf. the outside of the booth and between the layers of hdf we used "sound barrier"
over the sound barrier on th outside of the booth we had a thin grey carpet around it.. kinda like vocalbooth.com (most of our designs we copied from vocalbooth.com)

the inside, i usually had 4inch foam with a bare wood floor. sometimes i'd stain the wood floors.
as for the glass that was the hardest part...on almost every booth but 1-2 the glass was to small for the frame... so i would seal around it with silicone. i usually used 1inch plexiglass.
avg cost was around $430 for a 4x4,4x6,6x6 anything larger was $450 and up.

we never had any noise/sound issues. the one studio where i was able to hear a little bass, the guy had a 7.2 setup with 2 event 15inch subwoofers
 
What type of foam? Was it a specific acoustic foam or other type, such as dense upholstery or shipping? I used 1" Auralex and that took almost half the budget, the total being $450 ($200 for the Auralex).

One other question; ventilation? How do you push air through it while keeping down the noise? I'm planning on building a ductwork/baffeling system to run a fan through along with a return vent. I'm still trying to hunt down a quiet fan that will push enough air through the ducts. Any thoughts?
 
A couple years later

I notice this post still gets some hits, and, judging from the stats on my web site, people are following the link to the page about the booth I built a couple years ago. I just reread what I wrote back then. If you are looking for input on building a booth, there are a couple of things I've picked since the original construction.

First, get Rod Gervais's book, 'Home Recording Studio' It explains a number of things quite clearly. For me, there were a number of, 'oh, I get it now,' moments.

Second, study the stuff on Ethan Winer's site, www.realtraps.com.

Third, broadband absorbers versus foam. If you build your own absorbers from Owen Corning 703, the cost can be much cheaper per square foot compared to Auralex.

Which brings me to the last point. If you're serious about building an isolation system such this, there are no substitutes for the right materials you see recommended over and over on this bbs. Don't believe you can get away with carpet on the walls and cheap foam (which, as you may have read, I tried). Invest your money once (and wisely) in the right materials and build using proper techniques.

Finally, pay attention to posts with responses by Rod Gervais, Ethan Winer, bpape, Rick Fitzgerald, Frederick, and Knightfly. They do know their stuff.

And as far as the booth mentioned in this post, it was torn down about six months ago. I built a new booth (more like a small room). It's working out very nicely in that I followed the advice that the people I mentioned offered.

That's my take on it a couple of years later.
 
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