That talk with my neighbor made me rethink my whole mic placement

My neighbor across the hall used to record voiceovers professionally back in the 90s. Last week he knocked on my door cause he heard me cursing through the wall at 2am trying to fix a weird boxy sound in my vocal takes. He took one look at my setup, pointed at my mic which was like 6 inches from the wall in a corner, and just said "you're asking for trouble there man." Then he showed me his old trick of moving the mic to the center of the room and putting a moving blanket behind him on a cheap stand from Walmart. Cost me $12 and ten minutes. Made such a difference I felt kinda dumb honestly. Has anyone else had some old pro drop a simple fix that made you rethink everything you thought you knew about home recording?

2 comments

2 Comments

grant.richard23d ago

Spent $200 on acoustic foam before my uncle told me to just hang a thick comforter over a mic stand, and honestly my vocals have never sounded better. Still felt like an idiot though.

elliotburns22d ago

Come on @grant.richard you really felt like an idiot over something that basic? People drop way more than $200 on studio gear that barely makes a difference. A comforter works because it blocks reflections and absorbs sound, same as foam but way cheaper. The whole point is to kill echoes and room tone, not win a gear contest. It's not that deep, your vocals sound good and you saved cash, so own it.