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DIY Recording Booth

As home-recording software and equipment become more affordable, it's easier to create your own studio. To do so, you need a microphone, a recording device such as a computer with specialized software software or a tape recorder, and a booth. The main aim of a recording booth is create a dead atmosphere, with as little echo or resonance as possible. Professional recording studios invest heavily in creating these spaces, but you can achieve similar results at home.

Things You'll Need

  • MDF boards
  • Hacksaw
  • 80-grit sandpaper
  • Foam sponges
  • Scissors
  • Stanley knife
  • Glue
  • Hinged support rail with leg
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Instructions

    • 1
      Cheaper wood is fine for making your home booth.

      Cut three rectangular pieces of MDF for the walls. Each should be six feet long; cut the first piece one foot wide; the second, one foot, three-inches wide; the third, one foot, five inches wide. Smooth the edges with 80-grit sandpaper. Equally sized walls are bad for recording booths; they allow for more sound to bounce around the booth. The three walls will be free-standing, and the rear of the booth will be covered with a drape; the walls can be repositioned depending on the acoustic characteristics of the room.

    • 2
      Buy sponges in bulk and cut them up.

      Furnish the inside of the booth walls. Cut foam blocks of varying heights; the uneven surface on the inside of the booth will further reduce sound reflection. Cover the insides of the walls with glue and press the foam pieces into it to secure.

    • 3
      The hinged leg means you can adjust your wall angle like an easel.

      Lay each board on the floor, foam side down. Screw in the locking-hinge leg brackets to the outside. Fit the leg to the bracket and stand the wall up; the leg will swing back from the bracket and support the wall. Fit each subsequent bracket at a different height so that each wall has tilts at a slightly different angle to the other. Stand the walls up with the foam facing in. Ignore any small gaps between the edges of the walls. Position the booth walls so that they are close to and facing a wall in your room. Leave sufficient room between the booth edges and the wall for a person to get in and out.

    • 4

      Drape a large sheet over the top of the walls so that it hangs down and covers the empty side. Staple the sheet onto each wall to hold it in place. Cut a slit along the middle of the sheet so people can get in and out. Using a sheet instead of a fourth wall reduces the sound insulation, but it is considerably easier than building a hinged door.

    • 5

      Put a microphone stand in the center of the booth. Feed the microphone cable through the slit in the sheet and connect the mic.

Recording Music

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