I bought this exact reflection filter and it works wonders in my bedroom studio. I have wood floors and the room is huge with no acoustic foam anywhere and I would definitely recommend it to anyone with the same type of workspace.
These things work. People who use the microphone improperly tend to change their mic'ing behaviour when using one and often times even succumb to Placebo. :)
Nice to see someone actually debunking these things. Also, the reflection filter isn't the only thing not working, that pop filter is still letting a lot of bursts thru to the mic capsule. Most of them do. They're definitely better than nothing, but nowhere near as good as distance and technique. From an audio engineer and VO artist 25 years in the game: there's no reason to point your mouth directly at the mic capsule, and in fact most people project sound more out of one side of their mouth than they do the front or the other side. Watch yourself talk on video and you'll see your mouth habitually curving and pulling off to one side, that's where the vowels and resonance go. Point THAT side of your mouth at the mic by standing where you normally do but pointing your nose 3-5" to the side of the mic, and your P's and F's and Ess's will sail past the capsule while the body of your voice hits the capsule beautifully.
Thanks for that advice I will definitely use it for my voice acting I'm a newbie so getting all of the help I can is important at this stage. I definitely have issues with F's, lol
Thanks for the advice. This makes a lot of sense, and I've sort of been doing some version of this on some of the louder vocals for a lot of years. Maybe now I can start actually making it work and knowing why it does. Cheers!
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I ware a large mexican hat with my kids soft toys hanging round the rim when I record vocals. This breaks up room reflexions from behind me really well. I wish I could patent the idea.!!!
You shouldn't listen to everyone because he is definitely not accurate . He is showing how not to use it. And his examples of what it's made to do is also "inaccurate" but to each it's on. And remember Even a treated room doesn't block sound from getting in the room only stops sound vibration from bouncing by absorbing it.
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I thought he was right at first, but I got the same reflection filter and realized I just had the filter and mic at the wrong angle. I experimented with the angle of the filter and mic and virtually all of the reverb I was getting from my living/dining room is GONE. If you are rapping or singing at home, this is what this was designed for and it will give you more of a studio type sound. Its definitely worth trying if you are serious and ocd about your sound, but you can't just "throw" it onto your stand, lol you have to think it through and position it correctly just like all your other equipment.
Kendall Madison I tested on my brothers and the sound is muffled and sounds really dual in a bad way. I think its better then no type of treatment at all but if you have padding and what not this hurts you.
Kendall Madison so disagree. I'm wearing apple lightening pods listening to this video and heard reverbation literally throughout the entire video. You have to have a trained ear to tell, but it's always there with those ugly things.
Excellent analysis. My dad gifted me with one a few years ago. I tried it and was disappointed with how it solved zero issues with my recording. Recording in my closet with blankets on my walls has been a bigger improvement than the reflection filter
actually your voice sounds way better with the SE Reflection Filter... your room is very reverberant.... so regardless you should treat your room and THEN use a reflection Filter.
I was also skeptical but I bought one for around 100$, and the improvement is really noticeable!!! so you can talk theoretically as much as you want - but in the practical level, it DOES make a difference!
He's not "talking theoretically", he's demonstrating practical. If you spent $100 on one and it did anything, you must have had it in a racquet ball court.
@@reekrodriqguez6552 They're assuming that he's talked himself into thinking it wasn't a bad & expensive purchase bc people don't like feeling dumb. But sound situations are different for everyone, the shape of the room, kind of mic, position in the room, materials in the walls, the source being captured... It's too varied to ever have definitive answers.
Ohhhh that closet trick was actually taught in my cinema course :) This video presentation was very VERY helpful and you've just saved me some serious $$$ I'm actually considering a complete sound booth and that's probably embarrassing overkill as I don't have your skills or voice quality. Thumbs UP and I wish you all the best! For at least the next ten minutes, you're my vocal hero!
If you can't hear the difference, then you don't need one :). It depends on the frequency content/volume of your source as well as your room. It also depends on what surface you are facing. Sometimes the difference is very small...sometimes not. It definitely reduces room ambient noise (record the quiet room with and without to check it). It smooths out high and and high mid frequencies that bounce back into the mic. I have tested it in treated rooms with a bunch of different sources. If your mic is set too deep into the filter, it will add low mids. So, not a room silencer. It is a room tamer. Another to know is that it depends on your mic choice. Large Condenser mics pick up low frequencies from off axis sources. The bleed around the mic is fatter.... The Filter lowers that significantly.
I love the way he came back and stared like " are you done"? or who are you talking to ? lol till he finally sat down. I wish I was there to sit on the floor and pet him I just love dogs!!!!!
record in the smallest room in your house. make sure it's carpet. bedrooms can be great because your bed will eat up most of the echo/reverb. don't put your pop guard as close as he does, because you can still hear it popping. some mics, even cheap ones, won't pick up as much echo as others, so shop around. keep your damn door closed. clean up your audio when editing, like breathing, sniffs, mouth sounds etc. just some basic tips to get you started.
Man, your videos are great and I don't know why you don't have more views! Straight to the point, well explained, great stuff. And 3:10 was absolutely hilarious. Good work.
I think these shields are effective and helpful when used strategically. The shield doesn't help in this video because the reflections are mostly coming from that massive corridor behind you. I bet you would get better results if you turned your whole set up so the off axis point of the mic was aimed at the corridor and then you drew some curtains on the windows on your sides.
Just a note that if you are doing voiceover work, this is probably true. If you are projecting and singing loudly, this is not true at all. This is an extremely effective filter. While I like this channel for some review data, note that a lot of these scenarios are specific to voiceover work and don't hold true if you are using these for recording amps/singing. That being said i love the C100s :)
DezBusta that sucks bro. I'm not far enough in my animating to start recording anything yet, so honestly I don't even know if what I have will work for me or not. I'm trying to do better about looking for tutorials, or reviews before buying things now.
You talk too much man you're not Eddie Kramer just get to the point we already know the answer we're just watching to see if you know what you're talking about
If there's a wall in front of you then it will prevent the sound from bouncing behind you and back to the front of the mic. So it is better than nothing at all in an untreated room.
Only if your wall is made of foam, otherwise that wall will quickly bounce the sound from your mouth back into the mic (very bad) and also back into the room where it'll scatter in all directions and eventually come back into the mic, blurred and reverbed from all the trips. Generally speaking, you want mics as far from any hard, reflective boundary or surface as possible.
@@TheHouseofKushTV- He means that the mini sound booth reduces the sound level reaching the wall ahead of you, and therefore less sound gets to bounce back past you and reflect back again to your mic off the the wall behind you. I reckon that's true, and similar to the previous technique with the clothing.
Exactly right, but not just walls...in the real world a lot of people are at desks or near computers, mixers, monitors, etc...and while everyone is so focused on walls, they forget that any large surface is reflective.
There's many other factors in dealing with room acoustics during recording. Unless you're in a completely isolated studio booth, you're always gonna deal with some level of unneeded noise. A lot of commercially released projects in the past 10 years were recorded in tour buses, hotel rooms, bedrooms, etc. Jay and Kanye's Watch The Throne album was mostly recorded in a hotel, and Erykah Badu's New Amerykah album was recorded at her home and in a studio with the monitors playing in the background. A good producer, engineer and mixer can find ways to deal with noise and room acoustics. You'd have to pack the room and keep it as isolated as possible. Gates/limiters/compressors can deal with the remaining noise in your mix. As far as the reflection filters go, there's better ones than the one in the video (I have one that came in a bundle pack for $100)... but they definitely help in getting rid of a great deal of noise. It's not what you use, but how you use it.
Interesting. For what it's worth, in my experience, this small booth has been the single most noticeable and worth while improvement to my set up. A world of difference and something I'd not hesitate to recommend to anyone wanting to record some vocals for music (which is what I'm using my set up for).
your setup is wrong if something with no mass is improving the sound of a small booth with little real acoustic treatment mr small booth lots of foam guy how about you plz learn of deversion of sound and waves
A FUN DAY production's stop being rude, trash ass Insecure you tuber calling him out for 0 subs when doesn’t even do RUclips, you just frustrated with your lack of success in RUclips buddy.
