$11k VO Booth…was it worth it?-- StudioBricks One Review

[@FreshandFelicia]

Great video. I can’t in good conscience spend $11k on something I could build for less than $2k. Got my hammer and drill ready.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Yeah you can certainly build something that’ll do the trick for much less. If you’ve got the skills and space, definitely go for it. The main instance(s) in my situation that made this one sensible are living in NYC having the resources and space to construct something comprable that will be easily deconstructed/reconstructed if/when we move, all of that provided too many challenges to tackle in a reasonable timeline and without inconveniencing my family and neighbors.

[@deaddoll1361]

I can only imagine the mess that'll result from all that hammering. Spend 2k on materials, spend 100 hours at $10 an hour and end up a winner!

[@FreshandFelicia]

@@deaddoll1361 it’s done! 15 hours, $2200 in materials, BETTER than Studio Bricks. Video soon - going to sell them.

[@JoeySwagger2015]

@@FreshandFeliciaI’m excited to see it!

[@rhomo]

I'm hoping to make a purchase of a Plus One this year, so THANK YOU for the fantastic details of this review! You answered almost every question I had :)

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

I'm glad to hear it! Let me know if you have any other questions, as I'm planning a 1 YEAR update soon.

[@davidjacksonii9641]

Thank you for the great detail and review. I'm also in the process of building/selecting a unit and this helps.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

That’s great to hear! Best of luck and if you have any specific questions feel free

[@RaymmanVO]

Nice to hear you Jay, I'm building my booth right now so I might get back to you on some of that tuning advice if i can't get rid of her rumble. Best wishes Ray

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Sounds good! Best of luck either way Ray.

[@mumflaps9133]

This is great. For your old DIY booth setup, did you also need to use a bass trap? Or is it just a bit more necessary for this booth?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

In my old booth the insulation/sound absorption was close to 3-4” on each wall which effectively killed lower frequencies. So the whole booth was more or less a bass trap in that way. 😊

[@mumflaps9133]

Thanks :)

[@mumflaps9133]

I forgot to ask one more question. Is there such thing as “over deadening” a room, which does more harm to frequencies than good? For example putting too much acoustic treatment in a room? Also, Is there any thing said for having a bit of natural room resonance which might help the recording?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

@@mumflaps9133 Great question! It depends somewhat on what you're recording and why. I'd talk to an acoustic specialist if you're concerned, but if you're building out a home studio, I think you'd be hard pressed to over-treat the space (based on personal experience).

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

@@mumflaps9133 Ah! Just to round things out, the space need not be totally dead either. Some reflections will be okay.

[@brookewalker5418]

Hey Jay, thanks for the video:) I actually recorded my first commercial in a friend's studio bricks booth. Question for you, do you know if they finance their booths, or do you have to pay in full right off the bat?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Awesome! They do offer financing, but through a third party. I can’t recall what the specific terms were but I’m sure they’d be able to direct you.

[@gledhillartscollective]

Thank you!

[@gledhillartscollective]

Thanks for the video. I'm looking for a booth large enough for an upright acoustic piano. I noticed they offer custom sizing, but I'm wondering how soundproof it is for people on the outside. The main purpose would be to be able to practice classical piano loudly and record without disturbing my neighbors on the other side of the wall. I can currently hear their conversations (Bronx here!). Thanks!

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Nice! This video might help give more context on the isolation. How Soundproof is a StudioBricks, actually? | 1yr Followup Review StudioBricks One VO Edition PT. 2 kzbin.info/www/bejne/iaG9qImIl7CJjrM

[@SaadJeeTabassam]

Great video!

[@javilaroid]

It is so useful thank you so much! What do you think about singing?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Glad to hear! Do you have a specific question about singing? The booth would certainly work just fine for it I think.

[@javilaroid]

@@jaymyersvoiceover yes, I am worried about either being too dead or too reflective. Thank you for your time

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

@@javilaroid Gotcha. If you're using a mic, either way no issue I think. If you want a reflective space, probably not your jam. While not SUPER dead, it's still pretty muted inside. There may be different options with varying levels/types of acoustic treatments that will provide better use for musicians specifically though.

[@javilaroid]

@@jaymyersvoiceover now I understand better, I believe it will be more viable keep digging, thanks a lot!

[@waynefarrellvoiceovers]

Peace of mind was huge for me. To go into a session and not have to keep an ear out as much anymore.

[@voiceactorRU]

Nice review, man! Wish I could compare it with my doublewall whisper room LOL You booth (lookwise) is so much prettier and neater than my whisperroom. Either way, it is quite a neccesity when you live in New York, and I do live right under the plane path of JFK airport, and two hospitals, and fire station... it is quite a shit show! Usually when I must record ... :)

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Thanks! Yeah the visual aesthetic of the studio bricks was one of the big selling points over whisper room for me, just because its set up in our main living space. That’s quite a lot to contend with indeed!

