VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Deirdre · Posted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 9:06 am Post subject: The Camp Cooper Studio

Here's what my recording "enclosure" looks like.
Yeah, metal ceilings.
Over my work area is a batt of OC 703 covered in damask suspended from the ceiling. You can see a bit of another in the upper left corner.
I have two on the ceiling, and three on the adjacent/opposite walls.

I face the corner of this setup (the window is covered when I record) and the recording space is lined with foam and quilting for sound absorption and beauty. (heh) The monitor is at least 45° to my direction of speech. I don't believe I'm getting splash from it— I know what that sounds like, and I am not hearing it in this arrangement.

The rack is to my right and the little Mac Mini is on the bottom of it. I'm using a LaCie external drive for audio. Sweet at 7200 rpm, but it has a distinct aural personality which is not invited to the party, so I move it as far as my cable will allow and place it in such a way that its vibration doesn't resonate on a shelf or the floor. I pull the drape to block the sound of the HDs.

I am thinking of having a hard enclosure built, with a floated floor— using neoprene or some other closed-cell separator. This house's floor transmits every little vibration, and I really am tired of battling the horde one soldier at a time. I think it is time for the Great Wall to go up.
_________________
DBCooperVO.com
IMDB

Lance Blair · M&M Joined: 03 Jun 2007 Posts: 2281 Location: Atlanta

...and yet you still sound great.

Would it be possible to have everything except for your mics, screen, and a wireless mouse be in your recording space? Also, I have better luck with having my back to a padded corner rather than speaking into it. New floors should help you out a lot.

My recording space is a large walk-in treated with traps and panels around the corner from the office/computer/speakers. I just do everything from paper on a stand, as I like to hashmark my scripts as we go depending on the direction.
_________________
Skype: globalvoiceover
and now, http://lanceblairvo.com the blog is there now too!

Deirdre · Posted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 10:42 am Post subject:

I'm all on paper, too. but because I edit on the fly, I have my computer monitor in front of the all the time.

Yes, I do indeed want to have my necessaries separate front any whirring motors. My builder is here right now, so I will ask him what it will take to make a hard enclosure happen. I just need a cupboard-style door I can open so I can make adjustments to my rack stuff.

Thanks for the compliment, too! Kiss

_________________
DBCooperVO.com
IMDB

Eddie Eagle · M&M Joined: 23 Apr 2008 Posts: 2393

This setup reminds me of the great and all powerful OZ behind the curtain!! Laugh

Pay no attention to the (wo)man behind the curtain!!!!JUST listen to my voice!!!!!!!!

Mike Sommer · Posted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 1:29 am Post subject:

Here is a great product for creating a floating floor.
http://www.kineticsnoise.com/arch/sr.aspx
Model SR Floorboard is about $125 per 4x8' sheet, and is super easy to install.
Just lay the SR Floorboard on the subfloor, lay 2 layers of 1/2 plywood on top of that and screw the two plywood layers together and you are ready for your finish floor.

Depending on how big of area you are planing to build and the amount of isolation you need from the outside world. It might be best to spend the extra cash on a two leaf wall system. This way the inner walls can be built on top of the floating floor, and thus give you true isolation.

Framing the structure with metal studs will give you greater isolation and a faster build.
_________________
The Blog:
http://voiceoveraudio.blogspot.com/

Acoustics are counter-intuitive. If one thing is certain about acoustics, it is that if anything seems obvious it is probably wrong.

bobsouer · Posted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 6:05 am Post subject:

Mike,

Your timing is perfect. I needed to know about that flooring material before next week! Thank you.
_________________
Be well,
Bob Souer (just think of lemons)
The second nicest guy in voiceover.
+1-724-613-2749
Source Connect, phone patch, pony express

Mike Sommer · Posted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 8:54 am Post subject:

Here is another way to install this flooring to give a little more isolatio and "spring."

SR board is laid directly on the cement slab. Then, 2x4's were cut into appropriate length strips and spaced across the SR board 16" on center. A layer of 3/4" was then installed on top of the 2x4's. A Layer of cement board was then put on top of the plywood. Lastly, another layer of 3/4" plywood was installed.

_________________
The Blog:
http://voiceoveraudio.blogspot.com/

Acoustics are counter-intuitive. If one thing is certain about acoustics, it is that if anything seems obvious it is probably wrong.

Deirdre · Posted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 10:30 am Post subject:

Wow— That's serious soundproofing. Good to see this! I need to supply my builder with this info.

In the mean time, here's what is going on with the two mics that are currently in use:

The C-1

And here's the 416

Heh.

Heh heh heh heh. Dieter could even hear the difference on my laptop's speakers, and he's usually the first one to say I'm being too picky.

I think I have the bass roll-off engaged on the C-1 because that's the way my producer in Boston wanted it. Perhaps I will mess about some more.
_________________
DBCooperVO.com
IMDB

Bill Campbell · DC Joined: 09 Mar 2007 Posts: 621

The 416 sounds more expensive, richer. Both sound good though.
I didn't hear any room tone that drew my attention.
It's PRO sound.

Spray some Fabeeze on those drapes and blankets and keep movin'.

(love your voice)
_________________
www.asapaudio.com

Lance Blair · M&M Joined: 03 Jun 2007 Posts: 2281 Location: Atlanta

Like Bill, I'm not hearing "issues", and to measure it, I'm seeing a noise floor of -75 and peaks of -12. That's great! Are you using any processing???
_________________
Skype: globalvoiceover
and now, http://lanceblairvo.com the blog is there now too!

Mike Sommer · Posted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 12:57 pm Post subject:

I like the C1 better on you, the brightness of it would set you right on top of the mic. In this configuration of your enclosure.

Have you tried using just a Hipass filter @75Hz, instead of the roll off?

From what I can hear from your files, your curtains are doing a great job of eliminating the the early refections, echos and modial ringing. But by being in the corner the bass is building up, you need a bass trap to absorb to suck up all that bass. Dropping the cloud and giving an 6 or 8 inch air gap will help with the bass build up along the ceiling too.

What happens (depending on the overall size of the room -hard wall to hard wall and ceiling to to floor) there can develop a doubling of the modes at the low end that will effect all the frequencies squared (2) on up the frequency range. So (for example) if you have a two modes at 50Hz this in turn will effect 100Hz, then 200Hz; 400Hz and so on. This is why bass trapping is so important. (This of course is very simplified but it goes on in every small room we enter)

UPDATE: Seeing that you have compression and expansion gate on, it might be best to hear a raw file. This will reveal more of what is going on.
_________________
The Blog:
http://voiceoveraudio.blogspot.com/

Acoustics are counter-intuitive. If one thing is certain about acoustics, it is that if anything seems obvious it is probably wrong.

Deirdre · Posted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 12:58 pm Post subject:

Both are gated, so the room tone doesn't "show".

I'm using my 528's compressor/expander module to gate the signal.

Comp Threshold: -5
Expand Threshold -25
Comp Ratio 1.5

As much of a geek as I am, I must admit that I have no idea what I am doing with compressors and expanders. I have been utilizing the "mess about until it sounds good" technique.

With the 416, I boosted the high end like this:
cut/boost +1
Bandwidth .72
Freq 6.8K

Once again this is done completely independent of the thought process. I just got this setting from the manual. It sounded good. The end. xo
_________________
DBCooperVO.com
IMDB