@@seerking a fraction of a cost but requires certain skills and knowledge which, despite how easy those are, still needs time and effort invested. Not everyone has the know-how or even the inclination to do that.
The reflection filter helps to absorb the sound of your voice to prevent your voice from bouncing around the room but it isn't intended to be the sole solution. Put it in proximity to a wall directly behind you where you hang a large piece of carpet or a comforter. Or have a standup recording baffle behind you as well. You can also treat the room to kill reflections in conjunction with a reflection filter.
4:09 isn’t this unfair? Your snapping is projecting frequency in all directions vs your projecting your waves into the shield. Moreover, when you’re talking dead center of the shield, it’s meant to mitigate the spread. It’s far from perfect, but off center speaking and snapping away from the core of the shield are far from what it’s supposed to treat. Though without levels on screen, it’s sheer speculation on my end! It’s an old video tho I’ve seen your latest stuff. Just in the fence about these shields still
Also he should be further back but hey we like what we like I personally just bought one and I live in a trailer and it was exactly what I need the vocals I've been able to produce with it is a big step up
@@KNGxARK I ended up getting one too haha. The levels when I tested them in a controlled environment weren’t different enough to warrant buying on their own but psychologically I did notice my mic technique was WAY better so it actually ended making a difference you can hear. But not functionally haha so in a weird way, it does work for me. We like what we like, as you correctly said.
You can get a nice-looking, wooden room divider for $100 to $150 and hang acoustic foam panels on one side. Treat an empty corner of your room with acoustic foam panels too (or something more decorative that is still thick and soft), and now you have a nice little sound booth that is hidden by the decorative side of the room divider and can be moved to create more space. Make sure the room divider is tall enough for you. Most are 5-and-a-half feet tall, but plenty are 6-feet tall. The "empty corner" could also be an open bedroom wall closet.
I have quite different experience with that one. Mine is very cheap and deeper, made out of foam only and slightly thicker. I am also putting a towel over the top and you can deffinetly hear the difference with and without it. Also since you are standing in front of the mike, your head and body is mitigating some front reflection too. I think that for home setup this is useful piece of gear and actually make your takes better. It`s not matching the high end studio acoustic treatment, but better than nothing in my opinion
funny my reflection filter or vocal dhield does an anszing job on my voice overs and singing without it the quslity is gone with it my mic performs like a champ more to condider than just the shield but your room composition and instances of first reflection and how your room is treated
It actually can help (in theory) as it absorbs a lot of soundwaves of your voice, preventing them from bouncing off the walls in front of you, which would otherwise then bounce off the walls behind you into the sensitive part of the microphone. Would've liked a better side-to-side comparison than you did now.
You do realize how sound works right? Before the microphone even captures your voice the sound wave has to first bounce off the wall in front of you, then it will move to the wall behind you, and finally it reaches the mic on the travel back from the wall behind you back to the front of you. So (in theory) if this is how sound works. Putting a deflection on the front will do nothing for the reflections that are caught from the wall behind you during the soundwave's travel. You have to treat what is in front of you and behind you(acoustically treat) in order to even get any real results. This is also why condenser microphones have a designated front and back of the micrphone, because sound isn't as simple as you'd think. So yes, these shields are quite pointless alone.
@@MorbydManic I don't agree with you. Sound waves created by your vocal chords get picked up directly by your microphone. Those soundwaves bouncing off the walls are exactly the things you want to eliminate from being able to be picked up by the microphone. This is why you want something like this to absorb the soundwaves after they reached the microphone. And yes indeed, most condenser mics only pick up audio from one side, the side you talk in.
That's what I have done. I have a large empty closet with sound treated walls behind/beside me, bass traps on the ceiling, carpeted floor, and the shield in front of me. I can see my copy just fine on a music stand below it. I'm new but it appears to work well! My shield is a bit bigger and more semi-circular than the one he uses. I do get his point, however.
This is the one I bought: Not bad for a hundred bucks. www.amazon.com/LyxPro-Isolation-Microphone-Absorbing-Performance/dp/B00WRHTVS6/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1511905352&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=audio+isolation+shield&psc=1
In my experience this worked like a charm. I did multiple recordings with ans without and the difference was significant. My recording studio, before installing the panels, it was very reverbish, and when I tried the SE it did made a huge difference.
do you record with your face near mic as his in the video? I'm just wondering if it would work if I install in next to my drop down mic so my voice would have some distance from the microphone. Table stand mic kind of block my gaming view, thanks!
The one good thing about these filters is that when you sing, (especially belting), it stops your voice hitting the wall in front of you, bounce back to behind you, then back into the most sensitive side of your mic. Used in conjunction with other foam I think it is quite useful. Of course, for the $$$, a DIY vocal booth isn't that hard to make, which will do the trick better overall.
hey! im trying to figure out if i should get a 5 panel reflection filter/isolation booth because i sing alot of belted pop songs and my room is not treated in any way. if i want lesser reflections should i record with my back to a wall and have my isolation shield in front of me?
My studio set up is in a bedroom, which is a 12x12 box, and very bad for recording. I bought an Auralex Roominator Kit about ten years ago. The newer ones look like they absorbs better then the kit I have. The kit removed the slap back and a few of the upper and lower reflections, but I still had unwanted a lot of low and upper mid frequency build up. During the mixing stage I used to have to do a lot of surgical EQ cutting. For years I had to deal with this, until I bought the same filter he is demoing about two years ago. It worked out great for vocals and just amazing for micing up my guitar cabinet. Now I do very little EQ cutting, thus retaining the source sound. The room he is recording in doesn’t really sound bad. No slap back, not bassy, but with a little bit of airy highs from the back wall. When he stands behind the filter it removed little bit of the upper frequencies and the airiness in the room. Understand that your room needs may not be the same as his room needs, Every room is different. Some rooms need more dispersion, while others need more absorption or both. This filter helped with my problems. Is it perfect no, but my results are a hell of a lot better then what I had before...plus its portable. :)
Don't listen to this guy, he is ignorant. Just buy one and test it by yourself but test it well with more than one scenario and you will hear the difference. In this days anybody can be expert, just place your iPhone in front of you and record video and put them on YT and voila....you are an expert. It's soooo sad :(
Thank you, your video is very informative and helped me trmendosly. I am seting up my area so I can record audio books. Your video answered many of my questions, I am so happy to have found your video.
I don't understand. You say that one of the reasons it's not good is because it doesn't protect the sound reflecting behind you, but in your video about creating a voice booth, you talk into the closet, but you don't have anything to absorb the sound behind you. So which side should you prioritize in absorbing reflections?
But it's still in front of him, even though the most sensitive part of the microphone gets reflections from behind him, right? So shouldn't he speak with the closet to his back, instead?
See, I've always pondered this. There's a video of Amy Winehouse recording with Mark Ronson and she has her back to a mattress (they're also above her). So.... Wouldn't it be best to use the filter in front and the dampening behind?... Confusing.
Majority of the reflections coming from behind in the room he's talking in throughout the video are from the sound hitting the floor, ceiling, and walls behind the mic and then reflecting off the walls behind him. In the closet, all of these waves are heavily dampened soon after they leave his mouth.
I should have watched this video before I bought mine! I didn’t think it was working which is why I ended up here! LOL. I don’t notice it helping my recordings at all in an untreated room.
There are other reflection filters that can bend and surround the mic almost fully, leaving only the space needed for you to be infant of it. I believe those ones work better than the one you showed.
I have to disagree on this one. I use a Primacoustic Voxguard with a Neumann U47 Fet and it works perfectly. I've used it on EVERY one of my uploads on my RUclips channel. I didn't like the way the Se Reflexion filter used in this video sounded. It bounced too much sound around.I think it's because of the material they used during construction.It was kinda harsh. My mic is cardioid only, and I could still hear reflections off the Se like it was an omni. PLUS, the Primacoustic costs HALF the price of the SE Reflexion Filter Pro.