[@NeatAMV]

Hi Jay, great video! I ended up picking up the One Plus VO Edition that came with a bass trap this sits right behind my head. I'm finding that after all the setup, there is an unpleasant resonance in the lower frequency that I can't surgically remove with EQ without taking a chunk out of where my voice sits (deep voice), and I'm having trouble figuring out where or how to treat the space at the source to get rid of the reverb. Do you have any tips?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Thanks! and congrats on the booth! Extra padding/bass traps in the corners will probably help. I also covered the desk and glass door with a wool desk pad and 'curtain' to further tamp down resonance.

[@mickymack1230]

Great Video on an often neglected topic. I built a similar Vocal Booth about 10 years ago for around $500 .I used 13mm MDF and although I didn't have a glass door I did have a 80cm tall Glass window, double glazed and a ventilation system. I could shout as loud as possible inside and my wife could barely hear me standing directly outside the door? I achieved similar sound to what you have there. The ultimate refinement was I floated the whole thing on four vespa (small Italian Motor Scooter/Roller) Inner Tubes to isolate it from the wooden Parquet floor. It was so heavy it barely moved. I also had a DAW controller inside the booth. I had to dismantle it when I moved out of that apartment. I am a totally amateur musician but I hope to build another booth this summer to similar design when I move to my new permanent place where i will have more time to spend getting back into singing and recording. It looks fantastic your booth. It was certainly worth it if you can benefit from the extra daylight.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

That sounds brilliant! Good call on the Vespa tubes. That’s a great solution. I’d be interested to hear how your next build goes! Best of luck on it.

[@TheScanonDub]

Hi. Any tips for the booth? I am about to start ordering the wood for the frames and then building it soon.

[@Vintage27]

Awesome video, very helpful

[@austynbilyeu2336]

Nice video! Good review. I'm actually curious on your old booths ventilation system. I have a similar setup in the booth that I built, using the 4 inch ducting and an in line fan for ventilation. Looking at your chain, it looks like you have some sound dampening in there? Like a dampening tube? Can you give some details? Did it work? I'm struggling with keeping my fan noise low, and have just shoved a bunch of foam into the ducting which (obviously) lessens the airflow. Unfortunately even with that, I could still hear the noise in my recordings, so I gave up and just opted for opening the door every 30 min or so 🙃 Any tips or equipment you can suggest?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Thanks for your note! You’re dead on with my ducting system! I do use silencers in the chain. In my old booth however they were totally audible while recording as well. With this new setup I’m learning it’s vital to decouple everything from the booth by several feet to isolate any vibration, and the duct silencers help. The company I use is AC Infinity and they carry both low noise fans and duct silencers at varying sizes. I was also advised that larger ducts are quieter because they don’t channel the air as aggressively-if that helps. All that said, while I think the crux is having solid isolation and decoupling as best you can, ultimately popping the door open every 30mins or so is hard to compete with.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Ah also, some folks link up their booths to their main HVAC system thru a few duct silencers. If you have central air, I’m told that’s pretty hard to beat.

[@CamdenVA]

Thanks for sharing! Does this booth smell? I have a Demvox, and it has a strong smell, so I was wondering if the studiobricks had a smell. Thanks!

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

It had a new car smell for a bit, but now is pretty neutral after a little over 6 months

[@WhirlOmar]

I have been trying to save to get one, but I can never do it. It's just way too expensive for me. So Sad. Because I really need one.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

They're certainly pricey, but I would also say if you're in a place where you can build your own and have a bit of construction/building accumen, you could likely fashion something similar for a fraction of the cost. My first DIY booth I built for around $750 all told.

[@djb12DeepAcidHouseExperience]

Very cool review. I hope to one day be able to buy one of these or a whisper room, they’re just so far out of what I can afford. Did you have to pay the 11k out of pocket or do they have financing options? I’m using one made from sound blankets at the moment from vocal booth to go, which costed about $1000, which helps a lot m, but it’s not as “dead” as I’d like,,” but I don’t do VO on the level you do. I do 2 different dj mix podcasts, where I talk over a dj mix I’ve made, so it’s a bit more forgiving, plus I don’t make any money from it, so it’s more of a hobby. I’d have to buy a booth used or find something I can finance over a period of time. The guy who has that other channel I mentioned also uses your booth, but he got lucky and only paid 2k for it as he bought it from a guy who won it in a storage locker in LA. He got really lucky on that. There another guy, booth junkie, who used to have a whisper room, but sold it and built his own, which he still uses to this day and does loads of pro VO work and it seems to sound really great. Looks like a lot of work though and will still cost quite a bit in materials. Awesome video. Ps, I’m originally from Long Island, but living down in NC now. I get my studio down to about 65-68F before I do my VOs, I don’t like to be hot. Lol Thanks again. Love your channel, you’re a wealth of knowledge brother. 😊

