DIY: $10 Microphone GOBO - Sound Dampener Shield

I've seen mic GOBOs for sale at $100 or more and happened to find a couple of items at Walmart to make one for only $10. It only took 15 minutes and a pair of pliers. *MORE INFO:
*Walmart doesn't always have this stuff in stock, so:
PARTS LINKS (Amazon.com):
Paint Grids (5 gallon): amzn.to/2sobenu
A/C Foam Panels: amzn.to/2rAUFln
Acoustic Foam Tiles (better): amzn.to/2tqHS6a

[@LZZL9]

are you kidding me? this looks even better than the ones you buy for $100, that little strip looks great. I don't know if it works that well but you inspired me to do the DIY thing for my studio, thanks man great vid and result :D

[@Jarek-Kh]

Funny...this vid is over 3 years old, and when I went to Walmart yesterday, that foam was still on clearance. haha Can't wait to try this.

[@shondo2010]

Loved the idea. I actually purchased some acoustic foam but used your idea. I took a rotary tool and drilled holes through and screwed everything to a 3x2 piece of wood. I took my mic stand to the hardware store and found a nut that would fit the threads on it and drilled a hole just barely big enough for the nut in the center of the wood and BOOM I was ready to go. It was a little more money and time, but I have a perfect product for my studio that people can't tell is home made. YOU ROCK!!!

[@iynque]

Great project, and perfect information density (these KZbin DIYs can drag on sometimes, or skip over important bits completely). Masterful, sir.

[@travisshawnhill86]

To mount the GOBO to a stand, I took a standard mic clip, and removed the screw and top clip, leaving only the mount with a 6mm hole in it. I drilled a hole into the bottom center of the GOBO frame, using a 6mm titanium drill bit, center punch, and a drop of oil. I found a bolt, nut and washer in my garage, threaded the bolt through the frame, and then the mic clip mount. I picked up a basic mic bar ($5) to mount both the GOBO and a mic to a single stand. Works great!

[@randallknaus9248]

I gotta say man. You are a man after my own heart. I grew up with McGyver as a father. Your shell was right on. I have been thinking about making my own for some time but the framing was fantastic and truly lent itself to this project perfectly. I did my own thing, with layers and such but the framing was absolutely perfect! I must thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing this. Now I have what I always wanted but just couldn't pull the trigger on price-wise. Thank you. Seriously, thanks.-Randall

[@DaveEricSmith]

The "bars" of the grid (frame) are just one piece of metal folded over and pinched together - you can pry that open on one grid to create a sort of "V" groove, or channel that the other grid can slide into.

[@Daniel_Antonio_Arellano782]

Excellent idea. If we take the time to improvise, we can get the same results I have seen in recording studios with a much smaller budget . Thanks for posting this. Of course we need the appropriate sound equipment which was impossible to get back in the day. There was none. You HAD to go to a recording studio to record. I'm glad I got to see and use this advanced technology of today to do our own recording.

[@altpath]

This has to be the simplest (and cheapest) way I've seen to do this, and I'm already fairly handy so I won't have any trouble. Great idea!

[@DaveEricSmith]

The difference it makes depends on the room you are in currently. If you have a lot of reflective surfaces (empty walls, mirrors, windows, hard flooring), then this will *help*, but not completely solve your problem. Its main function is to keep your voice from echoing around the room, and it does help - but I'd suggest some Auralex foam on the walls in addition. ;)

[@catboyzee]

Suggestion for mounting this stand: Set it on a concert music stand turned horizonally. Come to think of it, you could also mount it to the music stand vertically using a couple of clamps. I tried the first idea and it worked for me. Gonna go out and try the clamp idea next. Stay tuned...

[@flowmaka]

This has been the best diy shield I have seen. I’m gonna put some clamps on the back for a mic stand. Kudos for this presentation!

[@MirandaMulkey]

Very nice! A lot of people only focus on the foam part. I like how you added the metal grid too! You have awesome skills!

[@methtal-chris]

Holy shit! I stumbled upon this video by accident and while watching it, I immediately thought: "Wow, this guy should be a voice actor." And wow! You are! :) Awesome voice. I'm jealous. ;)

[@shondo2010]

Very, very cool!!! I just bought some acoustic foam with the intention of making my own reflection filter(s). Since I placed the order I've spent hours playing with the idea in my head. I actually found you by mistake on youtube. You ROCK my friend. I absolutely will be sending you pics or perhaps even a video of my finished product. Thanks!!!!!!

[@reddsofine1]

I just made this a few minutes ago. However, I'm going to use leather for the back to cover up the metal and make it look more professional. I also used the lil plastic sticks that came with the insulation and put them on the sides of the vocal reflector. Looks really good.