Out of all comments, no one is talking about COMB FILTERING? Don’t buy these, spend money on bass traps and studio foam for your recording room(bedroom, living room, etc)
I mostly agree. In a multitrack band environment, it would provide a little protection from other instrument bleed. Also, use it facing into the room with your closet behind you. Might do something.
Solution: Heavy 'moving blankets' really cheap of Amazon (or expensive Professional acoustic blankets) place one on the floor, one behind and in front I like these because it's a portable collapsible solution. For a fixed studio solution buy some rockwool slabs and put them in wooden frames covered with a moderately 'loose' knit fabric. It's important that the fabric weave/knit is loose enough to allow the sound to enter and get absorbed by the rockwool. A fabric with too tight a knit will actually reflect the sound and stop the panel from working. These panels are remarkably effective and work best when fixed above your head out of shot. and then on the back wall behind you as you talk into the mic and then a couple out of shot on the side walls. A thick deep pile carpet also is very effective providing it covers wall to wall. 😉
I made a cheap ass vocal booth with PVC pipe. Covered it in moving blankets. It sounds amazing. Was wondering if adding a reflection filter would help. Probably better to buy foam for inside the booth. Moving blankets are clutch though.
Sadly, the late Tom Petty was the only person I have ever seen use these properly whereas he set these up around the microphones he was using to record his amps in a live setting. Preventing outside bleed is their purpose and I guess the manufacturers will do anything to sell them..
If I talk into the mic, the panel keeps my voice around the mic, thus avoiding my voice to go around the room and come back into the mic as reverb. The panel's job is to avoid my voice to spread, that's the reason why it is in front of me speaking. It is not a barrier against sounds coming from around, it is a levee to contain the sound I am recording.
I've been using my unfinished laundry room to record, the cement floor absorbs any vibrations, the exposed insulation absorbs sound, and there are no windows. I think I'll just leave it like that.
They don't replace proper room treatment, but I will say that I have been rejected for jobs when I did not use one of these shields and accepted for jobs when I did. I'm no audio engineer so take it with a grain of salt, but if you can find one of the cheaper ones (they all essentially do the same thing) then I say go for it.
These do work. When sound leaves your mouth and hits the shield, the sound ceases to travel. The sound has no chance to bounce off walls and reenter the mic from the front
Daniel Walker nigga trust the homie got a studio with this exact booth for his setup and it sounds like a professional studio but he does have it faced towards the wall with foam where his back is facing
Yabbut, "the sensitive side of the mic" is different for different mics. Some mics are just as sensitive on the back side as on the front (figure-8 polar pattern).
Great video but in another video where you set up the booth on the fly in the apartment you said your first concern is blocking reflections from the wall in front of you. In this video however you say its more important to block reflections that come from behind you. Which statement is right now?
I think blocking the reflections from in front is more important because your voice being projected in that direction and thus has more energy, so it can then bounce off the front wall then bounce off the back wall and then into the mic along with the sound that travels out the back of your head and behind you While it's true that that side is less sensitive, if your voice bounces off the wall in front of you with enough energy it'll bounce off with enough energy to make noise in even the less sensitive part of the mic, and then also bounce off the back wall and go into the mic. The sound from behind you will always be weaker because you aren't projecting that way, unless sound from the front bounces to the back and adds to it
I know this is an old video but hear me out. What about using the reflection filter and closet in tandem? Like you have your back to the closet and the reflection filter / microphone set up in front of you. That way it would be the best of both worlds :p
Start off with a really decent microphone first something like a U47fet and go hide in the closet with it and make your recording. You will not be disappointed
The amount of variables involved in this kind of discussion is considerable. I've seen such a wild range of different results over decades, and I'd have to say, the easiest answer is "it depends". LOL In practical terms, I have one of these types of shields I use for specific singing voices with specific mics WITH specific room acoustic treatments IF the trade-off for higher frequency reverberation reduction outweighs the "coloring" at the bottom end. Probably one of the most reputable and well thought out tests in this space is from SOS: www.soundonsound.com/reviews/how-effective-are-portable-vocal-booths Personally, I think these can work in specific situations, and depends a lot on the room and the acoustics of that room (treated or not, and if treated, with what measures). Generally we're talking in frequency terms above 1 kHz and and probably more like 2-3 kHz range and UP to reduce reflections, which generally helps. However in the low range (often 200-400 Hz range) these can cause "early reflections" which "color" (colour) the sound, and may produce unwanted elements. SOS suggests using a cardioid pattern mike which faces AWAY from the shield, hence potentially reducing any early reflections. So, setting up the recording gear effectively and optimally is, "surprise, surprise", going to have a significant influence on the outcome. For example, what kind of voice we're recording, and what it is doing makes a huge difference - deep toned pod caster vs powerful soprano singer - everything is completely different. Add into that "taste" and a plethora of desired outcomes, and honestly making a sweeping claim something is "good" or bad" with no bench-marking reduces the usefulness of this video. Really, it's "horses for courses", and lot depends on what the "producer" in a studio wants, or the person at home recording vocals or podcasts. The variables are immense. So as stated at the start, "it depends". Hope that helps - or did I just "muddy the mix"? LOL
These things work wonders in the right scenario. In your example you are standing in the middle of a large empty room... In my scenario, I am at a desk with a 32" monitor, mixer and studio monitors behind the mic. That makes a lot of nearby reflective surfaces, and putting one of these shields behind the mic did worlds of good. I know this video is a bit old, but there are really good shields for like $40 now...which costs less and is more effective than covering the walls with acoustic treatment if your main issue is nearby reflective fixtures or walls.
Seriously?? First they don’t block “Reverb”, by which he probably means flutter echo or initial reflections, it is meant to improve off axis rejection from the back of the mic capsule. Second, it certainly doesn’t help that he has the mic not only outside the reflection filter, but has the front of the capsule angled up towards the ceiling getting those reflections, making the back of the capsule angled towards the floor not into the filter. Yes these work well, but of course you can make one yourself for super cheap.
hello, nice work booth junkie , i have a samson meteor mic and im happy with it for the price i think is one of the best in his price tag but i need to upgrade the eco from it i use nothing but a arm for putting it as close as posible to my mouth and its a great improve of course but still need something else, what do you recommend me! have a great day !! and keep going on, nice work! preciate!!!
Whilst I agree with the basic conclusions you have drawn in this video I'm not sure that anybody who actually knows what they're doing when buying this product expects it to be the only piece of acoustic treatment they need to prevent reflections arriving at the microphone. I certainly don't. But these products are a convenient, cheap and relatively effective way to start doing that for a project studio. The next step should always be to contrive an absorbent surface behind the vocalist to stop reflections from that direction as well - a cheap and effective way to do this is to hang a duvet or thick blanket. Here is a link to a response to these issues from a reputable source for anyone interested - www.soundonsound.com/sound-advice/q-reflection-filter-worth-money. Finally, if you have problems holding copy, invest in a box of pins.
I have seen a video in which a person takes it to the bathroom and recorded his vocals and it made a huge huge difference,.May be not that noticeable in the room..
He might have had his microphone in an omnidirectional magnetic pattern, then a filter like that would reduce the noise by half. But on a cardioid configuration, the microphone already reduces those areas anyway.
The SE device is more suited for situations where ambient sound from behind the mic is a problem, such as micing a horn section in a room with lots of ambient sound, or using a Ribbon mic on a vocal in a live room. It’s not a device for doing voice over work.
So I am looking at this from another angle... my theory is these shields are absorbing your vocal from getting out into the room . Thus cutting down on the reverb the room can generate. Not cutting back reflections trying to get into the mic after bouncing around the room. If that were the case would not the foam be on the outside of the unit also? And why do most manufacturers use a metal support? Would that not help waves bounce around the room even more? I had one "VO booth" that were a loud talent caused the room to just bounce the waves around. I bought one of these and it made a big difference. Discussion begins now...
