HOW do you make/BUILD a CHEAP but NICE recording BOOTH??? HELPPPPPPP!!?!?

Are you looking to build a booth for isolation reasons or acoustics? This would be the biggest factor deciding the price.
 
how would you build one primarily for isolation but have a more than decent acoustic setup for vocals/guitar?

Well, if you want to get a great sound in it, its going to need to be large. By large I mean like, maybe slightly smaller than a bedroom. Not a 3' x 4' closet. To achieve decent isolation the walls should be insulated, and the door & its seals need to match the wall partition of STC rating (or more). To achieve a high level of isolation, you would need to build a second room within a room, maybe with double layers of drywall and green glue between. Treatment is the easy part, as diffusion and absorption can be placed (somewhat) creatively in a recording environment. Move able panels are nice since you'll be moving mics and instruments often, etc. I would likely combo diffusion and absorption through the use of slats, like our Scatter Plate.
 
Well, if you want to get a great sound in it, its going to need to be large. By large I mean like, maybe slightly smaller than a bedroom. Not a 3' x 4' closet. To achieve decent isolation the walls should be insulated, and the door & its seals need to match the wall partition of STC rating (or more). To achieve a high level of isolation, you would need to build a second room within a room, maybe with double layers of drywall and green glue between. Treatment is the easy part, as diffusion and absorption can be placed (somewhat) creatively in a recording environment. Move able panels are nice since you'll be moving mics and instruments often, etc. I would likely combo diffusion and absorption through the use of slats, like our Scatter Plate.

yeah, true - I have two slats/plates that I currently use ... here's what I'm really wondering tho.. how do you setup the ventilation without affecting the isolation/acoustics? I'm basically building a booth right now outside of my production room - so as not to take up any more space. I really like the idea of building a 'room within a room' - but how can I setup sufficient ventilation b/c it can get really stuffy in there!
 
yeah, true - I have two slats/plates that I currently use ... here's what I'm really wondering tho.. how do you setup the ventilation without affecting the isolation/acoustics? I'm basically building a booth right now outside of my production room - so as not to take up any more space. I really like the idea of building a 'room within a room' - but how can I setup sufficient ventilation b/c it can get really stuffy in there!

Yes, ventilation is very important! Unfortunately I'm not excellent with construction so I can't give you much advise in that direction. However, I would check out Rod Gervais' book "Home Recording Studio: Built it Like the Pros" and check out John L Sayer's recording forum. Rod is a well known studio designer, and his book is like 50% about isolation at least. There are diagrams, HVAC baffle boxes for ventilation, etc in it. John Sayers is also a known studio designer and his forum has lots of construction tips.

Good luck!
 
The best thing you need to do is to design a studio that fit to your personality. Also buy instrument that are important and needed on your studio.
 
Yes, ventilation is very important! Unfortunately I'm not excellent with construction so I can't give you much advise in that direction. However, I would check out Rod Gervais' book "Home Recording Studio: Built it Like the Pros" and check out John L Sayer's recording forum. Rod is a well known studio designer, and his book is like 50% about isolation at least. There are diagrams, HVAC baffle boxes for ventilation, etc in it. John Sayers is also a known studio designer and his forum has lots of construction tips.

Good luck!

thank you!
 
I have a video that touches on booths, and ideas for getting around using a booth.
Nothing is etched in stone, just ideas for those on a budget.
Does not really pertain to those running million dollar studios...lol
For the vocal booth speech in the video, skip to 8:20.



However, if you need isolation from external sounds, or if you are doing a booth for clients who,
for some strange reason, believe a studio is not a real
studio if you don't have a booth..then I could see the reason for making a booth.
 
if you cant afford anything... i used mcdonals cup holders on my ceiling and tacked a big blanket to the roof that hangs down.. all the way arround my mic.. this is as cheap as home studio isolation can get.. :)
 
and will do nothing as both items are acoustically transparent - they do not impede the movement of soundwaves, both having an absorption coefficient less than 0.01 in any of the meaningful frequency areas.
 
What I am saying is that absorption and diffusion costs money to do it right.

Most forms of drapery (which includes blankets) do next to nothing to low freq energy are quite effective at sucking up anything above 1kHz -this may make your room unnaturally balanced with a low end freq bias and no higg freq energy

Read all of the right hand side column of this John L Sayers Recording Manual, especially the section on absorbers (you need to click each of the upper tabs to see each subsection), pay attention to the coefficients chart at the end.
 
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band coach thankyou that is a good resource and good read it (still got a bit to go) feels as if i have to turn my room into a car haha, maybe i started angling my walls and cover it in fibreglass..
 
will you please stop talking about ghetto room treatments - those moving blankets will not fix the problems of a regular (domestic) room nor contribute to making it more like a custom designed room
 
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