[@wigon]

I love your video! A lot of the "Do It Yourself" videos like this for audio recording tend to be people showing off their nerd techy skills. You do it the way 98% of us would do it which makes your project FAR more do-able for most of us. lol!

[@travisshawnhill86]

Also, I found I could get a much nicer, rounded look to the frame by instead finding a plant pot about 1' in diameter, and using its side as a guide to slowly and gently bend the frame into a curve.

[@Funnymanjordan94]

you gave me a good idea man and saved me a lot of money, its people like you that make a difference

[@LuckeySev]

I just made mines. Thanks for the video man. I used acoustic foam. I drilled holes in the middle of the top and bottom of the grid where the two were connect. I put clamps on the holes and secured it on the mic stand.

[@rong5008]

it actually looks just as good compared to other DIY booth...thumbs up

[@ViktoriaLiv]

How did you fix it to the mic stand?

[@RockPlays]

man you saved me a ton of cash ive been looking for something like this for a hot minute but i didnt want to spend 100 to 150 bucks on it thanks man. My youtube vids will now sound even more awesome then when i first upgraded from a generic 5 dollar mic to my blu yetti woo hooo!!

[@CitrusXVA]

Just made mine. I had to go to Home Depot and spent a little over $20, but it's still comparatively a bargain. Thank you for the inspiration.

[@bsan2123]

I've done exactly what he told me to do and it works perfectly. I've made a mount and everything. The total was only $15 for this project.

[@bsan2123]

+James McGilvray The air conditioner foam itself didn't do any justice (which I still appreciate his idea), so what I did was use other types of thin fabrics and foam I found laying around my house. Then added acoustic foam on the outer layer. It opened up my vocals significantly and reduced reverberation. The frame he made I've secured it with nuts and bolts. Then used a cnc machine to make an attachment for the stand.

[@DaveEricSmith]

And it's people like you that take the time to leave a nice comment that make me feel like making more videos to help nice people like you. ;) Thank you.

[@laurabrown1971]

One of the Best Ideas of SoundProofing is "SoundProof Curtains" That Stops Outside Noise by 80% (25 Db) Tested. Check Here: livesoundproof.com/best-soundproof-curtains/

[@LifeAsANoun]

Why no sound test???

[@wyldeslash2003]

I made this today! Thanks for the great video! Took 30 minutes. I didn't use glue tho. The foam came with these plastic clips that snapped perfectly on the sides and locks the foam to the metal frame

[@wyldeslash2003]

***** i found it next to the air conditioners.

[@vedasticks]

Great video on how to make a homemade Gobo. Im not so sure on soundproofing a closet though as it could turn out to produce a lifeless vocal sound. Part of the the magic in vocal sounds is capturing the room sound. But it may turn out to be great for some things

[@KMNC85]

Awesome, thanks. I will say that the linked materials are now up to $25 for the insulation and grids alone, but still much better than $150, of course.

[@duujo]

Thank-you so much for making an (efficiently) edited video! So many (unnecessary) 9 minute sloths around. I would guess that anyone trying to make this kind of thing is capable of filling in the blanks.

[@acetail]

I wish I would have saw your video first. I just made one out of a 1 inch binder and acoustic foam. Works great but yours looks way better. Thumbs up homie

[@SkipnRansom]

Awesome. Thanks. Makes a great table top GOBO! It's so sturdy it can sit flat on your desk. I have a Meteor Mic. Perfect. No - it's not an entire soundproof room - but you can't go wrong saving big bucks with this!!!!

[@synthejayzer]

I made one - used auralex foam, L bracket, small bolts, small piece of aluminum sheet for strength, black spray paint, contact cement - ask me for pics

[@CitrusXVA]

Rockin'! I'm actually going to Walmart tomorrow, so I'll be adding these materials to my shopping list.

[@scottieswirv]

dave u a smart dude thanks

[@IanMcClintock]

A decent solution to mount this to the mic stand might be to devise a way of attaching some 5/8" strut cushion clamps to the top and bottom of it. Brings the cost up a bit, but it would still be much cheaper than the commercial one.

[@rachelshelley4779]

SMART! I was just at Walmart looking for stuff to use. I feel like I need to go back and get this instead. I went for a cardboard backing with 1" fabric foam that I planned on double layering. Problem is there is no pattern to the foam. Maybe I'll bite the bullet and return both of them and go with what you've got.

[@ervinfowlkes8326]

It's hard to tell how well this works given the back ground music.

[@greglikeegg]

awesome! my wife loves your narration! good job. i would like to see more front pics and more explanation of how you attached it to the mic stand. i'm off to home depot!

[@LCREEDTV]

@SoundOnSite yep thats youtube for ya!