I Like the closet idea, thanks so much. although My wife wasn’t thrilled when I converted her walk in closet into a drum booth. With clothing hanging on 3 walls the sound was amazing. I may also use this idea on location shoot, bad room sound get the wardrobe person to roll a rack from wardrobe onto the set. Tho hanging clothes sound absorber such an effective idea.
To block behind me when I record, I have a cheep adjustable height garment rack I got from Amazon. I hang heavy drapes on it. Even a couple of bedspreads or old sleeping bags work. As well I'm thinking of getting 3 more and make a portable sound booth. For any photographers out there hang your light diffuser on the cloths rack, makes a good stand for light diffuser.
How about a shoulder harness mount that allows it to surround the back of your head, sorta like a wearable, 'cone of silence' (name that reference) ;-)
Here's thought. I have been working in the industry in South Africa for the last 30 years. I own a studio on the sunny east coast and do mainly independent television work. I have a client that is in another province and roughly an hour and a half flight away. There is a facility nearby where she can record her voice over for a show that I do the dubbing mix for but she is so busy with her production schedule that she simply does not have the time to get to that. So I came up with an idea to get her voice down in the comfort of her own home.Now I might add at this point that it is a lower budget production and she produces the show as well as do the voice over for it. For the firs episode she set up a cardioid mic at her dining room table and recorded straight into the edit suite where she was doing her offline edit. That was a big fail. So I got her to set up a small table right in front of her open closet with her back facing the closet. Then I had her drape her duvet over the open closet doors above her, effectively creating a make shift booth. And that just worked like a charm. The reflections coming from the front wall to the back wall was trapped in the thick layer of clothing behind her. And there is no reflection from the roof as her feather duvet takes care of that. We are voicing the 9th episode this week. So far so good. And it really sounds pretty good. Thank you for giving me some insight into these reflection booths. I now know what I always suspected. They are a bit of a waste. Keep up the good work. I enjoy your channel.
Honestly I don't care about all this anymore. I record on a desk with a booth around my mic and with my closet door behind it and it's working fine. I dont have this model but tbh with the one i have i can hear a big enough difference to like it, i just wish there wasn't so much discouragement around cheap gear, I'm only 16 and I'm not poor but I'm also not rich enough to get all these different costly things just to make stuff either. I know you probably don't intentionally do this and I'm probably not you're target audience either but I'm tired of this feeling I seem to get or the message that's pushed alot when I try to learn about recording gear on RUclips that you need so much high grade gear to make good art. I'm working the best with what I have and I'm doing fine. When I look at the setup I do have it inspires me and motivates my creativity to where I feel like I can do anything with all the cool stuff I have if I put in the work. It used to make feel discouraged and sad a little but at this point it's just annoying to have so many people say that the stuff I and many others do have are "bad products" or "not worthwile" but I'm done letting all this dictate my creativity or more so letting it make me feel like I'm not able gear wise with what i have to make good art and neither should anyone else reading this with a similar feeling. I'm not sending any hate but this video made me think about all this and I'm just kinda ranting to get that last message across. If anyone could share how they feel a booth helps them that'd be cool to
Well, no. I have a 25 X 35 foot room. I'm behind the mic and siting in an alcove, talking into the room which is all tricked out with absorption and diffusion. It's a great space in which to record VO.
I recorded the vocals for an album track back in 2005 where we needed a really dry/intimate vocal. The artist was completely surrounded by a circle of heavy woolen blankets - hung from floor to ceiling. There were absolutely ZERO room reflections! Those screens (as you say in the video) appear to be trying to block sound coming towards the least sensitive part of the microphone. A complete waste of money IMO! Either treat the room or raid the bedroom linen closet :-)
I bought this exact reflection filter and it works wonders in my bedroom studio. I have wood floors and the room is huge with no acoustic foam anywhere and I would definitely recommend it to anyone with the same type of workspace.
I love it so much
Jack seems to be more interested in hearing his voice than giving good advice.
But you can clearly hear that it doesn't work in this video???
@Joëlle Weetjewel wow really, they are over $400 in australia
These things work. People who use the microphone improperly tend to change their mic'ing behaviour when using one and often times even succumb to Placebo. :)
Nice to see someone actually debunking these things. Also, the reflection filter isn't the only thing not working, that pop filter is still letting a lot of bursts thru to the mic capsule. Most of them do. They're definitely better than nothing, but nowhere near as good as distance and technique.
From an audio engineer and VO artist 25 years in the game: there's no reason to point your mouth directly at the mic capsule, and in fact most people project sound more out of one side of their mouth than they do the front or the other side. Watch yourself talk on video and you'll see your mouth habitually curving and pulling off to one side, that's where the vowels and resonance go. Point THAT side of your mouth at the mic by standing where you normally do but pointing your nose 3-5" to the side of the mic, and your P's and F's and Ess's will sail past the capsule while the body of your voice hits the capsule beautifully.
Pop filters work better than pop screens.
Thanks for that advice I will definitely use it for my voice acting I'm a newbie so getting all of the help I can is important at this stage. I definitely have issues with F's, lol
Thanks for the advice. This makes a lot of sense, and I've sort of been doing some version of this on some of the louder vocals for a lot of years. Maybe now I can start actually making it work and knowing why it does. Cheers!
Thanks! 👍🏼
0:25 "My owner is talking to himself again... I wish he would get help..."
Really wish he could help him
Sometimes he even talks to the closet. I hope he remembers to feed me.
@@drshillermd LMAOOOOO
0:28 "Nope. I'm out".
One of the Best Ideas of SoundProofing is "SoundProof Curtains" That Stops Outside Noise by 80% (25 Db) Tested. Check Here: livesoundproof.com/best-soundproof-curtains/
3:16 - When someone in the other room says they gonna spark a blunt.
DEAD
😂🤣bruh
LMAO!!!!
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
OOF
Saved me some money, thanks dude
I bought one and it damned works. I can more or less close it, and if very closed it works really really well...
@@manunoyonify you gotta remember that comment was 2 years ago they were probably getting scammed and not working back then
His one is shit ... It's all about the type
Look at this one ruclips.net/video/7QNgysYZAyI/видео.html
Makes ur voice sound fuller
Is This The Guy From Hangover ?????
Yeah, he's Zack Galifianakis
@@muscleman371 NO. Zack Galifinakis is a fat guy with a beard
@@jland12
So the guy in the video isn't "a fat guy with a beard" ?
@@kingaragornii9940 and...there goes the joke.
@@jland12
Yes.
I ware a large mexican hat with my kids soft toys hanging round the rim when I record vocals. This breaks up room reflexions from behind me really well. I wish I could patent the idea.!!!
Do you mean a sombrero?
darkmeanjunior .Si senior, buenisimo!!!
Ahahahah
LMAO
Shhhh don't give out the secrets man
The Dog was like “look man, if this ain’t about food, I’m unsubbing 😂”
OG comment 😂
Doggo: Hey dad you wanna go pla- oh youre recording? I'll just go nap on the carpet then. See ya.
This was the best advice that I got. Thanks. I do not need the reflection filter.
I agree
You shouldn't listen to everyone because he is definitely not accurate . He is showing how not to use it. And his examples of what it's made to do is also "inaccurate" but to each it's on. And remember Even a treated room doesn't block sound from getting in the room only stops sound vibration from bouncing by absorbing it.
One of the Best Ideas of SoundProofing is "SoundProof Curtains" That Stops Outside Noise by 80% (25 Db) Tested. Check Here: livesoundproof.com/best-soundproof-curtains/
@@trentgthegoat5496 HALELUJAH SMART GUY
I thought he was right at first, but I got the same reflection filter and realized I just had the filter and mic at the wrong angle. I experimented with the angle of the filter and mic and virtually all of the reverb I was getting from my living/dining room is GONE. If you are rapping or singing at home, this is what this was designed for and it will give you more of a studio type sound. Its definitely worth trying if you are serious and ocd about your sound, but you can't just "throw" it onto your stand, lol you have to think it through and position it correctly just like all your other equipment.
right thing! i think the same
Kendall Madison I tested on my brothers and the sound is muffled and sounds really dual in a bad way. I think its better then no type of treatment at all but if you have padding and what not this hurts you.