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Thanks for the questions, and I'm envious of the 65F space. That sounds like a dream. I paid out of pocket, though they do have financing available through a third party. I don't know the specifics of the rates, and I seem to recall some requirements for business credentials to qualify for the financing. For the money, I do think you one has the skills, the space, and the tools to build a booth yourself--AND if you are in a more permanent residence--DIY is a very viable option. I built one before my studio bricks for about $1200 all told and sounded great, I just got tired of sitting in a stuffy box. Additionally, if your home is quiet enough, you may not even need a tremendous amount of isolation which would lower your cost by quite a bit. For me, being in Brooklyn, I needed my booth to be rebuildable/transportable if and/or when I move apartments, all while having excellent isolation.

[@joeyramonelookalike]

I'm very interested in one of those but I'm a bit scared of the weight. Have you had any problems living in an apartment?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Good question! I had no issues though my building is 15 stories, and relatively modern (70s?). If I was in an older, early 20th century building I'd probably run things by the building management before committing to be on the safe side.

[@DeRaNgEdOfficial]

Im looking into these booths to place in my control room. I have been getting quotes for this, whisperoom, vocalbooth. Im thinking of the 4x6 or 4x6 pro version. I only will be using it to record vocals. I was wondering if it sounded boxy and the bass traps out a stop to that? I do need dry cleans vocals as I color sound in post. So thank you for the insight on this booth. I believe it has made this my top choice so far I'm waiting on my quote. Im glad the ventilation is silent that was one of my main concerns as well. Is it silent on the outside as well? And are you able to turn off i wanted to make sure being in the control room. Thanks for all the information.

[@DeRaNgEdOfficial]

Oh yeah, do you think there would be a big difference in the 4x6 Double wall and 4x6 pro triple wall?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Thanks for the questions! Firstly, yes you’ll need bass traps. The 4x6 will likely be less boxy than the One which is ~3.5x4, but I’d imagine bass traps to be necessary. Ventilation is dead silent in/out, and can be turned off. Between double/triple walled versions, it’d just come down to how much isolation you need. While I can’t speak to the triple walled version, Double walled will still have some bleed and won’t eliminate lower frequencies coming in/out of the booth. However, if you’re only recording in bursts of 3-5minutes for vocalists rather than full hours for say audiobooks, it may not be an issue.

[@DeRaNgEdOfficial]

@@jaymyersvoiceover thank you so much I appreciate it.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

You bet!

[@yissman]

Yo, I had a question. You mentioned you live in an apartment and I was wondering is it like an upper floor apartment? That is my current situation and I imagine these booths can be rather heavy. Though the booth I was likely planning on getting is the One which is not the VO Edition, so it'd likely be less weight. Anyways, was curious if you had to take into account the floor/room's load bearing when placing it. My apartment is an older one from the 50s so sadly can't get the floor load details from the original builders, and I have a handful of bookshelves stacked with books already in my recording room space, so it has me a tad worried you could say. So I am definitely curious how heavy these booths tend to be.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Great question. The booths can range from like 950lbs to 1100 depending on what size you decide is best for you. The ONE vs the ONE VO Edition likely isn’t going to be much in terms of weight difference in fact as the only difference is a small desk, mic boom, and bass trap. It’ll be close to 1000lbs all told. I didn’t factor in placement as my building is all concrete, steel, and brick and I’m on the third of 15 floors-so I figured safe to say the booth would be fine. For a building like yours…since you can’t find info on it specifically, maybe you could check with the landlord/building management? (If your renting that is) maybe they could offer specific info. Good luck!

[@farhaansiddiqui]

NEAT - How long can you record inside without a break ?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

So far I’ve had multiple 2-3 hour sessions where I haven’t felt fatigued or overheated at all. So for my comfort levels? The booth isn’t a limiting factor for my needing a break.