[@AMVGODAmbrosius]

EVEN BETTER!!!! - You can get some acoustic foam from guitar center, pretty cheap. there is a pack of 2, 12"x12" foam panels for about $13. Or, what im doing, is a 4 pack of 2"x2"x24" acoustic foam bars for $10. im going to cut them in half to 12". That will make 8 bars. Then 3 of them will be cut in half long ways, making six, 2"x1"x12" bars. For a total of 11 bars, with a coverage area of 12"x22". They will alternate from the 2" thick bars to the now 1" thick bars. OR i might just cut 1/2" off of each of them, making eight - 1 1/2" thick bars and eight- 1/2" thick bars for a total coverage of 12"x32"

[@clemson99]

Neat idea and the money you saved from this can go towards you're closet soundproofing.

[@fluesterchen]

Thank you for this video, exactly what I was looking. Already had the foam but wasn't sure what to attach it to.

[@bkanderson2659]

I'm in the middle of building mine, it's coming together nicely! For extra strength I put pop rivets through the tabs after clamping them. A question: Does it matter whether the ridges in the foam are horizontal or vertical, or is that just a cosmetic detail?

[@DaveEricSmith]

I wish I would have put more detail in this video when I first assembled it, but I didn't know anyone would actually care about this... I kind of captured a few shots just in case, but now am realizing a lot of the steps that aren't shown should have been. In answer to your question, just pry apart the rails on one grid into a "V" shaped groove, and you should then be able to slide the other rail into it. Then pinch all of it back together. Hope that helps. ;)

[@0Valcan0]

I made one of these for my home studio and it works great! Thanks for the great idea!

[@MrUnique27]

I want you to know that you hae inspired em to create my own. I have already made it over about 1 year now. What I take picture of it I will post it. Thank you for the inspiration.

[@Wourghk]

It does. It will dampen the high frequency reflections above 2.5K. However, it does nothing to help the mids and bass, which is what professional reflection filters aim to do.

[@healthyful]

You have a great voice and I am sure that you are in the voice over business! Thanks for the info! I am going to try yours, you are very smart!! I Just bought my first mic a Cad U1 USB and graduated from my internal mic on my Mac. Do you have any tips on how to use microphones. Either I feel like I am too close, or too far.

[@SkylarsYT]

followed your advice and its looks like exactly what i need. havent got to try it out yet when i do ill let you know how it works

[@MrKayjae]

did this today and it came out great and i mounted it on the mic stand thanks man

[@diegogiudici]

Great idea Dave, thanks a lot!! For all the people who was asking how to get it mounted to the mic stand, I developed a solution for that. Please search DIY: GOBO - Sound Dampener Shield UPGRADE - Mount for mic stand Thanks once again!!

[@tinymien]

this is perfect. I've been wanting to buy the pro one but its a bit costly. I am so going to do this. what a great idea thank you.

[@awesomeworstgamer]

Good Job! I love the background music... instant subscription!

[@Calismax-whostolemyname]

excuse me sir i have a question. if i were to cut the foam in strips and align them off set (i.e at peak point on one strip would meet a valley on the immediate strip after) would this help dissipate the sound or is it best to keep it uniformed all the same

[@mortiswell]

Awesome idea, but is there any chance of a tutorial? I've got a boom stand, but am having trouble figuring out how to piece it all together.

[@xxivslop]

2nd best video I've seen for DIY

[@chillchillin8623]

this is awesome! thanks so much. I'm gonna get started on building one today!

[@theBEATPiRATEtv]

I made mine and looks nice

[@636Soldier]

how do you mount it with wire to the mic stand take pic of it please send it to me this is a fantastic thing you made

[@CBaronDrexel]

This seemed like a really good idea, however you need polyurethane foam in order to maximize sound absorption. What you've got is urethane foam which is a slightly different compound and does not have the same elastic, viscoelastic, acoustic and viscoacoustic properties that polyurethane does. It LOOKS legit though! And its definitely better than nothing.

[@MoeMNM]

+Chris Baron where can u get polyurethane foam??

[@CBaronDrexel]

Moe MNM I ordered mine on Amazon :) The paint grids worked quite well.

[@CoSHurePhi413]

Wonder how he mounted it to the mic stand.

[@matrixate]

Lol. Nice bro. As long as it works. Instead of making a sound booth, just hang a moving blanket, done. If you still hear sound, get a second one.

[@jeffhollon395]

I built this tonight. (putting together my home studio.) Instead of bending rails together, I used zip ties. I have one question...how do you connect it to the microphone stand?

[@SlayerSOE]

I did this with Cardboard paper and Insulation Foam, SAVED $200 TOO 😂

[@TheCmusgrove]

Thanks so much man!!! I need one of these for my home studio and can't afford it. I CAN NOW!!! Much appreciated brother!

