If you are a voice artist you know that having a home studio is all about flexibility, cost-effectiveness and the freedom to work at your own pace. Also, home studios allow for better experimentation with no clock telling you to stop your recording and make way for another voice artist, which mostly happens in any recording studio. So if you are trying to set up your own home studio you must know about the essential equipment required to set-up the studio and how soundproofing can help you get quality recordings at the ease of your home.
It does not matter that you are a fresher or a professional voice actor, there is some basic equipment that you must have to build a home studio:
- A quality Microphone
- A sturdy Microphone stand
- Good pair of Headphones
- Pop shields
- A solid Audio Interface
- Monitor speakers
- Computer, Recording/Editing software
Whenever you are setting up your home studio, one thing that needs to be prioritized is soundproofing. Whether you are recording for a podcast, advertisement, or any other audio work, soundproofing your home studio will yield unbelievable results. You can get the most expensive microphone or the best editing software but if the studio does not have a good enough sound blocking, your recording will be filled with some amount of outside noise.
Sound moves in waves and the air vibrate along the same direction as the wave travels. These waves bounce along with the room while hitting the walls and create noise. When you are recording audio your listeners get to hear your direct sound as well as the ones reflected from the walls or hard objects.
You should be familiar with the following terms before soundproofing your studio:
Reflection – Bouncing back of sound waves from a solid surface and usually caused by corners and surfaces mostly flat like windows, doors, tiles
Absorption – The process by which an object takes in sound energy when sound waves are encountered and usually caused at home by clothing or furniture.
Diffusion – Refers to the spreading of sound energy in all directions and helps audio to sound better. Usually caused by objects or irregularities already placed in a room.
It is therefore essential that you soundproof your studio to achieve the optimum environment for blocking the outside noise. Soundproofing your home studio helps you to achieve the highest quality recording that you get only in professional studio equipment and will also help to keep the noises and disturbances at bay.
Eliminate entry points
It does not come as a surprise that doors or windows that serve as an entry point for you, also do the same for unwanted noises. These spaces allow the noises to come inside and also escape, creating a lot of distraction while recording. Always ensure that there are fewer cracks and spaces in your doors and windows and use fillers wherever possible to filter out the noises. You can use a floor sweep and seal all the gaps with right-sized foam gaskets to block out all the noise.
You must always choose a solid wooden door instead of glass doors. Also, you can opt for double-pane windows to achieve a higher level of sound dampening. Try to seal all cracks and use heavy curtains to dampen the noise.
Soundproofing walls:
You can use mass-loaded vinyl (MLV) for reducing the amount of noise coming through walls. You must try to increase the amount of material and choose thicker drywall to absorb more sound. Even after creating a denser wall, you can add absorbent panels and foam mats to absorb more noise.
Soundproofing floor:
You can soundproof your floors to dampen noises coming from the lower floors. You can use thick carpets or add a layer of drywall similar to the walls. Fill the additional gaps or cracks with fillers to get a perfect soundproof floor.
Reduce noises from internal equipment:
All the stuff inside a room contributes to all the unwanted noise generated. It is important to soundproof from these internal objects to achieve a noise-free recording. Large, irregular objects kept at various angles help to diffuse noises which are good for recording. You must also check other equipment such as a computer, AC or fan and switch to silent devices. Also, you can always use good editing software to correct the noises and achieve better results.
Building and soundproofing your home studio is a time-consuming process but you will be amazed how drastically the sound quality gets improved by soundproofing and noise blocking!
If you are looking for voice artists having their own home studios, then Voyzapp can help you provide a number of premium voice artists with years of experience in providing efficient and quality recordings. As Voyzapp is a professional voice over agency in India, our voice actors have all the required skills to work in multiple languages across various categories such as audiobooks, advertisements, IVRs, documentaries, and more! You can easily browse numerous voice samples and sort artists on the basis of their costs and delivery time to select the one suiting your requirements. Also, Voyzapp gives a platform to all the voice actors to register for free and showcase their talent on a global platform.