Soundtreating a closet...advice?

[Sole Signal]

I'm looking to soundtreat a 3' x 6' x 8' closet for voiceover/vocal work, and operating under the assumption that a dead room is optimal unless you have above average room acoustics. Right now anything I record in there sounds like, well, it's recorded in a closet.

1. Should I treat every square foot of the closet space, or is that overkill? I'm looking at this foam here: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/auralex-studiofoam-designer-kit

2. My room acoustics are not good for recording, for example, acoustic guitar. In general, if your recording space is not great, is it better to record an acoustic guitar completely dry and then add artificial reverb and effects? The closet might be too small in which to play, but perhaps it could serve as the backdrop for the guitarist...?

I don't have much experience recording vocals or instruments so I'd appreciate any thoughts on this.

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[XPRTNovice]

I don't know if this will help you or if other artists can corroborate, but someone I know went to home depot and instead of acoustic foam bought the cheapest carpet he could find - like 60 cents a square foot - and did his whole studio with it. It was cheap as hell, easy to install, and sounded great.

Just something to think about. A space that small would cost nothing.

[Sole Signal]

Thanks for the idea, just found some more good advice about 2/3 down the page: http://www.ethanwiner.com/acoustics.html

Aesthetics aren't unimportant for me; I'd like it to look nice and professional. At this point I'm leaning toward creating the "dead" closet space and then also treating the room/studio space for other instruments.

I also found cheaper foam here, but it doesn't look as nice: http://www.foambymail.com/acoustical-pyramid-foam.html

[XPRTNovice]

Not to argue, but the studio that was done in carpet actually looked really nice, because he took a tone that matched his wood shelves and put it neatly on the walls rather than ragtag.

[zircon]

I agree that thick carpets are very effective. Eggcrate mattress foam is also similar to acoustic foam, and generally much cheaper. Comforters and pillows in the corners will help. You may also try a standing baffle like this:

http://www.clearsonic.com/sorber.htm (S5-2L is two baffles next to each other)

[Sole Signal]

Not to argue, but the studio that was done in carpet actually looked really nice, because he took a tone that matched his wood shelves and put it neatly on the walls rather than ragtag.

Cool, admittedly my first thought of "cheapest carpet he could find" was "cheap" but that's great that it also looks nice. I don't mind spending a bit to make it work, but looks like there are some good less expensive options.

Still looking around, thanks for the ideas!

[Argle]

I asked on another forum, and an experienced mastering engineer told me that foam and carpet kill the high end but leave the low frequency energy (which is usually the most problematic anyway). I dunno. That doesn't sound very promising. Maybe just get one of those reflection filters.

[Vig]

It's a closet; start by hanging some clothes then see how it sounds.

[theshaggyfreak]

I actually converted a closet in my basement studio into a make shift vocal booth some years ago. I did put a bit of acoustic foam in there but I also have some boxes stored in there and that seems to have helped things too. This closet isn't of a normal size, though, since it's situated underneath a set of stairs.