How To Turn Your Closet Into A Professional Recording Studio

Getting professional audio from home is easier than you think!

For the first 4 years working in voice over, I used my walk-in closet as my recording booth. Nothing fancy, but it got the job done. In this video, I talk about exactly what you do need to get quality audio right at home.

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**VOICE OVER EQUIPMENT THAT I USE***

Whisper Room (3.5' x 5')
Output Platform mixing desk

Disclaimer:

This group is for new and existing Voice Over Artists who want to learn how to maximize their revenue and land more jobs.

[EPHONIC]

Lawnmower comes on. I throw the neighbor a beer and a few bucks. Lawnmower goes off for 30 minutes. Then a new problem: I can’t throw the pilot a beer and a few bucks. :-)

[chrisdeville]

It's great to find all the info here on YouTube about getting started in voiceover work, and I like your delivery and clarity. However, I feel that you haven't really answered your own title question of "How to Turn Your Closet Into a Professional .... Studio." You talked a lot about whisper rooms, which obviously are not affordable for novices, and you mentioned starting out in your own closet with your clothes as a sound absorption benefit, but there is no further detail about what physical steps we could take to successfully make a usable studio out of a closet. Any comments on that, @Bill DeWees?

[mrkinla]

A newbie here. I used to volunteer reading audiobooks when I could go into a studio a few times a week in Hollywood, but technology advanced and the organization is now home-based. I have a helicopter problem;; we are in the flight path and LAPD copters consistently fly to and fro over my home, and LAX has rerouted air traffic over our neighborhood as well, but its not has bad as the copters. . Otherwise my neighborhood is "cemetery" quiet 80% of the time. The only other issue is I have a neighbor behind my backyard wall who periodically entertains with family and they literately put up Peavy speakers and the music reverberates the entire block. I can feel the bass in my floor. He's a really nice guy and this only occurs about every 3 months or so, and I end of leaving my house because there is nothing else I can do until the "party" is over. No TV, no reading, no naps, etc. That being said, there is a closet that I could possibly use. I will also explore the whisper room idea. Thank you, Bill, for the video.

[MrDoot_]

I actually made that mistake. I was super excited to get into voice-over and I bought a $1000 mic, a $300 preamp, a $100 interface, and I built a $500 recording booth. Of course, I've gotten use out of them now, but I should've waited for sure lol.

[endlessoul]

Nice! Whisper Room sponsorship! Great stuff

[daniellewoodard]

I just purchased a sound proofing box to start out with for now. I want to eventually put up blankets and sound proof panels at some point. Have y’all heard of anyone having good audio with the sound proof box? Thanks!

[SnyderHealth]

Hey Bill? Always love your information. But, I have to ask... what the heck is it with this new style of video you're doing, where you have 1, 000 video cuts in a 3 minute piece? By watching your hand movements and stuff I can tell that you are not just eliminating errors or extraneous stuff. It almost seems like you're either constantly cutting out one or two frames every other word for effect, or you're just trying to shorten the videos length by a few seconds. And either case, it's something that you never used to do, and it is ridiculously distracting. Just my humble opinion. Still, love all your videos. Thanks for posting them.

[armandoc]

Enjoyed the video. I connect to what your saying, it happen to me with my neighbors. So, i work at night. And yes, i like not being in traffic everyday during a commute to work. Thank you Mr. DeWees for the info on that portable sound proof room. I'll be looking into that.

[DanielleBaylor]

I don't even have a closet to work in. Built one behind a curtain. Really needing to figure out how to get my audio more crisp

[DidacticEditions]

Could please tell me he size of the cabin you're in? I can make such booth, but I am worried about being able to record myself (English teacher).

[HostAndrewColon]

Great video as always, Bill. Having quality audio is one less thing to worry about when you're in front of the microphone so you can focus on performance! I started with a homemade wood "box" lined with a mattress topper, and fortunately now have a pro enclosure, and I wince when I hear some of that audio, but ya gotta start somewhere! Cheers from Cancun!

[sambit]

Some spot on advices Bill,
The fear of the live session!!, I downloaded a noise gate even for working with skype because it is embarrassing when the client hears birds chirping, dogs barking, wood cutting in the background-a lot of frustration on top of which you have to put up a smiling "voice" to do your job.
Also working with the cash flow instead of debts. That is the major advice keeping me from going and spending money on another microphone because I am so in love with them, I dream about a 416 everyday even though I know I can EQ my current mic to sound almost similar.
Spending more time in the post to get that consistent audio quality, noise reduction, noise gate, EQ curves-learned a lot and still feel underconfident comparing myself to other pros. It does feel great to work towards that professional audio quality one step at a time, makes me impatient at times but still amazing at other times. Thanks for sharing your experience!

[RaysIllinoisHomes]

I am looking at framing out a section of my office, 6'6" foot tall, 4'6" long and 3'8" wide. My concern is it will be too small and affect the sound, curious on what min size is necessary to get a good sound without be too muffled, or does it matter?

[johnziegler]

Hey Bill, thank you for this today! Right now I am working in a small bedroom in my house. Outside as I write this (when I actually should be recording an audiobook which is due!) there is a pack of semi-wild dogs, an honest to God catfight over a flea-bitten female of obviously low morals, a motorcycle race about a quarter mile away, and at least three different karaoke festivals (here in the Philippines, you will be ostracized and disowned by your family if you don't do karaoke). Still, we make do here. I work mostly at night when the gratis sound effects are (hopefully) absent, and I am becoming very good at sanitizing things with Audition. It IS frustrating though, and I am glad that said what you did because it gives me hope for better things to come.

[DavidAranovich]

Thanks Bill! Am I missing the link on Whisper Room? I dont see it.

[DEADIKATED]

I got my whisper room 6X4 for $500 on OfferUp!

[md]

Bill, I would really like to know--are you using the single or double-walled whisper room?

[honestly]

Hi. So I don't have a closet per say. It's a standing wardrobe. Is there another way to set up a recording studio without a closet?

[blackbluestudio]

Also, how to seamlessly edit, or at least get pretty close to making it look like it was one take. Always knowledge when I watch. Thank you.

[C-RSK]

I have so much junk in my closet and my closet is half my room so I need to make use of it tho the floor feels so light that it’s going to fall it’s a built in on with a bump going like up because theirs stairs under my room to ye