Kendall Madison so disagree. I'm wearing apple lightening pods listening to this video and heard reverbation literally throughout the entire video. You have to have a trained ear to tell, but it's always there with those ugly things.
Kendall Madison I agree I bought one and it worked a bit but still echo . but after tweaking it and positioning it correctly it works a treat
mine is different than the one in the video it has sides which you adjust and wrap around the mic
Excellent analysis. My dad gifted me with one a few years ago. I tried it and was disappointed with how it solved zero issues with my recording.
Recording in my closet with blankets on my walls has been a bigger improvement than the reflection filter
Let me have it please ?
@@TheMessenger212 😂😂😂 can’t make this shit up
actually your voice sounds way better with the SE Reflection Filter... your room is very reverberant.... so regardless you should treat your room and THEN use a reflection Filter.
I was also skeptical but I bought one for around 100$, and the improvement is really noticeable!!! so you can talk theoretically as much as you want - but in the practical level, it DOES make a difference!
Sounds like you've got 100 reasons to actually believe that.
He's not "talking theoretically", he's demonstrating practical. If you spent $100 on one and it did anything, you must have had it in a racquet ball court.
ROOKTABULA So y’all assuming that’s he’s lying?
@@reekrodriqguez6552 They're assuming that he's talked himself into thinking it wasn't a bad & expensive purchase bc people don't like feeling dumb. But sound situations are different for everyone, the shape of the room, kind of mic, position in the room, materials in the walls, the source being captured... It's too varied to ever have definitive answers.
It may make a difference but again -- if you're reading copy you're screwed
Ohhhh that closet trick was actually taught in my cinema course :) This video presentation was very VERY helpful and you've just saved me some serious $$$ I'm actually considering a complete sound booth and that's probably embarrassing overkill as I don't have your skills or voice quality. Thumbs UP and I wish you all the best! For at least the next ten minutes, you're my vocal hero!
That's an interesting solution FloodOfSins.. thanks for sharing your idea
If you can't hear the difference, then you don't need one :). It depends on the frequency content/volume of your source as well as your room.
It also depends on what surface you are facing.
Sometimes the difference is very small...sometimes not. It definitely reduces room ambient noise (record the quiet room with and without to check it). It smooths out high and and high mid frequencies that bounce back into the mic. I have tested it in treated rooms with a bunch of different sources. If your mic is set too deep into the filter, it will add low mids.
So, not a room silencer. It is a room tamer.
Another to know is that it depends on your mic choice.
Large Condenser mics pick up low frequencies from off axis sources.
The bleed around the mic is fatter....
The Filter lowers that significantly.
Your dog is so cute
its a cat !
I love the way he came back and stared like " are you done"? or who are you talking to ? lol till he finally sat down. I wish I was there to sit on the floor and pet him I just love dogs!!!!!
DNA for dummies
I know :) I agree
ha ha ha......you were suppose to look at the guy not the dog lol.
record in the smallest room in your house. make sure it's carpet. bedrooms can be great because your bed will eat up most of the echo/reverb. don't put your pop guard as close as he does, because you can still hear it popping. some mics, even cheap ones, won't pick up as much echo as others, so shop around. keep your damn door closed. clean up your audio when editing, like breathing, sniffs, mouth sounds etc. just some basic tips to get you started.
Dynamic mic
@@chrisw5742 no you want a condenser microphone
@@peanutbutterrobot Ribbon? :-P
Recording in a very small room is just inconvenient
i find that there iz lezz reverb when i open the door!
Man, your videos are great and I don't know why you don't have more views! Straight to the point, well explained, great stuff. And 3:10 was absolutely hilarious. Good work.
Thank you very much! Glad you find them helpful!
Damion Sheppard
I liked that part as well😁😁
Yep. 3:17 was the best moment, haha. Just that look, without saying anything.
I loved that part. Was lmfbo!
I think these shields are effective and helpful when used strategically. The shield doesn't help in this video because the reflections are mostly coming from that massive corridor behind you. I bet you would get better results if you turned your whole set up so the off axis point of the mic was aimed at the corridor and then you drew some curtains on the windows on your sides.
Just a note that if you are doing voiceover work, this is probably true. If you are projecting and singing loudly, this is not true at all. This is an extremely effective filter. While I like this channel for some review data, note that a lot of these scenarios are specific to voiceover work and don't hold true if you are using these for recording amps/singing. That being said i love the C100s :)
Dr dre used it for the Compton album
cuz its a bad ass tool, i finally upgraded.
Yea but Dre also has treated rooms where as we don’t. My solution would be to put foam behind me.
You've just saved me tons of money bro! thanks for the review!
My pleasure, Tim!
Would you say I made a mistake in buying the Samson CO1U? Planning to use it for my animation. Thanks man.
Tim Solly fuck I spent like $120 on one of these and realized it didn't do much , wish I watched this before
DezBusta that sucks bro. I'm not far enough in my animating to start recording anything yet, so honestly I don't even know if what I have will work for me or not. I'm trying to do better about looking for tutorials, or reviews before buying things now.
You talk too much man you're not Eddie Kramer just get to the point we already know the answer we're just watching to see if you know what you're talking about
Dog: "Who is he talking to? Does he see dead people? Is he a drinker? Im out"
If there's a wall in front of you then it will prevent the sound from bouncing behind you and back to the front of the mic. So it is better than nothing at all in an untreated room.
Only if your wall is made of foam, otherwise that wall will quickly bounce the sound from your mouth back into the mic (very bad) and also back into the room where it'll scatter in all directions and eventually come back into the mic, blurred and reverbed from all the trips. Generally speaking, you want mics as far from any hard, reflective boundary or surface as possible.
@@TheHouseofKushTV- He means that the mini sound booth reduces the sound level reaching the wall ahead of you, and therefore less sound gets to bounce back past you and reflect back again to your mic off the the wall behind you.
I reckon that's true, and similar to the previous technique with the clothing.
No. Very wrong.
@@heavymetalmusichead4969 elaborate?
Exactly right, but not just walls...in the real world a lot of people are at desks or near computers, mixers, monitors, etc...and while everyone is so focused on walls, they forget that any large surface is reflective.
There's many other factors in dealing with room acoustics during recording. Unless you're in a completely isolated studio booth, you're always gonna deal with some level of unneeded noise. A lot of commercially released projects in the past 10 years were recorded in tour buses, hotel rooms, bedrooms, etc. Jay and Kanye's Watch The Throne album was mostly recorded in a hotel, and Erykah Badu's New Amerykah album was recorded at her home and in a studio with the monitors playing in the background. A good producer, engineer and mixer can find ways to deal with noise and room acoustics. You'd have to pack the room and keep it as isolated as possible. Gates/limiters/compressors can deal with the remaining noise in your mix. As far as the reflection filters go, there's better ones than the one in the video (I have one that came in a bundle pack for $100)... but they definitely help in getting rid of a great deal of noise. It's not what you use, but how you use it.
How would you recommend using it for bedroom artists/producers like me?
thanks for the advice!
Interesting. For what it's worth, in my experience, this small booth has been the single most noticeable and worth while improvement to my set up. A world of difference and something I'd not hesitate to recommend to anyone wanting to record some vocals for music (which is what I'm using my set up for).
your setup is wrong if something with no mass is improving the sound of a small booth with little
real acoustic treatment mr small booth lots of foam guy how about you plz learn of deversion of sound and waves
and show a video of it in action with no added reverb noise reduction 0 subs guy
Could just make one for a fraction of the cost that works just as good.
A FUN DAY production's stop being rude, trash ass Insecure you tuber calling him out for 0 subs when doesn’t even do RUclips, you just frustrated with your lack of success in RUclips buddy.
@@seerking a fraction of a cost but requires certain skills and knowledge which, despite how easy those are, still needs time and effort invested. Not everyone has the know-how or even the inclination to do that.