[@thesweetmelody1]

Dude what was that you used to stick the foam to the crid? excellent tutorial by the way!

[@DaveEricSmith]

@91ROYO Thanks dude. The cheap factor is why I originally decided to do it too. ;)

[@shakaama]

I love you sir. and I like the doors idea too.

[@danielortizdecaracas]

really good idea, its very looks professional like a factory made, thanks a lot...

[@beholdtheturtle]

Could you give a bit more detail on 0:39 , how you went about prying open the bars? I've been trying and warped mine beyond repair.

[@creatoranddistractor]

Seriously this is awesome, but how do you mount it to the stand. That's what I'm trying to figure out.

[@jbandshahayeah1862]

Well done. I think this is a great video and it was exactly what I was looking for the only thing you need to explain his how to mount it on the mic stand

[@scrapmetal1515]

That foam will remove high frequencies but the problematic low and middle frequencies remain. you need to add layers of dense materials to absorb bass. Also, too dense materials will cause a proximity effect and you will get standing bass waves aka modes in the spot your mic is in.

[@Fucknuts4u]

+scrapmetal - What about Auralex acoustic foam, can I cover the frame with that and make it work?

[@TrueNorthArts]

Awesome! I'm going to make one.

[@mrbsred1]

I might give this a go. Cheers Dave!

[@DaveEricSmith]

A lot of people ask how to mount this once you've finished, and I apologize that I didn't cover it in the video. It's going to vary based on the mic stand/arm that you have. Unfortunately, I didn't plan that part out well and wound up using zip ties to fasten mine. While it isn't very professional, it holds it in place. If someone figures out a good way, please shoot a video and reply to mine! Thank you all! :)

[@FerrariFredro]

nice work..thats pretty neat..have you started on the vocal booth...

[@hagonzalez16]

Excelente idea. Me toca ver donde cpnsigo en Panama ese "filtro para aires acondicionado"

[@emcuniversee]

Thank you for helping me in 2021.💯🔥

[@CheezDinero]

I'm about to give it a shot

[@SteveCournane]

Great tips to make your own microphone gobos

[@iamceino]

Freaking simple. Thanks dude. I gonna be cranking out tunes now.

[@Trig242]

Hi Dave. I just started this as a project, I am having a difficult time seeing how the straightened rails connect. Do I open one side, and slide in the other, open all of the rails? etc. Considering that the metal frames are identical I'm just having trouble seeing how it fits together in a linear way, Thanks in advance for any tips/instructions!

[@SonnyByrd]

All these years later has anyone figured out how to mount this to a vertical mic stand??

[@chrisreign1]

you have any pics of how im going to try it just dont want to mess up do i have to take my foam off again and drill one 6mm hole in bottom of frame .

[@andreigarfola8916]

Hey Dave, would you recommend a 2 gallon bucket grid instead? They are 9 inch L x 8 1/2 inch W which is slightly smaller than the foam.

[@jordanbates8463]

Thanks! Working on building my own. Deffenently saved me money

[@CristianDMusic]

music sounds like you discovered a new way to make all humans and life on earth, happy

[@chrisreign1]

After you had straightened the bars on the paint grids how exactly did you connect the two together? Did you overlap one over the other?

[@DaveEricSmith]

@Blaze1000DD I think that is actually only one question... however, I can't answer it without knowing what microphone you currently have, what you use it for, and why you are considering getting a better one. Details? :P

[@MrTCWonder]

yeahh, this is great! and I'm about to go out and get the same merchandise. but i just needa know how to get it to connect or stand on the mic stand, in my case my boom stand..? help

[@EntropyAcolyte]

Is it heavy? I'm gonna try this. Really appreciate this info, thanks! TYBG

[@DaveEricSmith]

I used 3M spray adhesive. I imagine double sided tape might work as well.

[@BeatsMusicMan]

would the kind of foam used make a difference..i feel acoustic foam would work better..might be wrong..

[@djarems]

Is there anyway i can see a picture of the mounting bracket you made? Thx

[@violao206]

The frame is a great hack, but the foam does not do much. Better to substitute Rockwool and attach a burlap covering.

[@BabyDayra]

how did you get the clips of the grids to stay in place im trying with plyers but it isnt working. and i bought the exact same grids u have in the video.. please help

[@koopstamc]

Great job, but the million dollar question is how on earth did u mount this to the stand?

[@valentinadobrolevski9056]

Can you tell me what is the name of this microphone that you have and where to buy it ???????????? And THIS IS A VERY GOOD IDEA

[@DeAngeloDixon]

I have 2 questions, should i stick with what i have now or should i get a high quality microphone???