[@jennywchan]

Did you assemble it by yourself? I'm thinking about a Studiobricks too, but haven't made the plunge yet.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Hey Jenny! I had a friend help assemble it, which would be necessary for at least the door-it weighs about 200+ lbs. If you were determined you could mayyyybe pull it off solo, but not worth trying in my opinion. 😊

[@suzieprater8083]

Hi Jay! Hope your vacation is going great! I have a question, today I have been checking out the studiobricks booth Vo edition. There was an extra charge on the quote for a whisper quiet ventilation system. It was like a $500 extra charge or more. Do the VO edition booths come standard without a ventilation system? Or is this add on charge fora different type or better type of ventilation system? Thanks,. Also, do you think the One size is big enough for VoiceOver or do you think the One Plus is a better choice?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Hi! As far as I know ALL of the Studiobricks have the ventilation built into the overall cost and is part of the sound isolation of the booth. So it’s not so much an ‘extra charge’ as it is just an itemized bit of the purchase. You might be able to request one custom without if you really wanted, but I’m not sure if that would cost more or less. Regarding ONE vs ONE PLUS, I think that’s a personal decision. Personally, if I had the space in my apartment, having a little bit more room in the booth would be great.

[@suzieprater8083]

I went back and took a look again at the quote. And what they do is, list the cost of the ventilation system separately, but it's included in the total cost. I guess it's something that could be left out, but for me, I would definitely want the system because I cannot stand to be hot when I'm recording. It makes my nose run and my sinuses go haywire. I think the One Plus would definitely be a better fit but it's the same for me...space matters in my house. Thank you!@@jaymyersvoiceover

[@muzikAlex]

Hey Jay, Thanks for taking time to make this video. I had a question, I’m Moving into an apartment and wanted to make sure my neighbors (with a shared wall) won’t hear me belting it at night. Would you say for a loud singer like myself this would work? Should I got with the triple wall pro to be safe? Or do you have any suggestions or advice? Thanks so much!

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Of course! And good question. According to Studiobricks, there’s roughly 45db reduction in sound varying across frequencies with the standard version. So when doing louder work myself, where I’m shouting or projecting above normal speaking voice, it’s definitely still audible outside the booth but pretty heavily dampened. I’d say it’s maybe similar to if you were singing in a car with the doors shut, or perhaps a bit more. So with that AND the wall between apartments, I think you’d likely have some decent isolation depending on how paper thin your walls are. Provided you’re not cranking to 11 100% of the time maybe. However, if it will help you mentally in practicing to have that extra third wall it might be worth it for you I suppose. But hey if you’re a good singer (as I’m sure you are) maybe a little sound bleed is okay 😉

[@muzikAlex]

@@jaymyersvoiceover thanks Jay for taking time to respond. Really appreciate you. I’ll keep all this in mind for my decision. Bless you bro!

[@ryvlaw]

I'm really nervous about the boxiness of it. How big of a problem is it actually? I mean you said the bass traps are a must-have but compared to bigger spaces, how much worse is the Studiobrick?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Hey! Thanks for your question. The boxiness is more than manageable between the bass traps and relatively simple EQ. A VO booth this size will likely always sound somewhat 'boxy' relative to a larger recording space, but the audio is definitely still good. Hope that helps!

[@zorroscuro]

Hi Jay, how low of a noise floor have you been able to achieve in this booth? Thanks!

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

It’s basically non-existent. -70 and below

[@zorroscuro]

@@jaymyersvoiceover Thank you! Good to know. I am designing a VO/Music recording booth for my home and am weighing the cost/benefit aspects. Cheers.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

@zorroscuro sure! Lmk if you have any other questions

[@lolamiley]

How well does this cancel out things like footsteps, TV at normal volume in another room, conversations between people (particularly male voices) etc. I live with other people and they can’t stop their daily lives for my job haha. I’m mostly doing audiobooks right now so long form narrations have been an absolute pain because of how much I need to pause for these sorts of sounds. I’ve had to resort to night time recording which isn’t ideal.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Oh I hear that. If you’re in a separate room it should do a pretty darn good job across the board. If you’re setting up in a shared room with people, it does a decent job dampening audio to usable levels, but you’ll still get some bleed depending on the sensitivity of your mic. If you were to use a dynamic/broadcast mic with a tight pickup pattern and lower sensitivity than a Large Diaphragm condenser, you might be okay in a living room with intermittent conversation/walking/TV at a lower volume. Hope that helps!

[@lolamiley]

@@jaymyersvoiceover I’m in a separate room! I’m upstairs and they’re downstairs, and I currently just have a PVC booth with blankets which provides a nice sound, but virtually zero isolation and lots of noise bleed. I feel like this booth might make my life a lot easier haha

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

@@lolamiley I know that struggle all too well!! Haha yes in that case this or a similar booth would likely do wonders for you. Just be sure that your second story is structurally able to handle the weight, as these can be around 1k lbs

[@Unlucky_Vampire]

I’m a little nervous about buying one because they don’t show prices

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

A totally understandable concern! The prices vary depending on your location due to the shipping costs. If you email them they’ll provide you with a quote that factors in current manufacturing and shipping costs.

[@Asif-it]

I have make my vocal booth in just 180 $

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

That's awesome!