The reflection filter helps to absorb the sound of your voice to prevent your voice from bouncing around the room but it isn't intended to be the sole solution. Put it in proximity to a wall directly behind you where you hang a large piece of carpet or a comforter. Or have a standup recording baffle behind you as well. You can also treat the room to kill reflections in conjunction with a reflection filter.
School rappers in Russia are so cool that they even have a three-fold piece of plywood covered with egg packaging
4:09 isn’t this unfair? Your snapping is projecting frequency in all directions vs your projecting your waves into the shield. Moreover, when you’re talking dead center of the shield, it’s meant to mitigate the spread. It’s far from perfect, but off center speaking and snapping away from the core of the shield are far from what it’s supposed to treat. Though without levels on screen, it’s sheer speculation on my end! It’s an old video tho I’ve seen your latest stuff. Just in the fence about these shields still
Also he should be further back but hey we like what we like I personally just bought one and I live in a trailer and it was exactly what I need the vocals I've been able to produce with it is a big step up
@@KNGxARK I ended up getting one too haha. The levels when I tested them in a controlled environment weren’t different enough to warrant buying on their own but psychologically I did notice my mic technique was WAY better so it actually ended making a difference you can hear. But not functionally haha so in a weird way, it does work for me. We like what we like, as you correctly said.
You can get a nice-looking, wooden room divider for $100 to $150 and hang acoustic foam panels on one side. Treat an empty corner of your room with acoustic foam panels too (or something more decorative that is still thick and soft), and now you have a nice little sound booth that is hidden by the decorative side of the room divider and can be moved to create more space. Make sure the room divider is tall enough for you. Most are 5-and-a-half feet tall, but plenty are 6-feet tall. The "empty corner" could also be an open bedroom wall closet.
I did this! Except I used a fabric divider for only 50 bucks on Amazon! 😊
I have quite different experience with that one. Mine is very cheap and deeper, made out of foam only and slightly thicker. I am also putting a towel over the top and you can deffinetly hear the difference with and without it. Also since you are standing in front of the mike, your head and body is mitigating some front reflection too. I think that for home setup this is useful piece of gear and actually make your takes better. It`s not matching the high end studio acoustic treatment, but better than nothing in my opinion
funny my reflection filter or vocal dhield does an anszing job on my voice overs and singing without it the quslity is gone with it my mic performs like a champ more to condider than just the shield but your room composition and instances of first reflection and how your room is treated
3:00 I thought he was really talking to me because I definitely wasn't looking at that 😂
HAHAHAHAHA!!! SAME HERE!!! HAHAHAHAA!!!!!! I am watching you!! HAHAHA!!!
😂😂😂😂😭
Your voice is soo soothing and calming. Please make a 'bedtime stories' podcast channel. kthnxbai.
Thx, this viedeo has been very helpful for my rap recordings. Standing infront of a full closet and an old matress behind me has done wonders for 0$
What about on your sides?
I use pillows, foam, behind the mic, and very important, I put a matress behind me. This makes all the difference.
It actually can help (in theory) as it absorbs a lot of soundwaves of your voice, preventing them from bouncing off the walls in front of you, which would otherwise then bounce off the walls behind you into the sensitive part of the microphone. Would've liked a better side-to-side comparison than you did now.
Absolutely he did nothing except repeat his opinion over and over..
You do realize how sound works right? Before the microphone even captures your voice the sound wave has to first bounce off the wall in front of you, then it will move to the wall behind you, and finally it reaches the mic on the travel back from the wall behind you back to the front of you. So (in theory) if this is how sound works. Putting a deflection on the front will do nothing for the reflections that are caught from the wall behind you during the soundwave's travel. You have to treat what is in front of you and behind you(acoustically treat) in order to even get any real results. This is also why condenser microphones have a designated front and back of the micrphone, because sound isn't as simple as you'd think. So yes, these shields are quite pointless alone.
@@MorbydManic I don't agree with you. Sound waves created by your vocal chords get picked up directly by your microphone. Those soundwaves bouncing off the walls are exactly the things you want to eliminate from being able to be picked up by the microphone. This is why you want something like this to absorb the soundwaves after they reached the microphone.
And yes indeed, most condenser mics only pick up audio from one side, the side you talk in.
@@MorbydManic idiøt 🤦🏻
What I would do is buy one of these & have it in the corner of the room with my back facing the wall & have foam behind me
Synergy I was thinking of doing the same thing 😃
That's what I have done. I have a large empty closet with sound treated walls behind/beside me, bass traps on the ceiling, carpeted floor, and the shield in front of me. I can see my copy just fine on a music stand below it. I'm new but it appears to work well! My shield is a bit bigger and more semi-circular than the one he uses. I do get his point, however.
This is the one I bought: Not bad for a hundred bucks.
www.amazon.com/LyxPro-Isolation-Microphone-Absorbing-Performance/dp/B00WRHTVS6/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1511905352&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=audio+isolation+shield&psc=1
Tips for all get an extension chord and take the microphone in your car
😂😂
In my experience this worked like a charm. I did multiple recordings with ans without and the difference was significant. My recording studio, before installing the panels, it was very reverbish, and when I tried the SE it did made a huge difference.
do you record with your face near mic as his in the video? I'm just wondering if it would work if I install in next to my drop down mic so my voice would have some distance from the microphone. Table stand mic kind of block my gaming view, thanks!
Thank you for saving my 350 bucks..
Ya, I have one and honestly, my trick was to put it on its own stand and put it behind me - believe it or not, it actually worked much better.
THANK YOU, I'm new to this and you just explained a lot.
The one good thing about these filters is that when you sing, (especially belting), it stops your voice hitting the wall in front of you, bounce back to behind you, then back into the most sensitive side of your mic. Used in conjunction with other foam I think it is quite useful. Of course, for the $$$, a DIY vocal booth isn't that hard to make, which will do the trick better overall.
hey! im trying to figure out if i should get a 5 panel reflection filter/isolation booth because i sing alot of belted pop songs and my room is not treated in any way. if i want lesser reflections should i record with my back to a wall and have my isolation shield in front of me?
Man, I Just Put A thick Blanket Over Me While Recording, and it eliminates all the echo, reverb and the noise coming from outside 😐🔥
How to eliminate the group of choir cricket sounds?
My studio set up is in a bedroom, which is a 12x12 box, and very bad for recording. I bought an Auralex Roominator Kit about ten years ago. The newer ones look like they absorbs better then the kit I have. The kit removed the slap back and a few of the upper and lower reflections, but I still had unwanted a lot of low and upper mid frequency build up. During the mixing stage I used to have to do a lot of surgical EQ cutting. For years I had to deal with this, until I bought the same filter he is demoing about two years ago. It worked out great for vocals and just amazing for micing up my guitar cabinet. Now I do very little EQ cutting, thus retaining the source sound. The room he is recording in doesn’t really sound bad. No slap back, not bassy, but with a little bit of airy highs from the back wall. When he stands behind the filter it removed little bit of the upper frequencies and the airiness in the room. Understand that your room needs may not be the same as his room needs, Every room is different. Some rooms need more dispersion, while others need more absorption or both. This filter helped with my problems. Is it perfect no, but my results are a hell of a lot better then what I had before...plus its portable. :)
Don't listen to this guy, he is ignorant. Just buy one and test it by yourself but test it well with more than one scenario and you will hear the difference.
In this days anybody can be expert, just place your iPhone in front of you and record video and put them on YT and voila....you are an expert. It's soooo sad :(
might also use a pair of VR goggles to read your copy
Copy of what?
Hahahah good idea!
Sadpants McGee
Lyrics or voiceover text, obviously.
Thank you, your video is very informative and helped me trmendosly. I am seting up my area so I can record audio books. Your video answered many of my questions, I am so happy to have found your video.
hahah when you mentioned about closet made me laugh man i was doin the same thing before lol
I started my own music label come check me out n show some luv @differntbreedentertainment under Instagram
I don't understand. You say that one of the reasons it's not good is because it doesn't protect the sound reflecting behind you, but in your video about creating a voice booth, you talk into the closet, but you don't have anything to absorb the sound behind you. So which side should you prioritize in absorbing reflections?
But it's still in front of him, even though the most sensitive part of the microphone gets reflections from behind him, right? So shouldn't he speak with the closet to his back, instead?
no, he's talking about the sides. your voice will go out to your left and right which clothes in the closet absorb.
See, I've always pondered this. There's a video of Amy Winehouse recording with Mark Ronson and she has her back to a mattress (they're also above her). So.... Wouldn't it be best to use the filter in front and the dampening behind?... Confusing.
Perhaps, stand inside the closet as much as you can, and face outward into the curved reflection filter to better contain you from all sides?
Majority of the reflections coming from behind in the room he's talking in throughout the video are from the sound hitting the floor, ceiling, and walls behind the mic and then reflecting off the walls behind him. In the closet, all of these waves are heavily dampened soon after they leave his mouth.
I should have watched this video before I bought mine! I didn’t think it was working which is why I ended up here! LOL. I don’t notice it helping my recordings at all in an untreated room.
I just ordered one and used it for the first time today and I can definitely tell a difference in my audio
SE is not good.. I have it but it has some bad frequencies
@@allybeatz4853 what model ?
HALLELUYAH!(PRAISE YE YAH!) Keep HIS Commandments or you can't make HIS Kingdom.(Revelations 22:14).
There are other reflection filters that can bend and surround the mic almost fully, leaving only the space needed for you to be infant of it. I believe those ones work better than the one you showed.
I have to disagree on this one. I use a Primacoustic Voxguard with a Neumann U47 Fet and it works perfectly. I've used it on EVERY one of my uploads on my RUclips channel. I didn't like the way the Se Reflexion filter used in this video sounded. It bounced too much sound around.I think it's because of the material they used during construction.It was kinda harsh. My mic is cardioid only, and I could still hear reflections off the Se like it was an omni. PLUS, the Primacoustic costs HALF the price of the SE Reflexion Filter Pro.
The SE filter didn't bounce the sound around. It couldn't stop the sound from bouncing around.
I use a CARDIOD mike in a CONFINED SPACE..The SE's surface was too hard.
Well, not only too hard, but ineffective even if it had been soft.
Out of all comments, no one is talking about COMB FILTERING? Don’t buy these, spend money on bass traps and studio foam for your recording room(bedroom, living room, etc)
I mostly agree.
In a multitrack band environment, it would provide a little protection from other instrument bleed.
Also, use it facing into the room with your closet behind you. Might do something.
3:00 - 3:21 Goddamn was that hilarious!
thank you for the explanation!
Solution: Heavy 'moving blankets' really cheap of Amazon (or expensive Professional acoustic blankets) place one on the floor, one behind and in front I like these because it's a portable collapsible solution. For a fixed studio solution buy some rockwool slabs and put them in wooden frames covered with a moderately 'loose' knit fabric. It's important that the fabric weave/knit is loose enough to allow the sound to enter and get absorbed by the rockwool. A fabric with too tight a knit will actually reflect the sound and stop the panel from working. These panels are remarkably effective and work best when fixed above your head out of shot. and then on the back wall behind you as you talk into the mic and then a couple out of shot on the side walls. A thick deep pile carpet also is very effective providing it covers wall to wall. 😉
I made a cheap ass vocal booth with PVC pipe. Covered it in moving blankets. It sounds amazing. Was wondering if adding a reflection filter would help. Probably better to buy foam for inside the booth. Moving blankets are clutch though.
Sadly, the late Tom Petty was the only person I have ever seen use these properly whereas he set these up around the microphones he was using to record his amps in a live setting. Preventing outside bleed is their purpose and I guess the manufacturers will do anything to sell them..
If I talk into the mic, the panel keeps my voice around the mic, thus avoiding my voice to go around the room and come back into the mic as reverb. The panel's job is to avoid my voice to spread, that's the reason why it is in front of me speaking. It is not a barrier against sounds coming from around, it is a levee to contain the sound I am recording.
I've been using my unfinished laundry room to record, the cement floor absorbs any vibrations, the exposed insulation absorbs sound, and there are no windows. I think I'll just leave it like that.
I cover myself under a blanket and keep the mic with me and sing on it. Just does the work perfectly.
It works better with a thick blanket or a thin one??
Your room sounds really good (judging by the fingersnap reverb). I'd love to hear drums recorded in that very room. ;p
They don't replace proper room treatment, but I will say that I have been rejected for jobs when I did not use one of these shields and accepted for jobs when I did. I'm no audio engineer so take it with a grain of salt, but if you can find one of the cheaper ones (they all essentially do the same thing) then I say go for it.
These do work. When sound leaves your mouth and hits the shield, the sound ceases to travel. The sound has no chance to bounce off walls and reenter the mic from the front
How do we know you're not just a shill working for Big Booth?
Daniel Walker nigga trust the homie got a studio with this exact booth for his setup and it sounds like a professional studio but he does have it faced towards the wall with foam where his back is facing
Yabbut, "the sensitive side of the mic" is different for different mics. Some mics are just as sensitive on the back side as on the front (figure-8 polar pattern).
I almost replied to a troll
Great video but in another video where you set up the booth on the fly in the apartment you said your first concern is blocking reflections from the wall in front of you. In this video however you say its more important to block reflections that come from behind you. Which statement is right now?
I think blocking the reflections from in front is more important because your voice being projected in that direction and thus has more energy, so it can then bounce off the front wall then bounce off the back wall and then into the mic along with the sound that travels out the back of your head and behind you
While it's true that that side is less sensitive, if your voice bounces off the wall in front of you with enough energy it'll bounce off with enough energy to make noise in even the less sensitive part of the mic, and then also bounce off the back wall and go into the mic.
The sound from behind you will always be weaker because you aren't projecting that way, unless sound from the front bounces to the back and adds to it
I know this is an old video but hear me out. What about using the reflection filter and closet in tandem? Like you have your back to the closet and the reflection filter / microphone set up in front of you. That way it would be the best of both worlds :p
Have you tried it before?
Literally what I thought when I saw this vid and placement matters he didn't hook it up right i have that saw exactly reflection filter
Start off with a really decent microphone first something like a U47fet and go hide in the closet with it and make your recording.
You will not be disappointed
The amount of variables involved in this kind of discussion is considerable. I've seen such a wild range of different results over decades, and I'd have to say, the easiest answer is "it depends". LOL
In practical terms, I have one of these types of shields I use for specific singing voices with specific mics WITH specific room acoustic treatments IF the trade-off for higher frequency reverberation reduction outweighs the "coloring" at the bottom end.
Probably one of the most reputable and well thought out tests in this space is from SOS: www.soundonsound.com/reviews/how-effective-are-portable-vocal-booths
Personally, I think these can work in specific situations, and depends a lot on the room and the acoustics of that room (treated or not, and if treated, with what measures).
Generally we're talking in frequency terms above 1 kHz and and probably more like 2-3 kHz range and UP to reduce reflections, which generally helps. However in the low range (often 200-400 Hz range) these can cause "early reflections" which "color" (colour) the sound, and may produce unwanted elements.
SOS suggests using a cardioid pattern mike which faces AWAY from the shield, hence potentially reducing any early reflections. So, setting up the recording gear effectively and optimally is, "surprise, surprise", going to have a significant influence on the outcome.
For example, what kind of voice we're recording, and what it is doing makes a huge difference - deep toned pod caster vs powerful soprano singer - everything is completely different. Add into that "taste" and a plethora of desired outcomes, and honestly making a sweeping claim something is "good" or bad" with no bench-marking reduces the usefulness of this video.
Really, it's "horses for courses", and lot depends on what the "producer" in a studio wants, or the person at home recording vocals or podcasts. The variables are immense. So as stated at the start, "it depends".
Hope that helps - or did I just "muddy the mix"? LOL
Rohan Firminger Excellent post. It is sure to help many!
Rohan Firminger That Was Incredibly Stated!!!
Love That Bit At The End There👍🏾👍🏾😊😊
These things work wonders in the right scenario. In your example you are standing in the middle of a large empty room... In my scenario, I am at a desk with a 32" monitor, mixer and studio monitors behind the mic. That makes a lot of nearby reflective surfaces, and putting one of these shields behind the mic did worlds of good. I know this video is a bit old, but there are really good shields for like $40 now...which costs less and is more effective than covering the walls with acoustic treatment if your main issue is nearby reflective fixtures or walls.
Seriously??
First they don’t block “Reverb”, by which he probably means flutter echo or initial reflections, it is meant to improve off axis rejection from the back of the mic capsule.
Second, it certainly doesn’t help that he has the mic not only outside the reflection filter, but has the front of the capsule angled up towards the ceiling getting those reflections, making the back of the capsule angled towards the floor not into the filter. Yes these work well, but of course you can make one yourself for super cheap.
Good point about the mic position and angle.
hello, nice work booth junkie , i have a samson meteor mic and im happy with it for the price i think is one of the best in his price tag but i need to upgrade the eco from it i use nothing but a arm for putting it as close as posible to my mouth and its a great improve of course but still need something else, what do you recommend me! have a great day !! and keep going on, nice work! preciate!!!
Whilst I agree with the basic conclusions you have drawn in this video I'm not sure that anybody who actually knows what they're doing when buying this product expects it to be the only piece of acoustic treatment they need to prevent reflections arriving at the microphone. I certainly don't. But these products are a convenient, cheap and relatively effective way to start doing that for a project studio. The next step should always be to contrive an absorbent surface behind the vocalist to stop reflections from that direction as well - a cheap and effective way to do this is to hang a duvet or thick blanket. Here is a link to a response to these issues from a reputable source for anyone interested - www.soundonsound.com/sound-advice/q-reflection-filter-worth-money. Finally, if you have problems holding copy, invest in a box of pins.
thanks!
and don't forget the ceiling and floor.
This goes back to the old fashion of treating your room and building your decent vocal booth.. No escape
For the cost of some of these filters you could get a decent head start on acoustically treating your room.
I have seen a video in which a person takes it to the bathroom and recorded his vocals and it made a huge huge difference,.May be not that noticeable in the room..
He might have had his microphone in an omnidirectional magnetic pattern, then a filter like that would reduce the noise by half. But on a cardioid configuration, the microphone already reduces those areas anyway.
The SE device is more suited for situations where ambient sound from behind the mic is a problem, such as micing a horn section in a room with lots of ambient sound, or using a Ribbon mic on a vocal in a live room. It’s not a device for doing voice over work.
Be very careful about having a piece of paper with your lyrics while recording, as paper reflects high frequenices like crazy.
For this, I put a towel on my music stand, then the paper on it. That reduces the reflection quite a bit (but not 100%).
Damn, this is a higher level of OCD
I thought I was crazy for singing inside the discarded box of a new refrigerator. Stapled old towels on the inside.
ie. record IN FRONT of a closet, not facing it.
It would prevent reflection from behind you and the screen would block reflections from the room.
My EXACT thoughts.
Thank you. I have been saying this for a long time. Making a makeshift booth out of moving blankets and a few mic stands would do a lot more.
So I am looking at this from another angle... my theory is these shields are absorbing your vocal from getting out into the room . Thus cutting down on the reverb the room can generate. Not cutting back reflections trying to get into the mic after bouncing around the room. If that were the case would not the foam be on the outside of the unit also? And why do most manufacturers use a metal support? Would that not help waves bounce around the room even more? I had one "VO booth" that were a loud talent caused the room to just bounce the waves around. I bought one of these and it made a big difference.
Discussion begins now...
I Like the closet idea, thanks so much. although My wife wasn’t thrilled when I converted her walk in closet into a drum booth. With clothing hanging on 3 walls the sound was amazing.
I may also use this idea on location shoot, bad room sound get the wardrobe person to roll a rack from wardrobe onto the set. Tho hanging clothes sound absorber such an effective idea.
OK put another stand behind you and flip the shield around the back of you. hahaha!
To block behind me when I record, I have a cheep adjustable height garment rack I got from Amazon. I hang heavy drapes on it. Even a couple of bedspreads or old sleeping bags work. As well I'm thinking of getting 3 more and make a portable sound booth. For any photographers out there hang your light diffuser on the cloths rack, makes a good stand for light diffuser.
How about a shoulder harness mount that allows it to surround the back of your head, sorta like a wearable, 'cone of silence' (name that reference) ;-)
Get Smart!
ha!!
Here's thought. I have been working in the industry in South Africa for the last 30 years. I own a studio on the sunny east coast and do mainly independent television work. I have a client that is in another province and roughly an hour and a half flight away. There is a facility nearby where she can record her voice over for a show that I do the dubbing mix for but she is so busy with her production schedule that she simply does not have the time to get to that. So I came up with an idea to get her voice down in the comfort of her own home.Now I might add at this point that it is a lower budget production and she produces the show as well as do the voice over for it.
For the firs episode she set up a cardioid mic at her dining room table and recorded straight into the edit suite where she was doing her offline edit. That was a big fail. So I got her to set up a small table right in front of her open closet with her back facing the closet. Then I had her drape her duvet over the open closet doors above her, effectively creating a make shift booth. And that just worked like a charm. The reflections coming from the front wall to the back wall was trapped in the thick layer of clothing behind her. And there is no reflection from the roof as her feather duvet takes care of that. We are voicing the 9th episode this week. So far so good. And it really sounds pretty good.
Thank you for giving me some insight into these reflection booths. I now know what I always suspected. They are a bit of a waste. Keep up the good work. I enjoy your channel.
i like talking to clothes....lol 0:50
Honestly I don't care about all this anymore. I record on a desk with a booth around my mic and with my closet door behind it and it's working fine. I dont have this model but tbh with the one i have i can hear a big enough difference to like it, i just wish there wasn't so much discouragement around cheap gear, I'm only 16 and I'm not poor but I'm also not rich enough to get all these different costly things just to make stuff either. I know you probably don't intentionally do this and I'm probably not you're target audience either but I'm tired of this feeling I seem to get or the message that's pushed alot when I try to learn about recording gear on RUclips that you need so much high grade gear to make good art. I'm working the best with what I have and I'm doing fine. When I look at the setup I do have it inspires me and motivates my creativity to where I feel like I can do anything with all the cool stuff I have if I put in the work. It used to make feel discouraged and sad a little but at this point it's just annoying to have so many people say that the stuff I and many others do have are "bad products" or "not worthwile" but I'm done letting all this dictate my creativity or more so letting it make me feel like I'm not able gear wise with what i have to make good art and neither should anyone else reading this with a similar feeling. I'm not sending any hate but this video made me think about all this and I'm just kinda ranting to get that last message across. If anyone could share how they feel a booth helps them that'd be cool to
thank you almost bought one :D
But it seems to be useful for small rooms and corners!!!
Tomás Valladares Sure, but you can achieve a similar result for far less money when constructed DIY with a bin and some foam as he said.
damn so what's the truth?
Tomás Valladares u
Joy Cor or you can get one on ebay for $35
So many professional producers in the comments. Amazing how professionals are watching youtube for tips... Lol!
I didn't THINK these things were much chop! THANKS for the advice. A FULL booth, or none at all!
Well, no. I have a 25 X 35 foot room. I'm behind the mic and siting in an alcove, talking into the room which is all tricked out with absorption and diffusion. It's a great space in which to record VO.
Well IF you have something like THAT, the above is NOT needed is it?
I don't have acoustic treatment so I picked one up and it has done wonders for my blue yeti when I record videos
I recorded the vocals for an album track back in 2005 where we needed a really dry/intimate vocal. The artist was completely surrounded by a circle of heavy woolen blankets - hung from floor to ceiling. There were absolutely ZERO room reflections! Those screens (as you say in the video) appear to be trying to block sound coming towards the least sensitive part of the microphone. A complete waste of money IMO! Either treat the room or raid the bedroom linen closet :-)
Thank you for the very good assessment - thats quite reasonable and helped me a lot!
Like the deep sound of that mic!